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What I love most about the CanJam-CanMania world of headphones is, when I enter these rooms full of tables stacked with gear and cans; all laid out into individual listening stations; each with its own folding chair, DAC, amp, and headphones—all with table cloths and tangled wires—I am reminded of those ham radio meets I used to attend. Those tribal rooms were always alive with a collective vibe of discovery—just like here and now. CAF 2017's CanMania was no exception, and, exactly like those old hamfests, there are tubes everywhere.

And of course, the most hamfest-tubealistic of all is (as always) Justin Weber's Ampsandsound table...

On Sunday morning, my Capital Audiofest 2017 experience began in the Hilton's Washington Auditorium, as my friend and colleague Herb Reichert (above) and I hosted a seminar titled "The Virtues of Vintage."

In this video, we visit Tyll Hertsens, Editor of Stereophile's sister site InnerFidelity.com, in Bozeman, Montana. Tyll is a connoisseur of headphones and portable audio products, and is somewhat of a YouTube sensation within the headphone community. (Truthfully: Having spent most of my "early audiophile" years experimenting on headphone mods and lurking on headphone forums, I'd been watching Tyll's headphone review videos long before I ever knew about Stereophile's existence.)

Because I'm ill-disposed to flying—when you get right down to it, I'm not wild about traveling in general—I usually go by train. That's where I'm working on this portion of my CAF 2017 coverage. (We're near Trenton, New Jersey as I write this.)

Just one week after Capital Audio Fest, the three-day New York Audio Show opens on Friday, November 10, in Manhattan's Park Lane Hotel. With two live references close by—the great outdoors of Central Park is just one block away, and Carnegie Hall is just one block farther in the other direction—the three-day show promises 25 or 26 active listening rooms and up to 100 brands.

Obscure Sixties Soul Singer Rediscovered...