I’d been in touch with Muarah Audio’s US distributor, Octopus Audio, ahead of the Munich show, as I’m currently reviewing the company’s entry-level MT3 turntable for AnalogPlanet. But having that deck in-house didn’t prepare me for the striking flagship MT1 EVO ($8700) or the new Ilumnia loudspeakers. And the room offered more surprises still.
The MT1 EVO, equipped with a $2250 Muarah MY-1/9 tonearm, was fitted with an Aidas Mammoth Gold LE MC cartridge ($11,300; all prices approximate, converted from Euros), and routed through the Polish-built Circle Labs V1000 phono stage ($11,000). Digital duties fell to a German-made Purist Statement server and matching DAC ($28,000/each).
For amplification, the system used a Circle Labs P300 preamplifier ($6200) feeding a pair of Circle Labs M200 monoblocks ($4800/each), which use NOS tubes and Mundorf Supreme Silver/Gold/Oil capacitors. The system drove Ilumnia’s Magister Novus MkII loudspeakers, made in Belgium ($51,000/pair). A static display of the Ilumnia Vocalis NE MkII (New Edition) standmount speakers was also present.
A GigaWatt PowerMaster Flagship Reference power conditioner ($27,000), various GutWire audio cables, and a Divine Acoustics MARS modular anti-vibration rack system ($13,560) completed the setup.
Björn Kraayvanger of Germany’s LEN HiFi hosted the well-appointed room, with Muarah’s Wiesław Zawada on hand for questions.
Ilumnia’s website says that the company’s Magister Novus MkII loudspeakers are built with free-floating cone technology, claiming “99.7% linear behavior and. . . no compression at all.” Mechanical resistance of the cone is said to be nullified “so there is no absorption of music signals, not even the tiniest one. . . The speed and linearity of this driver results in high resolving power of complex music.”
Ilumnia’s Adaptive Driver Control (ADC) lets listeners adjust the cone’s behavior from the listening position. As the company explains: “the position of the cone is fed back to the power supply, allowing the driver to be adjusted to different modes. . . with the aid of the new Ilumnia ADC app.”
It was startling to see the Ilumnia speaker’s reverse-mounted cone dance and ripple as music played. War’s “Low Rider” and “Summer” projected from the MT3 EVO led system with clear sound, filling the small room with sound that was laid back, grain free, and engaging. Ahmad Jamal’s “Milan” was also sparkling, floating and mildly visceral.
The MT1 EVO, equipped with a $2250 Muarah MY-1/9 tonearm, was fitted with an Aidas Mammoth Gold LE MC cartridge ($11,300; all prices approximate, converted from Euros), and routed through the Polish-built Circle Labs V1000 phono stage ($11,000). Digital duties fell to a German-made Purist Statement server and matching DAC ($28,000/each).
For amplification, the system used a Circle Labs P300 preamplifier ($6200) feeding a pair of Circle Labs M200 monoblocks ($4800/each), which use NOS tubes and Mundorf Supreme Silver/Gold/Oil capacitors. The system drove Ilumnia’s Magister Novus MkII loudspeakers, made in Belgium ($51,000/pair). A static display of the Ilumnia Vocalis NE MkII (New Edition) standmount speakers was also present.
A GigaWatt PowerMaster Flagship Reference power conditioner ($27,000), various GutWire audio cables, and a Divine Acoustics MARS modular anti-vibration rack system ($13,560) completed the setup.
Björn Kraayvanger of Germany’s LEN HiFi hosted the well-appointed room, with Muarah’s Wiesław Zawada on hand for questions.
Ilumnia’s Adaptive Driver Control (ADC) lets listeners adjust the cone’s behavior from the listening position. As the company explains: “the position of the cone is fed back to the power supply, allowing the driver to be adjusted to different modes. . . with the aid of the new Ilumnia ADC app.”
It was startling to see the Ilumnia speaker’s reverse-mounted cone dance and ripple as music played. War’s “Low Rider” and “Summer” projected from the MT3 EVO led system with clear sound, filling the small room with sound that was laid back, grain free, and engaging. Ahmad Jamal’s “Milan” was also sparkling, floating and mildly visceral.
