Reporting on High End Munich is like navigating a blizzard. As I pushed from room to atrium to hall to lobby, products seemed to whiz by me, their presenters vying for attention in this international maelstrom of hi-fi. Amid my mad dash, a small speaker manufacturer from Sweden caught my attention: Guru.

Danish loudspeaker maker Storgaard & Vestskov, a relatively young company, operates from Bornholm, a small island in the Baltic Sea. Their 150,000ft² production hub handles everything in-house: R&D, milling, varnishing, and final assembly.

Being an audio reporter definitely has its perks—like when you're in a spacious Munich room, listening to top-tier systems deliver music with astonishing scale and precision.

T.H.E. SoCal show, held once again at the Hilton Orange County in Costa Mesa, California, kicked off today (Friday, June 6). It will run through Sunday, June 8. It's the show's 3rd year at the venue.

One of the things I value most in life is clarity. In my work, in my intellectual pursuits, and in my relationships, I try to cut through the noise and find the place where I can clearly see facts, goals, feelings, the big picture. If I can find clarity, it's much easier to form opinions, make plans, and take action. Success becomes more likely.

In audio reproduction, my values are similar. I can't enjoy music if the system is producing a clouded, muddy, overly warm, or otherwise unclear sound. I want the electromechanical representation of music to be richly detailed, sharply focused, and full range in dynamics and frequency. In that kind of all-encompassing and attention-demanding aesthetic, I can truly hear what the music is about. Under those conditions, the nature of the recording—good or bad, craft or crud—is plainly heard.