The FLOW handles 32/384 PCM as well as DSD64/128 and in addition to its USB 3.0 and SPDIF optical inputs, there is a 1/4 inch/6.35mm headphone jack. Price is $1,295 with leather case and is available now.
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Aurender had a cool hand-size device in their room that not only functions as a normal DAC/Headphone amp for portable use, but also sports optional mSATA storage up to 1TB(!!) of user installable SSD, turning the thing into a player. I must admit the form factor for the FLOW is pretty seductive with a large velocity sensitive volume knob on the front and smooth satin aluminum case.
If this product has halfway decent sound, it should be a hit at $540 retail.
Included is a built-in USB DAC as well as analog line in and Bluetooth wireless capability for connection to smartphones and the like. Power output is 25 watts/channel (MOSFET Class A) and there is also a headphone jack on the front. A preamp out is also included if you'd like to use the MARS just as a tube DAC to drive your he-man amp. Looks well made and available now.
First time I've seen this manufacturer at CES, but WOW what a gorgeous product! I've included a couple more shots from their website so you can see how this Swiss jewel is put together. The aluminum chassis is surrounded on all four sides by glass, for example, and can sit vertical or horizontal.
Okay, it ain't cheap at $40k, but before you start howling about this in the comments, consider that sometimes it's worth it just to see what the human mind can create in the service of music. And like great art, you don't have to be able to afford it (I sure can't) to appreciate its…
With a major nod to ZenSati, who designed the cables, Viola Audio Labs' president and technical director Paul Jayson happily displayed the company's new cable line. Available at this time are the VC RCA interconnects ($1995/1m pair), VC XLR interconnects ($2730/1m pair), and VC Speaker #3 speaker cable ($5005/2.5m pair). Sporting the company's custom Viola blue-vinyl sleeve, the cables are solid-copper core with silver plating, and include custom Viola engraved terminations.
Nordost has just crossed the audiophile–musician border with their first Pro Audio products, the Ax Angel guitar cable ($250/3m) and Ax Angel power cables for keyboards and guitar amps ($200/1m). Said to be the world's first monofilament instrument cable, the Ax Angel guitar cable terminates with Neutrik connectors in either right angle or straight configuration, and includes a static shield. The cable lays flat, and is claimed to be so durable that you can stand it. Expect a higher-level model, as well as microphone cables, in the future.
For the high-performance market, Nordost's…
Larry Smith (left) and David Salz (right) of Wireworld have every reason to smile. Not only have they entered the headphone cable market with four levels of Nano cables for headphones and portables, and stand prepared to market a Starlight CAT7a media network cable ($TBD) that claims higher transmission speeds for streamed music and video, but they've also come out on top in a recently published cable listening comparison test.
Wireworld's Nano cables for headphones and portables include carbon fiber plugs, DNA Helix conductor geometry, and Ohno Continuous Cast solid silver conductors.…
Scot Markwell of Elite AV Distribution proudly displayed Furutech's top-of-the-line Nanoflux power cable ($4395/1.8m, almost 6 feet). The cable's wire is coated with Nanofluid, microscopic gold and silver suspended in squalene oil that fills in tiny gaps between wire crystals to improve performance. Nota bene: Squalene oil is derived from shark and plant sources. It is not be confused with the snake oil that few of those who equate it to the Unholy Bible have ever encountered, and that is sometimes used for medicinal purposes in Chinese medicine.
With the assistance of Jochen Fabricius, who designed T+A's new cable line, I learned that T+A's Speaker Hex ($1600/3m pair) uses new Rhodium contacts, and contains six cores of stranded wire that are twisted for low inductance. Audio Triax coaxial cabling ($700/0.7m pair, $850/1.5m pair), which is used for analog, digital, and antenna applications, uses new 4x shielding for spls above 120dB, and comes in BNC, RCA, F-plug and coaxial terminations. Other cables include Audio Quad Neutrik XLR interconnects ($800/0.7m pair, $1000/3m pair), Audio Power Three C13 15A power cable ($400/1m, and $600…
Transparent also introduced the colorful, entry-level Hardwired brand, which is designed to satisfy the wants of newcomers to the fold. The company's marketing coordinator, Matteson Nadeau, joined product designer and Operations Manager Josh Clark to show off Hardwired in a little Pro-Ject system that, together with cables, cost $1300.
Hardwire's line is quite extensive, and includes HDMI ($40/3ft), CAT6 network audio ($30/3 ft), USB A>B ($40/up to 3 ft), USB A>mini ($ditto), mini>RCA ($35/3 ft), RCA interconnects ($45/1.5 ft pair), XLR interconnects ($60/1.5 ft pair), speaker…
Transparent Audio's new Gen 5 (Generation 5) family of cabling supersedes their MM2 line. With resonance control and network technologies derived directly from their year-old flagship, fittingly called Magnum Opus, Gen 5 includes new cable, new networks, and new network enclosures.
The cables are the result of three years of research and development. Cable construction has changed, and the new modules offer greater stiffness and vibrational damping. Networks, which adjust inductance to help pass all frequencies equally and keep noise out of the signal path, are claimed to be "dramatically…