Acora Acoustics, Transrotor, Audio Research, and Cardas [UPDATED]
In the third floor Eisenhower room, Valerio Cora brought his Acora Acoustics SRC-2 Loudspeakers ($37,000/pair) joined to the Transrotor Massimo turntable ($16,800) equipped with the Transrotor SME tonearm ($4300), the Dynavector DRT XV-1t cartridge ($9450). The Massimo was also equipped with a secondary arm, the Charisma Musiko ($2500) armed (as it were) with the Charisma Signature One cartridge ($3800).
Capital Audiofest 2021 Kicks Off
Capital Audiofest 2021 kicked off this morning with a heady air of excitement coursing through the sold-out host venue, the Twinbrook Hilton in Rockville, Maryland.
Capital Audiofest 2021: It's a Wrap
Capital Audiofest 2021 was a fantastic show. Everyone I spoke to—vendors, visitors, the helpful Hilton staff—was jazzed to be there. Everyone was in good spirits. While I didn’t see as many attendees in total as at the 2019 CAF show pre-Covid, every room I visited was full, and in many midday cases, standing-room-only.
Command Performance, and Well Pleased AV: J.Sikora, Koetsu, Doshi, Innuos, Gryphon, QLN
When a show room plays great music, the job of listening is easy. That’s true for civilians and press alike.
Fern & Roby Audio / Modwright Instruments
I walked into the unassuming Fern & Roby Audio/Modwright Instruments room and spied, sitting in a chair with camera in hand, Twittering Machines’ editor/CEO, Michael Lavorgna. Michael and I go back to the days of Quartz glass, Coke in bottles, and 6Moons.com, from whence we both came. Michael smiled and directed me toward the Fern & Roby beer coasters, beige cork jobs each with an illustrated tube (and noted tube type).
Göbel + WADAX + CH Precision + A/V RoomService
I couldn’t decide what was more impressive, the larger-than-life personality of Bending Wave USA distributor Eliot Goldman or the massive products shown in his WADAX/Goebel room. Either way, I was grateful for the room’s bright light, which gave everything a fresh-scrubbed sheen and made it much easier than most rooms to photograph.
GT Audioworks, Pass Laboratories, Lampizator, Small Green Computer, and Magnan
GT Audioworks presented their Reference 3 Planar Ribbon Speakers ($49,000/pair), which debuted in January 2021.
Joseph Audio, Now Listen Here, Audio Shield, EMM Labs, and Transparent Cable
Show attendees can be gruff, show exhibitors grouchy. Add a pandemic and things can get touchy. But if there’s one man you want to see at an audio show, it’s the ever-chilled Jeff Joseph, who gets my nomination for the calmest, best natured manufacturer in high-end audio.
LKV Research Basis, Audio-Technica, Joseph Audio
I've used the LKV Research PWR+ Amplifier as part of my reference rig for some time, so it was great to meet LKV’s Bill Hutchins in the flesh at CAF. Connecting with the designer behind a component is always a treat and helps humanize the process of technology-mediated listening.
Semrad Audio
To quote his bio created for CAF, “Master furniture maker John Semrad hand-builds each horn loudspeaker with a solid basswood core, poplar cross-ply, and American walnut face veneer. The process takes more 240 hours, and each completed horn weighs 240 pounds. With a Jean Michel Le Cleac'h profile for the horn flare and [full-range] resolution from Oleg Rullit’s Super Aero 8" field coil drivers, these units are offered at $36,000 per pair, including field coil supply.” Those drivers are said to be made of Korean Hanji paper.