Now in its fifth year, the UK-based Chester Group's New York Audio Show opens to the public this Friday, November 4, at 1pm in the Park Lane Hotel overlooking Central Park. (Friday hours are until 7pm.) The three-day show, a smaller version of what has come before, promises 30 exhibit rooms, half of which are "oversized," two ballroom-sized exhibits, and two more ballrooms filled with exhibits and vendors selling merchandise. All-in-all, the event, whose one-day visitor pass costs $30 ($26 in advance, with significant savings for multi-day passes) promises almost 110 brands.
Christina Yuin, a longtime Director of Sales who currently also works with Capital Audiofest, explains that there are very few hotels in New York City that are willing to provide adequate exhibit space by moving beds and furniture out of hotel rooms. Even fewer that do not burden exhibitors with countless union-based regulations. (Stories of people needing to pay exorbitant sums in order to plug equipment into the wall are legion.) The Park Lane, however, has not only welcomed the show with open arms, but also offers old style masonry construction with superior acoustics and oversize rooms. The location is also ideal, with easy access via subway, foot, the park, horse carriages . . . everything except helicopter. You may, in fact, wish for a helicopter on Sunday, when the annual New York Marathon ends right across the street. A great day to arrive at 10am and stay until pack up time.
"The hotel is extremely helpful and cooperative," says Yuin. "They are even allowing exhibitors to begin setting up on Wednesday night, which means that some systems will have settled in by the time the show opens. While there are only two really large meeting rooms, there are many 14 x 21 rooms conducive to better listening. And as show organizer, Roy Bird, has noted, the small nature of the show, combined with superior acoustics, will enable people to spend extra time listening to the gear they like."
Due to space consideration, NYAS has dispensed with seminars and live music. Instead, there will be ample time for listening. Among the exhibitors are Sound by Singer, Art of Sound from New Jersey, Value Electronics from Westchester, Krell, Chesky, and Adirondack Audio/Video. Electrocompaniet is returning to the US via SimpliFi Audio, and Sam Laufer of Laufer Teknik is give away a Memory Player 64. In addition, the fabled Bob Carver, now of the Bob Carver Corporation, will personally demonstrate his Amazing Line Source (ALS) loudspeakers, and Robyatt Audio will demonstrate the first new production True-mesh-plate 50 tubes since the 1930s.
As if the New York Audio Show's moves from the Waldorf and then the Palace in NYC to Brooklyn and then to Westchester and now back to NYC were not enough, its show dates will change for 2017. Given that Capital Audio Fest is moving to November starting in 2017, the New York Show has abandoned plans to promote its NY show in November. Stay tuned for further developments. Even before that, please remain poised to read our complete NYAS coverage on this very site.
