MoFi Turntable, Cartridge and Phono Stage, Rogue Integrated Amplifier, Heed DAC, Wharfedale speakers, Audience cabling
With so many megabuck rooms fattening the floors of CAF 2019, it’s easy to miss the smallish, sub-$10,000 systems making absolutely first rate sound. One such room was manned by MoFi’s Jon Derda: the Tenacious Sound/MoFi/Quad room.
Overture Room: Technics’ SL-1000RE-S turntable, Van Den Hul Master Signature Cartridge and Grail SB Phono Preamp, Magico M2 Loudspeakers, Esoteric Grandioso C1 Preamplifier and Grandioso M1 Amplifiers, Shunyata Cables, HRS Racks, Artnovation Room Tuning
I saved the Overture room for last because for me and my taste, this room had the best sound at CAF 2019.
Raven Audio Amplification and Loudspeakers, Mytek Digital, Soniquil Cables
There's a cliché that says that New Yorkers are fond of wearing black. It's a true cliché. But fascination with the dark side isn’t restricted to New Yorkers.
Rooms Vs. Vinyl
I had woken up not long before, fallen out of bed, and descended the hotel stairs to the Atrium—to the sight of what appeared to be many tens of thousands of vinyl records. I had dragged myself away and met Herb Reichert for breakfast, where we made plans for Stereophile’s coverage of Capital AudioFest 2019. But the vinyl kept drawing me back.
Spatial M3 Sapphire Loudspeakers, Linear Tube Audio Z10 Integrated Amplifier, Lampizator Amber 3 DAC, Anticables
My three-day reconnaissance suggests that Mark Schneider and his company, Linear Tube Audio, scored big at CAF, downstairs in the Headphone Lounge and with a room I and many showgoers thought was a candidate for Best Sound at Show.
Tekton Moab, McGary Audio SA-2 Integrated Amplifier, Exogal Comet DAC and Ion Power DAC, Anticables
I like speakers with dark wood finishes. My friend Sphere loves speakers painted red. My partner “bb” prefers blue ones that match her room. Tekton Design makes speakers in these and many other colors and finishes. Tekton speakers, though, also have many tweeters, which gives them a distinctive look.
The 2019 Capital Audiofest Is Underway!
It was 77 degrees on October 31 and the weather on the drive down reminded me of an amplifier I once owned: dark, gray, and dry. The weather app on my phone said there were tornado warnings for the Washington, DC, area, but that could not diminish my excitement about going to Capital Audiofest at the Hilton Hotel in Rockville Maryland.
The American Sound Rooms: Wadax Electronics, Avantgarde Loudspeakers, Transparent Cabling
American Sound distribution presented three rooms featuring Avantgarde horn loudspeakers, and, in the two rooms I visited, Wadax digital products.
Triangle Signature Delta Loudspeakers, Tsakiridis Orpheus Monoblock Amplifiers, Alexander Line Stage, and Zeuss Phono Preamp, Soulines Kubrick DCX turntable with SME Tonearm, Cabling by Analysis Plus
Every time I encounter a system with Triangle speakers, I stop and take serious notice of their refined but lively sound. As I did Sunday in the room sponsored by The Antal Audio Group.
VAC Statement 452iQ power amplifiers and Statement Line and Phono Preamps; Von Schweikert Ultra 11 Loudspeakers, Kronos Pro Turntable and Black Beauty Tonearm, Airtight Opus One Cartridge, Masterbuilt Ultra Cables, and Critical Mass Stands
Walk through the glass entrance doors, then twenty paces straight ahead, and you find yourself standing at the lip of a dizzying precipice, with a full panoramic view of the Rockville Hilton’s vast LP-filled atrium. To your right is a spectacularly lit glass wall that measures about 25’ high by 75’ wide. Above the glass is a giant banner baring the turquoise Valve Amplification Company’s logo: VAC. Standing in front of the wall are groups of urbane sophisticates: handsome men in suits, beautiful women, bright-eyed children. This envy-inspiring display is assembled by The Audio Company out of Marietta, GA; who describe themselves as “purveyors of hi-end luxury audio.”