[Vinnie R.]

All,

I want to take a few minutes to post pics from our two AXPONA 2016 rooms, and will leave this thread open
for show feedback / links to coverage.


Our room with Harbeth Loudspeakers powered by a LIO - featuring DHT PRE with SV811 tubes with their
highly addictive rich, natural tone.  We've had some attendees saying in this room listening for > 1 hour
and reluctant to give up their seat, so I took that as a good sign! 


A close-up shot of LIO equipped with the upcoming DHT PRE.  It has been getting a LOT of attention since
we opened the doors on Friday, and it has been fun talking about and even more fun listening to it 


Our room with Volti Audio's Alura horns, Triode Wire Labs cabling, and LIO - featuring DHT PRE running a pair of
Emission Labs 300B's.

Volti Alura's are ~ 98dB sensitive, and LIO DHT PRE is delivering a 'hum-free' and super low noise performance with these
highly sensitive speakers.  This combo is serving up a tremendous soundstage and effortless sound no matter what music is
playing.  Reach out and touch the performers realism here... 



A shot from the back of LIO, with Sonore microRendu (powered by a Belleson super-regulated power feed from LIO's internal ultracapacitor power supply).  I've been playing a nice selection of high res. PCM and DSD files, and the microRendu makes them sound better than ever!   


Attendance at this show in both rooms (especially on Saturday) has not only been good - it has been AWESOME!!! 

Having both rooms packed with attendees that genuinely seem to be enjoying themselves and getting lost in the music / excited
about listening has been the highlight so far. 
I want to thank everyone who visited both of our rooms and all your kind words and support. 

Tomorrow AM starts Day 3.  I'll post more soon enough...

Vinnie

[Vinnie R.]

I just spotted this post about our room on the stevehoffman forum:

http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/axpona-visit-winners-and-losers.526287/

The Vinnie Rossi / Harbeth room was the best sounding of the ones I attended. The new Vinni Rossie amplifier paired with the Harbeth Monitor 40.1 system had an extraordinary sound because it sounded so ordinary- like ordinary music and vocals- not at all like an amplifier and a pair of speakers. You hear about speakers "disappearing" and many claim to. But I swear to God I was sitting four feet from a pair of toe'd in large boxy monitors and I could not tell if they were actually playing. There were absolutely no sonic queues- low frequency, midrange or treble- that I heard coming from either speakers. It is as if they were silent and an invisible combo was playing directly behind them. All of the sound came from a stage about four feet behind the front of the speakers. The sound was natural- no colorations or distortions of any kind.

For me, the "natural" speaker sound is in, and the others that followed today just sounded like speakers.

That's the near field magic doing its thing... listen to more of the music and less of your room.  With very well balanced/coherent speakers like the large M40.2s, it just works!

[Vinnie R.]

More, here:

http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f26-sonore-sponsored/sonore-microrendu-ethernet-universal-serial-bus-industry-standard-cables-connectors-and-communications-protocols-between-computers-and-electronic-devices-output-27389/index48.html#post532948

I heard the microRendu today in Vinnie's room, and it was outstanding. It was the best computer based audio I have ever heard.

Vinnie's LIO and Harbeth speakers were excellent too.

I heard his room yesterday, and it was one of the best rooms imo...MSB Analogue DAC were among my favorites. Either way, Vinnie's LIO with the Micro sounded incredible. But it's my first time hearing a LIO so hard to differentiate, but what an enjoyable room!

Thanks to everyone for posting your feedback - no matter if here on the VR forum, or elsewhere!

Vinnie

[Vinnie R.]

We're back from AXPONA - What an amazing show it was this year!




Tons of traffic in Room 336 (Saturday was insanely busy  ), and Triode Pete was running
the other room (314) that I had a LIO in and told me the same thing.  His room feedback thread is here:
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=140288.0

Some feedback from AC'ers starting here:
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=140222.60

A lot of the rooms sounded bright/hard to me.  I know show conditions are tough on these guys, but a lot of stuff I would never want to own based on what I heard at the show.  As for the best rooms.   Rossi's with the Harbeth was the best for me.  Very smooth sound.  Salk and Revel also sounded pretty good.   

Volti/Rossi LIO.  The smaller setup upstairs sounded terrific.

More so than in prior years I found that there were very few bad sounding rooms.  There are always a bunch of ear piercing setups but I thought this year had a ton of great sounding rooms including:

1 - Paragon audio with Doshi and Wilson
2 - Both Modwright rooms with Ryan speakers and another brand I can't remember
3 - MBL
4 - Salk room on LL
5 - Scenium (sp) with ARC amps
6 - Rossi and Harbeth
7 - Rossi and Volti

I am sure there are more.  Really good show this year.

VinnieRossi/small Harbeth was smooth and very easy to listen to...also tempting.

*****

More fun was had Saturday evening after hours in the Spatial Audio room, where TomS brought in his LIO and we listened to the
Spatial M3 Turbos!

Spatial M3 Turbo after hours using the Vinnie Rossi LIO.  This was incredible!  Thanks for attending Vinnie and thanks to TomS for bringing his LIO!     Oh, should also thank Clayton Shaw for letting us take over his room for a bit and crank it.     These speakers really are the shizz.

jtwrace was playing DJ and keeping us hooked with all types of music that was anything but boring! 

The M3 Turbos completely filled the room with BIG sound and at times, we had the volume way up and were transported to
concerts by Bon Jovi (a killer live cut of Living on a Prayer), Candlebox, Sara Barellis (sp?), Tori Amos, and plenty of others). 
John Darko told me that he loved using his LIO review unit with the Spatials, and how much of a smoking good value they are, and I
have to agree.  It was nice to meet Clayton Shaw of Spatial, who was friendly and seemed humble with regards to what he was able
to deliver to his customers for only $2600 / pair.   

This thread has more from this fun listening session (including a pic), starting here:  http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=139398.msg1519478#msg1519478

*****

More links from AXPONA will be posted as soon as I learn about them!

Vinnie
 

[Vinnie R.]

I also posted this on the Sonore microRendu thread over on computeraudiophile.com:

http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f26-sonore-sponsored/sonore-microrendu-ethernet-universal-serial-bus-industry-standard-cables-connectors-and-communications-protocols-between-computers-and-electronic-devices-output-27389/index50.html#post534155

And please read #5 in my post, because I believe that for these shows to be most useful to attendees, you really need to bring
your favorite music (at least a couple of tracks that you know very well and enjoy) and listen to them on different systems to see
what connects with you emotionally. 

I love it when attendees bring an LP, CD, or the ever-so-convenient to carry USB stick.  And this part is most important:

...it is especially welcome when it is something we are probably not familiar with. Various needle drops transferred USB stick are always great! And if you are new to computer audio or anything in the system, please don't be shy to ask some questions between tracks. Having fun, listening, and learning is what these shows should be all about.[/b]

***

From Head-Fi member "isquirrel:"

http://www.head-fi.org/t/766517/chord-electronics-dave/2565

This room probably is in my top 2 favorite rooms at AXPONA.  For those who have not heard the Harbeth 40.2 monitors, which despite their large size can be used as near-field monitors even in a large room, they are supremely musical and for acoustical music (singer/songwriter, jazz, classical), they are very hard to beat (probably even better than Magicos).  If I don't get Magicos, I will probably get Harbeths (or something similar like Omegas).  Even if I get a pair of Magicos (which are better for large orchestral music and amplified music), I may still get a pair of Harbeths.  The midrange of these speakers are second to none, the bass is potent and no subwoofer is necessary (even with a 25 watt amplifier) and the coherence of all the drivers is simply seamless.  If there was a "you are there" presentation at AXPONA for acoustical music, this was it.  Vinnie was using his LIO, a modular design that can be configured with different options including a delta sigma DAC, phono preamp with tube linestage, headphone amp and 25 watt class AB mosfet amp.

 

[Triode Pete]

Vinnie - Thanks for letting me be part of the team in Room 314! Once again, your LIO (this time with the DHT pre) impressed the "heck" out of me (putting it very mildly)! A brilliant "All-in-One" solution that does EVERYTHING right! Great tonality, dynamics, leading edge transients, PRAT, etc, etc... and one thing that was extremely impressive; it's SILENT, Black background... pretty amazing on 99 dB efficient Volti horns! When things are that quiet, the microdynamics and subtle instrument cues really can amaze you!





I'm really looking forward to NEWPORT in early June!

Cheers,
Pete

[Zero]

Heck yeah man.  Wish I was there. 

[Vinnie R.]

Vinnie - Thanks for letting me be part of the team in Room 314! Once again, your LIO (this time with the DHT pre) impressed the "heck" out of me (putting it very mildly)! A brilliant "All-in-One" solution that does EVERYTHING right! Great tonality, dynamics, leading edge transients, PRAT, etc, etc... and one thing that was extremely impressive; it's SILENT, Black background... pretty amazing on 99 dB efficient Volti horns! When things are that quiet, the microdynamics and subtle instrument cues really can amaze you!

Hey Pete - thanks for your post.  Besides me in room 336, you spent the most time with the new LIO DHT PRE while running room 314 - so I really appreciate your impressions!  Looking forward to Newport!

Heck yeah man.  Wish I was there.

We missed you, Sean!

---

And thanks to Stereophile's Jason Victor Serinus for posting about the LIO / Volti / Triode Wire Labs room, here:

http://www.stereophile.com/content/axpona-jasons-friday-finish#vfTKRggfVFSJ5dhI.97

A winning system came in the form of hand-built-in-Maine Volti Audio Alura 99dB-sensitive loudspeakers ($15,900/pair), Vinnie Rossi LIO ultracapacitor-powered integrated amplifier with phono stage and DAC ($10,470 as configured), Acoustic Signature Challenger MKIII turntable ($4995) with TA-1000 arm ($1500), and the world-premiere appearance of Triode Wire Labs' Gold Statement power cord ($999), along with other Triode Wire Labs power cords and cables.

Ella sounded gorgeous on her "April in Paris" duet with Louis Armstrong, with fabulous soundstaging but exaggerated sibilants on consonants. I could really hear how Satchmo's trumpet and vocals seemed all of one piece (as in: the product of the same musical intelligence and inspiration), and marvel at the natural timbral contrast between trumpet and piano.
Read more at http://www.stereophile.com/content/axpona-jasons-friday-finish#8t6tDKzKHHB2hAUK.99

- Vinnie

[jtwrace]

jtwrace was playing DJ and keeping us hooked with all types of music that was anything but boring! 

The M3 Turbos completely filled the room with BIG sound and at times, we had the volume way up and were transported to
concerts by Bon Jovi (a killer live cut of Living on a Prayer), Candlebox, Sara Barellis (sp?), Tori Amos, and plenty of others). 
John Darko told me that he loved using his LIO review unit with the Spatials, and how much of a smoking good value they are, and I
have to agree.  It was nice to meet Clayton Shaw of Spatial, who was friendly and seemed humble with regards to what he was able
to deliver to his customers for only $2600 / pair.   

This thread has more from this fun listening session (including a pic), starting here:  http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=139398.msg1519478#msg1519478

Vinnie

Maybe I should get a part time job playing DJ at a show.   

[Vinnie R.]

Maybe I should get a part time job playing DJ at a show.   

I agree - but I can't hire you... only because I have too much fun doing it, too! 

 

[Odal3]

Wow. What two amazing rooms you had at Axpona. Thank you for the good show! I surely liked what I heard and they are definitely on my top list of  best room.

with Sonore microRendu (powered by a Belleson super-regulated power feed from LIO's internal ultracapacitor power supply)

Can you share some more info of your impressions of this setup? - kind of with and without type of comparison

[paul79]

My buddy Chad heard the Volti room, and says you guys really had it together in there. Wish I was there!

[Vinnie R.]

Wow. What two amazing rooms you had at Axpona. Thank you for the good show! I surely liked what I heard and they are definitely on my top list of  best room.

Hi Odal3,

Thank you!

Can you share some more info of your impressions of this setup? - kind of with and without type of comparison

Sure - the Sonore microRendu (mR) is coming out very soon.  Instead of running a USB cable directly out of your computer, you connect it to your router via Ethernet cable.  It takes the data, has awesome jitter reduction / clocking, only the bare essentials for getting good sound, including internal linear voltage regulation, and sends out the music via USB to the dac.

So the setup for digital in Room 336 was like this:

Macbook Air (music stored on its internal SSD) >> wireless to Airport Express (used as a wireless bridge) >> Ethernet cable from Airport Express to microRendu >> short USB jumper cable from microRendu to LIO (LIO DSD/PCM dac installed in the LIO).

BUT - microRendu needs to be fed from an external power supply.  So I will be offering a Belleson super-regulated output (fed from LIO's isolated ultracapacitor banks) to feed microRendu - which is what I had in Room 336.  Not only is the power isolated from the grid, it is also super-regulated (low uV noise level, large transient output current delivery), and no need for an external power supply for mR since it is coming from LIO.

Functionally - I was using it with Roon playback software all weekend w/o a hiccup.  No matter if the files were DSD64, DSD128, 24-bit / 384, etc. - it was glitch free and super easy to use once set up.  Cables were actually Belkin for Ethernet and USB jumper.

Sonically - the mR is a knock-out!  No comparison to running directly from the computer's USB output.  Soundstage is bigger, imaging and focus are more precise, micro detail retrieval is better, and the high res. tracks sound better than ever!  I've only been using Roon playback software with it, so I'm not sure how much Roon has to do with it (before that I was using Audirvana Plus, but you can't stream to mR with it). 

I first used a low-noise linear power supply (Acopian) with excellent results - but after feeding it via LIO's isolated ultracaps >> Belleson super-regulation, there was absolutely no going back.   

Once the mR's start shipping, I am sure there is going to be a lot of talk (raving) about it on the forums from their customers.  Just a couple of years ago, you'd be paying big $$$ to get the kind of performance that mR delivers.  Very cool! 

Yes - I'll be using it again at Newport Beach, CA show in early June.  Bring your music (high res on USB stick) and give it a good listen!

Vinnie

[Folsom]

Multiple good sounding rooms, when only the select few could even do one good sounding room, nice.

The LIO is a very smart product, Vinnie. Fatigue is gone, and you've reduced the whole system to a nice little box. To me this is more luxurious than Goldmunds not so great sounding wireless speakers. I actually think it's a little more elegant to have say a turn table and the LIO than nothing at all in a room for WAF/lifestyle; but offset not in the middle of the speakers wherever they may be.

[Vinnie R.]

Multiple good sounding rooms, when only the select few could even do one good sounding room, nice.

The LIO is a very smart product, Vinnie. Fatigue is gone, and you've reduced the whole system to a nice little box. To me this is more luxurious than Goldmunds not so great sounding wireless speakers. I actually think it's a little more elegant to have say a turn table and the LIO than nothing at all in a room for WAF/lifestyle; but offset not in the middle of the speakers wherever they may be.

Thanks Folsom!  I really appreciate your and everyone's feedback.  And yes, I love to keep the system as simple as possible.  A turntable + LIO + speakers would be a classy example of that!

Speaking of turntables, we had the Acoustic Signature "Thunder" TT in our room (with Dynavector Te Kaitura Rua cartridge).  Such a well-made, great sounding table!  It was a pleasure to have Acoustic Signature's Gunther Frohnhöfer of Germany come to visit us, all the way from another audio show in South Korea!     

And it was also a pleasure to also have Harbeth's Trevor Bulter visit us from England, too!



Here are some more Room 336 pics taken from an attendee who flew out to the show from NH and was kind to email them to me (thanks, Bill!):

[beowulf]

Hi Vinnie, can you tell me what stands you're using with the Harbeth 40.s?  They're very sharp looking!

Thanks!

[mr_bill]

I love the Tiger Ebony color of the 40.2.  Someday, I wish to hear a pair.  Have never heard Harbeth.

[Vinnie R.]

Hi Vinnie, can you tell me what stands you're using with the Harbeth 40.s?  They're very sharp looking!
Thanks!

Hi beowulf,

They are made by Resonant Woods in NH:  http://resonantwoods.com/

Brooks Tanner designs and builds them custom-sized for the Harbeth models, along with equipment racks (he built the
rack used in our room) and other custom woodworking.   

I love (and own) his Curved Series stands:



*****

It looks like Stereophile's Jason Victor Serinus recently posted about our VR LIO / Harbeth room, here:
http://www.stereophile.com/content/axpona-jasons-journey-continues#cD5m86WzuceUjAwK.97


Photo Credit: Stereophile / Jason Victor Serinus
Photo: Axpona 2016 Room 336, with Vinnie Rossi LIO / Harbeth SHL5_plus / Acoustic Signature Thunder

I believe when Jason came in and was taking pictures, the Harbeth SHL5_plus was in the system.  Then we switched over to the 40.2.

I expect that a lot of converts were won over by the Vinnie Rossi ultra-configurable, do everything but wash your dishes, Stereophile Class A Recommended Component LIO with new LIO directly heated linestage ($10,470 as shown, including multi-format DAC, phonostage, and 25Wpc MOSFET amplifier). I certainly was when I heard it paired with Harbeth M40.2 Reference loudspeakers (starting at $14,795/pair), Acoustic Signature Thunder turntable ($10,995) with Acoustic Signature 12" TA-5000 tonearm ($6495), and Dynavector Te Katora Rua cartridge ($3000), and Tellurium Q Silver Diamond speaker cables ($7495) and Black Diamond interconnects ($1795). The sound was smooth and warm on some throwaway pop, and simply great on a 24/48 file of Harnoncourt conducting Schubert. In fact, the sound was so beautiful and smooth, with such a warm midrange, that even some loud talking in the room could not obscure how wonderful it was.

Auditioning a very different track from Joelle Gere confirmed that the system's beautiful midrange was not in the least over-exaggerated, and that the top was non-fatiguing, if a tad polite. The session ended with Phoebe Wilder's "Weather Coming." I've heard a lot of digital rain sound like broken glass, but this 24/96 downpour actually sounded like the H2O that brings forth life rather than reigns havoc on all it touches. No wonder Herb Reichert enthused over the Vinnie Rossi LIO. Thanks for the beautiful experience, Vinnie and Walter Swanborn of Fidelis A/V.

Read more at http://www.stereophile.com/content/axpona-jasons-journey-continues#xlLJL0Y2MLJJ8EkZ.99

Just for clarification in case anyone is interested in hearing the same tracks that Jason listened to:

Nikolaus Harnoncourt: Schubert Symphony (No. 8 in C Major, D 944) / HDTracks 24-bit/48kHz
Joel Grare: Paris - Istanbul - Shanghai (Track: Cymbale Du Ciel, Les Esprits De La Pluie Et Du Vent) / Redbook
Phoebe Killdeer: Weather Coming (Track: He's Late) / Redbook

Thank you, Jason!

Vinnie

[beowulf]

Hi beowulf,

They are made by Resonant Woods in NH:  http://resonantwoods.com/

Brooks Tanner designs and builds them custom-sized for the Harbeth models, along with equipment racks (he built the
rack used in our room) and other custom woodworking.   

I love (and own) his Curved Series stands:




Vinnie

Thanks Vinnie,they are quite beautiful and many congrats for the great rooms at AXPONA as well.  I'll see you in a couple months at T.H.E. Show Newport, I'm looking forward to it!

[Vinnie R.]

Thanks Vinnie,they are quite beautiful and many congrats for the great rooms at AXPONA as well.  I'll see you in a couple months at T.H.E. Show Newport, I'm looking forward to it!

Thanks, beowulf - see you in Newport Beach! 

Vinnie