LATEST ADDITIONS

After a 15-year hiatus, Italy's Zingali Acoustics returns to the US courtesy of importer/distributor Reference Components Ltd with the Twenty 1.2 EVO Thirtieth Anniversary Edition loudspeakers ($21,045/pair in walnut finish). To these ears, the re-introduction is notable, because Hilary Hahn's violin sounded glorious on her performance of Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No.1. Sweetened by Cary Audio's 27Wpc CAD-805 RS single-ended triode monoblocks ($15,995/pair) with a host of new, old, and NOS tubes and a Cary SLP-98P preamplifier ($4995) with Tung Sol tubes from the 1940s, the sound was magical.

Darrin O'Neill's Audio Limits, located outside Las Vegas, showcased an impressive system that included the debut of the Audiovector R8 Arreté ($69,995/pair) and Thrax Libra 300 Differential Balanced 300B tube preamplifier ($57,500). The four-way speakers are claimed to have a frequency range of 22Hz–52kHz, 92.5dB/2.83V/m sensitivity, 8 ohm impedance, and the capacity to handle up to 500W power.

When Wayne Carter told me that his company, San Diego-based Wayne Carter Audio, designed audio systems for rock stars and also distributed Margules Audio tube products, I knew I had to pair one room with the other. The potential contrast between Carter's "vintage mastering system from 30 years ago"—assembled partly for fun and partly as a tool to help customers understand what was and is possible—and Margules's diminutive gear was too delicious to resist.