Montreal Audiofest 2024

All prices are in Canadian dollars.

After I witnessed the ribbon cutting-ceremony performed by 20 industry under-40-somethings on Friday morning—a symbolic event meant to jointly celebrate the Montreal Audiofest’s 35th edition and the new generation of audio-industry flamekeepers—I hit the rooms closest to my own room, starting with Corby’s Audio. This Toronto-area retailer was showing a spread of audio gear that offered a visually appetizing mix of rich wood tones and sleek metal surfaces.

Providing the rich wood tones were isolation shelves and racks by Tough Nut Audio (various prices), a Rega Naia turntable with a Rega Aphelion 2 MC cartridge ($23,000 total), and a pair of Coherent Audio Modular 15 Trio speakers ($38,000), in Santos Rosewood. Each speaker is made up of three separate driver enclosures that are isolated from each other. The top one contains a full-range coaxial 12" tweeter/midrange unit with a super tweeter. The two enclosures below it each contains a 15", rear-ported woofer.

Representing the sleek metal contingent was a trio of Saturn Audio components including a 401 MM / MC phono stage ($4500), a 201 DAC ($4800), a 90Wpc class-A/B 701 integrated amplifier, and a Baetis Audio Reference 4 Mingo Edition streamer / server / Roon Core with 2TB of storage and Plex power supply ($14,800). Rounding out the gear was a Saturn Audio 103C Mkll powerline filter ($2800), a bevy of Allnic cables (various prices), and, according to the price list affixed to the wall, a Swiffer duster ($PRICELESS!!!!!!)

The sound I heard from Prince’s "Purple Rain" sung by Alya Pearls and (re)produced on LP was sensually flowing, harmonically full, intimately expressive, and naturally sweet. Otis Taylor’s "House of the Crosses," streamed from Qobuz via the Baetis, was microresolved, lush, and voluptuously explicit.