Ken Micallef

Now Listen Here/Legacy Audio/Bel Canto/Innuos/Transparent
Capital AudioFest 2022
Ken Micallef  |  Nov 15, 2022  |  2 comments
Legacy Audio founder and designer Bill Dudleston (center) brought his Aeris and Calibre loudspeakers to CAF, joined by Now Listen Here's James Thompson (left) and Aaron Sherrick (right).
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Rethm/Ampsandsound/Auralic
Capital AudioFest 2022
Ken Micallef  |  Nov 15, 2022  |  5 comments
India's Rethm loudspeakers, California's Ampsandsound, and China's Auralic combined forces to make unique sounds at CAF 2022.
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Fidelity Imports/Diptyque/Cyrus/Innuos
Capital AudioFest 2022
Ken Micallef  |  Nov 15, 2022  |  5 comments
Steve Jain, Managing Director & cofounder of New Jersey's Fidelity Imports had [edit] six rooms (!) at CAF, all packed with enough hi-fi goodness to make my North Carolina grandmother give-me-my-inheritance-now to buy more gear!
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Acora Acoustics/Hegel/JMF Audio/Ideon Audio/Cardas
Capital AudioFest 2022
Ken Micallef  |  Nov 15, 2022  |  0 comments
Val Acora returned to CAF with his new quartz QRC-1 and QRC-2 two-way Scanspeak driver-equipped loudspeakers, the quartz cabinet material a variation on his former granite-enclosure models. Why quartz? Acora said quartz is more forgiving, easier to work with, provides a more rigid material that holds drivers more securely, and has better sound.
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MoFi Electronics/Alma Music & Audio/HiFi Rose/SolidSteel/Isotek
Capital AudioFest 2022
Ken Micallef  |  Nov 15, 2022  |  0 comments
Andrew Jones enthuses about his new MoFi SourcePoint 10 speakers

CAF 2022 was all abuzz with news of Andrew Jones's new MoFi Electronics 10 standmount loudspeaker, the SourcePoint 10 ($3699/pair, Stereophile review by John Atkinson scheduled for the February 2023 issue). With a specified sensitivity of 91dB/2.83V/m and an impedance of 8 ohms, the two-way, reflex-loaded speaker features a 1.25" soft-dome tweeter concentrically mounted in a 10" woofer. But that's not all that was on display and in use in the MoFi room.

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The Voice That Is/Vinnie Rossi/Tidal Audio/Critical Mass Systems/Siltech
Capital AudioFest 2022
Ken Micallef  |  Nov 15, 2022  |  1 comments
Literally everything in this room, except Doug White of The Voice That Is and Vinnie Rossi, was new.

This room gets my vote for the most beautiful looking system of the show. A stunner.

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BorderPatrol/Volti Audio/Triode Wire Labs
Capital AudioFest 2022
Ken Micallef  |  Nov 13, 2022  |  2 comments
I have a theory about Greg Roberts, Gary Dews, and Pete Grzybowski, respective owners of Volti Audio, BorderPatrol Audio Electronics, and Triode Wire Labs. I knew guys like these three in high school, whip smart dudes who had the best music, stayed up late playing that music, but were somehow at school the next morning before anyone, pushing their grades to the max. Me? Slacker.
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Alma Music/On a Higher Note/Bergman/Graham Audio/Moonriver/Kubala-Sosna/Artesania
Capital AudioFest 2022
Ken Micallef  |  Nov 13, 2022  |  0 comments
Alma Music's Fabio Storelli and On A Higher Note's Philip O'Hanlon tempted me with promises of serious sound, female entertainment, and triple-distilled whiskey. I fell into their room and almost spent the night.

O'Hanlon had the brand spanking new Graham Audio LS8/1 Limited Edition standmount loudspeakers ($9700/pair, with stands).

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Mytek/AGD/JM Labs
Capital AudioFest 2022
Ken Micallef  |  Nov 13, 2022  |  4 comments
Albert Guerra of AGD Productions (left) and Michal Jurewicz (right)

Running into my Brooklyn buddy and Mytek head honcho Michal Jurewicz at the local Safeway (hotel food: $$$), he invited me to an after-hours shootout between his forthcoming GaN FET-powered, Empire monoblocks ($19,990/pair, below), which are specified as offering 400W into 8 ohms and 800W into 4 ohms. His dueling partner in this shootout was Albert Guerra of AGD Productions, who brought his GaN FET-operated Gran Vivace Monoblocks ($18,500/pair).

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The Listening Room/Fidelity Imports/Titan Audio/Michell Engineering/Soul Note/Perlisten/Innuos/AudioQuest
Capital AudioFest 2022
Ken Micallef  |  Nov 13, 2022  |  6 comments
The Listening Room and Perlisten Audio's Erik Wiederhotlz assembled a fine-sounding room, its front end including the revised Michell Orbe SE Turntable with an inverted, oil-circulating main bearing, freestanding motor, and massive platter ($6999 w/o tonearm; $8495 w/Technoarm 2), Innuos Statement Music Sever and Streamer, Soul Note D2 DAC ($8999), Soul Note E2 MM/MC Phono Equalizer ($8999), and Soul Note S3 SACD player ($19,999). Amplification consisted of more Soul Note!
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