Duplicating the system that had me enthralled at AXPONA 2012 with its clear, warm, and deliciously color-saturated sonic canvas, Peter Ledermann of Soundsmith was showing four cartridges at THE Show. Chief among them was the still-new Sussuro Hyperion OCL ($7000) with its cactus spine CL assembly. Available in an OCL diamond profile for the same price, this baby comes with a 10-year warranty including diamond retipping. Nearby were the Sussurro ($4500) and Sussurro Paua ($3500).

Enabling them to make beautiful music were a VPI HRX with JMW 12.7 arm, Soundsmith Counter Intuitive device for VPI arms ($49) and the new Vivenda Soundsmith VP anti-skating device ($299), Soundsmith MCP-2 Phono Preamp ($699) featuring built in step-ups and continuously variable loading from 10 ohms to 5k ohms, Soundsmith HE-150 Zero Feedback MOSFET power amplifiers in monoblock configuration ($12,999 each), and Soundsmith Dragonfly Speaker system ($1999/pair). To quote one of Peter's oft-played LPs, Walkin' On Sacred Ground indeed.