Audio Note / Déjà Vu Audio

Nothing soothes the frayed nerves of this CAF reporter like an Audio Note UK system, which consistently provide some of the most human, sweet, natural sounding hi-fi equipment at shows year in and year out.

Hosted this year by local dealer Déjà Vu Audio and chief technician, Pierse Chaisson, Audio Note played CDs by Vivaldi and vinyl from Johnny Cash, leaving me feeling blissed out and satisfied,a meditative sonic peace injection.

Spinning vinyl was an Audio Note TT-3 turntable with the power supply upgrade ($9412.89), with an Audio Note Arm 3 ($2465.52) and the Audio Note IQ3 Cartridge with Pocon body ($1248.56). CDs were played on the Audio Note CD 5.1x ($30,849). Both analog and digital signals flowed through Audio Note AN-V interconnects ($1171.33/meter) into the recently introduced Audio Note Meishu Phono 300B Tonmeister Silver integrated amplifier ($12,453.12, 8Wpc into 4 or 8 ohms), which was attached by Audio Note SPe 3M biwire cable to Audio Note AN-E SPe HE Speakers ($12,453.12/pair, 98dB into 8 ohms). The speakers sat (or stood) atop Audio Note An-E Signature Stands ($2923.54). The rest of the equipment stood (or sat) on a Salamander Barcelona Audio Rack ($2199). The front wall was treated with Acupanel.

The Audio Note rig did scale, tone, depth, and dynamics. Antonio Vivaldi’s Concerti Pour Hautbois, Basson Et Cordes, performed by a septet (Astrée Auvidis E 8537), was a low-key revelation: the oboe was reproduced with pungent weight, the septet with surprising scale and energy. Johnny Cash singing “Lucky Old Sun” from American III: Solitary Man (American Recordings 0600753441701), was similarly robust with effortless dynamics and room-filling solidity.

I asked Chaisson: What’s the most frequent comment he hears from visitors to the Audio Note room? His reply: “This is the most natural sounding system. I feel like I could listen all day.”

I heard that.

COMMENTS
tonykaz's picture

Can you arrange for a "Proper" review of an Audio Note piece ?

I've never seen anything from this outfit but heard plenty of compliments about them.

I'd like to open up one of their devices and have a close look except I've never encountered anyone that actually owns one. Are they too pricy ? Hmmmm...

Tony in Florida

John Atkinson's picture
tonykaz wrote:
Can you arrange for a "Proper" review of an Audio Note piece?

I've never seen anything from this outfit but heard plenty of compliments about them.

Stereophile has reviewed several Audio Note products over the years, Tony. For example see www.stereophile.com/standloudspeakers/506an/index.html and www.stereophile.com/content/audio-note-cd-41x-cd-player. However, this UK brand has had occasionally sporadic distribution in the US.

John Atkinson
Technical Editor, Stereophile

Allen Fant's picture

Nice coverage- KM.
Always good to see an AN CD 5.1x

Ortofan's picture

... "the most natural sounding system", then the gauntlet has been thrown down to Harbeth's Alan Shaw.

Perhaps, he needs to go back to the drawing board and develop a Radial III cone material?

Or, use less a "cheesy" grade - as GR Research deemed them to be - of parts in his speaker crossover networks?
https://youtu.be/34ZLOMndBjM?t=564

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