The truly superior sound in the room co-sponsored by Paragon Sight and Sound of Ann Arbor gave me my first listen to Wilson Audio's Sasha 2 loudspeakers ($30,900/pair) and Doshi Audio electronics. First up was an LP of Ray Brown on bass, performing three days after Thelonious Monk died. Played on a Brinkmann Audio Balanced turntable package with Koetsu Azule Platinum cartridge ($46,500 total), the sound through Doshi Audio 3.0 phono stage and line stage preamplifiers ($31,990 combined) and Doshi Audio 3.0 Jhor 160W monoblocks ($26,995/pair) was warm and inviting, as in "I must hear more" (even if Brown occasionally strayed from pitch).
Next came the dCS Puccini upsampling SACD/CD player ($18,999), which happens to be part of my reference system. On Yarlung Records' disc, Antonio Lysy at the Broad, three-dimensionality was first class, the soundstage superb, and the overall presentation gorgeous. As a replacement for the original Sasha, which was once part of my reference system, Wilson's Sasha 2 sounded like a major winner. And this was in a room that many exhibitors found impossible to tame.
