AXPONA 2025

Days after AXPONA 2025 wrapped, organizers announced a record 10,910 attendees—a 5% increase over 2024. Trade passes grew by 20%, which either points to a surge in legitimate press coverage or an uptick in blog-based glamor shots (aka audio porn) aimed at securing free entry.

I almost missed Audio Research and Acora’s pairing in the “Living Room” area of the mezzanine, adjacent to where people dined and lounged. I waited to stop by until first thing on Sunday morning, when music wasn’t blasting and people were in a far mellower mood than on eager-beaver Friday or crowded Saturday.

Familiar faces, new form.

Before me stood a pair of stand-mounted Dynaudio Confidence 20 active loudspeakers, complete with DSP ($24,000/pair). Larger, higher-quality cousins to the Dynaudio Focus 10 active loudspeakers I reviewed a little over two years ago, the Confidence 20s sounded notably more refined and more convincing. That tracks: Each driver is powered by its own dedicated amplifier. While both models share the same DSP room correction protocol, nearly everything else is an upgrade.

As AXPONA wound down, I stopped by the Supreme Acoustic Systems room hoping to catch up with CEO Hiram Toro. Instead, I was greeted by another familiar face: distributor Philip O’Hanlon of On a Higher Note, who welcomed me into a space humming with last-day energy.

AXPONA 2025 had the world premiere of ATC’s most compact active speaker, the ATC SCM20ASL ($9999–$13,499/pair, depending on finish). Designed for small to medium-size rooms, the sealed two-way speaker is hand-built in England and includes ATC’s proprietary 6" "Super Linear" mid/bass driver and 1" "S-Spec" dual-suspension tweeter. Both are powered by onboard class-A/B MOSFET power amplifiers that deliver 200W and 50W of continuous power to the bass and HF drivers, respectively.

Victor Kung of VK Music in Canada offers Japanese-made tube amplifier kits that cater to DIY enthusiasts. The amps that VK Music distributes are also available fully assembled—but where’s the fun in that?