HE 2007

I'd seen the Bolzano Villetri TorreBV HF 3005 ($11,400/pair) at last year's CEDIA Expo, but I was felled by bugs in the spinach and BV was hobbled by a display area in the corridor in front of the convention center's main space.

But I was intrigued by the company's "counter aperture Round Stream Technology," which aims drivers in the speakers' top and bottom modules at one another to create "monopoles of pressure," which generate omnidirectional sound.

A short audition demonstrated they did that pretty well. The room was so packed late Saturday afternoon, I had to listen way at the back almost out the door. The center stage was still well-filled and solid. I came back later, snagged an empty listening chair, and was impressed by detailed, robust sound.

I suspect we're going to hear more from these guys.