"Shot?", said Boris. It was more a command than a question. He poured Beluga vodka into my glass. "My father drank three shot every day," Boris said. "Lived to 87." Boris Meltsner is the owner of Amped, a very fine range of class-D amplifiers. I was visiting him at the 2024 Capital AudioFest (CAF) in Rockville, Maryland. Boris hails from "Soviet Union, not Russia," he said in an accent as thick as a potato-filled piroshki. "Was called Soviet Union when I left."

Visiting CAF is a joy for me. I recently sold my company, Music Hall, and I was already missing the camaraderie of my industry colleagues and the fun of playing and listening to music.