For Genesis, class-D Equals Color
"I'm a full-time music lover and a part-time audiophile," Gary Koh declared while demming his new Genesis GRA1440, class-D, truly differentially balanced monoblock amplifiers ($22,000/pair). "Music is inherently balanced," he said, as he played the stereo LP version of Al Grey and The Basie Wing's The Last of the Big Plungers, and proved that modified Hypex class-D modules, when incorporated into amplifiers that output 1440Wpc into 4 ohms and include a full Genesis power supply, can yield totally welcoming, alive and colorful sound. There was absolutely no hard edge to be heard on this system.
Fritz Speakers
It's a l o n g story, but Fritz Speakers ended up at T.H.E. Show as a replacement for a company that couldn't make it. In tow were the Fritz Speakers S/R loudspeakers ($3500/pair), which combine a Scanspeak Illuminator tweeter and a 5" paper-cone driver. Bringing up the rear, as it were, were a VPI Traveler, modified Oppo, DEQX preamp, PTE phonostage, Wells Audio Innamorata amplifier, and WyWires cabling. On an LP by Tracy Chapman, I heard fine soundstaging, lovely bass, and a little ringing around the edges. The bright edge remained when we switched to CD.
Furutech's Mk.II GT40
At the Furutech room, the news was about the latest ADL device, the GT40 Mk.II of which they said "The master of all trades just mastered another. . .DSD." That's right, their all-singing, all-dancing, multitasking GT40, reviewed by Art Dudley in September 2011, now adds DSD file playback to its playbook. That, of course, includes up to 24/192 PCM DAC and ADC, MM/MC phono input and a potent headphone amp. At $729, a small box to rule them all.
Gato Grand Vacations
"What planet am I on?" an alien visitor might have remarked when peering beyond Gato's eye-catching electronics to the brazen new world of Las Vegas 2014. There, somewhat beyond the point where Roman architecture and Ferris wheel meet futuristic tower, jet plane, Hilton Grand Vacations, and a very troubled sky, and far above the relentless hawkers who line Las Vegas Blvd., a huge number of high-end companies spent four days trying to lure distributors and press alike with sonics, glamor, and hype.
Gato PRD-3 Pre Amplifier/DAC
In addition to the integrated amps that Jason has covered below, Gato introduced their GORGEOUS looking new preamp with built-in DAC. This thing looks like an audio Ferrari just sitting there. Cost is $2,990 and is based on the front end of the DIA-250 and 400 integrateds which means up to 24/192 processing. Available at the end of January.
Also worth mentioning is how the volume control display works: as you turn the knob, the numbers on the display slide up and down instead of just changing. Probably has to be seen to be understood, but way cool.
Genesis Muse Music Source (G-Source)
"It's a black box. It's a music source, it plays everything. Forget about converters and other technologies." So stated Genesis' Gary Koh when I asked him to explain the new Genesis Muse. Koh noted that they've been running a home-brew server in their rooms at CES since 2006, so it seemed only logical to turn it into a product.
However, there are specifications: the Linux-based system comes configured with 1TB SSD, has 2 USB 3.0 inputs for adding storage, has ethernet for network connectivity and streaming, and includes both balanced and unbalanced analog outputs. You can also add an optional CD ROM drive to rip CDs, backup via a cloud-based approach, and control it with any app compatible with the Squeezebox protocol.
One cool feature is that it will stream to your iPad for headphone listening if you like. Price will be around $15,000 when it appears "probably in spring this year."
GoldenEar’s New Triton One
Both the speakers from Sandy Gross’s GoldenEar company that have been reviewed in Stereophilethe Triton 2, reviewed by Bob Deutsch in February 2012 and the Aon 2, reviewed by Bob Reina in November 2013impressed us with the very attractive combination of price and performance. And at the 2014 CES, Sandy introduced me to the new flagship, the Triton 1, which will sell for $2499 each or $4998/pair when it comes to market in late April.
Gotta Geta Gato
The good news about Gato is that it sounds as good as it looks (IMHO, of course). Sounding great on Reference Recordings' much-heralded disc of Copland's Symphony 3, with fabulous bass, the Danish company's new DIA-250 ($4500250Wpc into 8 ohms) and DIA-400 ($600045Wpc into 8 ohms) class-D integrated amplifiers produced fabulous bass, with 0.33 dB adjustments. Included are Burr-Brown PCM1794 dual chipsets that automatically upsample to 24/192, an asynchronous USB input, and a home-theater pass through.
Graaf, Rosso Fiorentino, and More
Darren Censullo's Avatar Acoustics did itself proud with a system that, on one of John Atkinson's recordings of male vocal ensemble Cantus, delivered totally natural and clear sound with beautiful layering and air, and natural timbres to boot. And as much as Shelby Lynne's "Little Lovin'" is getting less and less lovin' from me each time I discover multiple rooms playing it at showsaren't there any other good tracks on her very well-recorded album?Lynne's bass accompaniment was very profound, and the heart-warming beauty of the sound most impressive.
Handsome Klangwerk from Switzerland
I’m happy that Simplifi Audio’s Tim G. Ryan introduced me to a new speaker manufacturer, Klangwerk of Zurich, because I really liked the sound of Klangwerk’s fully active, mastering grade Ella loudspeaker ($15,000/pair). Not only did the Ellas produce a very wide and tall soundstage, but they also descended to 35Hz (albeit 6dB). Paired with a Weiss MAN 301 network player, DNM Design speaker cables with HFT ends, and optional DSPeaker automatic room correctionclaimed to fix any stereo system in 5 minutesthe Klangwerk Ellas yielded lovely, smooth, and most enjoyable sound on an excerpt from Reference Recordings’ disc of The Tempest.