AXPONA 2017
Protected: AXPONA 2017: Lee’s Best of Show
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AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Trends, rants and John’s Best of Show
The audio-show year kicked off for me with an eardrum-flexing snare shot in Chicago at Audio Expo North America. If those three hectic days near the end of April are any indication, we’re in for […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Music From Another Room, Part 3
A photojournal by Eric Franklin Shook You can’t just say “It’s awesome, buy it.” Eliciting a gut reaction of confidence in consumers who speak your name in conversations of top tier service and products is […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Well Pleased with Rethm and Aqua HiFi
Mark Sossa of Well Pleased A/V was, once again, show off his penchant for nifty-yet-affordable gear here at AXPONA. Mark is one of those guys with a reputation for exploration: all the brands he carries […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Music From Another Room, Part 2
A photojournal by Eric Franklin Shook Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, proving again that there is more than one way to skin a cat. Axpona is to me an ensemble interpretation of […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: New products gush from Mark Levinson
Mark Levinson has been on a comeback in recent years, adding top staff and developing an ambitious plan to revitalize its brand in the luxury home-audio market. Those moves started about five years ago when […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: ZMF Headphones appeal to your ears, brain, soul
I first met Zach and Bevin Mehrbach four years ago at AXPONA as the young couple was just getting going with their new brand, ZMF Headphones. I was in Chicago on my first assignment for […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Merrill Audio’s Christine preamp is ultra quiet, ultra cool
Merrill Wettasinghe, owner of Merrill Audio Advanced Technology Labs, is one of those guys in the high-end who seems able to coax a bit more performance out of his components than the average talented designer. […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Less is more for Neat, Audia Flight
Some audiophiles have an unfortunate tendency to judge equipment at first glance by appearance alone. Often they are guilty of stereotyping products, as in, “Small speaker? Probably small sound.” Some visitors to the High Fidelity […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Daedalus goes deeper with new 10-inch woofer
The last time I listened at length to a pair of Daedalus Audio speakers at a show, they were flanked by the company’s custom subwoofers. At AXPONA, I again was impressed by the low frequencies […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Classic Audio Loudspeakers mix power and poise
I was approaching an open door on the lower level of the Westin O’Hare when I heard an unmistakable rhythm track kick in. From outside, the crack of the snare and the slinky, pulsing bass […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: What’s in a Naim? With the Uniti Core, it’s about 100,000 songs
There has been such an avalanche of music servers and rippers recently that it’s a bit hard to keep up with them all. When I heard that Naim Audio was coming out with a new […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Sonoma M1 Headphone System
I’ve written about the Sonoma M1s before but what made their AXPONA room different this time was that these were no longer in prototype form. In fact, the Sonoma team had formed a partnership […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Goldmund and the Golden Age of Wireless
Goldmund had a very interesting and great sounding room at AXPONA using some new technology. It had two pieces of gear and the Logos Sukha loudspeakers in typical “angled, stacked box” format that Goldmund designs […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Rafe’s highlights, sounds, thoughts, and wrap-up
To say that AXPONA 2017 was anything but a success from the standpoint of exhibitors, attendees or the media covering the show in Chicago would be disingenuous. It was a well-oiled machine from start to […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: KEF and the art of the demo
Johan Coorg and Dipin Sehdev are fixtures on the high-end audio show circuit, and for damn good reason — they put on one of the best demos going. With a wild disdain for decorum and […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: VTL creates mid-priced magic with Dynaudio, Naim
It’s not unusual for high-end amplifiers to be a particularly good match with some speakers, but not others. It’s been rare for me, however, to hear an amp from Chino, Calif.-based VTL sound anything less […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: The Reel Deal
A photojournal by Eric Franklin Shook I love trolling the physical format cat fights on Facebook. “Vinyl vs Digital – Bowl of Milk, Party of Two”: blah blah, yada yada. My favorite way to do […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Doshi takes a balanced view of tubes
I first met Nick Doshi in 2013 at the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest where he was showing a prototype of his v3.0 monoblocks, a push-pull design that used four KT-150 tubes to produce 160 watts […]
AXPONA 2017
AXPONA 2017: Von Schweikert and VAC go big, listeners go home envious
It’s always fascinating to see what speaker makers come up with when cost is no object. I’m not referring to the many models out there that use expensive drivers, top-shelf parts or intricate cabinets. No, […]