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T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

Eficion: a Very Long Lasting Treat

Jason Victor Serinus Jun 07, 2012

As familiar as I am with Eficion's flagship F300 three-way loudspeaker, which I discussed earlier I've spent little time with its smaller brother, the F250 ($10,000/pair). The wonderful sound in this room made me regret our late acquaintance. Although not ideal for my large listening room, the 3-way vented Eficion F250 with an Air Motion Transformer (AMT) tweeter has found its made-in-heaven complement in Z-Infinity Audio electronics.

T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

PTE Phoenix and Muddy Waters

Stephen Mejias Jun 07, 2012

I walked into Muddy Waters. Folk Singer. But there was nothing muddy about it. The clarity, in fact, was intense. Muddy’s voice was big and present, full of texture; his guitar was similarly powerful.

T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

Just in case you were wondering

Stephen Mejias Jun 07, 2012

Although I had a bit of a tough time navigating some of the halls, especially at the more meandering Atrium, signage at T.H.E. Show Newport was pretty good overall. You wouldn’t find audiophiles accidentally turning up at the Whitacker Wellness Institute.

T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

Positive Hospitality

Jason Victor Serinus Jun 07, 2012

More than Carol Clark's smiles were flowing in the Positive Feedback Online Hospitality Suite on the third floor. You could smell the spirits in the entryway, even before you got close enough to feel the positive spirit. I wish I could have stayed more than 90 seconds. But I doubt you would have gotten many more blogs out of this very light drinker if I had.

T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

Kim Wilson Photography

Stephen Mejias Jun 06, 2012

I was pleased to meet Home Theater’s Kim Wilson. If Kim’s not reviewing A/V receivers and preamp/processors, she might be taking lovely photographs of musical instruments, landscapes, city scenes, architecture, and more. During T.H.E. Show Newport, Kim had a small booth near the Atrium pool&#151not a bad way to spend a sunny weekend. You can see more of her work here.

T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

Babyjdrums Classic Vinyl and Audio

Stephen Mejias Jun 06, 2012

Jason Smith of Babyjdrums Classic Vinyl and Audio had tons of classical LPs for sale, almost all in pristine condition (many were even sealed), and at bargain basement prices. Smith also sells hi-fi out of his home; his brands include PTE, Musical Surroundings, Denon, Soundsmith, and Synergistic Research. And he’s a drummer, on tour this summer with the Albert Lee Band.

T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

Audio Note Meishu integrated amplifier

Stephen Mejias Jun 06, 2012

Audio Note’s Dave Cope was unusually glum: The E/SPe HE loudspeakers ($9650/pair; seen in a lovely Russian birch plywood) are designed to be positioned in the corners of a room, but doing so here, in the small Atrium suite, meant that they’d be tucked beneath a strange overhang that seemed to rob the speakers of their charm. The effect, however, was largely music-dependent and I nevertheless heard glimpses of Audio Note’s characteristic drama, tone color, and texture, albeit on a smaller scale. I have no reason to believe that this impressive system wouldn’t sound wonderful under better conditions.

T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

B.M.C.&#151Stage III&#151Tandem

Stephen Mejias Jun 06, 2012

John Atkinson reported on B.M.C.’s new Arcadia loudspeaker ($36,300/pair) from January’s CES. But B.M.C.’s Carlos Candeias has already upgraded his design with SpeakON connectors between the outboard crossovers and the speaker cabinets, improved internal wiring, and a revised magnet construction in the midrange drivers. In addition, the speaker’s spikes now screw directly into the speaker’s base for better grounding. The changes come at no additional cost. “We improved the model, but that doesn’t always mean you have to raise the price,” said Candeias.

T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

Audio Artistry CBT36

Stephen Mejias Jun 06, 2012

John Atkinson reported on Don Keele’s unusual constant-directivity CBT36 loudspeaker from last year’s Rocky Mountain Audiofest. At T.H.E. Show Newport, Keele and Marshall Kay, president of Audio Artistry, purposefully created an “economy system” (an iPad running Media Monkey, Benchmark DAC1, Crown preamp, ATI amplifier, Behringer DSP processor) to show how well the speaker could perform under sub-optimal conditions.

T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

Hi-Fi Chair

Stephen Mejias Jun 06, 2012

I sat in the Hi-Fi Company’s Hi-Fi Chair ($1500) and, while I immediately felt ridiculous, I also kinda sorta liked it. A lot.