CES 2015

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CES 2015

Gamut's RS7

John Atkinson Jan 17, 2015 First Published: Jan 17, 2015 0 comments

Danish speaker manufacturer Gamut showed its new RS7 speaker at CES. Costing $39,900/pair, the RS7 is basically the smaller RS5 ($31,990/pair) that I favorably reported on in our 2014 RMAF report with an extra woofer mounted above the tweeter to give a full three-way design.

CES 2015

Wes Bender Studio, EAR, & Hansen

John Atkinson Jan 17, 2015 First Published: Jan 17, 2015 0 comments

Brooklyn, NY-based Wes Bender Studio was demming the new leather-covered Hansen The Dragon Legend E speakers $60,000/pair), driven by EAR 509 monoblocks ($15,700/pair), an EAR 912 preamp ($13,000 with phono stage), and an EAR Disc Master turntable ($28,500) fitted with a Helius Silver Ruby tonearm ($5225) and Transfiguration Proteus ($6000) or SteinMusic Aventurin 6 Mk.2 ($6500) cartridges. Cabling was all Waveform Fidelity; racks were the impressively made Stillpoints.

CES 2015

A Show Epiphany: the TAD Compact Evolution 1

Larry Greenhill Jan 17, 2015 First Published: Jan 17, 2015 0 comments

TAD's chief engineer, Andrew Jones, always cheerful and happy, took great pleasure in introducing his newest design, the TAD CE1 Compact Evolution One, a contemporary styled bookshelf loudspeaker. This product produced my once-a-show epiphany for good sound.

CES 2015

CES 2015: A Major Opening, or Not Just Another Show

Jason Victor Serinus Jan 17, 2015 First Published: Jan 17, 2015 0 comments

Photo: John Atkinson

On one level, this was just "another CES." The barrage of humanity, traffic, flashing lights, cigarette smoke, hawkers, gawkers, noise masquerading as music, and the ever-present Las Vegas Strip above was such that, as I entered the Venetian on the last day, all I could think of was the promise that, before the night was over I would be back amongst the trees, silence, and rejuvenating peace of our home...The Age of the Audiophile is far from over. As CES 2015 has made abundantly clear, the show may be over, but the fun has just begun.

CES 2015

Set-Up Tips from the 2015 CES

Robert Deutsch Jan 17, 2015 First Published: Jan 17, 2015 0 comments

For this year's CES show blog, in addition to reporting on new/interesting products, our plan was to ask manufacturers for tips on the installation and optimization of their products, echoing the how-to theme of the articles in Stereophile's 2015 Special "Recommended Components" issue, the cover of which is pictured above with John Atkinson. (This special issue will be available on newsstands and in bookstores next week.)

CES 2015

The Bacch-SP 3D Sound Experience

Herb Reichert Jan 17, 2015 First Published: Jan 17, 2015 0 comments

Working like a stereopticon, Edgar Choueiri's Bacch-SP provides up to a 32dB reduction of interaural crosstalk, not with headphones, but with everyday stereo loudspeakers. And without the coloration that previous solutions, like a physical barrier between the ears, are plagued by.

CES 2015

A Noble Sound from MBL

John Atkinson Jan 17, 2015 First Published: Jan 17, 2015 0 comments

Jon Iverson already reported on MBL’s new Noble Line N31 DAC/CD player, and for me, one of the best sounds at the 2015 CES was listening to MBL’s system, based on this digital source feeding signal to the preamp section of the MBL N51 stereo integrated amplifier, with the amplifier section of the integrated and a N21 stereo amplifier (which have the same gain) to bi-amp the unique MBL 101E Mk.II omnidirectional speakers.

CES 2015

HiFiMAN HM901s Portable Player

Jon Iverson Jan 16, 2015 First Published: Jan 16, 2015 0 comments

Replacing the HM901, the new s version has a redesigned aluminum body, tweaked analog section and quicker power up and down cycles. This is another premium player in the $1k price range and like the others, handles both PCM and DSD and features nice build quality. There is an SD card slot for up to 256GB of storage and stepped volume control on top. The new model should be appearing in the second quarter of 2015.

CES 2015

Peachtree Shift DAC/Headphone Amp

Jon Iverson Jan 16, 2015 First Published: Jan 16, 2015 0 comments

Aimed at the power portable user, the new Shift should be appearing in April for approx. $399 and features a luxurious leather covering on the case that attaches it to your portable. Can be used with a PC or phone, and can even charge an iOS device if needed.

CES 2015

Sony NW-ZX2 Portable

Jon Iverson Jan 16, 2015 First Published: Jan 16, 2015 0 comments

Another portable player in the $1k range is Sony's latest offering which includes the proprietary DSEE HX process to "upscale" music while streaming. Files up to 24/192 and DSD are supported and there is 128GB of built-in memory, as well as micro SD card slot, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and about 30 hours of HD playback per battery charge.

The NW-ZX2 will be available shortly for $1,199.