CAS 2015

Yes, boys and girls, there was yet one more distinctly superior system at CAS6. In addition to Bricasti, Elac/Audio Alchemy, and the two systems from AudioVision SF that included a varying combination of Dynaudio/YG Acoustics/Bel Canto Black/Pear Audio/Nordost and more, Michael Woods' Elite Audio Systems of San Francisco Kharma/CH Precision/Viola/Spiral Groove/ Primare/IsoTek and more system blew me away. Adding to his triumph is the fact that, on Thursday evening, a frustrated Michael (pictured on the right next to Kevin Wolff of Vana Ltd. and, on the left, Allen Perkins of Spiral Groove) had told me that he was having a near-impossible time controlling the room.

My first listen to the system, which was headlined by Kharma Elegance dB7 loudspeakers ($25,000/pair), was via a Burmester 151 Music Center ($25,000) connected to a Viola Crescendo preamplifier ($22,000) and Viola Concerto monoblock amplifiers ($44,000/pair). The sound was a little hot for my taste. But when we switched the source to either the CD Precision D1 SACD & CD Drive ($33,975)/CH Precision C1 D/A Controller ($37,750) or the Spiral Groove SG1.2 turntable ($30,000) with Spiral Groove Centroid tonearm ($6000), Ortofon MC Anna cartridge ($8924), and the surprisingly much lower cost Primare R32 phono preamplifier ($1500), the sound was to die for.

On a CD of the Manhattan Jazz Quartet playing "Autumn Leaves"—perfect for the backdrop, you must admit—the trumpet had just the right amount of bite, and everything else sounded, to quote my notes, "just gorgeous, with a warm mellow midrange and great air around instruments. Gets all the tonalities. Best depiction of a horn at the whole damn show. Just perfect."

Then came the beginning of the same Iván Fischer Mahler Symphony 9 SACD that I've written about so many times in this blog that you must think I hear it in my sleep. (I don't; my sleep is far more restful and peaceful than was Mahler during the final period of his life.) The system's midrange was, once again, gorgeous, the bass control and extension superb, the strings maximally liquid, and the soundstage height and width stunning. This system brought out the bass drum that proclaims disaster approximately 6 minutes into the piece better than anything I heard at the show. Not everything on the SACD was perfectly clear, but the overall musical, visceral, and sensual experience was so wonderful that I can only say, in summation, this system delivered what the high-end is all about.

There was more music: the DCC Compact Classics LP reissue of Elvis is Back, which sounded superb; Reiner's The Reiner Sound LP of Ravel's Rapsodie espanole, which sounded maximally atmospheric and inviting; and a track from a Rachelle Ferrell CD that sounded fabulous.

Also doing the honors: a shitload of IsoTek components, headlined by the IsoTek Mosaic Genesis ($11,995) and four different models of power cords (from $2495 to $195 each); other cables from CH Precision, Crystal Cable, Kharma, and ZenSati; and a custom Tonebase rack & amp stands (NFS). Doing the high end proud: Michael Woods of Elite Audio Systems, San Francisco.

The best sound I've ever heard from a Zu system came via the Zu Definition loudspeakers ($12,750/pair), complete with their built-in bottom-firing woofer that can be dialed into the room, and the Whammerdyne 2A3 4wpc amplifier ($14,000). Along with a Rega P6 deck ($1600), vintage Luxman 444 (NFS), Zu/DL-103 pickup ($460), and Jena Labs cables, mellow jazz sounded just as it should, and the treble sizzle on a cut by Rodrigo y Gabriela was more than balanced by a fine midrange and lots of rockin' energy.

In this configuration, Pass Labs XA60.8 monoblocks, which are on deck for review and have been used for some time by John Atkinson, had far more midrange, superior depth, and much less sizzle, but their overall impact was a bit muted for such lively music. That, I might add, is not the case with Pass Labs XA200.8 monoblocks in my reference system, which are mated with different loudspeakers, cabling . . . the whole nine yards.

In a room replete with Audio Reference Technology (A.R.T.) cabling and tuning cones, the company had quite a lot of success with Tannoy Westminster Royal SE loudspeakers ($40,000/pair) bi-amped with Pass Labs' XA100.5 monoblocks ($16,500/pair) on top and XA200.8 monoblocks ($40,000/pair) on bottom. The preamp was Pass Labs' equally excellent Xs preamp ($38,000). Tonalities were as gorgeous as it gets. If you haven't heard the Pass Labs gear mated with compatible speakers and cabling, which is not always the case at shows, try to find a way to do so.

Nonetheless, while a FIM remastered CD of the Oscar Peterson Trio sounded gorgeous, the speakers simply could not cope with Mahler's Ninth. I know it wasn't the fault of the amps, because I've paired them successfully with Wilson Sashas and, now, Alexias, and Mahler Symphony 9 sounds glorious.

A word about A.R.T. is in order. In addition to A.R.T. cables, whose range in the room extended from the Low Frequency Effect AC/DC XLR ($955) and Super SE XLR interconnects ($5850/1.5m pair) to Monolith SE XLR interconnects ($1900/1.5m pair), the company has sets of Tuning Cones (above), both metal ($2050/set) and Wooden ($600/set). These were used throughout the room to tune and tame the environment. In fact, the company even wheeled in the hotel's grand piano so that its strings provided extra sympathetic resonance. Add them to the list of companies that use hard to comprehend, harder to explain why they work active and passive devices to tune equipment and rooms.

Finally, a regret that I shall repeat in my show wrap: It was only after speaking by phone with Michael Vamos of Audio Skies that I realized that the locked room I skipped on floor 3 was actually populated by Lavish Hi-Fi, Audio Skies, Larsen Speakers, and Pear Audio Blue. It seems that my visit coincided with a temporary absence by Dr. Craig Allison of Lavish Hi-Fi. Either that, or the room was locked because another member of the press was in there. Hence, there is no coverage of either Larsen Speakers or Allison's new Lavish Hi-Fi dealership.

For the record, my own personal policy on locked doors is this: I ask that rooms never be locked when I stop by. Nonetheless, it occasionally happens without my awareness, or against my express wishes. I'm all for closing a door to keep out music from systems blasting across the hall, but locking it is another matter. In fact, when I encounter locked rooms, I walk on by, and rarely if ever return. I find the policy of locking the door for "important" press abhorrent, because it communicates the message that we are somehow more important than folks who pay to get in. And that is certainly not the case.