Ontario retailer Hearken Audio always showcases systems made up of exotic products usually from distant lands by brands unfamiliar to me that, together, don't fail to be musical standouts at shows.

You know how they say that after a while dog owners start looking like their pets? I doubt it's true, but on the premise that it is, I wonder if the same can be claimed about brand names or store names; example: if you opened the "Best Gear Ever " store, would you, even subconsciously, feel compelled to seek out and sell the best gear? Would you try to resemble the name, to live up to it?

As editor, I love it when Stereophile reviews new equipment. "New" attracts readers. But there are good reasons to review stuff that's not totally new (though usually it is still shiny). The best reason is experience, first-hand: You hear a component at a show or in your own system. You're impressed and decide it deserves a closer look.

That's why I'm reviewing the CH Precision L1 line preamplifier ($34,500 in silver), which has been on the market for several years.

Another room exhibiting an EverSolo product was that of IsoAcoustics, which used a DMP-A8 streamer/DAP/DAC/preamplifier ($2700) to feed a pair of 350W PS Audio Stellar M700 monoblocks ($4500/each) and Aspen FR10 speakers ($13,999/pair)—two pairs, actually, one on regular spikes, the other on IsoAcoustics Gaia 2 isolation feet ($349.99/pack of 4), to allow for an A/B demonstration.

You want big-toned, vivid, seemingly effortlessly dispersed sound with a knack for delivering some of the most stable and incisively air-sculpted, but not fatiguing, imaging I've heard at the show?

This was one of my favorite demos at the show. It sounded so well balanced, it seemed to deliver everything in the right proportions. Bold but not in-your-face; tonally ripe but not too warm; detailed but not stringent; effortless but weighty, and so on.