Not to be missed at Axpona

Went to AXPONA today. First show ever for me despite being in this hobby for over 40 years.  Nice to see some familiar smiling faces I have happily done business with along the way: Geoff Poor of Glenn Poor Audio Video, John Loranger (Tara and Connor) of Pearl Audio Video; and some new acquaintances: Mike Kay of Audio Archon, plus the many gracious and friendly exhibitors at AXPONA 2024.

I may be partial because they are local to me, but the music in the Ultra fidelis room #1234 is not to be missed.  I could have easily spent all day there listening to the mostly Vandersteen gear.  Jonathan Spelt of Ultra fidelis works his magic even in the challenging environment of a small hotel room.  Kudos!

+1 Volti Lucera speakers, but Volti doesn’t appear in the 2024 AXPONA spreadsheet list.

T+A Solitaire S Series Line Source Loudspeakers - reviews say it’s fast/effortless like a panel speaker but also has the weight/pressure of box speakers, and soundstage images are narrow but very sharply defined.

No shortage of good Restaurants in the area.

Thanks for the suggestions. These are the types of things we have missed. 

In regards to my wife attending the show, she does enjoy it. We are local (25mins away) and we know quite a few of the area reps. Over the years, we've made a number of friends that we see at the show. She loves music and together we've built an exceptional system. She enjoys the concerts and we eat out the whole weekend. That's a plus. 

I just spoke with my friend Danny from RAAL-Requisite. I am making a drive to his location in Ventura, CA this Friday to have a listen to maybe the world’s best headphones, the brand new RAAL 1995 Magna and Immanis ($10k). These ones are not cheap, and the target competition are $60k phones.

16 Most Expensive Headphones in the World | Headphonesty

The following week he is taking the phones to the Axpona show in Chicago.

Go have a listen at his booth. The RAAL SR1a ($3.5k) is very much like 2-channel sound. The new phones are not designed like that but supposedly have some similar 2-channel presentation characteristics of the SR1a but with better resolution and bass impact.

I would be very interested to know what other 2-channel people, like me, think of them.

Convergent Audio always has great sound.  They often use Magico S5MkIIs, sometimes other interesting speakers.  They've exhibited a DP W3 optical cartridge also.  

What I would want to see, if I were going, is the new Volti Lucera speaker. In between the Razz and the Rival. Looks promising.

You wife goes all three days -- at the show with you? Hang on to her. She's a keeper.

Make sure to see Grimm Audio. Their DAC, I understand, employs a unique and proprietary approach to digital conversion. The result, I have been told but not yet heard for myself, is fabulous. I am still trying to convince my wife to join me. 

Make sure to see Grimm Audio. Their DAC, I understand, employs a unique and proprietary approach to digital conversion. The result, I have been told but not yet heard for myself, is fabulous.