Well, we just got back from three entire days in Silver Spring MD.
Site of the 2014 Capital Audiofest. Over 30 rooms of stereo systems and a convention room filled with 3 times the head phones & head phone accessories than I thought could ever exist.
Hell! I even listened to a couple of them.
As the title suggests, there are some good things to report ….
And some not so good things to talk about.
But one thing is for sure, we will be back next year.
Guaranteed!
I have a lot of photos to sort through, & I will start posting them in segments so as not to use up too much bandwidth at one time.
Though I am somewhat sad to report the turnout seemed less than last year making it a double-edged sword of sorts.
While that made for a better atmosphere for the show-goers who were there (less crowded hallways & rooms & more time with systems, retailers, designers & owners) it may bode ill winds for creator, organizer & promoter Gary Gill (who I talked with at length & will cover later) as he begins work on next year’s event even before the conclusion of this one.
But we must wait for the official tally before making such assumptions.
I do know that many of the vendors were not too concerned as there were sales being made during the entire event.
Tons of equipment, some good, some great, some true crap & even a couple real-world priced pieces that actually provide value to real-world music lovers like us!
I will get to the equipment soon enough, but what really made this year’s show special to me was the people.
I spent far more time talking with people than I did listening & I will be writing extensively about some of my favorite & not–so-favorite people I already know & others I got to meet.
For now, I will leave you with this, one of the show’s greatest audio travesties………
It happened in the Hickory Room, one of the lobby-level conference rooms used for the show. Apparently its maniacal characteristics were unknown to Merrill Wettasinghe & the other exhibitors who partnered there for the show.
Jeff Catalano, aka High Water Sound, was in the Hickory Room last year & learned his lesson the hard way. Amazingly, he found a way to nearly entirely overcome the worst this room could offer better than anyone before or since.
I was there Friday as John from IPI (a seller/maker of really good self-made R2R tape recordings) & Merrill were trying to get the room to work with the gear.
John & Merrill were working on bass issues when I left them mid-day Friday.
They seemed to be making progress.
Over the weekend, I kept dropping by to check on their progress.
Sadly, to my ear, for every step forward they seemed to take two backwards.
The best I heard it was mid-day Friday. The hi's were some of the sweetest I have ever experienced.
Of course horn mids are a wonderful gift from the audio gods.
The bloated bass (with & without the subs) never was fully sorted.
Too bad.
I'm sure these sound much better than what I heard.
Bill - on the Hill
Practicing Curmudgeon & Audio Snob
- just an “ON” switch, Please –
Well, we just got back from three entire days in Silver Spring MD.
Site of the 2014 Capital Audiofest. Over 30 rooms of stereo systems and a convention room filled with 3 times the head phones & head phone accessories than I thought could ever exist.
Hell! I even listened to a couple of them.
As the title suggests, there are some good things to report ….
And some not so good things to talk about.
But one thing is for sure, we will be back next year.
Guaranteed!
I have a lot of photos to sort through, & I will start posting them in segments so as not to use up too much bandwidth at one time.
Though I am somewhat sad to report the turnout seemed less than last year making it a double-edged sword of sorts.
While that made for a better atmosphere for the show-goers who were there (less crowded hallways & rooms & more time with systems, retailers, designers & owners) it may bode ill winds for creator, organizer & promoter Gary Gill (who I talked with at length & will cover later) as he begins work on next year’s event even before the conclusion of this one.
But we must wait for the official tally before making such assumptions.
I do know that many of the vendors were not too concerned as there were sales being made during the entire event.
Tons of equipment, some good, some great, some true crap & even a couple real-world priced pieces that actually provide value to real-world music lovers like us!
I will get to the equipment soon enough, but what really made this year’s show special to me was the people.
I spent far more time talking with people than I did listening & I will be writing extensively about some of my favorite & not–so-favorite people I already know & others I got to meet.
For now, I will leave you with this, one of the show’s greatest audio travesties………
It happened in the Hickory Room, one of the lobby-level conference rooms used for the show. Apparently its maniacal characteristics were unknown to Merrill Wettasinghe & the other exhibitors who partnered there for the show.
Jeff Catalano, aka High Water Sound, was in the Hickory Room last year & learned his lesson the hard way. Amazingly, he found a way to nearly entirely overcome the worst this room could offer better than anyone before or since.
I was there Friday as John from IPI (a seller/maker of really good self-made R2R tape recordings) & Merrill were trying to get the room to work with the gear.
John & Merrill were working on bass issues when I left them mid-day Friday.
They seemed to be making progress.
Over the weekend, I kept dropping by to check on their progress.
Sadly, to my ear, for every step forward they seemed to take two backwards.
The best I heard it was mid-day Friday. The hi's were some of the sweetest I have ever experienced.
Of course horn mids are a wonderful gift from the audio gods.
The bloated bass (with & without the subs) never was fully sorted.
Too bad.
I'm sure these sound much better than what I heard.
Bill - on the Hill
Practicing Curmudgeon & Audio Snob
- just an “ON” switch, Please –