I spoke to Bart Andeer, one of the show's co-founders, who first pointed out that "sold out" isn't precisely the best word choice for a show with free admission. And then he gave me the skinny.
Using the maximum capacity of each room—think: fire code—and the number of rooms at the show, Bart (with others) calculated the show's maximum capacity, then adjusted that to account for no-shows and walk-ins. They used that estimate to set the maximum number of pre-registrations at Eventbrite.com.
Eventbrite preregistrations have sold out for all three days.
When I walked outside to take some pictures, I heard an attendant telling drivers that the parking garage is full.
If you're in the area, though, don't stay away, even if you're not pre-registered; they're going to keep letting people in until there is serious concern about unsafe conditions, and they haven't reached that point yet (or had not when I walked upstairs to write this post).
Oh, and there's satellite parking across the street.
And there's plenty to see. For a smallish regional show, there are a lot of big names here: MBL, VTL, VAC, a few new companies—and several new product debuts.
Speaking of debuts: Julie Mullins, formerly of TAS, is covering the show for Stereophile. We're happy to have Julie onboard.
