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Montreal Audiofest 2024
Classé Audio, Bowers & Wilkins, DR Acoustics
Robert Schryer  |  Mar 25, 2024  |  1 comments

For a couple of years now at the Montreal Audiofest, Classé Audio and Bowers & Wilkins have been exhibiting together. That’s no surprise considering that both brands are owned (for the moment at least) by the same company, Masimo. (Medical-device manufacturer Masimo may soon be spinning off the former Sound United home–hi-fi brands.)

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Montreal Audiofest 2024
Le Studio du Son: Java HiFi, Galion, Eversolo, Perlisten, XLO, Richard Gray’s Power Company
Robert Schryer  |  Mar 25, 2024  |  0 comments

And now for more from the Montreal show.

You want guts? You want music with explosive dynamics, effortless sonic propulsion, and a bass beat that punches so low and hard it makes you sit up at attention? How about if with all that power came high-level transparency, dimensionality, tonal purity, vocal naturalness, and microdetail?

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Southwest Audio Fest 2024
Stenheim, Infigo Audio, and VPI with Van den Hul
Mark Henninger  |  Mar 25, 2024  |  0 comments
This powerful yet precise system was tasked with filling a small ballroom with sound; in the process, it delivered a captivating performance. A pair of Stenheim Alumine 5 SE speakers ($72,000/pair) did the heavy lifting.
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Southwest Audio Fest 2024
Sound Lab, Berning, and EnKlein
Mark Henninger  |  Mar 25, 2024  |  0 comments
Sound Lab is an electrostatic speaker specialist. The company's G745-3C ($20,000/pair) debuted at the first Southwest Audio Fest. These speakers aren't small, but they are suitable for relatively compact spaces, thanks to the panels' modest 20" width.
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Southwest Audio Fest 2024
Børresen Acoustics M6 and X6, Axxess, Aavik, and Ansuz
Mark Henninger  |  Mar 25, 2024  |  0 comments
At the Southwest Audio Fest in Dallas, Børresen Acoustics took a room and outfitted it with two killer systems. The cost-no-object system featured the flagship M6 speakers; the other showed the capabilities of the more affordable but similarly imposing X6 towers.
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Southwest Audio Fest 2024
Acora, VAC, Esoteric, Clear, and Cardas
Mark Henninger  |  Mar 25, 2024  |  0 comments
VAC and Acora were a compelling combo at SWAF 2024. In this demo, a pair of granite-bodied Acora SCR-2 loudspeakers ($48,000/pair) sounded rock-solid powered by a pair of VAC Essence amplifiers ($9900/each).
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Southwest Audio Fest 2024
Estelon Forza Speakers, MSB Electronics, Taiko, and Synergistic Research
Mark Henninger  |  Mar 25, 2024  |  0 comments
This superb high-end audio system, featured at the Southwest Audio Fest in Dallas, included Estelon Forza speakers ($170,000/pair) in dark silver liquid gloss powered by MSB M500 mono amplifiers ($75,000 each).
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Southwest Audio Fest 2024
YG Acoustics Sonja 3.2 with Constellation Audio, Audio Research, MSB Technology, and Pure Fidelity
Mark Henninger  |  Mar 25, 2024  |  0 comments

Southwest Audio Fest v1.0 in Dallas, Texas, was the site of the North American debut of the YG Acoustics Sonja 3.2 loudspeaker.

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Southwest Audio Fest 2024
MBL Radialstrahler 120 Speakers and C41 Player
Mark Henninger  |  Mar 25, 2024  |  0 comments

Now, before we return to Montreal, here's more from the Southwest Audio Fest.

You won't mistake an MBL speaker for any other. No matter what size MBL speakers you buy, you will get the same unique 360-degree dispersion driver technology. The company's smallest and most affordable entry point into its line of speakers is the Radialstrahler 120 ($26,500/pair), which was demoed in Dallas.

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Montreal Audiofest 2024
SPL, PMC, Luna Cables
Robert Schryer  |  Mar 24, 2024  |  8 comments

The first thing I thought when I spied SPL’s component rack was how nifty its gear looked—neither too large nor too small, with faceplates just the right size to accommodate their features with style.

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