Not that anything in this system approached the six-figure range. The impressive, infrequently encountered QLN Signature SE Monitors ($17,995/pair in standard finish—$23,995/pair as shown) from Sweden and the virtually ubiquitous at T.H.E.…
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"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."
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.
First thought: That's Vinnie Rossi? Boy, he sure has upped his visual profile, with prices and sound quality to match. Through Vinnie Rossi's Brama preamplifier ($34,500; above) and Brama amplifier (also $34,500,…
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. Components included an Arcam CDS50 SACD/CD player, Schitt Freya S preamp, and a Dayton Audio DTA-100LF desktop subwoofer amplifier.
On violinist Hilary Hahn's Bach Concertos CD, her instrument sounded lovely. The entire presentation was lovely.…
A company new to me, Infigo Audio Inc. of British Columbia, paired its eye-catching Method 3 class-A monoblocks ($50,000/pair), Method 4 DAC ($35,000), Fluvius Streamer ($1750), and Sparkle Series cabling with Alta Audio's Adam loudspeaker (($17,000/pair in piano black, $18,000/pair in rosewood or beech; above). On a DSD track from the Global Percussion Network, timbres were beautiful on bass and high-pitched percussion. The chimes and vibes sounded special and clean, colors were plentiful, and deep bass was all-of-one-piece.
The Method 4 DAC uses eight Dual ESS9038 Sabre DACs…
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 full-range loudspeaker has a bottom port that enable a frequency response of 36Hz–20kHz ±6dB. Because the cabinets are made from Slovenian Walnut, no two samples are identical. Although the speakers work best in smaller rooms with a nearfield set-up, they reportedly mate well…
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 ($59,999/pair), which never reached the Hilton Long Beach. Borrowed Usher speakers saved the day.
Even if all that glitters is not gold, it can make for golden sound. For turntables alone, we had a choice of three: TriangleArt's Maestro ($…
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.
Attention went immediately to the Zingali Acoustics Client Name 1.5 EVO 30th Anniversary Edition loudspeaker ($49,950/pair in finish shown). With its "Omniray" wood horn driver and dual 15" drivers, the 97dB sensitivity loudspeaker so occupied my…
In last month's Re-Tales, I discussed what was happening on the vacuum-tube landscape, especially tube shortages resulting from Russia's war on Ukraine and its consequences for trade. Tube availability is, of course, a small concern compared to continuing Russian atrocities and the resulting suffering of Ukrainians. Still, it's a question tubed-electronics lovers and makers must grapple with, and we're a hi-fi magazine. So: If that Russian tube supply is curtailed or boycotted, what are the alternatives for manufacturers and individual buyers?
As I filed last month's Re-Tales article, it…
In their second, considerably larger room at the Long Beach Show, AV Luxury Group International pulled out all the stops. Immediately catching eye and ear were Raidho Acoustics TD 3.8 3-way loudspeakers in Walnut finish ($117,000/pair). With a nominal impedance of 6 ohms, these babies can throw a huge, enveloping soundstage from as little as 50Wpc amplification.
Doing the honors on that score were the Margules U-280 SC 30th Anniversary Limited Edition class-A triode monoblocks ($10,000/pair) whose 50Wpc drove the Raidho TD 3.8s with aplomb. A Margules SF-220 class-A tube…
Last year in Long Beach, PBN Audio's Peter Noerbaek was so eager to show what his humongous speakers could accomplish without distortion that he cranked up the volume far louder than the New York Subway System at its worst. As I thanked my lucky stars that I was some distance away from the huge room's doorway when the eruption occurred, a member of T.H.E. Show staff came running.
"The glass walls on our office are shaking!" he yelled, as he made show policy clear. Only after that did I feel safe to enter.
This time, perhaps the fear of God or Ray Kimber's beneficent presence…