Munich 2025

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Munich 2025
Joseph Audio, Doshi Audio, SOtM, Funk Firm: Kicking Ass and Taking Names
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 14, 2025  | 
Joseph Audio's Jeff Joseph teamed with Nick Doshi to present another fantastic‑sounding room at High End Munich.
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Munich 2025
Ferrum's Firmware Finesse: An International Ear for Audio
Jason Victor Serinus  |  Jun 14, 2025  | 
Drawn to the impressive sound and compact design of Ferrum's Polish-made, relatively affordable components, I was eager to visit the brand's booth and learn about the new 2.0.0 firmware update for the $2800 Wandla DAC. The update introduces Ferrum Streaming Control Technology (FSCT), which enables remote control of streamers and displays title and artist information on the DAC's touchscreen.
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Munich 2025
Tune Audio, Trafomatic, Rockna: An Enigma in Sound
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 14, 2025  | 
This room presented a delightful enigma: a system consisting of largely unfamiliar-to-me brands that eclipsed much of the established competition. It delivered intricate detail and clarity with a sense of wholeness.
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Munich 2025
Mastersound: Teaching Old Tubes New Tricks
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 14, 2025  | 
Mastersound's Antonio Ferro showed four products including the flagship Spazio preamplifier ($21,500, prices approximate and converted from Euros). It's a multi-drive stage preamp with six ECC82 and three ECC83 tubes, RCA and XLR inputs and outputs, and MM/MC phono inputs.
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Munich 2025
VAC, Acora, VPI, Esoteric, Hana, Cardas: All Killer, No Filler
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 13, 2025  | 
Valerio Cora (Acora Acoustics/Audio Research), Kevin Hayes (VAC), and Mat Weisfeld (VPI) worked the halls in Munich with the confidence of seasoned entrepreneurs, showcasing their US-made gear at the world's biggest high-end audio show.
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Munich 2025
AMG, SoundSpace, Vitus, AudioQuest: Joy to the World (of Analog)
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 12, 2025  | 
The combined talents of Analog Manufaktur Germany (AMG), Dr. Michael Plessmann’s SoundSpace Systems, and Denmark’s Vitus Audio produced a distinctive and sophisticated sound at High End Munich.
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Munich 2025
Voxativ's Latest: Another Charge for the Senses
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 11, 2025  | 
Inés Adler's contagious passion for audio is built right into her components, and it makes every Voxativ visit a blast. At this year's High End Munich, Adler showed two new products: the Voxativ Streamer/DAC with FM-DAC technology ($16,000), and the Hagen2 Monitor Compact full-range loudspeaker with AF-2A AlNiCo driver ($6900/pair), the first iteration of which Herb Reichert recently reviewed for Stereophile.
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Munich 2025
A Dane and a Greek Walk Into a Convention Center…and Create Something Joyous
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 11, 2025  | 
No joke. Epaminondas Gaveras of Greece's hARt Lab and Joakim Juhl of Denmark's OePhi Audio joined forces to deliver a sound that wasn't just loud and forceful, but joyous—igniting both mind and body. These two lesser-known brands deserve your attention. They certainly demanded mine.
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Munich 2025
Ypsilon, The Wand, and Speakers That Matter
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 11, 2025  | 
Having previously reviewed Simon Brown's The Wand 9.5"-tonearm for Analog Planet, I was eager to experience the Wand 14-4 Master turntable ($7500), equipped with the world-premiere Wand Dark Light Tonearm ($7550, or $13,675 for the package) and a My Sonic Lab Eminent EX MC cartridge ($3995).
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Munich 2025
Onkyo Is Alive and Well (Case in Point: Its New Icon Series)
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 11, 2025  | 
Guess who's back from the brink of existence? It's Onkyo, the storied Japanese audio brand that filed for bankruptcy in 2022. Like Mark Twain's rumored demise, reports of its death were greatly exaggerated. In Munich, Akihisa "Alec" Watanabe, project leader at Onkyo Technology, and Dave Gans, VP of Marketing & eCommerce at Premium Audio Company (Onkyo's U.S. distributor, which also handles Klipsch) convinced doubters that the brand is alive and well.
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Munich 2025
A Little Boom Goes a Long Way: Avantgarde's New Twin Sub
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 11, 2025  | 
Avantgarde Acoustic provided a close look at its latest offerings, including a new compact subwoofer, the Twin Sub (price not yet announced).
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Munich 2025
With New Reference Speakers, JBL Scales a Sonic Summit
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 11, 2025  | 
"Immerse yourself in extraordinary acoustics and thrilling inspirational insights," trumpeted the JBL "Summit of Sound" press release. Present at the event were Harman Luxury Audio top brass Dave Tovissi, Jim Garrett, and Paul Neville, with Harman's David Glaubke moderating.
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Munich 2025
Glory and Hallelujah: My Time at Kondo Audio Note
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 11, 2025  | 
My last stop of the show was a real highlight. The only Kondo Audio Note equipment I'd heard up till then was at a friend's home in New York City. His setup included a Kondo Ongaku integrated amplifier, a Kondo KSL-SFz SUT (step-up transformer), Kondo silver interconnects (KSL-LPz and Ls-41), and Kondo KSL-SPz silver speaker cables. The sound was consistently beautiful, very natural, with a touch of romanticism.
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Munich 2025
Tonar — A Cartload of Cleaning, Clamping, and Candy
Ken Micallef  |  Jun 11, 2025  | 
If it's large and yellow, it's got to be Tonar! The European analog-accessories giant showed up in full force at Munich, its towering yellow signage and jam-packed booth instantly switching my brain into consumer overdrive.
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Munich 2025
Aequo's Ensium Speaker: Three Drivers, Two Halves, One Hell of a Debut
Jason Victor Serinus  |  Jun 08, 2025  | 
Impressively full-range sound was the hallmark of a fine system dominated by Aequo Audio's new three-driver Ensium speakers with active, room-corrected bass ($44,900/pair, or approx. $40,000/pair in the passive version). Connected by AudioQuest cabling (approx. $100,000), with Aequo's own Ferroguard power cables ($4100) for the woofers, the Dutch company's speakers absolutely sang. As I discovered from playing musical chairs, the sound was at its best in the front row; there, on Yello's "Till Tomorrow," colors were the most saturated and involving.
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