Based in Austin, Texas, Brane Audio is a self-described audio-tech company. Its Brane X speakers can be deployed as a single unit—each speaker can deliver…
search
Although most of the products shown at T.H.E. Show in Costa Mesa lean toward the higher end and specialty markets, some affordable products from next-gen designers were mixed in, too—Chesky Audio's LC1 bookshelf monitor, for one, which has been receiving plenty of buzz. Another noteworthy example of a different sort—an active speaker—is the all-in-one Brane Audio Brane X portable speaker ($499) with a built-in true subwoofer.
Mastersound's Antonio Ferro showed four products, including the flagship Spazio preamplifier ($21,500; prices approximate and converted from euros). It's a multidrive‑stage preamplifier that uses six ECC82 and three ECC83 tubes, provides RCA and XLR inputs and outputs, and includes MM/MC phono inputs.
The new Mastersound single‑ended PF200 monoblocks ($100,000/pair) deliver 200W in class‑A via eight 845 tubes, feature automatically adjustable bias, and provide one XLR input.
Resembling the Mastersound 845 that I reviewed for Stereophile—now with updated…
This room presented a delightful enigma: a system consisting of largely unfamiliar-to-me brands that eclipsed much of the established competition. It delivered intricate detail and clarity with a sense of wholeness.
The system featured a Rockna Wavedream Reference Signature DAC ($28,500, all prices approximate and converted from euros), digitally interfaced with a Rockna Wavelight Server ($6900). The signal then passed through a Trafomatic Audio Lara line preamplifier ($10,900) before being amplified by a Trafomatic Audio Rhapsody power amplifier ($18,000). The loudspeakers…
Joseph Audio's Jeff Joseph teamed with Nick Doshi to present another fantastic‑sounding room at High End Munich.
The system included a Funk Firm Saffire turntable ($9800; all prices approximate when converted from euros) fitted with a Funk Firm FZ tonearm ($6800) and an Audio‑Technica VM760SLC dual‑MM cartridge ($800).
Korea's SOtM—Soul Of the Music—offers a range of digital equipment, and in this system it was abundant. SOtM gear included an sMS‑200 network streamer/server (€9100), an sMS‑1000SQ music server ($6000), an sDP‑1000EX D/A converter‑preamplifier ($4600), a…
This photo of the vast Munich venue, taken near closing time on the last day of the 2025 audio show, wraps up Stereophile's coverage.
Despite the impact of the Trump tariffs, Munich attendance figures were again impressive. With 323,000 square feet of exhibition space—that's seven and a half acres!—High End Munich '25 welcomed 10,562 trade visitors from 87 countries; 11,675 consumer attendees from 63 countries; and 581 media representatives from 43 countries. While the Munich event may not be audio's most popular—depending on how you count attendees, the Hong Kong, Warsaw, and AXPONA…
Drawn to the impressive sound and compact design of Ferrum's Polish-made, relatively affordable components, I was eager to visit the brand's booth and learn about the new 2.0.0 firmware update for the $2800 Wandla DAC. The update introduces Ferrum Streaming Control Technology (FSCT), which enables remote control of streamers and displays title and artist information on the DAC's touchscreen.
The new code also lets Wandla owners control volume over USB between the DAC and a computer, connect via I²S, and move more easily among inputs. According to Ferrum CEO Marcin Hamerla, metadata…
In the Marten Audio room—where Marten loudspeakers partnered with Audia Flight electronics and Jorma cabling—the main objects of attention were the striking Marten Coltrane Quintet Extreme loudspeakers. At $415,000/pair (all prices approximate when converted from euros) and with a production limit of just 10 pairs, these speakers are for listeners who don't merely gawk at unobtanium—they bring it home and plug it in.
The Coltrane Quintets were driven by Audia Flight Strumento N°8 Signature monoblocks ($98,000/pair) and a Strumento N°1 Signature preamp ($52,000). The rest of the…
From Munich's English Gardens to the Marienplatz, all audiophiles seemed to be talking about Qobuz Connect. I sat down over lunch with David Solomon to get the skinny.
Qobuz Connect, the French music-streaming company's answer to Tidal Connect, is a one-stop solution that lets you manage your music library and control streaming with the Qobuz app. To quote the company's website, "With Qobuz Connect, you can seamlessly switch from your headphones to your hi-fi system, and your music will continue from the exact moment you left off."
"If you use Qobuz Connect, there are no other…
A chance encounter with Daniela Manger, CEO and engineer of Manger Audio led me to the exhibit with the company's latest offering: the striking red, p2 floorstander ($15,000/satin matt lacquer - $17,900/Ultra high gloss), whose optimized driver has a stronger motor for faster response and more transient information. The specified frequency range is 30Hz–45kHz. (See Herb Reichert's review of the Manger Audio p1.) This passive speaker was demonstrated with (and without) a standalone external crossover, the SPL Crossover Mk2.
Manger told me that her latest "bending mode" driver, designated…
Italy’s Riviera Audio Laboratories, represented by CEO Silvio Delfino and designer Luca Chiomenti, introduced the new AFM‑70 monoblock power amplifier (price TBA). The launch follows the release of recent Riviera models such as the APL‑1 line‑stage preamplifier and the AFS‑32 stereo power amplifier, both priced at $28,000.
The class‑A AFM‑70 delivers 70Wpc into 8 ohms, and 140Wpc into 4 ohms. Its hybrid design incorporates triode tubes, bipolar‑junction transistors (BJTs), and MOSFETs. The amplifier uses zero‑feedback circuitry and offers both RCA and XLR inputs.
…