AVA at 2014 CAF

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic. Read 1098 times.

KLH007

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 456
AVA at 2014 CAF
« on: 29 Jul 2014, 02:12 am »
Although Frank couldn't make the trip to Silver Spring, MD for the 2014 CAF, his 600R and FET Valve preamp helped Jim Salk and Dennis Murphy produce some of the finest sounds at the show. This room had the widest variation in speaker prices, ranging from Dennis' modded Pioneers @ $165/pr, to the Salk Exotica 3s @ approx. $12K. Every speaker in the room sounded effortless and performed above their costs, all driven by the 600R and FetValve. I was surprised how good the deep bass was on the slender Phil Slims, and curious how close the low bass from the SS8s came to the powered bass of the Exotica 3s, sporting 800 watts per speaker for the 2 8" woofers, I think the 600R contributed in a big way. Not to dwell on the superb deep bass area, vocals on this collection of great speakers were accurate, with the E3s being particularly engaging. Great job Frank, Jim, and Dennis.

Kemper

dB Cooper

Re: AVA at 2014 CAF
« Reply #1 on: 31 Jul 2014, 03:15 am »
Agree with all of the above. My pick for best of show, with the small Daedalus room punching way above its weight and coming in second for me. I liked the E3 the best; it's a somewhat more 'forward' sound than the Soundscapes (without being 'strident' or 'tizzy'), and I am not completely sold on bouncing the backwaves off the front wall. The little modded Pioneers were amazing. The  high power available made for effortless dynamics at any sound level (even with the more demanding Soundscapes), a claim not all rooms could make, even ones with other high powered amps.