AXPONA 2024

Excellent, well-controlled bass was one of many strong suits in a room headlined by Vinnie Rossi BRAMA monoblock power amplifiers (gen2 - $59,995/pair) and BRAMA preamplifier (gen2 - $38,995) paired with YG Acoustics Hailey 3 loudspeakers ($63,400/pair).

I wish someone had told me to sit in the second row, because it was only when I moved back that the sound got wetter and I could tell how good this system was. How good it was despite the fact that, like many systems in the Schaumburg faced with Saturday’s internet outages, resorted to sending music wirelessly from a mobile phone. Which is another way of saying that the sound was compromised despite the best intents of Vinnie Rossi and everyone else involved. Yet it still sounded very good.

Also heard: Innuos Statement NG music server ($25,000) and PhoenixNET ($4349), Mola Mola Tambaqui DAC ($13,500), Nordost QB4 and QB8 Mark III AC Distribution units, and Norodst cabling. Oh, and Eiji Oue, the former conductor of the Minnesota Orchestra, whose take on "Danse Macabre" for Reference Recordings lives on and on and on.