AudioCircle
Other Stuff => Archived Manufacturer Circles => Vinnie Rossi => Topic started by: Vinnie R. on 4 Jun 2017, 02:52 am
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Hello from LAAS 2017! 8)
I'll be sure to post more next week after the show, but I wanted to take the time now to upload a few pictures from our exhibit suite:
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=163333)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=163335)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=163334)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=163337)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=163336)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=163338)
FINALLY - I have a spacious exhibit room (I jumped in early on reserving a full-sized sweet), and the LIO DHT Integrated (with X1 Amp module)
+ Spatial Audio X1's + Paul Speltz's ANTICABLES are sounding incredibly good together! They really can DO IT ALL! :singing: :drums: :guitar: :rock: :singing:
Hopefully some AC members who had the opportunity to listen will post their impressions soon enough, and I'll be sure to update this thread
with show coverage as it becomes available!
Vinnie
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Here's a brief (but good!) mention from the audiobeatnik site:
"I mentioned in the day one pictures that the Spatial Red Wine room was one of the two best that I heard that day. I found the room hard to photograph because of the lighting, but here’s the best I could do. The quality of my picture doesn’t do justice to the quality of the sound."
http://theaudiobeatnik.com/index.php/2017/06/03/la-audio-show-day-two-part-one (http://theaudiobeatnik.com/index.php/2017/06/03/la-audio-show-day-two-part-one)
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The sound in the Vinnie Rossi/Spatial Audio room was superb. I knew it was a good sign when as soon as I walked in I started to relax, my toe started tapping and depending on the recording, when you closed your eyes the room walls would drop away and you would swear the musicians were in the room. The sound was organic, effortless, integrated from top to bottom with crisp, clear bass, massive sound stage and no room resonances. Given the wonderful sound, I found the sparse, simple elegance of the system even more astonishing and it still leaves me marveling as it was a stark contrast to every other room at the show that I visited. There were no massive, acoustically isolating racks of DAC's, preamps, and power conditioners, no monster amps sitting in the middle of the floor between the speakers, no cables the size of fire hoses connecting the various pieces of equipment, no acoustic panels and sound tuning devices cluttering the room, just a small laptop running Roon, Vinnie's Lio, and Clayton's X-1's connected by some very thin, unobtrusive cables. It sounded great in both halves of the the room even though the suite had two divider walls partially separating one portion of the room from the other. The quality of the sound was the purist testimony to the quality of the design, materials and synergies of each component. Astonishing!
This is a system that anyone could aspire to build and continually evolve. Start with Vinnie's simplest Lio configuration and upgrade the Lio as time and funds permit with no investment cost penalty. Given it's simplistic, minimalist beauty, it is a system that would be welcome in almost any home by any significant other and where one could be content remaining forever within the ecosystem that Vinnie has created.
Just as importantly if not more so than the system, was the opportunity to speak with Clayton and Vinnie. You will never meet two nicer, more down-to-earth guys than these two who are also brilliant, passionate, visionaries. It was simply a joy to sit and talk with them.
Lastly, this visit fully convinced me that this is what audio, as an industry, should aspire to be. Simple, elegant, sparse, unobtrusive systems that can evolve with time, designed, created and serviced by quality people, that always leaves the music to stand alone with no apologies or caveats needed.
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I was very pleased when I fired up my iMac and saw the recently-posted pics of Vinnie and Clayton's LAAS room. I had just stepped out of my dedicated listening room where I was enjoying the same system. Well not exactly the same. My Spatial Holograms are the entry level M4s and I only have a single run of Anticables. My LIO budget ran out at the AVC/Tube stage - alas, no DHT. My room is not spacious - its a lousy sounding 10' x 10' spare bedroom. But for all that, I've got the right audio DNA and the sound is magical and musical. For less than $9K, as well. And when that lottery ticket pays off I know exactly what I'm buying.
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Hi AV Passion. I could not have said it better myself. The simplicity of the Vinnie Rossi/Spatial system is remarkable. No worries about dirty AC power, reduced interconnect count and significantly lower number of boxes is a welcomed solution for me and my wife. But what is this increased simplicity worth if it does not sound good? Well, as av passion states, it does sound good, very good. The system is detailed, but relaxing, effortless, sounds good at low volume levels and high and the soundstage is the best I have ever heard. The width and definition
were fantastic and the depth was like nothing I have ever heard - amazing! The system embarrassed most rooms with higher MSRP.
I already had a deposit down on the Spatial X1 and now I am in the process of buying Vinnie's Lio. I am very excited.
BTW, i have no financial connection to Vinnie Rossi or Clayton Shaw. They are both great guys. I have known Clayton for years and have owned several of his products.
The sound in the Vinnie Rossi/Spatial Audio room was superb. I knew it was a good sign when as soon as I walked in I started to relax, my toe started tapping and depending on the recording, when you closed your eyes the room walls would drop away and you would swear the musicians were in the room. The sound was organic, effortless, integrated from top to bottom with crisp, clear bass, massive sound stage and no room resonances. Given the wonderful sound, I found the sparse, simple elegance of the system even more astonishing and it still leaves me marveling as it was a stark contrast to every other room at the show that I visited. There were no massive, acoustically isolating racks of DAC's, preamps, and power conditioners, no monster amps sitting in the middle of the floor between the speakers, no cables the size of fire hoses connecting the various pieces of equipment, no acoustic panels and sound tuning devices cluttering the room, just a small laptop running Roon, Vinnie's Lio, and Clayton's X-1's connected by some very thin, unobtrusive cables. It sounded great in both halves of the the room even though the suite had two divider walls partially separating one portion of the room from the other. The quality of the sound was the purist testimony to the quality of the design, materials and synergies of each component. Astonishing!
This is a system that anyone could aspire to build and continually evolve. Start with Vinnie's simplest Lio configuration and upgrade the Lio as time and funds permit with no investment cost penalty. Given it's simplistic, minimalist beauty, it is a system that would be welcome in almost any home by any significant other and where one could be content remaining forever within the ecosystem that Vinnie has created.
Just as importantly if not more so than the system, was the opportunity to speak with Clayton and Vinnie. You will never meet two nicer, more down-to-earth guys than these two who are also brilliant, passionate, visionaries. It was simply a joy to sit and talk with them.
Lastly, this visit fully convinced me that this is what audio, as an industry, should aspire to be. Simple, elegant, sparse, unobtrusive systems that can evolve with time, designed, created and serviced by quality people, that always leaves the music to stand alone with no apologies or caveats needed.
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Hi AV Passion. I could not have said it better myself. The simplicity of the Vinnie Rossi/Spatial system is remarkable. No worries about dirty AC power, reduced interconnect count and significantly lower number of boxes is a welcomed solution for me and my wife. But what is this increased simplicity worth if it does not sound good? Well, as av passion states, it does sound good, very good. The system is detailed, but relaxing, effortless, sounds good at low volume levels and high and the soundstage is the best I have ever heard. The width and definition
were fantastic and the depth was like nothing I have ever heard - amazing! The system embarrassed most rooms with higher MSRP.
I already had a deposit down on the Spatial X1 and now I am in the process of buying Vinnie's Lio. I am very excited.
BTW, i have no financial connection to Vinnie Rossi or Clayton Shaw. They are both great guys. I have known Clayton for years and have owned several of his products.
I want to come hear your set up! I'm getting the LIO too!
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I want to come hear your set up! I'm getting the LIO too!
[/quote]
Hi Guf! You are certainly welcome to come over as soon as I get it. I think you will love the Lio. IMHO (and many others), it is a revolutionary product.
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Hi targa02
Do you already have the X1's? If so, how are you amping them at the moment?
I want to come hear your set up! I'm getting the LIO too!
Hi Guf! You are certainly welcome to come over as soon as I get it. I think you will love the Lio. IMHO (and many others), it is a revolutionary product.
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Hi Tim. I do not yet have my X1's, but I have put down my deposit.
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All,
I'm finally back home from the LAAS2017! I have to catch up on many emails and phone calls this week, so
thank you for your patience during this busy time for me.
targa02, TimS, guf, av_passion, CSI... thank you for your posts!
We were very pleased with how everything turned out for this show, and especially invoking this kind of emotion that
that av_passion stated above:
I knew it was a good sign when as soon as I walked in I started to relax, my toe started tapping and depending on the recording, when you closed your eyes the room walls would drop away and you would swear the musicians were in the room. The sound was organic, effortless, integrated from top to bottom with crisp, clear bass, massive sound stage and no room resonances.
That's really what it is all about! :singing: 8)
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LAAS2017 ALFIE AWARD
On Saturday night, there was an LAAS2017 audiophile products award ceremony ("ALFIE Award"), and I was deeply honored that the LIO received it! I am very humbled by the panel of judges from the LAAS & LA/OC Audio Society for taking the time to visit and learn about what LIO is all about, and for presenting this award. :notworthy:
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=163444)
The only thing that could have make this award even sweeter for me is if it encompassed our entire room and included Clayton Shaw's Spatial Audio X1 Loudspeakers and Paul and Judy Speltz's ANTICABLES speaker cables and USB cable. It was with Clayton, Paul and Judy's creations and passion in achieving such a high level of sonic performance that made our room as good as it did!
Our team:
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=163448)
Another nice surprise was that a local show attendee that visited our exhibit room multiple times during the show ended up purchasing the entire room of gear that we presented (LIO, X1s, and cables) - and since he was local, we were able to deliver it to his home and set it up on Sunday evening! He was very serious about wanting to recreate the exact sound that he heard in our exhibit room at the show, so it ended up working out perfectly for all of us! :thumb:
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As for PRESS COVERAGE, here is one from today by Brian Hunter of Audio-Head.com:
http://audio-head.com/vinnie-rossi-and-spatial-audio/ (http://audio-head.com/vinnie-rossi-and-spatial-audio/)
Vinnie Rossi always has a smooth selection of sonic treats to sample from and he always seems to know the right tune to play for any audience – with deep tracks and clever covers. He was also generous enough to let me sit in the sweet spot and bear witness to the quick, but clear rock track Madness from Muse for a taste of the weekend’s auditory cocktail. Upward extension was spot on, the system’s response to the rapid fire vocal samples and distorted instruments was controlled and tidy.
(http://audio-head.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Vinnie-064022.jpg)
Photo Credit: Brian Hunter / www.audio-head.com
Thank you for visiting, Brian!
More soon...
Vinnie
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Congrats, Vinnie!
Very well deserved.
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Another nice surprise was that a local show attendee that visited our exhibit room multiple times during the show ended up purchasing the entire room of gear that we presented (LIO, X1s, and cables) - and since he was local, we were able to deliver it to his home and set it up on Sunday evening! He was very serious about wanting to recreate the exact sound that he heard in our exhibit room at the show, so it ended up working out perfectly for all of us! :thumb:
Congrats to the lucky winner of this fine system! How awesome is that to have the talented designers personally dial it in to your own home! So jealous.... :thumb:
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Wow. It is one thing to have the wherewithal to afford this system (really, not that far out of reach for many of us) but a whole nother thing to have the designers deliver and set it up. I hope he is a young guy because he will remember this for the rest of his life (and never stop telling his buddies about it).
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Yes, he must be one of the first to get the X1's with Vinnie's LIO. Wonder if he is a member of any audio forums... a review would be nice!
Wow. It is one thing to have the wherewithal to afford this system (really, not that far out of reach for many of us) but a whole nother thing to have the designers deliver and set it up. I hope he is a young guy because he will remember this for the rest of his life (and never stop telling his buddies about it).
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Well, it was also fun and very rewarding for us all to set up in the customer's home. 8)
Each Spatial X1 speaker is over 200 lbs., so teamwork helped with this! Once you install the spikes
and level them off, they do not budge. :weights:
Wonder if he is a member of any audio forums... a review would be nice!
Hi TimS,
I'll email him to find out... good idea!
Vinnie
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200 pounds! Holy cow, that's crazy.
Surprised but how little else is out there about the X1 so far.
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200 pounds! Holy cow, that's crazy.
Surprised but how little else is out there about the X1 so far.
Hey guys - We are just starting to ship X1s, so there aren't reviews in the US yet. We have a major US print magazine review lined up for later in the year. There is a completed review from Stereoplay magazine in Germany. As soon as we receive the translated version, I will post it on our website.
Clayton Shaw
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From Jana Dagdagan of Stereophile:
https://www.stereophile.com/content/jana-wraps-her-laas-coverage (https://www.stereophile.com/content/jana-wraps-her-laas-coverage)
(https://www.stereophile.com/images/060417-vinnierossi-600.jpg)
Photo Credit: Jana Dagdagan, Stereophile
The last room on my list: Vinnie Rossi, Spatial Audio, and Anticables.
"Wicked Game" by Jenna Mammina and Rolf Sturm sung through a system that comprised a Vinnie Rossi LIO "super integrated" amplifier ($11,880 as configured; a Stereophile Class A Recommended Component 2015–2017), a pair of Spatial Audio X1 "UniWave" loudspeakers (standard painted $14,000/pair, gloss Lucite surface $17,500/pair), and Anticables throughout. The sound of the LIO's ultracapacitor-powered, modular system paired with the X1's uniwave dipole design was widespread, transparent, and profoundly engaging—the perfect end to my Los Angeles Audio Show experience.
Thanks for visiting, Jana! 8)
Vinnie
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Vinnie: Was this LIO system using the stock DHT tubes? Congratulations on the award, on-site sale and completion of another stellar show!
One of the new DAC 2.0 you are busy building {hint} is coming here to Kyoto!!
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Vinnie: Was this LIO system using the stock DHT tubes? Congratulations on the award, on-site sale and completion of another stellar show!
One of the new DAC 2.0 you are busy building {hint} is coming here to Kyoto!!
Hi Larry,
Thank you! We were using SV811's and the KR PX-4's for the LIO DHT Integrated.
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All,
The Audio Beatnik has just awarded Clayton's Spatial X1's Loudspeakers Best of Show (under $20K):
http://theaudiobeatnik.com/index.php/2017/06/10/la-audio-show-part-3-best-speaker-20000/ (http://theaudiobeatnik.com/index.php/2017/06/10/la-audio-show-part-3-best-speaker-20000/)
(https://i2.wp.com/theaudiobeatnik.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/spatial_final.png?w=644)
...Clayton Shaw’s newest design the Spatial Audio X1 UniWave Speakers were so musical, so open and so emotionally involving that for a few minutes I forgot I was at a show.
...This system that Clayton Shaw and Vinnie Rossi put together was close to the best sound I heard at the show.
...Yes, the bass was very deep and powerful, but it was also extremely tuneful and not the least big or fat even in these show rooms, which were not kind to speakers with deep bass. There were only a few rooms with speakers that could say this. The sound was also very open and very transparent with great imaging, and yes, the soundstage was huge.
None of that is nearly as important as how musical and emotionally involving as these new speakers are. So, let us present our first ever Beatnik Bongo Award to the Spatial Audio X1 UniWave Speakers as the Best Speakers Under $20,000.
A most impressive debut of the X1's! Congratulations, Clayton! :beer:
And many thanks to Jack Roberts of The Audio Beatnik for listening to our room at LAAS!
Vinnie
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All,
This was just posted by Jack Roberts / The Audio Beatnik (LAAS2107: Room Awards)
http://theaudiobeatnik.com/index.php/2017/06/20/la-audio-show-report-11-vinnie-rossispatial-audioanticables-room-wins-beatnik-bongo-award-best-room-50000/
(https://i1.wp.com/theaudiobeatnik.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/bestroom50K_web.jpg?w=460)
Discovering the simplicity of this system and it’s total cost blew me away. I have heard and reviewed digital sources that cost more than this entire system. That would still be true if you added the phono preamp module to the LIO and a first class analog source to the system. You could also make these additions and keep the system price under $50,000.
So, it is a very easy call for me. This simple and great sounding system wins the Beatnik’s Bongo Award for the Best System Under $50,000. Don’t forget, as the room was set up, this incredible system was just a little over $25,000. Well done to all!
:thumb:
Vinnie
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Congratulations to Vinnie, Spatial (Clayton) and AntiCables! It truly was a great sounding room!
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Congratulations to Vinnie, Spatial (Clayton) and AntiCables! It truly was a great sounding room!
Thank you, targa02!
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Another LAAS2017 show report - this time from John Stancavage of Part-Time Audiophile:
https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2017/07/01/la-audio-show-2017-spatial-speakers-and-vinnie-rossi-lio-literally-made-for-each-other/ (https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2017/07/01/la-audio-show-2017-spatial-speakers-and-vinnie-rossi-lio-literally-made-for-each-other/)
The combination of Rossi’s electronic wizardry and Shaw’s innovative speakers did create a spooky sense of realism that was noticeably different from most traditional high-end systems.
Demo tracks such as the classical selection and tunes by Tori Amos and Dire Straits revealed a presentation that was close to what I imagine it would have been like to be sitting in the studio during recording.
Voices had electrostatic-like clarity and reverb trails seemed to hang in the air forever. Instruments were clearly defined and located precisely on a wide, deep soundstage. In addition, soft passages still had weight and clarity, while louder moments remained free from congestion and glare.
In particular, Amos’ piano was extraordinarily live-sounding, while Knopfler’s electric guitar had an especially beautiful tone. Overall, there was a cohesiveness across the audio spectrum that multiple-cone box speakers can struggle to achieve.
Indeed, the total price of the rig was less than what I’d seen for wire alone in a number of systems at the LA show — and the Rossi-Spatial room did more things right than some of those megabuck exhibits.
(https://i0.wp.com/audiograb.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/spatial-rossi-laas-5.jpg?w=1000&h=&crop&ssl=1)
Photo credit: www.parttimeaudiophile.com
(https://i2.wp.com/audiograb.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/spatial-rossi-laas-1.jpg?w=1000&h=&crop&ssl=1)
Photo credit: www.parttimeaudiophile.com
Many thanks to John (as well as Lee and Rafe from the Part-Time Audiophile team) for the coverage our LAAS room!
:notworthy: 8) :thumb: :dance: :thankyou: :beer:
Vinnie
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This LAAS Show Coverage page was just posted yesterday by Robert E. Greene of The Absolute Sound:
http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/a-quick-tour-of-the-la-audio-show-with-reg/ (http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/a-quick-tour-of-the-la-audio-show-with-reg/)
Clayton Shaw presented a new (to me) speaker dubbed the Spatial Audio X1 Uniwave. This is a dipole bass plus wave-guided compression driver operating from 300Hz up, bi-amped (the compression driver’s sensitivity is so much higher than the dipole bass’ that only bi-amping makes sense). Driven by Vinnie Rossi’s electronics, the speaker gave a depiction of orchestral sound of truly remarkable realism. I cannot recall any show demo ever that sounded more like an orchestra than this, and there have been few that were its equal. In a moderately large room—the exhibit was in a suite-sized room—this system was producing both truthful timbres and a stunning sense of the recording venue’s actual space on one of my perennial test CDs, Rachmaninoff Symphonic Dances, Dallas, Mata conducting on ProArte (not the dry-as-dust Johanos-conducted Dallas recording). I have heard this recording many, many times on many systems. This was one of the best, with a really surprising sense of the spatial and sonic scale of an orchestra—what I personally think of as the “Wednesday night” experience (Wednesday nights being when the orchestra I play in rehearses). And, as mentioned, one really felt transported to the acoustics of the recording venue. The speakers sounded natural and convincing on smaller-scale music as well. Harnoy/Dussek’s Schubert Arpeggione Sonata (cello and piano, on RCA) was bewitching in its tonal naturalness and spatial realism as well. At $14,000 a pair ($17,500 in wood finish), these X1 Uniwaves offer so much that one has to consider them a real bargain as well as masterpieces on their own, independent of price, if I can go by my vivid first impressions. (I was fascinated and went back several times.) This system may be a bit difficult to find for audition at first, until it becomes as established as it deserves to be. But meanwhile, as the Michelin travel guides say of their top-rated things to see (or in this case, to hear), it is “worth a journey.” (Pending editorial approval you can expect a review.)
Thanks for visiting (multiple times), REG, and thanks for posting your impressions! 8)
Vinnie