BSG’s Fascinating qøl
Having entered Larry Kay’s BSG room at RMAF 2012 just as he was in throes of packing, after having missed the Bay Area Audiophile Society’s demo of his BSG qøl Signal Completion Stage, I was relieved to finally be able to take a brief listen to the device (pictured on the second shelf, below the MacBook Pro). Although my time in the room was briefLarry paused just long enough from a discussion to mug for the cameraI definitely heard a larger and more convincingly realistic qøl soundstage with the unit switched in. You can find John Atkinson’s February 2013 review here.
Cary–ADAM–WyWires
“I recognize those speakers,” I thought to myself as I entered Cary Audio’s room. They were ADAM Audio’s Column MK3 towers ($7500/pair), that Kalman Rubinson had very favorably reviewed in August 2012. New in the room was Cary’s promising DAC-100T tubed D/A processor ($2995), which uses an ESS Sabre 9023 DAC chip with a USB input using an XMOS USB chip running Gordon Rankin’s Streamlength asynchronous code. There are also two each coaxial and TosLink S/PDIF inputs and both balanced and single-ended analog outputs.
Channel D and Joseph Draw Them In
The first time I tried to get into the Channel D room, the sound of the company’s Pure Music ($129) and Pure Vinyl ($279) software, along with their associated electronics, had drawn such a crowd that I gave up. Returning early enough on Saturday to beat the throngs of admirers, I was finally able to enjoy Stereophile’s 2010 Computer Audio Product of the Year.
Channel Islands Audio
Dusty Vawter’s CIAudio, which stands for Channel Islands Audio rather than a governmental overseas espionage agency, was making really nice sound on a recording by Ben Harper. Doing the honors in this reasonably priced system were CIAudio’s Transient Mk.II asynchronous USB DAC ($699), VDC5 Mk.II 5V upgraded power supply ($329), PLC1 MKk.II passive line controller ($899), and D200 Mk.II 200W monoblocks ($3500/pair). Von Schweikert VR-22 loudspeakers ($2895/pair) completed a chain that began with a MacBook Pro equipped with Pure Music software, and also included a PS Audio P10 power regenerator, Billy Bags equipment rack, and GIK room treatments.
Chapman & Wells Audio Fall in Love
Speaker manufacturer Chapman was demming the T-8 Mk.II ($9995/pair) with the 120Wpc Innamorata solid-state amplifier from a Californian company new to me, Wells Audio. The hefty three-way T-8 (it weighs 100 lbs) combines a 10” polyaminate-fiber cone woofer with a 5.5” midrange unit and a 1” silk-dome tweeter. Frequency response is specified as 28Hz30kHz, ±3dB, sensitivity as 89dB/W/m, and Chapman claims it specifies all the drivers to within ±.025dB. The Innamorata is heavily biased into class-A and features Jack Bybee’s “Music Rails” to lower its noisefloor.
Cigars, We Got Cigars
This non-tobacco smoker can’t attest to the quality of the merchandise, but the fabulously bedecked “cigar woman” on T.H.E. Shows’ specialty cigar booth, hosted by Havana Cigars of Tustin, CA was a joy to speak with.
Coffman Labs “Hand-built in Portland”
Audio Machina speakers were featured in the Coffman Labs room, driven by Manley New Classic SE/PP300 monoblocks, but my attention was drawn to this superbly finished tube preamp from Coffman, the G1-A ($5495, $5795 with remote), which includes a phono stage and headphone output, and is being produced in a limited edition of 500 units. The rest of the system included Music Hall’s MMF9.1 turntable fitted with a Sumiko Blackbird cartridge, Parasound’s great-sounding Halo CD1 CD player, and an Audience Adept Response power conditioner.
Colleen Cardas Imports Opera & Unison Research
Although plagued by “Noisy Neighbor Syndrome,” Colleen Cardas Imports impressed me with the great sound they got from a 45rpm Acoustic Sounds test pressing of Stevie Ray Vaughan playing “Tin Pan Alley,” reproduced by the Opera Seconda loudspeakers ($3995/pair). Yes, that characteristic Hilton room mode was still in evidence, but these big two-and-a-half-ways produced an otherwise smooth, sonically compelling balance.
Dean Peer Rocks
T.H.E. Show featured a full program of live music all weekend. As they have done at many recent shows, Cardas Audio sponsored concerts by electric bassist Dean Peer, accompanied by percussionist Bret Mann, poolside at the Atrium Hotel. Dean fed his bass through a variety of effects pedals to produce a wide variety of sounds, but the music came from his hands. In vain did I peer (ha!) at those hands to see how he was producing those chords of harmonics and the underlying rhythmic pulse while floating melodies on top. The man is a monster!
DEQX/Aaudio Imports
The first Aaudio Imports room I visited featured the DEQX Room Correction Processor ($4500). I had been gob-smacked at the 2012 RMAF, when I heard how this processor turned a pair of RadioShack PA horns into acceptable hi-fi speakers. However, the correction being demmed at T.H.E. Show was more subtle, mainly involving a firming up of the stereo imaging, as the system was sounding good without correction. (Competing noise from the room across the corridor did make the improvement difficult to hear at first.)