I was happy to meet 29-year old Robert DeKoninck, who has been working at Montreal’s Son Ideal hi-fi shop for three years, here seen with <a href="http://www.stereophile.com/budgetcomponents/the_fifth_element_53/index…’s Compact 7ES-3</a> loudspeaker ($3600 CAN) on Noel Nolan’s Skylan stands ($520 CAN). Robert’s longtime love for music (he’s a drummer) eventually led him to hi-fi; he’s been an audiophile for about seven years. This is encouraging. When I was 22, I had just started working for <i>Stereophile</i>, and I had little idea about what it meant to be an audiophile! Robert says he sees more and more young people coming into the shop, and he’s encouraged by both the resurgence of vinyl—Robert only listens to vinyl at home and doesn’t even own a CD player—and the latest trends in computer audio. These seemingly disparate interests, he feels, will lead more young people to the hobby.
In the Son Ideal room, Harbeth’s Compact 7ES-3 loudspeakers were being driven by Rogue Audio’s Cronus Magnum ($2200), which swaps the standard Cronus’s EL34s for beefier KT90s, delivering 90Wpc for a more extended top end and more robust bottom, Robert DeKoninck told me. I’ve been interested in Rogue Audio for awhile, and hope to listen to a Cronus soon.
Isn't she?
As <a href="http://blog.stereophile.com/ssi2010/totem_poll/">Art mentioned</a>, Totem always does an outstanding job of transforming a simple room into <i>an environment</i>, and at SSI 2010, they surpassed all of their previous efforts. Here’s a look at a row of Totem Tribe on-walls, dressed in new skins. As loudspeakers are often viewed as the most personal component of any system, it makes fine sense to offer the option of truly personalizing them with art. I can imagine buyers selecting fabrics that match their furnishings, or using their favorite artwork, or even creating their own designs.
“If you don’t mind, ladies and gentleman, I’m going to play you something you don’t ordinarily hear at an audiophile show,” states On A Higher Note’s Philip O’Hanlon, as he moves across the floor and inserts a disc into the lovely Luxman D-06 SACD/CD player ($8500).
Here we see John Atkinson caressing the relatively compact Vivid B1 loudspeaker ($15,000/pair). With the help of a second rear-mounted mid-woofer, the B1 produces a sound far larger than its modest proportions. On A Higher Note’s Philip O’Hanlon tells us that women, in particular, have been fond of this speaker.
The Luxman L-509u ($10,000) is rated to deliver 120Wpc into 8 ohms, and comes equipped with tone and balance controls, a front-panel headphone jack, MM/MC phono stage, and all kinds of rad buttons, knobs, and meters. No remote, though. You’re gonna have to get up and play with this sweet thing.
Grant Fidelity purchasing manager, Rachel Zhang, explained that her company wants to bring “a self-servicing, consumer electronics distribution model to high-end audio.” All of Grant Fidelity’s products are available factory-direct; and, instead of the traditional dealer network, Grant Fidelity utilizes private, home-based demonstrators. The goal is to make available more affordable products for a younger and more varied audience, Zhang said.
I was intrigued by Grant Fidelity’s small B283 Mk.II tube processor ($225). Placed between a source component and integrated amplifier or between a preamp and amp, the B283 offers users the ability to “feel the difference of tube sound versus solid-state sound, and to experiment with tube-rolling,” Rachel Zhang explained. Interestingly, guitarists have also been known to use the B283 in front of their solid-state amps. Neat.