AudioCircle
The Commercial Zone => Audio Shows and Events => Topic started by: ServerAdmin on 14 Apr 2013, 01:30 pm
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Hey!
Thanks for starting this thread.
This year The New York Audio Show is at The New York Palace. I was there yesterday and will be heading there again today soon. Overall the show seems smaller, less people and I didn't feel lots of energy as last year. But let's see how is go today.
So far the room that I like are.... (not in any particular order)
Wes Bender Studio NYC
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8125/8646577911_1a072ba6d6_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646577911/)
Wes Bender Studio NYC (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646577911/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8540/8647704462_f142c6f736_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8647704462/)
Wes Bender Studio NYC (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8647704462/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
This year Wes and his team feature a more affordable speaker that seems to be just what New Yorkers with smaller apartment need. At $6.5Kpr these Marten sound was very good. They are triangle shaped, with ceramic driver. They do sound bigger than they are with good dynamic.
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8240/8646608481_0ede2769b6_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646608481/)
Wes Bender Studio NYC (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646608481/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
I have to say they did a great job with system there. It is one of the room that I can just sit and listen to music.
Another enjoyable system, Merrill Audio and Sander Sound System...
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8103/8647671112_16115f34d5_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8647671112/)
Merrill Audio / Sanders Sound System (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8647671112/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
As for electrostatic speaker, I like these better than the Martin Logan. The downside would be that they are so beaming that they are pretty much a one-person speaker. Notice how the chairs was set up in roll for listener.
But there is one system that just took my breath away....
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8118/8646577667_fe77339c9d_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646577667/)
Kondo (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646577667/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
A full system of Kondo (Audio Note Japan) It is just simply beautiful. When I listen to a system I don't ask the typical audiophile question first like, how low is the bass? how loud it can play and etc. I just look for that "emotional connection" to the music overall. I could have careless how they measured. It is a "emotionally correct vs. measurably correct" This system was something of a rarity for me. It play music with human connection. They put on Pavarotti on CD and you can feel the voice, reminded me of the times I was at the Met Opera at Lincoln Center... bad cheap seat but the feeling of the show and voice pretty the same. I know they might not do some of the audiophile tricks but this system do a good job of connecting me with the sound, especially human voice. Definitely on my list to get if I won a big jackpot lottery.
Oh! And here's something cool....
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8120/8646608807_36844f475c_z.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646608807/)
Symbol (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646608807/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8397/8647704598_ef11b53eed_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8647704598/)
Symbol (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8647704598/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
By Symbol, a throw back to the past. This actually sounded pretty good, if you want something to play while you doing something or hosting a martini party or something like that. There is a subwoofer in the column there... pretty neat. I told the guy you should try to get it in "Man Men" BTW... that little guy is not included, yes I asked jokingly.
Anyway, I'm heading out for a bit more today, the last day. Haven't check out the big systems yet. Believe it or not to get in to MBL room you'll need to get a ticket from them and wait.
The rest of the pictures can be see here on my Flickr... (slide show feature also available on top)
http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v (http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v)
Take care,
Buddy :thumb:
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Excellent quality of pictures. Great job Buddy! It was good seeing you again after a while!
Boris
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I was at the show both Friday and Sunday.
The biggest highlight, perhaps because it was unexpected, was the LessLoss room. The system consisted of a prototype LessLoss digital transport/DAC and Pass Labs monoblocs driving Kaiser Kawero speakers. That system was very musical, with incredibly realistic tone, a great soundstage that extended far behind the speakers, and a full-range frequency response without excessive bass. It was the best room I heard at the show. And I heard a few grey haired attendees saying the same to the two vendors in the room.
The biggest disappointment was the room with the big TAD speakers. The TAD's have gotten great reviews, but they sounded off to me, almost as if the system was out of phase. The second biggest disappointment was the Audio Arts room, where the Zellaton speakers were being exhibited. I thought they had a bit of mid-range zing to them that was fatiguing. Finally, the Audio Note room sounded mediocre to me, although this was likely a function of the room acoustics. I don't think Audio Note speakers are designed to be put in a 13 foot wide hotel room.
Other rooms were on a continuum, none matching the Kaiser Kawero's but still nice. The Coincident room was very good. The system did not grab me on first listen, but after about 10 minutes, I could understand the fuss, as they have an organic sound and are in no way fatiguing. The room with Vivid Giya's driven by Mola Mola amp and preamp was also quite good -- that setup had incredible dynamics -- although on some material, the bass seemed to overwhelm the room. I also liked the smaller GamuT floorstanding speakers in the Woodbridge Audio room on Friday -- very fast with very good low end extension, although maybe a bit too ripe. (The larger GamuT speakers, in use on Sunday, were way too big for the room.) The best monitor I heard were Raidho being driven by Merrill Audio Veritas monoblocs. For a monitor, it packed quite some low end wallop. It is notable that some of the better sounding rooms were using the new commercial Hypex N-Core amps from Mola Mola and Merrill Audio. If I were in the market for an amp, those would be on my short list.
I did not particularly care for the Sound by Singer room -- the Raidho floorstanders seemed to have an artificial midrange and were a bit bright despite being driven entirely by VAC electronics. I also thought the KEF Blades were only OK. Finally, I didn't really "get" either the Sanders or Martin Logan electrostatic speakers -- neither seemed to offer particularly good mid-range or treble and they were deficient in terms of bass.
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I was there on Sat.
The Kaiser Kawero room was awesome. i went twice, tremendous layers of delicateness( is this a word?)
I liked the Raidho floorstanders with the VAC gear , massive soundstage with so many layers of refinement, big choral works...no problem, just a big smile.
Agree the Audio Arts Zellaton room was aweful. All transients and speed no texture, weight or harmonics. Heard my favorite record played awefully. But he is not catering to audiophiles, he is looking for fat whales with big bank accounts that bring their decorators to help design a system? He may be the smartest man in the room!!$$$
I liked the Gamut room, the big speakers sounded great with the better Gamut gear, the smaller speakers with the integrated was harsh, besides he was in a room way too small for both size speakers. Toe in looked too much..but worked! We audiophiles poo poo it but it definetly worked so what do we know except what we read from audiogon!
Tad room was aweful as well, did not represent high end audio in anyway when I was in the room.
The Blades were driven by Chord electronics, if you know Chord, you understand why they sounded so bad, but those blue lights sure are preeeety...no?
All in all a decent show. lacked the energy usually associated with the likes of RMAF or even last years NY show, but it was fun.
BTW Buddy ...great pictures! Good light
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The room with Vivid Giya's driven by Mola Mola amp and preamp was also quite good -- that setup had incredible dynamics -- although on some material, the bass seemed to overwhelm the room.
This is a shocker to me. I read from someone that the Vivid room was a disappointment, very bright etc... Perhaps it is a matter of tastes and what we are used to. I thought that it would be a highlight but the person who informed me about it, is a tube head, thus, his take was different than most. If Vivid would have been driven with a Class AB amp, then the presentation would have been different. I am curious about other rooms.
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I am no digi amp lover but when I was in that room it sounded very good, they use metal tweeters so source material will be very important. When I was in there it sounded very nice very dynamic.
Perhaps your friend was in there when the source was not so good, it means all the world in terms of first impressions.
A bad digi recording from the 80's can kill an impression pretty fast
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Hey!
Thank Boris and Mike for the compliment on the pictures. Was good to see you two and others at the show.
Well, I was there today again. Got to check out a few more rooms that I missed yesterday.
Talking about Gamut's room... I was running out of there as fast as I could today. Because they turned the sound so high...
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8101/8650060661_ddfb4ddb60_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8650060661/)
Woodbridge Stereo/Video Room (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8650060661/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
... so I have no idea how they sound. I did snaked back while nothing was playing to grab and took this shot. Man! Those speaker are big. Anyway, I have no idea how they sound.
As for Audio Art's room...
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8246/8651157014_ff1c9de1d3_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8651157014/)
Audio Art (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8651157014/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8401/8651156666_ec34e27dd9_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8651156666/)
Audio Art (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8651156666/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
It was a beautiful room. I've been told that it used to be an office of Leona Helmsley. Anyway, the sound was good. But someone bought up a good point about the system, that he have never heard they play anything beside soft simple music... no rock no orchestra and etc. I was at his room last year and pretty was the type of musics was played last year also. So, that makes me wonder if they can handle wider range of music. The funny thing was that he tried to sell me a less expensive version of those speakers.... only $25Kpr.
Oh! Here's some interesting tweak I saw today...
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8116/8651157354_d8c6a1d850_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8651157354/)
Lessloss (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8651157354/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
Those are hotel's paper coffee cups used under the cables. I told the guy to paint them black and sell them for $100 ea. :lol:
Anyway, it is getting late. Got to work early tomorrow. I'll write and post some more pics here tomorrow. But I uploaded some more pictures from today... (slide show feature on top right)
http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v (http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v)
Take care,
Buddy :thumb:
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Great pic's! Went there Friday afternoon and wasn't very impressed with much of anything. Maybe because it was the first day. I'm sure things changed later int he weekend. There were really only 3 standouts IMO:
Merril's room was sounding very nice.
The little utler speakers (from London) were sounding very nice in the Care Audio room.
Coincidentely, both these guys are NY Rave members!
The third room I liked a lot were those pixie shaped curly topped Vivid's.
Oh Yeah, and the MBL demo was not to be missed, but it left me a little deafened. Glad I did that as the last thing before I went home.
And those Woo Audio 300B headphone amps ... mmmmmmm.
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This is a shocker to me. I read from someone that the Vivid room was a disappointment, very bright etc... Perhaps it is a matter of tastes and what we are used to. I thought that it would be a highlight but the person who informed me about it, is a tube head, thus, his take was different than most. If Vivid would have been driven with a Class AB amp, then the presentation would have been different. I am curious about other rooms.
The Vivid/Mola Mola room sounded better on Sunday than on Friday. But it wasn't bright either time I was there, and I am pretty sensitive to that sort of thing. Philip O'Hanlon, the vendor in the room, was playing a much wider array of music, including rock, blues, jazz, and classical, than was the case in most rooms. So your friend might have visited when he was playing something that was poorly mastered at high volume. Then again, ask your friend what he thought of the Kondo room. If he liked it, we just have different tastes, as I thought the Kondo setup sounded anemic and boring.
What other rooms are you interested in?
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I visited the Vivid/MolaMola on Saturday...to me it sounded like something was out of phase, very expansive soundstage with no center image.
The Care Audio room was on the 'hot' side to me. There were two AudioNote rooms, I liked the one with the corner speakers more than the other where the speakers (different model) were positioned more into the room.
Liked the Japan AudioNote/Konda room.
The Saunders room powered by Merrill Audio was good too, sounded better than when I heard it a few months ago @ CES/The Show(different amp then).
Wes Bender Studio/Marten room had ugly bass/mid-bass when I first visited, but a few hours later I stopped in again and the sound was transformed...the word was a tube change to Bugle Boy was the kicker.
THe Audio Doctor/Waterfall glass speaker was interesting. The big KEF sounded better than last year.
I didn't get to MBL or any of the big rooms on the 4th and 5th floors.
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I was there on Sat. It was a small scale of audio show as to RMAF.
I visited the Vivid/Mola Mola too, it did not sound right to me too, the small room was overpowered by the bass ouput from vivid and no center image.
Here are few rooms I liked:
1.Kondo room, Audio Note Japan All audio note electronics and beautiful speaker. Very good sound stage, image and have to agreed with Buddy it has "emotional connection" with the listener.
2.Merrill Audio with Sander Model 10c. The sweet spot is narrow so only 3 chairs at the center. I got the the front center seat and asked for female vocal track. I was so closed to the the singer and feel she was just infront of me. Voice floating in the dead center. No harsh sound from SS amp and great bass. enjoyed this system.
3.Beauty of Sound/Laufer Teknik. It was playing LP only, but the sound is so balanced with great clean bass.
4.Coincident System was good too
5.Care Audio with TRL Dude Preamp and Mono block was sounding nice too, suprise bass from small UK speaker with 6" woofer.
Didn't go to the MBL, I don't want to wait in their front door.
Here are some pictures:
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78882)
KEF R-Series
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78883)
Dupuy Acoustique/ Mod Wright tube Oppo 95/ Modwright 150SE power amp
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78886)
Coincident system
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78892)
Coincident Line and phono preamp
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78921)
Woo Audio headphone tube amp
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78931)
Care Audio/ TRL Dude balance premap/ TRL Hypex 1200 Mono power Amp/ Small UK speaker/ Musica Pristina server
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78956)
PI audio Uberbuss(left)/TRL Mono block 600(center)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78933)
TRL Hypex Ncore 1200 based mono 600 1x XLR 1XRCA input
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78928)
TRL tube balance preamp Dude 2XLR and 2 RCA inputs 1x XLR output and 2 RCA output
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78935)
YG Acoustics /Soulution /Kubala Sosna
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78937)
Audio note UK
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78939)
Merrill Audio/ Sanders Sound Systems Model 10c/ 4 Veritas Hypex ncore 1200 mono block driving Model 10c
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78940)
Merrill Audio/ preamp and processor
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78941)
Merrill Audio/ Veritas mono blocks
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78947)
YG Acoustics and Veloce
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78961)
Gamut wiht S5(small one) and S9(big one) speaker/ All Gamut electronics/ CD player/Integrate/Preamp/power mono blocks
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78963)
Vivid speaker/Mola Mola preamp and processor/Hypex Ncore 1200 mono block
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78965)
Mola Mola mono blocks
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78966)
Kondo/ Audio note Japan
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78970)
Audio note power tube amp
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78979)
Beauty of Sound/Laufer Teknik
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78980)
6C 33 C SE Tube Amp
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78981)
the clue
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Did you get a chance to listen to the Woo/Stax combo?
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Did you get a chance to listen to the Woo/Stax combo?
I did. The rig pictured above (Stax SR-507, Woo GES, mysterious Korg DAC/processor playing DSD tracks) sounded great. It was the best headphone rig I heard all day.
The second best headphone rig I heard was the Sennheiser HD800s with a new Fosgate headphone amp. That was the only headphone amp I heard that brought the HD800s to life, with a full sound with really good low end frequency extension.
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Some more random pics. Most of the rooms have been captioned in the above posts - so wont bother repeating.
Rooms I really liked were (in no particular order)
- The clue (Amazing Holographics)
- Gamut Speakers (Smaller ver Floor Standers)
- Broadmann Speakers (V7)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78998)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=78999)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=79000)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=79001)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=79002)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=79003)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=79004)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=79005)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=79006)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=79007)
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Minimus,
Thanks for the reply, that headphone combo is on my bucket list!
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keep the impressions flowing from the NYAS going. Thanks for the posts so far!
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I was impressed by the Reimyo monitors , they were very small and sounded very big. There 75k of electronics prob helped too. Those monitors were 8k. Just a great sounding room.
I liked the vivid room of course they were playing a DSD of the Doors Riders of the Storm and I liked that a lot. I know digital amps is all the rage and they did sound nice but have IMO a more artificial sound then tubes done right. Of course if you take size, heat into the equation I can see them as a competant alternative.
Also thought the my audio designs aka MAD speaks sounded a lot bigger then they looked and had great balance. I thank Sunil for letting me hear the dude into the allnic amp, it was a fun combo.
I guess like Buddy said if you listen for sonics the kondo room might not be for you. But if you want to hear how old Johnny Cash was when he sings a song the Kondo room will tell ya. The emotional connection had me shaking my head. There was not enough big SET glass at the show (for my taste) so I spent a lot of time in this room. The sheer purity and organic quality of the music was an experience I will not forget.
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GREAT pics SET Man! If I may ask, what camera are you using as those pics look great!
Finished posting my coverage at www.enjoythemusic.com/new_york_audio_av_2013/
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Does anyone notice that some of the speakers that the magazines tend to praise are rarely on anyone's best of lists, like the YG's? They just never sound good to me. The big KEF blade was just booming, as it has in past shows where I've heard it, but the little KEF monitors did sound very nice. I have yet to hear Tidals or Magico's at a NY show, but by reports from others whose ears I trust they have been less than impressed with Magico's at a show elsewhere. Tidal's aren't prevalent in the US yet, but I would like to hear them even if I can't afford them.
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GREAT pics SET Man! If I may ask, what camera are you using as those pics look great!
Finished posting my coverage at www.enjoythemusic.com/new_york_audio_av_2013/
Hey!
Thanks you, glade you like them. :D As for the photography equipments... I used my Sony A700 DSLR, now 5 years old and discontinued for a few years now with Sony's Carl Zeiss SLA2470Z 24-70mm f2.8 zoom lens and Sony HVL-F58AM flash of which I used on a few very very dark room.
I did missed some of the rooms there though.
Take care,
Buddy :thumb:
To show pics.... http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v
(http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v)
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(http://www.stereophile.com/images/041613merrill.1.jpg?1366130863)
From stereophile: Merrill Wettasingh of Merrill Audio says his Class D Veritas Monoblock amplifiers are "not for tube lovers". The crimson or black chassis is made of a solid 60lb. billet of aluminum. Allowing only spade connection for the "best and biggest" sound, these 400 Watt (8 ohms) power-houses seek "audio purity" rather than coloration, according to Wettasingh.
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Why are these being ignored by every forum and blog?
These sounded wonderful and are affordable!
http://dagogo.com/audio-space-ls-35a-bookshelf-speakers-and-sw-1a-subwoofer-review/2
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Why are these being ignored by every forum and blog?
These sounded wonderful and are affordable!
http://dagogo.com/audio-space-ls-35a-bookshelf-speakers-and-sw-1a-subwoofer-review/2
Emil you are SO right! These speakers were wonderful. $2900 new , what a bargain. Sounded much bigger then they are, great tone, and balance. I starred at them thinking how they sound better then some of the 50k speaks at the show. You could do alot worse for alot more but I doubt you could do alot better for less.
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Why are these being ignored by every forum and blog?
These sounded wonderful and are affordable!
http://dagogo.com/audio-space-ls-35a-bookshelf-speakers-and-sw-1a-subwoofer-review/2
Hey!
Emil, I was in that room....
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8542/8647672366_94efb7508f_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8647672366/)
Music First Audio Room (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8647672366/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8520/8646576485_e3cb4edf65_z.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646576485/)
Music First Audio Room (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646576485/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
I actually was excited to check that room out because I was at their room last year....http://flic.kr/p/byCKKo (http://flic.kr/p/byCKKo) But it wasn't the same. Last year they had a real vintage Roger LS3/5A without sub, I liked the room. But this year I didn't get the same magic with those GINIz(?) version of the LS3/5A. I would rather look for a vintage LS3/5A than those combo.
Still compared to what available around the same price new today they are very enjoyable speaker.
Take care,
Buddy :thumb:
Link to 2013 show pics.... http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v (http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v)
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.....
I guess like Buddy said if you listen for sonics the kondo room might not be for you. But if you want to hear how old Johnny Cash was when he sings a song the Kondo room will tell ya. The emotional connection had me shaking my head. There was not enough big SET glass at the show (for my taste) so I spent a lot of time in this room. The sheer purity and organic quality of the music was an experience I will not forget.
Hey!
Glade that someone here understand what I meant. Many audiophiles are easily get impressed with big sound, big bass, some even think that boomy bass is good and etc. They get caught up in that typical audiophile's mumble jumbles. And yes I was like that too for a while when I got started.
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8121/8646577533_323b57a5fc_z.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646577533/)
Kondo System (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8646577533/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
I've heard a numbers of system at shows and in a real home settings and regardless of type of components use tube or SS, it is very rare to encounter one that can make me feel this way... only a few so far.
Yes, if you guys are wondering.... yes I am a SET and Single Driver speaker user.
Take care,
Buddy :thumb:
Link to 2013 show pics.... http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v
(http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v)
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Hey!
Emil, I was in that room....
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8542/8647672366_94efb7508f_c.jpg)
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8520/8646576485_e3cb4edf65_z.jpg)
I actually was excited to check that room out because I was at their room last year....http://flic.kr/p/byCKKo (http://flic.kr/p/byCKKo) But it wasn't the same. Last year they had a real vintage Roger LS3/5A without sub, I liked the room. But this year I didn't get the same magic with those GINIz(?) version of the LS3/5A. I would rather look for a vintage LS3/5A than those combo.
Still compared to what available around the same price new today they are very enjoyable speaker.
Take care,
Buddy :thumb:
Link to 2013 show pics.... http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v (http://flic.kr/s/aHsjEGVu6v)
I will give the nod to this room as well. I thought it was putting out some very very good sound with nice tone compared to some of the mega buck demos. And yes my reference is vintage l35as.
My two cents here was that along with the audio space/music first/wells, the clue was a very good speaker run by a hegel integrated.
I was underwhelemed by the harbeth 30.1 run by RWA stuff. Either it was me but i rwa always has great sound, and i thought the room was kinda "sleepy" sounding. The new kef ls50s were good but seemed in that room to sound more technical then soulful if that makes sense. Funny thought id love em.
Loved the Joseph audio pulsars driven by a unico hybrid. Best combo of detail and tone then almost all the rooms i heard.
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Anyone hear this room:
(http://www.audiophilia.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/nyc1.jpg)
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Kbuzz,
I loved the Joseph Audio Pulsars at the Chicago Axpona. IMO, they were among the most memorable speakers I heard in the two days I attended. They sounded better than any of the big bloated ribbon tweeter speakers I heard at the show. More realistic and enjoyable, and decent bass for little speakers. I don't recall if they were using a sub but the overall sound (the channel D room) was excellent.
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Yes, I agree completely. The Pulsars are one of the best bookshelf speakers out there, and the family traits move well into the larger models of the series. The small floorstander Perspective is a little warmer with somewhat deeper bass extension and impact, but sounds very similar. I haven't heard the Pearl in quite a while, and there's a new model out, but I do remember liking them a lot. They're a bit of an odd duck sometimes, requiring careful setup. I've heard them sound lush and organic, and other times bright and incisive, always with tons of detail and deep, wide imaging. One of my favorite, go to speakers.
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Yes, I agree completely. The Pulsars are one of the best bookshelf speakers out there, and the family traits move well into the larger models of the series.
We share tastes (other than Newcastle), as one of my faves at Capfest '11 was the Joseph room.
Btw, did anyone at this show hear the Cary/Audio Electronics stuff? Think they may have demo'd with KEF
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Anyone hear this room:
(http://www.audiophilia.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/nyc1.jpg)
Yes, I did. I was there on Saturday. I agree with a lot of what was said here, although my reaction to the Kondo room was more mixed. If one were to point out any weakness there, I felt the speakers were not up to the rest of the electronics. I thought there were points along the frequency spectrum where they sounded uneven, leading to a slight sense of non-linearity. For that kind of money they were good, but as I said not up to what was behind them. Pretty sure what I was hearing was from the speakers.
As to the Innovative Audio Wilson Alexia / D'Agostino room, I have to grudgingly say I was finally impressed with a pair of Wilson speakers. Honestly I've never heard any Wilsons sound "great" at a show - even last year at NYAS with Innovative using VTLs to drive Wilsons, or at last year's RMAF. But the combination of Dan's gear and the Alexias impressed me, at least with the music I heard - and I'm not really a Wilson fan. They sounded like drop dead real music - image size, tonality, space, texture, depth, resolution. I didn't think the Wilsons in Innovative's other room, fed by LAMM electronics, sounded as good. They sounded like typical Wilsons.
I was also not impressed with the Raidhos, less so with the floorstanders in the Singer room (I agree with minimus - plus they didn't throw a very realistic soundstage). But even the Diamond bookshelves showed limitations when playing complex, dynamic classical music. I heard both simple pieces (vocal jazz with a small instrument backing), and the other (symphonic Wagner) both from various very good recordings. With small scale music the D-1 was sublime - resolved, clear, nice sense of space. But when things got complicated and very dynamic it showed limitations in being able to maintain depth and clarity across the whole frequency span. Small details in the Wagner - which I hear clearly in my own system - got lost in the mix. Could have been the room in part, but I'm not sure. Now one could say small bookshelves shouldn't be expected to handle large scale music that well, but for 26+ thousand dollars it had to do better than what I heard.
The rest of the stuff sounded pretty much like it does at all shows, with the postings so far being on target IMO. The biggest surprise for me were those little coincident driver speakers in the Harmonix / Reimyo room. I didn't expect them to sound as good as they did. Realistic, nice soundstaging, surprising low end.
Didn't care for the Sony speakers. I heard the (what was at the time) prototypes of that newer speaker at RMAF last year. In both cases they were using PASS gear. That new SS-AR early look at RMAF sounded wonderful. The speakers at NYAS (they were a less expensive model from what I could gather) did not sound all that exceptional. But it didn't help that they were right above the mbl room.
Didn't care for the Waterfall glass speakers. It didn't impress me that the exhibitor knocked on the glass to show how inert it was. That trick is as meaningless now as it was when audio salesmen were doing it 35 years ago. It proves nothing when compared to how a speaker will resonate across the full audio band. That aside, I didn't think it sounded all that realistic when playing small acoustic ensembles.
I agree the show "felt" about the same size as last year. There were more rooms, but it didn't seem like there was really that much more to hear. My friend who came with me had an interesting observation: he felt like it was the kind of show you could go to every other year, unless there was something really new and exciting to hear in an in-between year. At best, if you've been to the first two like I have you could probably do next year's in one day, or a day and a half at most. Or just skip it and go to RMAF. I'm disappointed, as it seems like it did not grow enough from last year to seem like NY could regain its standing as another city for a great audio show.
Liked the Pulsars.
But for as much as a downer as I'm sounding, I actually did have a good time. Saw my show friends at the The Clue and Coincident rooms (both sounded fine, as always), and saw Valerie Joyce sing in the 5th floor atrium room. Wonderful performance, even if she still is somewhat young. Hopefully she will continue to grow in skill and technique.
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We share tastes (other than Newcastle), as one of my faves at Capfest '11 was the Joseph room.
Btw, did anyone at this show hear the Cary/Audio Electronics stuff? Think they may have demo'd with KEF
Hey!
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8239/8650056899_47d2dd144c_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8650056899/)
KEF (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8650056899/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8114/8651155978_9ab8489617_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8651155978/)
KEF (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/8651155978/) by setpower1 (http://www.flickr.com/people/8309248@N06/), on Flickr
I was there on Sunday a little before the show end. Yes, they were using Cary and Audio Electronics. When I was there they were demoing the little LS50 with Audio Electronics amp and preamp. I've been curious about the LS50 and that was the first time I've heard them. They are small speaker in a large room. The sound was good but on a heavy bass electronic music they had on I can hear them loose control of the bass with port noise. Other than that I think they sound very good for the size and price and should work well in smaller room.
Unfortunately I didn't get to hear their bigger one with Cary Audio in the same room.
Take care,
Buddy :thumb:
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Thanks! Didn't realize they had 2 setups, one Cary, one AE. Yes, thought the LS50s sounded, nice and "big" given their size, but definitely add a sub if you're going to drive them hard!
Like the AE stuff as well, reasonably priced too. May have to snag some for a show...
I would personally have had the LS50s spread a little wider and toed in, but that's easy to do sitting here! :lol:
cheers,
AJ
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Thanks! Didn't realize they had 2 setups, one Cary, one AE. Yes, thought the LS50s sounded, nice and "big" given their size, but definitely add a sub if you're going to drive them hard!
Like the AE stuff as well, reasonably priced too. May have to snag some for a show...
I would personally have had the LS50s spread a little wider and toed in, but that's easy to do sitting here! :lol:
cheers,
AJ
Can't wait for Newport and to read all about the New York Show in TAS. I always hide my CC's and on hand Cash when going to Audio Shows...too much in the moment impulse buying can happen and does happen :duh:
Jim
P.S. Many thanks to all who have posted pic's and first hand accounts. The Symbol Record Player Console sure is nagging me, buy me, buy me....
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Anyone hear this room:
(http://www.audiophilia.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/nyc1.jpg)
I agree that this was the best Wilson room I ever heard. Nice tone and body, then like mentioned in this thread, you go across the hall and the Wilsons w/Lamm SS sounded ALOT thinner and I left immed. Those momentum SS monos, I thought were the best SS i've heard. As impressed as I was, it was more about refinement and sophistication then pure beauty and emotion.
I would like to attend a audioshow. Only power is tubes, all run in triode. PP, PSET and SET of course :thumb:
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As a GamuT S9 owner, that room was WAY too small for those speakers. That was pretty unfortunate. For those of you that heard it, it was about 10 - 15% of what that speaker is truly capable of. It's always a disappointment when you hear them put big speakers in too small of a room.
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As a GamuT S9 owner, that room was WAY too small for those speakers. That was pretty unfortunate. For those of you that heard it, it was about 10 - 15% of what that speaker is truly capable of. It's always a disappointment when you hear them put big speakers in too small of a room.
Agree. I heard the Gamuts at Woodside Audio. I thought he was trying to do too much at NYAS with that setup in the room he had.
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Unfortunately I didn't get to hear their bigger one with Cary Audio in the same room.
I was in that room. I'd give you an impression of what I heard if I'd actually heard them. Instead what I saw (note the term) was the guy in that room act like a carnival barker, doing his best to show off his special compilation CD 12 seconds at a time, having the room guess who was performing on each cut. It made actually listening to the system all but impossible. I got fed up with the bear on the tricycle and tuned out.
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Didn't get to hear the Gamuts, that's the 1 room I missed completely. Walked past that room at least 4 times and each time it was packed to the gills. They did took way too big for that small room, and he had them toed in at a rediculous angle.
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The pics on Flicker, really show how good of a photographer he really is. Nice! 8)
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"Do you consider yourself an audiophile? "...from Stereophile (http://www.stereophile.com/content/do-you-consider-yourself-audiophile)
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Best Sound in Show - People's Choice
http://www.stereophile.com/content/best-sound-show-peoples-choice
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NY Audio Show Wrap Up AVShowrooms
Part I: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbqL4K8xFnI
Part II: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WEoHWUjcdA
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The preamp used in the Merrill room was a Miracle Audio preamp. We used the same one at DC Audiofest last year .
charles