2WA Group debuts Aequo Ensium with Ideon, Trilogy, SPL, and Falcon
Audio industry veterans Walter Schofield and Walter Swanbon have brought their collective energies together in a new venture, 2WA Group. Their joint offerings at the Capital Audio Fest included a US debut.
Afton Mountain Audio’s Pure Fidelity front end meets LTA Century monoblocks and Sound Lab panels
Linear Tube Audio occupied two rooms and demoed their LTA Century Monoblocks in a world-wide debut.
Alma Music and Audio, On A Higher Note debut Luphonic H2 and R3 turntables with Basel Acoustics and Franco Serblin
Alma Music and Audio of San Diego, California, and Sterling, Virginia, showed two well-appointed systems at CAF including several US debuts.
American Sound Distribution: Avantgarde Mezzo G3 loudspeakers and Wadax Studio Player
Angie Lisi of American Sound Distribution always brings components that make my pulse race. Tube amps. Horn speakers. Turntables. What more could a music playback nerd ask for?
Audience AV pairs ClairAudient Bellare loudspeakers with Atma-Sphere power
San Marcos, California's Audience debuted its new Audience ClairAudient Bellare Loudspeakers at T.H.E. New York International Audio Show in New Jersey last month. Here they were again in Rockville, with essentially the same system.
Audio Note (UK) TT Three Reference & Izvor DAC debut
Following a video interview for Stereophile's video channel (watch it below and subscribe here), Audio Note UK's Adrian Ford-Crush played tunes from a Level 4/5 system that included the brand's TT Three Reference turntable ($63,000), which debuted at T.H.E. New York International Audio Show.
Audio-Technica’s NARUKAMI HPA-KG NARU and ATH-AWKG anchor a statement headphone system
I was pleased to finally meet John Tarulli, Hi-Fi Sales Manager at Audio-Technica US. A mainstay in hi-fi, consumer, and pro electronics since 1962, Audio-Technica doesn't necessarily need audiophiles, but we sure do need Audio-Technica.
Bella Sound Kahili, Hana, and Kaula 2 meet YG Acoustics Hailey 3
Bella Sound's Michael Vice holds more than 50 patents as an electrical engineer. Like other large-brained thinkers I know, such as Stereophile Editor Jim Austin and Spin Doctor Michael Trei, when they talk, I just listen.
Blink High End & Matterhorn Audio Group bring Børresen, Thuono, FinkTeam, Linn, HiDiamond, and Audience
The three heavy hitters noted above brought Italian heavy hitter Thuono to Capital Audiofest (CAF), showing the Thuono TH400 turntable ($59,500) for the first time in the US. I've noted these handsome machines at High End Munich; it's great to finally see the brand stateside.
BorderPatrol and Triode Wire Labs feature New Zola DAC and Living Voice speakers
Gary Dews of BorderPatrol Audio Electronics and Pete Grzybowski of Triode Wire Labs are old hands at audio shows, yet they bring the zeal of energetic newbie pups. Then again, there's nothing "newbie" about Dews's new BorderPatrol Zola DAC ($3950).