AXPONA 2024

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Ken Micallef  |  Apr 17, 2024  |  14 comments
First-time AXPONA exhibitor Sierra Sound was founded in 2020 as a distributor for strictly analog hi-fi equipment. Rather high minded, wouldn’t you say? Personally, I’m all in.
Ken Micallef  |  Apr 17, 2024  |  2 comments

Rhythm Distribution’s Craig Hoffman teamed up with Garrard, Goldmund, and Tannoy to unveil a beautiful-looking, primarily analog rig at AXPONA. Kat Ourlian—Global Head of Sales and Marketing for SME—was on hand to spin vinyl; she had Room 660 rocking from the first needle-drop.

Rogier van Bakel  |  Apr 17, 2024  |  0 comments
Magico turns 20 this year, but founder and chief designer Alon Wolf isn’t the type for gauzy remembrances. In Magicoland, looking ahead beats looking back, so we’ll have to marvel some other time at how the Californian brand has shot to the top of the high-end heap.
Rogier van Bakel  |  Apr 17, 2024  |  1 comments
On the 12th floor of the Schaumburg Renaissance hotel, visitors found a cluster of Fidelity Imports rooms that highlighted one strong foreign brand after another.
Ken Micallef  |  Apr 16, 2024  |  3 comments
Rogue Audio's Nick Fitzsimmons and Bill Magerman ran a room that operated smoothly and sounded smooth.
Mark Henninger  |  Apr 16, 2024  |  1 comments
YG Acoustics speakers were featured in several rooms at AXPONA 2024. The highlight for me was a room featuring the Carmel 3 speakers ($29,800 per pair), the entry point to the company's Reference range.
Jim Austin  |  Apr 16, 2024  |  First Published: Apr 14, 2024  |  0 comments

Harmonia—the recently renamed distribution arm of hi-fi company Upscale Audio—had four rooms on the 12th floor at AXPONA.

Jim Austin  |  Apr 15, 2024  |  6 comments

Ever since the announcement some two weeks ago, I've been eager to hear the SVS Ultra Evolution Pinnacle loudspeakers, which, at $2499 each—or, you guessed it, $4998/pair—are cheap in high-end terms but quite expensive for SVS.

Jim Austin  |  Apr 15, 2024  |  First Published: Apr 14, 2024  |  0 comments

In Schaumburg C, Rutherford Audio set up camp—and what a camp it was! Electronics by Accustic Arts, analog by Acoustic Signature and Vertere—two turntables—and loudspeakers by Stratton Acoustics, a speaker line I had not previously heard.

Jim Austin  |  Apr 15, 2024  |  0 comments

When I walked into this room, just before closing time on Sunday, the show’s last day, they were spinning vinyl. Two things are notable about that fact, at least to me.

Jason Victor Serinus  |  Apr 15, 2024  |  First Published: Apr 13, 2024  |  0 comments
What better way to start the first day of an audio show than with some light joyful music? In this case, it was with a 1974 LP, Heinz Holliger: Famous Oboe Concertos, on which the famous oboist joined players of the Dresden State Orchestra under Vittorio Negri for, among other works, Leclair’s Concerto in C for Oboe, Strings, and Continuo, Op. 7. In the first movement, the lively presentation complemented equally lively music, which cheerily zipped along.

Ken Micallef  |  Apr 13, 2024  |  17 comments
In the room operated by Brooklyn’s John DeVore, we time traveled to the 1940s and 50s as he spun pristine shellac 78s on an EMT turntable, playing through the world premieres of both his O/bronze Loudspeakers (30,000/pair) and the 7Wpc Komuro Amplifier Company K300S direct-coupled SET 300B stereo amplifier ($20,000).
Rogier van Bakel  |  Apr 13, 2024  |  0 comments

The amiable and loquacious Jason Zidle is a product manager at Lenbrook, the Canadian company behind NAD and Bluesound. Lenbrook also imports Denmark’s storied DALI speakers. At the Renaissance hotel in Schaumburg, the star performers in the Lenbrook space are a handsome pair of just-launched DALI Epikore 11 floorstanders ($60,000/pair).

Ken Micallef  |  Apr 13, 2024  |  8 comments
Meeting up with Tone Imports’ Jonathan Halpern and Pitch Perfect Audio’s Matthew Rotunda was like a family reunion for me. Along with John DeVore and Twittering Machines’ Michael Lavorgna, Halpern is one of my oldest friends and audio guides. His east coast (or Midwest) appearances are rare since he restationed himself in the sunny California desert. His and Rotunda’s ability to assemble a beautiful sounding system remains the same as it ever was.
Rogier van Bakel  |  Apr 13, 2024  |  0 comments
On Thursday night, Chris Shaw, one of Focal’s setup men, was having a tough time. He’d almost finished dialing in the 584-lb Focal Grande Utopias EM Evo speakers, but their bass (14Hz at -6dB) caused a ceiling light fixture in the large Focal/Naim room to rattle. Shaw pushed a printed show banner out of the way to make space for a ladder. A few minutes later, thanks to some sticky tape, the distracting noise was gone.

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