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Lindemann announced a group of four new gorgeous-looking music players all with preamp control built in: MusicBook 10:DSD (USB music player/$3,495), MusicBook 15:DSD (USB music player plus CD/$3,995), MusicBook 20:DSD (Network music player/$4,495), and the MusicBook 25:DSD (Network music player plus CD/$4,995 - pictured above). The network models support WiFi and ethernet. Also new are two models of matching Class D amplifiers.

It's bad enough that CES makes us advertise for Sony everywhere we go with those bright yellow lanyards. Now they've added a new "feature" to our badges: how long you've been going to CES.

In addition to having an awesome sounding setup in a smallish room, Simaudio's Lionel Goodfield was putting the final polish on the new Neo MiND. The Neo is a network streamer and music player that supports most PCM formats up to 24/192 and has a variety of output jacks for connection to your DAC. For networking, Bluetooth, ethernet and WiFi is included in addition to a SimLink in and out. Track sample rate and input choice are indicated on the front panel.

As Stereophile's minister without portfolio, my goal was to find something interesting that didn't quite fit into traditional categories. The prize was an introduction, at a Harman demo room in the Hard Rock Casino/Hotel, to Lexicon's SL-1 loudspeaker prototype (price TBD) and the SoundSteer technology that distinguishes it.

Distributor Axiss Audio was showing the new Piega Coax 711 loudspeaker ($25,000/pair). Everything in the speaker—including its coaxial ribbon tweeter/midrange, bass drivers, and all-aluminum enclosure—is designed and manufactured by the Swiss company.

Grand Prix Audio has two new equipment racks. The first is the four-post Monaco Nouvelle (on the left in the photo above, approx. $27,000-$30,000 for a four-shelf rack, depending upon options)…

Up and down the CES hallways, in line for coffee, and at every dinner, people kept asking, "Did you go to the MoFi room?…"

Rogue now introduces their first headphone amp/preamplifier, the RH-5 ($2495), which not only looks sleek and timeless in that oval-windowed Rogue way, it features three line-level RCA inputs and one pair of balanced XLR inputs.

An evolution of the original Genesis 5, which was designed by Arnie Nudell and released in 1994, the Genesis Maestro ($30,000/pair), designed by Gary Koh (above), is a highly efficient loudspeaker that can be driven by just a few watts.

Since you'll see the same smiling faces in two successive cable-company blogs, let's start by saying that cables from Crystal Cable and Siltech are made in the same factory, but have very different sounds…