T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

I first learned of Eficion loudspeakers several years ago, when Bob Walters of the Bay Area Audiophile Society discovered them at the Rocky Mountain Audiofest and thought them tremendous for the price. Since then, both Bob and I have enjoyed extended periods with the Eficion F300 ($16,900/pair). Here shown in striking white, the F300 is a 3-way, two section ported loudspeaker whose two sections hold a total of four drivers. (The supertweeter is hidden in back.) The F300 boasts a frequency response of 25Hz–40kHz and, with the right jumper cables between its two sections, an especially warm midrange. Special to this loudspeaker is its Heil Air Motion Transformer tweeter, which produces striking detail.

Given that the AMT likes a fast amp, the company's Peigen Jiang—PJ to those who find Chinese pronunciation difficult—prefers Plinius electronics. Here the Plinius M8 preamp ($5150) and SA103 400W monoblock amplifiers ($20,300/pair) were mated with a Pioneer BDP-531312 CD player modded by Z-Infinity and Schitt BiFrost DAC ($450). Cables were unspecified and unspecial.

The system threw a large soundstage that was very warm, with pleasingly three-dimensional images. The sound, primarily on instrumentals, was gorgeous. Experience tells me that, with a superior DAC and, between the speaker's two modules, Stillpoints rather than cheap kitchen liner, the sound would have been airier, more transparent, and even more three-dimensional.