Capital AudioFest 2022

High Water Sound's Jeffrey Catalano is a an evolved being, existing on a higher plane, his rooms part meditation, part deep music immersion seminar, part discovery/journey. Year after year, Jeff assembles some of the best-sounding rooms you'll ever hear at any show. And often with equipment as unique and revelatory as Jeffrey himself.

This year at CAF was no different, Jeff's system and choice of vinyl inspiring, calming/stunning, informing and educational.

High Water Sound's front-end comprised a TW-Acustic LS 3 Motor-Copper turntable ($24,000), Gianz 12" tonearm with Tzar DST SPU cartridge ($13,500), TW-Acustic Raven 12" tonearm, and Miyajima mono cartridge ($3475), plus a Massif Audio Design record weight ($1000). Amplification included the TW-Acustic RPS-100 phono stage ($25,000), and a New Audio Frontiers, 25Wpc into 8 ohms, 845 SE integrated amp ($28,000). The speakers were illuminating: Horning Hybrid Systems' Aristotle PM 65 loudspeakers, specified at 96dB/2.83V/1m with an impedance of 4 ohms, ($24,000/pair). Cabling by Zen Sati; Stein Music and Shun Mook room acoustics; Silent Running Audio Ohio XL platforms, and Codia Acoustic Design 2 stage 5000S racks.

Unlike most hi-fi systems, where the listener is aware of each component's role, Jeff's system was like a single organism, the electronics disappearing in service to the music. Deeply resonant, it reproduced recordings from Melanie de Biasio, Nat Adderley, Kimiyuki Takahaski, Antoine Pierre, and a Jazzanova remix of Jill Scott as a moving meditation in sound.