The MBL room is killing it with their spacious, omni sound. Absorption panels, tunable SMT Hemholtz bass traps, massive amps playing a tonally balanced rendition of IGY. Just a touch wooly in the midbass, but the mids and highs were spot on, as I have found MBL to be.
Stepping to the demanding YYZ track, the dynamic demands were satisfied, the slightly wooly sound still intact. I suspect room setup and don't fault the 101 E mk II speakers.
Moving to the smaller room, the 126 pair gave a more intimate feeling, the speakers having a better lock on the room, with an obscure artist that Shazam did not know, Will Foraker, playing.
The 200 watt/each, Class D powered Fornica International planar magnetic FLAG L gave us a huge soundstage in this small room, David's vocal image presented above the height of my seated head, with laid back high frequency reproduction, no one could ever call these giants brash or bright. A lot of fun to listen to. Server is a simple desktop computer feeding an FI prototype preamp.
Best room I've heard so far, today. AudioThesis brought the Lumin U1 Mini, Norma DS-1, Norma SC-2B, Norma 8.7 MR, feeding Rosso Fiorentino Fiesole monitors. Dead Can Dance oundstage extending well beyond the far edges of the speakers, aided by intelligent placement of dual-purpose absorption/reflective traps.
Hugh Masekela tested the dynamic capabilities of the system and it did not back down. "Woo, woooo!" A little system with amazingly big sound.
The Klipsch Forte has been revamped, another small/medium sized system with massive scale and dynamics, the horns focusing the sound away from room boundaries and toward the listeners in the packed, standing room only room. I was fortunate enough to get a good center seat. I must say. the bass had surprising weight to it, as well.
Magico S5 MarkI II, powered with Classe monoblock amps. I like the clarity of the mid range and high end that Magico speakers tend to deliver. The ultimate channel separation of dual monoblocks never hurts.
$42000 per pair as shown.
$38000 per pair powder coat finish.
$11000 each for the Classe monoblocks, model Delta MONO.
Quad ESL 57 speakers, build in 1958, all original panels and crossovers, only power supply components were upgraded.
They don’t reach into the bass range that some music would demand. But the range they do cover is done with clarity, smoothness, and grace. Imaging also is very sharp. A Beethoven symphony was an excellent demo track, as was Alison Krauss. For the range covered, they sound pretty flawless to me.
$$ Priceless $$.
Really, not for sale, the owner is here using them to show off the Lejonklou HiFi electronics and NOK turntable, and has no intention of selling them.
The Lejonklou HiFi electronics and NOK turntable are dual mono design, in separate chassis with separate power and NOTHING in common but the air we breathe and listen through! OK, and the AC power at the wall. A truly uncommon design. Ultimate channel separation, as witnessed by excellent soundstage and imaging, especially on the Alison Krauss tracks. The phono preamps are built in housings machined from solid blocks of copper.
$42700 per pair for the Lejonklou SINGularity mono phono preamp stages
$9900 per pair for the Lejonklou Sagatun 1.4 mono preamps
$9900 per pair for the Lejonklou Tndra 2.2 mono power amps
Paradigm Persona 3F speakers and Paradigm Persona subwoofer. The high end was smooth and clean. The beryllium tweeter, ferro-fluid cooled and damped, is a key to that clarity.
The Persona sub uses six 8" drivers and 1700W rms / 3400 W peak dynamic, will sound (feel) like a monster in most small to medium rooms.
AXPONA is off to a strong start. One of the first rooms I hit up with my fellow AV NIRVANA-ers was the Fidelis room, where they were exhibiting their Stenheim Speakers. Stenheim is a high end swiss speaker brand of speakers that I've heard a few times before. This time arauond I was able to take a listen to both the New Alumine 3 and existing Alumine Two speakers.
Alumine Three Tower speaker
Alumine Two Bookshelf
What surprised me was how good these sounded. I've been a fan of their industrial design for some time, but not had a time to hear many of their speakers. The Alumine Two, their entry level speaker, was especially ncie sounding for its compact size. Notably throwing a wide and believable soundstage. I found them both tonaly neutral, which was nice to hear.
I went to the Gamut room for what turned out to be one of the most unexpectedtly wonderful listening experiences of my life. Last year I found the Pneumatic isolators from Pneuance known as the Pneupod to be one of the sililestaudio tweeks I'd ever seen. I couldn't help but feel like these were airbags for your audio gear. Regardless of your views on their impact on sound, I think all must admit the humor in their demonstration. They let the air out of the pod, and also out of the music. As much as I like the tease, this room seems always loaded with great sounding gear. Gamut's electronics have always been first rate, but I was not familiar with Larsen speakers.
Well, both I and those with me came in expecting these Larsen speakers to sound awful.
I mean, look at that tweeter? What is going on here? The designer has cut it in half? Surely this can't be good for sound. It's not a waveguide, its not a horn, it's not any kind of tweeter lense I've seen before, how could this be any good? Well, believe me when I say, the sound these speakers threw blew me away. A number of people came in expecting horrible things, and walked out shockingly impressed. The sound was natural and well balanced, bass was deep and palpable, but most importantly, the soundstage was astonishingly real. These speakers were pushed hard against the wall, way too far apart, and yet everything was placed so perfectly across an imaginary stage in front of me.
I've done my best to capture these unusual speakers. This is the Larsen 9, top of the line speakers from this largely unknown brand, and sold at a steep price of $15,000 a pair. That is a lot, for sure, and no, these won't likely be entering my home any time soon, but these are the real deal. If the design and price doesn't scare you, do yourself a favor and find a dealer to listen. Or...If you have a difficult room and you need a spouse friendly speaker design you can push up against a wall but don't want to lose any fidelity, this is your speaker.
Our friends at Creative Sound Solutions (CSS) had their finished P215 on display. For a company largerly known for their DIY offering, this is a fine looking speaker. I found the mix of high gloss white, silver trim, and walnut veneer both modern and striking. At $2,299 a pair, they are priced well for the build quality and sound you get. My short time listening to these revealed a neutral speaker with good sound. I hope to get another chance with these as the music wasn't anything I was familiar with.
The great thing about CSS is that if you really like the P215 and you don't mind doing a little bit of work on your own. This identical speaker is available starting at just $439 a pair. Add $100 for a flat pack enclosure, and you are well on your way to a serious value. You may not get the good looks, premium finish, and top of the line parts in these speakers, but you do get a good quality cabinet and the identical drivers and crossover design.
Esoteric, with their North American debut of the Grandioso P1X Transport - $50,000 - and the D1X monoblock D/A Converter - $50,000 per pair. Along with the N-03T Network Audio Transport - $11,000, the G1 Rubidium Master Clock - $26,000, the Linestage Preamp - $38,000, and the Grandioso S1 power amp - $27,000, they supported the Avantgarde Uno XD speakers.
The larger-than-small-but-not-huge horns for mids and highs sounded great on-axis in the second row and even better from the first row. Piano and sax in the jazz piece being played sounded quite real and present, and the drums and cymbals - all percussives including the piano, really - were stellar, the best percussive sounds I have heard here so far. Horns have come a long way, thank you scientific method AND great listening skills, and their room-erasing capability is matched by their transparent sound quality. Gotta say it again - go hear those cymbals - MARVELOUS!
Laufer Teknik's The Note is a novel line array that effectively handles everything from 200 Hz on up, with the included SVS SB4000 handling bass duties. The combination does well in the meat of the audible range and is quite listenable, despite what people might think about such an odd arrangement. The multiple, small, wide range drivers are claimed to be omni-directional up to 12,000 Hz.
The Salk SONG3 BeAT Speakers were reproducing a great trumpet sound when I sat down, sweet and spitty, like your head has been introduced to the mouth of a trumpet. The tweeter - a beryllium dome design, naturally. I had to ask but was already convinced of the answer. If ya gotta have a dome tweeter, it’s gotta be beryllium, that’s all I’m sayin’. A hair bright, but no rough edges, smooth and clear, like clarified butter.
Everyone (in our crowd, anyway) knows TAD makes a superb speaker, what I was not prepared for was the dynamic capability of the Evolution E1tx pair. A lot of show "firsts" being demo'ed in this room.
Madisound is a long-time supplier of DIY components for speaker makers. Handling a number of high-quality European component and driver suppliers like SB Acoustics, as well as US and other sources, they are the company to call upon when you finally decide to do it all yourself with that brilliant idea that came to you in your sleep the other night.
Dana Imports was showing the Audio Physic Virgo III speakers. "Don't use spikes and have them gouging your floor or catching on your carpeting," we were advised.
The Audio Physic Magnetic Isolation Feet are better, so they say, allow you to move your speakers at will and give excellent isolation when you are done. The Virgo speakers sounded very nice with the acoustic guitar track playing when I walked in, with a very dynamic sound and - you guessed it - sharp imaging. They seemed quite transparent and disappeared in the room, always a good quality.
The Virgo III
$17995 glossy black finish
$16,995 wood finish
VCF V Magnetic Sound Optimizer feet
$900 for a set of 4 for the Virgo III
SVS is a price-performance leader and the latest Prime Pinnacle help bear out this continuing legacy, anchoring the front stage with the Prime Center, a single SB3000 subwoofer, with Prime Elevations bringing up the rear. Concerts, Hans Zimmer "Live in Prague", "Metallica "Through The Never" and a movie clip, Mission Impossible "Rogue Nation". Were either relaxing, thunderous or exciting, whatever the program material required.
Spacious sound, an attribute of the specially designed tweeter lens, a sound I've heard in many system and rooms from other SVS speakers and carried on in the Prime Pinnacle Tower.
Van Alstine’s designs feature separate regulated power supplies for each STAGE of each channel. Overkill? I think not, His concept - I have heard his amps before - supports super-ultimate separation of channels and low-low noise floor.
His new series includes a 600 W balanced-differential monoblock at $2500 each (in use for my demo), a stereo version at $2000 each, and a 60 W version at $900 each. Through Alta Celesta FRM-2 speakers, the room is simply flawless. A 24/96 Haydn string ensemble track was dynamic and incredible. Van Alstine’s setup is an example of a smooth and clean sound that seems a bit laid back, but those strings cut through the air and showed us that was not the case at all, staying super clear and clean and very dynamic. Imaging was superb. A small unassuming room with a TREMENDOUS sound.
Which pair is playing? This is game that many speaker manufacturers play, one that is impossible to pull off unless the small speaker can dig deep enough to be convincing and the sound is completely separated from the location of the speakers. Not only was this trick pulled off with aplomb, but the lively nature of the tweeter was refreshing. I like a laid-back HF presentation but this was not the least bit overbearing. Each note was given it's own space in time as the bass player climbed the neck on "Vital Techtones". It's good to see the name/acronym, KLH, back on the scene.
In case you haven't guessed, the Albany was in the batter's box, swinging for the fence.
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