Zingali Acoustics, JMF Audio, Pear Audio Blue, Top Wing, and Levin Design Dance in Unison

Zingali Acoustics, JMF Audio, Pear Audio Blue, Top Wing, and Levin Design Dance in Unison

In an extremely large 2nd floor room, products from two US distributors, Reference Components and Audio Skies, joined forces in a single, powerful all-analog system. Of special note, on the LP Paris, were the absolutely compelling soaring silvery highs that Hilary Hahn's violin produced as she flew through Prokofiev's first Violin Concerto.

TriangleArt's Gold Almost Goes Solo

TriangleArt's Gold Almost Goes Solo

Ensconced in one of the Hilton Long Beach's larger rooms, Tom Vu had intended to present an all-TriangleArt system until the Great Egyptian Shipping God in the Sky announced total displeasure at the state of the world. Demanding a sacrifice for our collective sins, GESGitS blew a gasket and chose as his victims TriangleArt's Metis loudspeakers ($59,999/pair), which never reached the Hilton Long Beach. Borrowed Usher speakers saved the day.

Alma Audio Showcases Audio Alto, Hi-Fi Rose, and IsoTek

Alma Audio Showcases Audio Alto, Hi-Fi Rose, and IsoTek

Alma Audio of San Diego went all out at T.H.E. Show, with three different rooms showcasing different products at different price points. Dominating their least-expensive room were Audio Alto's made-in-Slovenia AA 1A stereo amplifier ($1990), AA 1P preamplifier ($1990), and AA R101FR loudspeakers ($4000/pair).

The Latest Loudspeaker from Jim Suhre

The Latest Loudspeaker from Jim Suhre

Jim Suhre, 86, is an independent speaker designer who for many years has brought his latest designs to audio shows. He didn't have a name for the speaker system he showed at Long Beach, which will go for $9000–$10,000/pair, but he did explain that his full system includes an integrated module with balanced interconnects and only one power cord.

AXPONA!

AXPONA!

I'm writing this one week after returning from Schaumburg, Illinois, where I attended my first real audio show since the Florida Audio Expo in early 2020, just as the pandemic was starting to gain momentum. Everyone I talked to was hopeful, but no one could predict what attendance would be like or what people's attitudes would be.

Sunny Components Scores Again, this time with Vinnie Rossi Brama, Meitner MA-3, Neodio Origine, Bowers & Wilkins 802D4 with DB1D sub, AudioQuest, and HRS

Sunny Components Scores Again, this time with Vinnie Rossi Brama, Meitner MA-3, Neodio Origine, Bowers & Wilkins 802D4 with DB1D sub, AudioQuest, and HRS

Only as I was leaving this room did Theresa Merchant tell me that when she, her husband Sunil, and the Sunny Components team first encountered the abysmal acoustics in this room, they thought all was lost. Thanks to the set-up acumen of David Ellington, AudioQuest Director of Sales for Independent Dealers, and a bunch of acoustic paneling, the room was a major success.

Common Wave Hi-Fi Sails JVS to Paradise with QLN, Innuos, Nagra, Kuzma, Dynavector, and AudioQuest

Common Wave Hi-Fi Sails JVS to Paradise with QLN, Innuos, Nagra, Kuzma, Dynavector, and AudioQuest

"This has to be one of the best sounding rooms at T.H.E. Show," said self to self. Listening to Count Basie and his Orchestra's rendition of "After the Rain," the beauty, clarity, and absolute spot-on rightness of every single high-end parameter I could think of impelled me to write in my notes, "The price reflects the pedigree of the sound."

Common Wave Hi-Fi's Club Room

Common Wave Hi-Fi's Club Room

There were no seats available. Nor was there any real reason to sit. Assembled partly for the fun of it, with components more common to DJs than audiophiles, Common Wave Hi-Fi's Club set-up was designed for enjoyment plain and simple. You've got to hand it to a dealership/social gathering place that devotes as much time to entertaining its guests as selling equipment. They go hand-in-hand, actually, if you do it right.

Common Wave Hi-Fi's Uncommonly Good Showing: DeVore O/Baby speakers, Audio Hungary Qualiton electronics, Merason DAC 1, Michell Engineering Gyro SE Turntable and Cusis E cartridge, and Innuos Mk3 Streaming Server

Common Wave Hi-Fi's Uncommonly Good Showing: DeVore O/Baby speakers, Audio Hungary Qualiton electronics, Merason DAC 1, Michell Engineering Gyro SE Turntable and Cusis E cartridge, and Innuos Mk3 Streaming Server

Hands down winner of my "Anything but Hotel California" Unusual Music Award, the first of Common Wave Hi-Fi of Los Angeles' three rooms kept platters spinning and visitors happy.
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