RMAF 2011

The Signal Collection exhibited a small and elegant system made up of the unique Davone Audio Ray loudspeakers ($7500/pair), jewel-like Absoluta Partenope integrated amplifier ($15,995), super skinny (just the way I like them) Black Cat Morpheus loudspeaker cables ($350/3m pair), and Stereolab Tombo interconnects and power cable (prices to be determined). MA Recordings Todd Garfinkle was selecting the tunes from his collection of wonderful SACDs and playing them through a Korg MR2000s digital recorder/playback unit ($2499).

The Absoluta Partenope integrated seemed to be hovering just above a simple hotel cabinet. Closer inspection revealed that it was actually sitting atop a set of Black Ravioli tuning devices. These cute little pads are said to improve bass and tighten image focus by sucking vibrations right out of the system. Several options are available. The original Black Ravioli costs $38 each; prices go up to the $399 Big Foot 3.

We listened to a track from Peter Epstein’s The Invisible, and I was impressed by the clarity, impact, delicacy, and scale of the overall presentation. Listening to Vlatko Stefanovski’s Krushevo, I was reminded again of humankinds’ ability to create marvelous beauty. I could have stayed and listened all day to Garfinkle’s recordings and stories. Fascinating and beautiful stuff.