Audio Shows

Audio Shows


  • TAF2023: Bowers & Wilkins, Classรฉ Audio, DR Acoustics

    First things first; I hadnโ€™t expected the Bowers & Wilkins / Classรฉ Audio room to smell as good as it did! A sweet mixture of herbal and fruity scents, perhaps? I can remember only a few rooms Iโ€™ve visited at shows that enveloped both my sense of smell and of hearing. The Bowers & Wilkins…

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  • TAF2023: Moon by Simaudio, Bowers & Wilkins, Cardas Audio, Tidal

    Prices are listed in CA$. Moon by Simaudioโ€™s new flagship series, the North Collection, will comprise six models in all, four of which will gradually be rolled out in the coming months, and two of which were released this month in time for the Toronto show. Powering a pair of 3-way, 90dB-sensitive Bowers & Wilkins…

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  • TAF2023: Hegel, Magnepan, Analysis Plus

    Prices listed in CA$. The Hegel room was showing off its Viking CD player ($6000), on static display when I visited, and 308Wpc, dual mono, DAC-equipped H600 integrated amplifier ($15,000). The source was FLAC files streamed from a laptop hard drive, while the speakers were Magnepanโ€™s model 3.7i ($11,875/pair), which looked taller to me, and…

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  • TAF2023: Vinyl Sound, Thorens, Accuphase, MoFi, Fleetwood, Furutech, Ortofon, Norstone

    Prices listed in CA$. Some systems sound so effortlessly musical, so capable of preserving the musicโ€™s essence and soul, that while listening to them I tell myself that Iโ€™d be happy living with such a system for a very long time. Accordingly, I tell myself that this is my type of system, this is the…

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  • TAF2023: Lenbrook, DALI, NAD, Kimber Kable

    Prices are listed in CA$. Since DALI released its $150,000/pair flagship Kore loudspeaker over a year ago, Iโ€™ve seen it consistently demoed with NAD electronics, to good effect. This match-up always delivered powerful sound, authentic tone, and a huge soundstage. At this show, the Kore was supplanted by the companyโ€™s latest model in the series,…

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  • TAF2023: American Sound, Audio Research, Rethm, Qobuz, Transparent Cable, AudioQuest

    I canโ€™t imagine bigger audio news this year than that of Audio Research filing for something akin to a Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Fearing that such an iconic company โ€“ one I always took for granted as being indestructible โ€“ might possibly go under and disappear from the audio landscape was disheartening and unsettling to me.…

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  • TAF2023: PSB Speaker, NAD, AudioQuest

    Prices listed are in CA$. You might assume that my mood darkened when a bass beat began pounding through my hotel room wall from the adjacent room while I was trying to concentrate on my writing, but it was the opposite. My mood was lifted. Swayed by the musicโ€™s tribal pulsations and sense of immediacy,…

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  • TAF2023: Le Studio du Son, XTZ, Tough Nut Audio, Zidoo, Sona

    Prices listed are in CA$. You want a simple-to-use system that sounds great, doesnโ€™t clutter your room, and wonโ€™t break the bank? If youโ€™re nodding yes, then the system being demoed in Le Studio du Sonโ€™s room just might be up your alley, especially if you donโ€™t like big, heavy, inefficient amplification but do want…

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  • TAF2023: The Toronto Audiofest is here!

    Iโ€™ll be covering so much cool stuff itโ€™ll make you feel like youโ€™re here, covering the show with me.

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  • T.H.E Show 2023

    From reel-to-reel romance in British Audio Guysโ€™ room to the ultra-luxe finesse of Lansche speakers with Thrax amps, Jonson Lee captures T.H.E. Show 2023โ€™s sonic splendorโ€”with Katli, AGD, and Audio Limits all making standout impressions.

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  • AXPONA 2023, Part 2

    Roon-backed Dutch & Dutch wowed AXPONA 2023 with their $14,950 DSP-powered 8c speakers, while class-D amps from Amped America and live demos from Yamaha and GoldenEar showcased serious sonic chops.

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  • AXPONA 2023, Part 1

    Back in full force, AXPONA 2023 saw 366 exhibitors take over 12 floors of Chicagolandโ€™s Renaissance Hotel, with standout launches from Luxman, DALI, Innuos, and Cabasseโ€”and plenty of eye-watering cable prices to match.

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  • Florida Audio Expo, 2023

    From Acoraโ€™s granite giants to Endowโ€™s space-age arrays, Mike Harkins captures the innovation and immersive sound at Florida Audio Expo 2023, where 77 exhibits showcased audioโ€™s finest and boldest in Tampaโ€™s warmth.

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  • Toronto Audiofest 2022โ€”impressions from an exhibitor who didnโ€™t exhibit

    Skipping this yearโ€™s Toronto Audiofest as an exhibitor, Justin Brown attended instead as a visitorโ€”offering insider reflections on the showโ€™s warmth, accessibility, and grassroots charm, despite unseasonably tempting patio weather.

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  • In Search of audio at CEDIA Expo 2022

    Though now dominated by home automation, CEDIA 2023 still had sonic gemsโ€”Perlistenโ€™s standout room, MBLโ€™s immersive Radialstrahlers, and a thunderous B&O display hinted at high-end audioโ€™s enduring presence amid the smart-home surge.

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