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Last year I liked these HRT (High Resolution Technologies) Stage loudspeakers ($500/pair, plus $800 for companion Sound Anchor stands), and this year I love them. They're the same very pro-audio-style modular loudspeaker—you can assemble them in multiple pairs for more power output in larger rooms—but this year, two pairs combined sounded perfectly large and super-articulate playing Mahler's Symphony 3 conducted by Zubin Mehta (on Decca). What was most impressive was the easy way the $500 HRT Stage integrated amp/DAC drove these little beauties.
Despite the untimely and tragic death of a D'Agostino family member just before CES, the D'Agostino Master Audio Systems exhibit was open. Their Progression monoblock amplifiers ($36,000/pair) were installed both there and in the dCS room; I did most of my listening to them in the latter, where a pair of Progressions in black—which Hi-Fi+ editor Alan Sircom described as "darkly stunning"—were driving Wilson Alexia loudspeakers. Rated at 500W into 8 ohms, the Progressions function as a voltage source, doubling the power with each decrease in load impedance, resulting in 1000W RMS into 4 ohms…
This year marks the 45th anniversary of Mark Levinson Audio Systems. To commemorate the occasion, Mark Levinson's engineers partnered with VPI's Mat Weisfeld (seen above) to develop the Mark Levinson No.515 turntable. The platter is belt-driven and the speed-control electronics are housed in a metal case under the 'table. Mat suggests that the tonearm's clean, natural sonics are associated with its 3D manufacturing origins. The turntable-tonearm combination will be priced at $10,000, or $12,500 with a factory-installed Ortofon Cadenza Bronze moving-coil cartridge.
René Laflamme, Nagra's Sales and Marketing Manager, had one of the best-sounding exhibits I attended. His suite featured twin Nagra HD monoblock amplifiers ($82,500/pair), each rated at 1000W into 2 ohms and driving a Wilson Audio Alexx loudspeaker. Wilson Audio's Peter McGrath—who, like Laflamme, is an accomplished recording engineer—advised me that the Nagra installation allowed the Alexxes to develop the best bass he'd heard at the show. McGrath demonstrated the system's wide dynamic range and superb extension by playing Duruflé's Meditation, recorded on a Mühleisen organ. The notes were…
In the D'Agostino exhibit, pure AC power was fed to the Progressive monoblocks by a Stromtank independent power source ($30,000): a 276-lb enclosure in which a 16-cell Lithium phosphate battery pack stores up to 4000W, ultimately to be converted to pure-sinewave AC. Four hospital-grade AC outlets are provided for source components and an additional two outlets serve to support power amplifiers. Stromtank claims that their power source can provide between 5 and 8 hours of pure AC power between charges.
The Heisenberg—Audionet's largest and most powerful monoblock amplifier—was on display in a portion of the suite shared with YG Acoustics. The $105,000/pair, 150-lb amplifier is rated at 530W into 8 ohms, 1050W into 4 ohms, and 2100W into 2 ohms. Its frequency response is specified as 0Hz–700kHz, –3dB. The floating panels of the chassis are resonance-optimized by massive brass pads on an aluminum frame. Like the Audionet Max monoblock ($30,500 per pair)—a pair of which drove the four-tower YG Acoustics Sonja XV loudspeaker system with impressive soundstaging and dynamics—the Heisenberg uses…
In the YG Acoustics-Audionet suite, the sound on playback of Jake Shimabukuro's ukulele wizardry came closer to matching his live performance than in most rooms, perhaps as a result of the excellent match between the Audionet Max monoblock amplifiers and YG Acoustics Sonja XV loudspeakers. After Jake finished playing, YG lead designer Yoav Geva (holding the uke with Jake) and others gathered around for a group photograph.
For most audiophiles, the name that has been associated with the design of TAD loudspeakers is Andrew Jones. Jones is now with Elac,
and TAD's current offerings have had no design input from him. However, the CES 2017 demo of the TAD Micro Evolution One ($12,495/pair)—shown here with Jonathan Derda of MoFi Distribution, the importer—provided convincing proof of the engineering skill of TAD's current Japanese designers. The sound (with all TAD electronics) was simply superb: clean and dynamic, with precise imaging. The recording being played was by Prince, One Nite Alone
, released by NPG…
Based in the Czech Republic, Acoustique Quality is a highly sophisticated loudspeaker design and manufacturing facility that uses the latest technologies, including 3D modeling, five-axis machining, high-precision cutter saws, etc. The top of their line is the AQ Passion ($20,000/pair), a very substantial floorstander. What I found surprising was the fact that they have two stand-mounted speakers at the same price: Designer Vladimir Sapara is shown in the photo with the Passion Teen (left, $6000/pair) and the Orca (right, $6000/pair). Asked to explain the reason for having these identically…
CES 2017 was the occasion for the North American debut of Dynaudio's Contour series of loudspeakers. There are four models in this range, all manufactured at Dynaudio's newly expanded R&D and manufacturing facility in Skanderborg, Denmark. According to Dynaudio's Michael Manousselis, the new Contour models utilize a new Finite Element Method-optimized woofer construction, and have completely redesigned midrange and bass drivers, with the tweeter representing a further development of the famed Esotar2 soft dome. The model being demonstrated was the Contour 60 ($10,000/pair), the flagship…