I bet you didn’t know that Jonathan Valin played football. I’m pretty sure he was a linebacker, actually. Why? Because I hadn’t even stepped out of the van from the airport before he tackled me. ...

What follows is a survey of new headphone, earphone, and related products seen and heard at RMAF. HeadAmp The Virginia-based firm HeadAmp was showing its newest product, which is the two-chassis, fully balanced, solid-state GS-X ...

The majority of the rooms I visited were playing vinyl or tape per my assignment. That little fact may have added to my belief that RMAF 2013 had the best overall sound I’ve experienced at ...

Over roughly the past decade an alternate high-end audio universe has been emerging—a universe centered on very high-performance headphones, earphones, portable and desktop headphone amplifiers, and amp/DACs. In short, it is a world that might ...

Merrill Audio Veritas monoblocks ($12,000/pr) were driving the TAD Evolution 1 loudspeakers using a Macmini computer running Channel D Pure Vinyl into a Lynx Hilo ADC/DAC via Thunderbolt connection. These fully balanced amps are based ...

Covering digital products at RMAF requires spending more time listening to specifications and technology spiels than to music. And it means I must visit almost every room at the show. This cuts the time I ...

In other news Benchmark (pictured above) introduced its first “analog” product in the guise of an amplifier, the AHB2. Power output is 100Wpc into 8 ohms (170Wpc into 4 ohms & 340 W bridged mono ...

Most readers of show reports tend to point out the rooms or equipment that a reviewer missed during the show, as if he should have covered them all. However, any seasoned audiophile/music lover who has ...

Expensive high end is exciting and at times stirring but I have to admit that there are times when the stiff entry fee can be a little dispiriting. The antidote was only a few doors ...

I gave myself the assignment of searching for the best-sounding affordable loudspeakers at this year’s show. Sure, it’s fun to listen to the megabuck systems, but there’s something rewarding about discovering great-sounding speakers that nearly ...

The tenth installment of the Rocky Mountain Audio might have seen a dip in overall attendance–depending on who you ask–but there was no lack of enthusiasm. Bracketed by Cedia and CES, manufacturers typically don't choose ...

This year the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest celebrated its tenth anniversary, which is hard to believe since it seems like only yesterday that the then-daring experiment of sponsoring a trade show in the shadow of ...

As I begin to wrap up my online coverage of the 2013 CAS I would be remiss in not mentioning my first listen to the Legacy Aeris with DSP room correction controller ($18,850), TAS’ current ...

On the 2nd Floor, I found a pair of exhibits that featured Wilson Audio speakers. Sponsored by Music Lovers a noted SF high end emporium, the largest of the two housed Wilson Alexia’s positioned against ...

CAS provided me with my first look and listen to Sonus faber’s latest Olympica Series loudspeakers. At least one model anyway. On hand was Olympica’s two-way compact the Model 1, a direct replacement for the ...