A Family of Chordettes
An entire family of Chord Chordettes: The Toucan headphone amplifier; Dual moving-coil phono stage; Prime 4-input preamplifier; Peach D/A processor, descendant of the Gem; Scamp 40Wpc power amplifier; Mogul micro PC with six USB inputs, 320GB storage, and HD audio support; and Maxx integrated amplifier.
The Chordettes are meant to make up one powerful, versatile, colorful system.
A More Attractive Way
The ground floor halls of the M.O.C. contained booths with both static and live demos to resemble something like CES’s Las Vegas Convention Center, but were only infinitely more pleasant, more manageable, better coordinated, and more attractive.
A Perfect Match
“Oh, these are cute!” Rosemarie exclaimed.
She was immediately attracted to PSB’s new Imagine Mini ($700/pair), which made its debut at January’s Consumer Electronics Show.
Can you blame her? These loudspeakers are small, powerful, attractive, and fun. (And they match Rosemarie’s outfit.)
A Perfect Place to Work
Connecting to the Internet in my small room at the Park Inn—nothing fancy, but a perfect place to work.
A Sign of Things to Come
As we raced to catch the bus that would take us from Manhattan to Newark Liberty Airport, Rosemarie Torcivia and I were caught in an incredible downpour—rain like we rarely see it in New York City. Our trip to Germany for the 2011 High End Show had gotten off to a soggy start. Was this a sign of things to come?
A Smile, a Balloon
Sales coordinator Rosemarie Torcivia smiles for the camera; a large balloon hovers in the background, announcing the 2011 Munich High End Show.
A Typical Display
A typical display at the M.O.C. was open, airy, and comfortable, made to resemble a well-designed modern home—very much unlike the typical hotel room at many of our US hi-fi shows, which are often dimly lit, stuffy, and completely uncomfortable.
Time and time again during the Munich High End Show, I was impressed by the ways in which hi-fi was presented.
The issue of cost, which is so often prevalent at our shows, also seemed nonexistent in Munich. Even the issue of sound, our reason for existence, seemed easy to overlook in light of the pure fun, obvious physical excellence, and, yes, sexiness, of the displays in Munich.
The Munich Show was not only promoting and selling sound, but was promoting and selling a way of life. In Munich, and perhaps in all of Europe, the idea of enjoying a certain high-quality “lifestyle” was eagerly embraced; meanwhile, here in the States, such an idea is often derided.
Why?
If hi-fi were presented in the States as it was at the Munich show, we might not have such silly questions about attracting a younger audience, attracting women, or even whether the hobby will survive. We would be too busy enjoying ourselves—stopping for a Spaten in the sun before heading on to the next exhibit—to waste time and life with any of that foolishness.
A Very Sweet Kiss: Silbatone & GIP
At first, I didn’t know what was going on. I only noticed a very large crowd of people, all seemingly fascinated by what was standing before them.
Acoustic Signature Turntables
Acoustic Signature turntables are solid, non-suspended designs with heavy platters and electronically controlled drive motors. Their maintenance-free bearings are meant to last a lifetime, while their exchangeable tonearm plates allow for easy swapping of tonearms.
All but the most affordable Barzetti, or "Black Beauty" (1800), which has an integrated electronic motor and sports a 10-layer piano finish, are made in Germany. The Barzetti is made in Poland.
Acoustic Signature–CH–VTL–Vivid
An Acoustic Signature Ascona with SME Series 5 tonearm and low-out moving-coil Ortofon Rohmann cartridge made beautiful music leading a system comprising VTL MB-450 Series III monoblock power amplifiers, TL-7.5 Series III preamplifier, and TP-6.5 phono preamplifier. Speakers were the distinctive and dynamic Vivid G2 Giya.
To start off our listening, I picked one of my sister’s favorite albums, Adele’s 21. I noted a great sense of forward momentum and stunning dynamic range, all of Adele’s strong soulfulness communicated fully. I turned to Rosemarie, and I searched for some sign of recognition of the beauty which radiated before us...