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The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint

You could argue that this show, or one very much like it, belongs in the Big Apple. Unfortunately, the New York Audio Show continues to be a work in progress. That leaves the Rockville, Maryland-based Capital Audio Fest, or CAF, the undisputed reigning king of East Coast audio shows.

But CAF doesn’t hold that title merely by default. Show organizer Gary Gill puts considerable effort into making the event a success—it’s said he visits every room while CAF is in progress—and there’s impressive attention to detail. For instance, each exhibitor gets a felt rope loop that prevents room doors from clanging as guests enter and exit.

This year, the three-day affair was attended by throngs of earnest audiophiles and families alike. Many made the trip down from NYC. All were treated to a broad spectrum of systems, from the easily affordable to the most sponge-worthy audio porn. (“Million-dollar systems? We’ve got two!”)

CAF is a dealer-oriented show, and many of the bigger rooms were staffed by dealers both local and from as far away as Georgia and California. Industry heavyweights were in evidence, as well––e.g., Andrew Jones personally presenting his new MoFi speakers—and the show was replete with new-product announcements. The sound was nearly universally good. Beyond all this, CAF is infused with a sense of community that eludes many other shows. People were respectful, happy to start up conversations with strangers, and clearly enjoying themselves.

In the deficit column were the inevitable minor snafus. Signage and badge misspellings abounded. (Whoever is responsible for such things probably ought to learn how to spell “Fremer.”) One of the two elevators was out of service when crowds were at their densest. And Internet access, which many exhibitors were counting on to stream Qobuz, was spotty.

Moreover, several big-name brands were MIA. There was Magico but no Wilson; Wadax but no dCS; and Soulution but no CH Precision. Perhaps next year these companies will see the light and support what has become the best show east of AXPONA.

As in the past, the two of us encountered a surfeit of good-sounding rooms and product debuts. We therefore split our coverage along previous lines, but reversing the territory assigned last time: AQ took Inspirational rooms and components, while, this go-round, it was AT’s turn to cover Aspirational exhibits. We set some price guidelines for ourselves, but basically we reasoned that it’s pretty obvious whether a component or system is meant to be affordable or is swinging for the fences.

And so, without further ado, here’s what we found at CAF 2022.

Andrew Quint

A Dozen Inspirational New Products

Most of the new products in my category were loudspeakers, which isn’t unusual. I ventured from room to room at CAF 2022 with the goal of hearing at least one of three familiar tracks that I had on silver disc or a thumb drive or were readily streamable from show sponsor Qobuz (that is, when an exhibitor was fortunate enough to have a reliable web connection). Those tracks were: (1) Anthony McGill and Gloria Chien performing the first movement of the Brahms Clarinet Sonata, a release on the Cedille label from 2021; (2) Bernard Haitink’s 2010 recording of the opening Allegretto from Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 15 with the Concertgebouw Orchestra; and (3) the title track from Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band’s Act Your Age, a 2008 release. The exhibitors were happy to supply all the female vocalists, Dave Brubeck, Dire Straits, and electronic dance music I needed. And then some.

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
The Mo-Fi SourcePoint 10 makes its debut with HiFi Rose electronics

The hottest new product in Rockville was undoubtedly the MoFi SourcePoint 10 loudspeaker ($3699), known to many in attendance—to the mild annoyance of MoFi—as “the new Andrew Jones speaker.” Within hours of its unveiling, the Internet was roiling with strong opinions, positive and negative—all from people who hadn’t actually heard the thing. The SourcePoint 10 is a substantial stand-mount, a ported box measuring 14.5” x 22.5” x16.6” and weighing in at 46.2 pounds. It’s a two-way design with a 1.25” soft dome tweeter mounted concentrically within a 10” woofer. With a sensitivity of 91dB and an impedance of no less than about 6 ohms, the speakers aren’t an especially difficult load to drive. At CAF, they proved highly resolving with tons of quality bass. Within a day, 80 pairs had been ordered with shipping anticipated before the end of the year.

MC AudioTech frontman Mark Conti and his designer partner Paul Paddock introduced the company’s brand-new loudspeaker, the TL-12 ($24,900). Far more conventional-looking than the still-available Forty-10 model, the new floorstander meets the world as a four-foot-tall rectangular cabinet with an appealingly curved back. The same wideband line-source drivers, developed over decades by Paddock, are used in the new product, crossed over to a 12” transmission-line woofer; the speaker functions as a dipole above 300Hz. The TL-12 was capable of both nuance for the peaceful Brahms piece and the dynamic headroom and special ease needed for the sardonic drama of Shostakovich’s final symphony.

I nearly missed the Børresen X3 ($11,000) because…well, frankly, I wasn’t expecting to come across a full-range floorstanding loudspeaker from the elite Danish manufacturer at anywhere near this price. But there it was: a tall, slender 2.5-way with a practically mass-less ribbon/planar tweeter and three in-house-made 4.5” carbon-sandwich cones that employ a ferrite magnet system (unlike pricier Børresen models, which use neodymium). Despite the number of drivers, Anthony McGill’s clarinet was a coherent voice from top to bottom, and the piano sound registered the characteristically dense voicing of Brahms’s keyboard writing.

David Janszen presented the JansZen Nine.Five ($19,500), a “modern take” on the classic KLH Nine, the first commercially practical electrostatic loudspeaker, designed by his father Arthur A. Janszen in the mid-1950s. Each speaker sports six 8” ceramic cone woofers that cross over to the 8” x 48” electrostatic panel at a surprisingly low 200Hz. Those ’stat arrays are divided into narrow vertical strips, with the signal arriving slightly later to segments flanking the central one. This, Janszen explains, substantially broadens the dispersion, always a concern with a physically large electrostatic panel. With the 400Wpc AGD Gran Vivace stereo amplifier ($18,500), the sound was enthralling—coherent, tonally accurate, and when called for, quite powerful. The Nine.Five is sold direct to consumers.

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
George Ligerakis, CEO of Ideon Audio, introduces his company’s new line of digital components, as distributor Michael Vamos (Audio Skies) looks on.

Looking a little jet-lagged after a long journey from Athens were Ideon Audio’s chief designer Vassilis Tounas and CEO George Ligerakis, on hand for the U.S. introduction of the Greek manufacturer’s new mid-priced line of digital electronics, including the ION DAC ($18,000), the ESO Stream ($9000), and the EOS Time reclocker ($6000). The technology and build-quality were very much in line with the company’s exalted Absolute products, and they contributed importantly to the successful debut of the new Acora speakers (see below).

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
Technics SL-G700M2 CD/SACD/Network Player

To audiophiles with a North American perspective, playing digital recordings from a disc can seem almost quaint. This isn’t the case in Europe and Asia, where “physical media” remain very popular. So, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Technics was introducing its SL-G700M2 CD/SACD/Network Player ($3499) at the show. The new component utilizes an ESS chipset in lieu of the AKM devices employed in earlier Technic players (the AKM factory was destroyed by fire in 2020). There’s USB connectivity, and full MQA decoding is supported. I played the Shostakovich SACD I’d brought and, though there were a ton of variables to consider in the all-Technics system, I had no sense that a spinning disc was holding back the sound quality in a meaningful way.

On a swing through CAF 2022’s Headphone Lounge, I discovered the new Audeze MM-500 ($1699), an open-back planar-magnetic design. They’re sturdily constructed, with an all-aluminum housing, yet elegant looking, with real leather earpads and strap. The sound was clean and timbrally accurate on a Mozart piano concerto recording and—as no one had to know that I was tapping my toes to Lizzo’s “About Damn Time” and not some Bruckner symphony—I can attest that the ’phones do quite well with well-recorded rock and pop material.

Is a product “new” just because it becomes available in a different color? Not usually, but an exception must be made for Acora Acoustics. The enclosures for Acora’s first products were (and still are) fashioned from black African granite. Now, the Toronto-based manufacturer is producing its existing three models in white and gray quartz versions. Founder/designer Valerio Cora allows that introducing the quartz models has a lot to do with providing aesthetic alternatives, but there’s no denying that these versions, which weight substantially less, sound different, too. I got a good listen to the QRC-1 two-way ($28,000), a speaker I know well from having lived with the original granite version (Issue 308) and found that the sound was warmer and more “forgiving.” A matter of taste, to be sure—but I liked it a good deal. Do note that the prices for the granite versions have been increased a bit.

Jim Salk’s room at an audio show is always an oasis of calm and musical bliss. At CAF 2022, Salk Sound debuted their most expensive speaker ever, the BePure 3 ($19,995 to $24,995, depending on finish), very effectively paired with new McGary Audio electronics—the SPA1 preamplifier ($9000) and the MA1 monoblock power amps ($20,000/pair.) Jim Salk told me, as I listened to my test tracks: “I build speakers for myself. If someone else likes them, I’ll build ’em a pair.” I think he’ll have plenty of takers with this one.

Robin Wyatt, CEO of Robyatt Audio (a conflation of his first and last names, it would appear) was demonstrating a system that featured several infrequently heard brands. One product was the Miyajima Lab Prominent OB Field-Coil Speakers ($25,000). As is typical with field-coil loudspeakers, there was an ease to the presentation that could be quite addictive. Wyatt played a Chasing the Dragon LP I was familiar with (España), and the selections from Carmen were stunning. The playback system also provided a first listen anywhere to the compellingly named Bird of Paradise tonearm ($10,750) from Thai-Scandinavian Engineering. Also on display at Robyatt Audio were LP storage/display products by Wax Rax of Brooklyn, New York, whose founder, David Stanavich, has designed and built all sorts of custom metal furniture and architectural details but is also a serious vinyl devotee. The LP-C LP Showcase ($1650) caught my eye for its functional beauty.

A manufacturer I wasn’t at all familiar with was Kerr Acoustics, which builds its loudspeakers in Cambridge, England. The K320 mk.3 ($11,850) floorstander made its U.S. debut at CAF; it’s a two-way featuring a 60mm (2.36”) ribbon tweeter and a 165mm (6.5”) wood-fiber cone, deployed in a transmission line. The frequency response is rated at 24Hz to 45kHz. An older Robert Plant recording demonstrated ample dynamic punch and tonal neutrality.

Keeping company with David Janszen and his new Nine.Five loudspeaker was Alberto Guerra of AGD Productions, whose Gran Vivace monoblocks ($18,500/pair) deliver 400Wpc into a 4-ohm load. The amps disguise their Class D circuit topology by displaying a faux power tube on top of the component; in fact, this “tube” houses the key technology responsible for AGD products’ elevated performance. That’s the gallium-nitride power MOSFETs used in the power stage—the company claims that these devices are capable of switching at a far higher slew rate than any silicon-based MOSFET. They certainly were up to the task of driving the new JansZen speakers, which can be a difficult load for many amplifiers.

`The most striking-looking product, old or new, at CAF 2022 came from Treehaus Audiolab of Southport, Connecticut. A loudspeaker called National Treasure ($16,000) is another field-coil design but, uniquely, the enclosure has an open-baffle construction, fabricated from large “live-edge” wood slabs. The three disparate drivers have been laid out asymmetrically and one’s first impression may be of chaos—but there’s definitely a method to the madness. The immediacy of a Louis Armstrong vocal was astounding. A sense of grandeur was created by the Minnesota Orchestra’s performance of Fanfare for the Common Man for Reference Recordings, and yet my Brahms clarinet recording featured subtle dynamic gradations and the sort of tonal neutrality not associated with what superficially seems to be a loosey-goosey design. It ain’t.

Top Five Inspirational Systems

As CAF is a dealer-oriented show, you might expect to encounter some high-performing systems that leveraged the synergies of all the products involved. This was indeed the case, with top dealers from near and far travelling to Rockville to engage with a larger potential customer base, as well as to catch up with industry colleagues. Sometimes, though, excellent sonic outcomes were heard even when there wasn’t a dealer assembling the audio system. Previous experience informed some very felicitous decisions regarding component pairings.

By way of clarification, I’ve defined Inspirational systems as those composed of Inspirational individual components. That means that, while the system piece/parts are all of Inspirational intent, the total cost for some of the systems can get up there. (One system built out of what most of us would agree are moderately priced components-—for the high end, anyway-—ended up totaling just under $100k.)

This strikes me as fine, since most audiophiles assemble their systems in an incremental process that takes place over many years. That’s part of the hobby, after all. Very few of us sit down to write a check to purchase a complete high-end system all at once. So, it makes sense that the paramount consideration be that individual components are Inspirationally priced.

Theoretica Applied Physics BACCH-SP adio Stereo Purifier ($27,800, as configured at CAF) + JansZen Valentina A8-SE active loudspeakers ($14,249).

As it turns out, the most impressive of my five top Inspirational system choices was also the simplest—a pair of powered loudspeakers plus the Theoretica processor with its paradigm-busting crosstalk-cancellation filter. Plus, an SPDIF cable, which I’m fairly confident the two exhibitors will again never forget to pack for an audio show. Total cost, a little past $42k.

Acora Acoustics QRC-1 loudspeaker ($28,000) + Ideon Audio ION DAC ($18,000), ESO Stream ($9000), EOS Time ($6000) + Hegel P30A preamplifier ($8995) + Hegel H30A stereo amplifier ($18,998 + Cardas/Ideon cables.

A world-class system for under $100k—one that will play “big” even in a large room.

Qln Prestige One loudspeakers ($6800) + Innuos ZEN server ($3149) + Meitner MA3 DAC ($10,500) + Meitner PRE preamplifier ($7500 estimated) + Jeff Rowland 625 S2 amplifier ($18,400) + Transparent Audio cables, power cords, and PowerWave X power conditioner ($10,000)

Now Listen Here, a dealer with retail stores in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and Falls Church, Virginia, offered demos with a rotating trio of moderately priced stand-mounted speakers from Qln, Fyne, and Joseph Audio—an exercise of potentially great use to many people at the Inspirational point in their audiophile careers. I caught one of the Qln time slots, with top-quality componentry, cabling, and accessories behind them in the audio chain. Excellent sound with a wide range of musical genres for less than $60,000.

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
Haniwa Audio’s single-driver loudspeaker, with one of the two subwoofers that ships with each pair.

Haniwa Audio 20-20 Super Subwoofer System ($24,000)

As of September, 2022, Haniwa’s HSP 01 loudspeaker package includes two Sony subwoofers to comprise a full-range, time-aligned audio system. There was decent dynamic punch and tonal accuracy, though some may still find bass lacking with certain source material.

Philharmonic Audio BMR monitor ($1900/pair for curved cabinets, $1700/pair for rectangular cabinets) + Topping D-90 DAC ($745) + 2 Hypex monoblock NC-1200 amplifiers (approx. $600) + Amazon Basic cable.

This one truly is a “budget system” that sounds better than it has any right to sound (and, in the case of the speakers, looks better than it has any right to look.) There was decent orchestral weight with the Shostakovich symphony and believable instrumental tone throughout the clarinet’s range with the Brahms sonata. The Hypex amps come in DIY kit form, but you could probably hire an engineering student to assemble it for the price of a middling interconnect.

Andrew Quint’s Best of Show

Best New Product: MoFi SourcePoint 10. I wonder how many pairs were ordered by the end of the weekend.

Best Sound (cost-no-object)

Intimate scale: The Voice That Is. Tidal, Vinnie Rossi, Siltech, Critical Mass Systems. It’s not that the system couldn’t convincingly render orchestral extravaganzas and pedal-to-the-metal rock—it certainly did. It’s just that with smaller-scale material, the musicians were convincingly brought into the room.

Grand scale: The Audio Company. Von Schweikert Audio, VAC, Esoteric, Clearaudio, Masterbuilt. The combination of the equipment utilized and the capacious environment allowed for the listener to be transported to another place. I brought a digital master of a choral concert I’d recently attended, and the sense of experiencing the performance again was uncanny.

Best Sound (for the money)

Theoretica Applied Physics BACCH-SP preamp/processor + JansZen Valentina A8-SE active loudspeakers.

The BACCH-SPs crosstalk-cancellation filter does things spatially that no other product can do, and the fairly directional JansZen speakers will let it happen in a typical-sized or even a smaller room.

Notable Trend

Field-coil speakers

There were five to be heard at CAF 2022, models from Classic Audio Loudspeakers, Wolf von Langa, Songer, Miyajima Labs, and Treehaus Audiolab. Not bad for a technology that was the “it” thing 100 years ago.

Best Demo

Philip O’Hanlon of On a Higher Note, is the North American distributor for several well-regarded brands, including Artesania, Graham (loudspeakers), and Bergmann. O’Hanlon starts by asking what kind of music you like and then ignores whatever you say to launch into his schpiel on “midrange magic,” utilizing five LPs he’s chosen ahead of time. The talk is engaging, informed, insightful, and a lot of fun. He’s got the whole Irish thing going, as well—the brogue, the vest, the bowtie, the derby (and, sometimes, the whiskey)—which only adds to the entertainment value. You can see a brief version of this presentation linked to our Facebook page, if you’re so inclined.

Alan Taffel

A Dozen Aspirational New Products

As was the case in Andy’s category, most of the Aspirational product introductions at CAF 2022 were speakers. However, there was still a nice, juicy phonostage or two—even an open-reel deck—to stir things up.

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
Conrad-Johnson deserves more attention for products like its new ART88 preamplifier

Conrad-Johnson doesn’t get as much hype as some other tubed electronics, but it should. That was evident in the 20/20 Evolution room, which featured Kharma DB9-S speakers driven by Conrad-Johnson monoblocks, a C-J phonostage, and the brand-new ART-88 Limited Edition linestage ($28,500). The sound was remarkably fast and detailed. Said Jacob Heilbrun, who joined me for this session, “You’d never know you were listening to tubes.”

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
Kuzma’s latest flagship tonearm

In the same room was a Kuzma Stabi R turntable, which isn’t new, but at CAF it was complemented by the flagship Kuzma Sapphire SIR 9 tonearm ($25k), which is.

The Goebel room featured the U.S. debut of the imposing Divin Sovereign Subsonic subwoofer ($29,500 each). With an 18” driver and 2600 watts of built-in power, it’s no surprise the Sovereigns went subterranean. Yet, paired with the Divin Marquis mains, they were also capable of great finesse. A dongle plugged into a rear-panel port creates a private, wireless network that allows the user to fine-tune the sub’s DSP with a control app. Importer Elliot Goldman brought two subs, but it turned out the room, large though it was, could only handle one.

Andy reported on the impressive new, Quartz-clad Acora QRC1. For larger rooms, Acora now offers the QRC2 ($37k). The granite-housed SRC1 and SRC2 remain at the top of the Acora line, but their prices are expected to rise 20–25% this winter due to an increase in material costs. For my money, the new Q Series is more approachable than the S models, with only a minor trade-off in resolution. Plus, as Andy noted, it’s available in colors!

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
Tidal’s third generation Piano speaker is its entry-level model, despite a $60k+ price tag.

In its 22 years of existence, Tidal has always had a Piano model speaker. Yet this year marks only the third iteration of that foundational product. The new Piano Gen 3 ($64k) is the company’s most recent “entry-level” speaker (that being a relative term, obviously). A very serious design, the cabinet is now made of Tiradur, a proprietary, layered, composite material. Other new elements include a “floating” diamond tweeter, isolation feet, and the crossover. Uniquely, the speaker can be run as a 2.5 way, a two-way, or in an Enhanced Bass mode. The new model is available now, but don’t be surprised if you have to wait to get yours. Each is handmade, which leads to long delivery times. My audition indicates they could well be worth the wait. Driven by Vinnie Rossi electronics, the latest Piano was exceedingly neutral, with surprising power for a speaker of its size.

Another U.S. debut was in residence at the Kroma Atelier room, where you could see and hear the Stella Xtreme ($34,200) from Spain. The speaker employs dual wood ports, two small 6.25” mid/woofers and a similarly sized carbon-fiber-cone woofer. These flank an AMT tweeter. Kroma specs the frequency response at 25–25kHz. Color me impressed by this speaker’s fast bass, huge dynamics, and splendid openness. And that was when they were stone cold on the first day of the show!

I was unfamiliar with the JMF Audio brand when I walked into its room. Apparently, their analog electronics are well established in the pro-audio realm, and now the French firm is moving into the home-audio market. Its first flourish was the world premiere, in the Acora room, of the PHS 7.2 dual-mono phonostage ($22k). Paired with a Pear Audio ’table, the phonostage and associated JMF electronics, along with the Acora QRS2, delivered a spellbinding rendition of Satchmo’s “St. James Infirmary.”

At any given show, you can almost always count on the prolific folks at Nola to introduce a new speaker, each with an ever-longer name. CAF 2022 was no exception. The Baby Grand Reference Gold 3 ($150k) sits in the middle of the Reference series, which spans a huge price range of $29k–$500k. The latest model sports two dynamic woofers, four dynamic midrange units, and four ribbon tweeters. Of course, this being Nola, the mid- and high-frequency drivers are mounted on an open baffle. At CAF, driven by VAC electronics and a J.Sikora ’table with a DS Audio cart, the sound was rich, open, and extraordinarily spacious. Although the individual woofers aren’t large, together they produced thunderous bass despite Nola’s enormous room. The speaker wasn’t even intimidated by organ pedal notes. Nola claims the model works well in smaller spaces, too.

Fidelity Imports commandeered several rooms to show off its array of companies. Several, including Alare and Audio Flight, unveiled what sounded to me like worthy new speakers. But the most interesting launch was of an entirely new brand. Soul Note is a company staffed entirely by refugees from Marantz. They pride themselves on components being 100% tuned by ear, and their designers stress simple, direct signal paths. The line includes the P3 preamp ($25k), M3 monoblock amp ($25k), S3 SACD player ($20k), D2 DAC ($9k) and E2 phonostage ($9k). The sound at the show was on the lush side, yet with notably dynamic transients.

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
VAC’s new model 300 uses the same circuitry as some of the company’s more expensive models.

Kevin Hayes himself was on hand to introduce VAC’s latest edition to its Master Series (which slots below the Statement Series), the Master 300, whose price will be in the low $40k’s. The all-tubed amp (natch) can be configured to output 160 watts/channel in stereo or to serve as a 320-watt monoblock. The audio modules in the 300 are the same as those in the nearly twice as expensive 452 ($75k), so although it’s not cheap it represents quite a bargain.

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
The Alta Audio room.

Another brand with which I was unfamiliar, Long Island-based Alta Audio, has actually been in business over a decade. At the show, it introduced its latest speaker, the Titanium Hestia II ($37,500) with the new, patent-pending XTL base. The speaker employs a novel hybrid design, with a tuned port for frequencies above the resonance, and a transmission line below it, Alta claims the Hestia II delivers the best of both worlds. The Hestia II is also the rare speaker that contains no internal padding; instead, the cabinet is said to create no standing waves. All drivers are made by Morel to Alta’s specifications and feature titanium voice coils. The midrange is dipole, while the tweeter is a Raal true ribbon unit. The drivers are arranged to form a quasi-D’Apolito configuration. Driven by Infigo Audio electronics, the speaker was mesmerizing playing Leonard Cohen, with gobs of tonality and dynamics. On another track it proved able to reproduce a violin with exceeding delicacy and realism.

Finally, what would a list of Aspirational debuts be without a saliva-inducing open-reel tape deck. United Home Audio provided just that with the world premiere of the Super Record Deck ($106k). It’s basically a Super Deck with the ability to record. Like the Super Deck, the Super Record Deck consists of three chassis: an outboard power supply; an outboard DC head amp; and the transport, which now houses the recording electronics. At CAF, the UHA produced the best sound in the million-dollar Lansche Room system.

Top Five Aspirational Systems

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
The Goebel room featured both the Divin Marquis speaker and the U.S. debut of the Divin Sovereign subwoofer.

In the Bending Wave room, importer Elliot Goldman had set up a peach of a system, with Goebel Divin Marquis speakers ($89k), the new Goebel Divin Sovereign sub, and Thrax electronics. All in, the system cost just over $600k. Eliot broke with tradition by playing musicals, such as the soundtrack from the new Spielberg-directed West Side Story. The mids and lows were wonderfully natural, and the soundstage was relaxed rather than hyper-tight. Very dynamic, open, and lively.

While Andy highlighted the smaller Acora system—built around the QRC1, Ideon digital electronics and Hegel analog gear—as one of the best-sounding Inspirational systems, in what is surely a first Acora also had one of the best-sounding Aspirational systems. The latter consisted of the QRC2 speakers ($37k), higher-end Ideon digital components, and a full stack of JMF Audio amplification products. Cabling was by Cardas. Total system cost: $225k. The sound had purity, drive, and the resolution for which Acora has become known.

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
The Arion planars, unlike Maggies, are extremely high-sensitivity. Here they’re being driven by a 25-watt SET amp.

One of my favorite systems, because it was composed of brands that were new to me, included Arion Audio Apollo 12 planar speakers ($50k) with the Dual-Pack Woofer Package ($8900) and Phasemation electronics complemented by a Wolf Audio Systems Red Wolf 2 SX music server ($16,500) and a T+A SD 3100 HV DAC ($36k). The analog front end was a VPI Avenger Direct ($36k), which is now out of the prototype phase and in full production. Grand total equals $350k. The combination got right to the heart of the music by completely disappearing, both electronically and physically. A true chameleon, the system changed character with the material. It also had the best depth I heard at the show. Proving its claim of high efficiency in the planar speakers (12 AMT drivers in the main tower, 16 10” drivers in the bass tower), the amps put out just 25 watts from an SET configuration. You’d never know it.

Estelon speakers continue to impress. At CAF, you could find them in two rooms. One had the Xb Mk II (in a seductive deep black), and the other featured a pair of Xb Diamond Mk II’s in look-at-me red. I particularly liked the black pair, perhaps because they were paired with Bricasti electronics and Kubala-Sosna cables. This was one of those systems where everything immediately just sounded “right.” And, for an Aspirational system, it’s price was modest at roughly $125k.

One of two million-dollar systems at the show (the other was a Lansche/Thrax system) featured the now-familiar pairing of top-flight VAC electronics with Von Schweikert speakers. In this case, the speakers were the newish Ultra 7. This system was truly full range, from the highs of multiple super-tweeters to the lows of three big woofers. No subwoofer was needed. Bass was a depth charge, imaging was impeccable, and resolution and dynamics were simply sensational.

Alan Taffel’s Best of Show

The 2022 Capital Audio Fest | Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint
The best sound of the show was this VAC/Von Schweikert system, presented by The Audio Company.

Best Sound of the Show (cost no object)

The Audio Company room featuring VAC and Von Schweikert room. Every year this team goes all out for a best of show award, but this time they outdid themselves. This system looked and sounded like every music-loving audiophile’s dream.

Best Sound (for the money)

The Technics room, which featured all-Technics non-Reference-Line components, most of which were under $3k apiece. The speakers were $5400/pair, and the integrated amp was the most expensive element at $9499. This under-$25k system did what recent Technics gear always does: make gloriously engaging music without any fuss.

Most Significant New Product

The MoFi SourcePoint 10 by Andrew Jones. Unshackled from having to build sub-$1000/pair speakers, Jones shows what a sub-$4000/pair speaker can do. Turns out, it’s a lot.

Best Demo

The Theoretica Applied Physics room, wherein the BACCH-SP crosstalk-cancelling processing enabled a small system in a small room to create a huge, enveloping soundstage.

Best Joke

Alan to Andy: “I just checked in. Unfortunately, my room is right between two exhibit rooms that sound like they’re still breaking in their systems.”

Andy to Alan: “Well, I hope you like Dire Straits.”

 

Tags: CAPITAL AUDIO FEST SHOW REPORT

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