Jason Victor Serinus

PAF 2022

Daedalus, VAC, Lampizator, & WyWires = One Smooth Combo

Jason Victor Serinus Aug 02, 2022

Show co-creator Lou Hinkley proudly stood alongside his new Daedalus Audio Apollo11 v.3 loudspeaker (starting at $27,500/pair). Variously depicted as "a whole new version" (in the room sheet) and "pretty complete makeover" (by Hinkley at the show) of the Apollo, the 52"-tall speaker boasts a larger midrange and an entirely new array design. "The lower three woofers function more like a point source, and the additional tweeter delivers more stage height and width," Hinkley said.

PAF 2022

Vanatoo for You? Absolutely.

Jason Victor Serinus Jul 31, 2022

There's nothing more to say about Seattle-based Vanatoo's superb-sounding Transparent One Encore ($599/pair) and little Transparent Zero ($399/pair) active loudspeakers that hasn't been discussed in detail in my Stereophile review. Gary Gesellchen's little babies deliver astoundingly mellifluous, all-of-one-piece sound from tiny cabinets.

PAF 2022

Seattle Hi-Fi's Hegel, Lumin, Legacy, and Nordost on the Butcher Block

Jason Victor Serinus Jul 31, 2022

No, this blog isn't about slaughter. It's about the components in Seattle Hi-Fi of Redmond, WA's room, some of which were displayed on Butcher Block Acoustics shelving.

Nor was there anything about the sound Burt Goodman drew from his system deserving of slaughter. True, the music selections were all standard audiophile fare from previous generations, but the sound was here, now, and excellent. Diana Krall's "Let’s Fall in Love" was bright, lovely, clean, colorful, and fully detailed.

PAF 2022

Audio-Ultra Seduces with Smooth-Talking Taiko, MSB, Constellation, Magico, and Stromtank Gear

Jason Victor Serinus Jul 29, 2022

What a great way to start a show. I don't know what impelled me to choose my CD of Patricia Barber's Higher, but the combination of Constellation's smooth-talking Pictor line stage with DC blocker ($24,500) and DC filter ($8000) with the company's Centaur II 500 amplifier ($80,000) and Magico S5 MkII loudspeakers ($45,500/pair) was perfect for Barber's cool, no-nonsense presentation. This was one smooth, toned-down, ultra-clean system that all but guaranteed non-fatiguing listening for hours and hours upon end.

PAF 2022

NFS Resurrected at PAF!

Jason Victor Serinus Jul 29, 2022

Stop the presses! The wittiest of Stereophile's legacy posters, our very own Anton, has returned to the audio show realm. Once again ensconced in his unique NFS roomNFS stands for "Not for Sale"Anton has rented a penthouse suite at PAF in which to seduce showgoers with mood lighting, a vintage/homebrewed system, and lots and lots of hard brew (as in alcohol).

PAF 2022

The Human Side of the Pacific Audio Fest

Jason Victor Serinus Jul 29, 2022

Spied in the hallway the night before the show opened was Lou Hinkley, PAF co-organizer (with Gary Gill of the Capital Audio fest). Since Lou also owns/designs WA State-based Daedalus Audio's speakers and will be running that room, who knows what shape he'll be in by end of Day 3. But when I discovered him at 6:30pm, he let on that assisting/troubleshooting/and reassuring exhibitors on the day before was one of the most humbling experiences of his life.

News PAF 2022

The Pacific Audio Fest Starts Today

Jason Victor Serinus Jul 29, 2022

The first high-end audio show in the Pacific Northwest (PNW), the Pacific Audio Fest, runs FridaySunday, July 2830, in the Doubletree Hilton near SEATAC airport. Opening times are 10am6pm Friday and Saturday, 10am4pm Sunday.

Music and Recording Reviews

July 2022 Classical Record Reviews

Jason Victor Serinus, Stephen Francis Vasta Jul 15, 2022

Trío Arriaga: "Elegie", Patricia Kopatchinskaja: Le Monde Selon George Antheil, R. Strauss: Macbeth, Don Juan, Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks and Schubert: 21 Songs.

Audacious Audio Powerline Accessory Reviews

Stromtank S 1000 computer-controlled battery power source

Jason Victor Serinus Jul 08, 2022

The Kingdom of Audiophiledom rests on a paradox. Inanimate audio systems and rooms aim to deliver music that animates our senses and touches our souls. The inherently lifeless exists to bring music to life.

This holistic realitythat systems and rooms function as living organisms where every part is interconnected and interrelatedcame home to me when, during one of the first AXPONAs in Chicago, I entered a long, cavernous basement room with several spongy "conference room" walls. "There is no way that any setup can deliver good sound in this room," self said to self. Yet, the system sounded unbelievably good.

Solid State Power Amp Reviews

Rotel Michi S5 power amplifier

Jason Victor Serinus Jul 01, 2022

Like an immense night bird aloft in the gold'n sky.
I should like to sail off towards islands of flow'rs
While list'ning to the perverse sea singing
In its old and bewitching rhythm.

It took some time to figure out why, in the middle of auditioning Rotel's Michi S5 stereo power amplifier ($7499.99) with the room-shaking opening of Richard Strauss's Also Sprach Zarathustra, Ravel's far subtler and perfumed setting of Tristan Klingsor's lyrics from Shéhérazade came to mind.