AXPONA 2025

For years, my Stereophile colleagues have laid claim to Zesto Audio’s exhibits; so at this AXPONA, I was glad to cover a room where I could enjoy Zesto’s sparkling tube sound again.

On a 24-bit/192kHz file of Billie Holiday's inimitable late-career take on “A Foggy Day (In London Town),” from Songs for Distingué Lovers, the muted trumpet sounded delicious, and midbass tonalities were ideal. I loved how the combination of Zesto electronics and YG Acoustics Hailey 3 loudspeakers ($63,400/pair) projected Billie's voice upward, filling the room with her gifts.

Zesto chief designer George Counnas, long known for his tubed designs, introduced the new Athena vacuum-tube DAC ($15,000). It decodes files up to 32-bit/384kHz and DSD256, and includes AES, USB, I²S, optical, and two coaxial inputs, plus a ground-lift switch and both balanced and single-ended outputs.

On a Living Stereo LP of Fritz Reiner and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performing Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade, the system captured the beauty of the violin line and the vastness of the soundstage. Woodwinds sounded gorgeous. I wished I could have heard this setup in a larger room, but even in the show space, the system handled full-orchestra climaxes with ease.

Also in the system: Zesto Audio Andros Deluxe II phono stage ($8300); Leto Ultra tube preamplifier ($11,900); Eros 500 Select class-A monoblocks ($35,000/pair); Dr. Feickert Analogue Blackbird turntable with linear power supply ($9900); Tri-Planar Mk VII U2 Classic 9.8" tonearm ($7500); Ortofon 90X moving-coil cartridge ($3600); Stillpoints Ultra 6 V2 isolation feet, an ESS42-26-4 four-shelf rack, Aperture 2 acoustic panels and Aperture Silver stands; and Cardas Audio Clear, Clear Beyond, and Beyond cabling, plus a Nautilus power strip.