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The 2023 AXPONA Show: Alan Taffel on Loudspeakers Below $30k

AT_8 Devialet

If you can’t make it to Munich for an audio show, AXPONA is a very close second. This was my maiden journey to the Chicago extravaganza, but even veteran attendees marveled anew at its sheer size, the demographic disparity of attendees, the presence of virtually every major high-end manufacturer on earth (along with their top designers and executives), and the plethora of purposely timed product introductions. Compared to Munich, AXPONA’s most glaring lack is a good apfelstrudel.

So, there I was wandering the ten floors (plus a dozen ballrooms), searching for speakers under $30k, but finding mostly models priced well below $10k. What was going on? The industry had finally realized that successfully attracting a new, younger, but less affluent clientele meant pricing its wares accordingly. Consequently—and I never thought I’d write this in a TAS show report—prices were way down. New products notwithstanding, that was AXPONA’s best news.

Most Significant

AT_1 Mission
The Mission 770 is of the New-Old School of speakers. Its sound was superb, and its price is just $5k/pair—including stands!

Mission M770. This speaker, making its U.S. debut, represented multiple trends. First, it’s uncontestably inexpensive: just $5k/pair, including stands. Second, like introductions from Wharfedale, JBL, Janszen, KLH, Klipsch and Tannoy, the Mission is an updated version of an old speaker—in this case, the M770 that originally bowed in 1978. At AXPONA, everything old was new again. Not all these seductively priced reboots were successful, but the Mission had a dynamic alacrity and midrange immediacy that were absent even in many expensive high-end speakers.

AT_2 Janszen
Janszen’s Nine.Five takes the KLH 9 as inspiration to create a nearly full-range (down to 200Hz) ‘stat.

Janszen Nine.Five. Another retro speaker that made the grade gets special kudos for its willingness to play with the original’s design. The Nine.Five takes its cue from the beloved KLH Model 9. But whereas the KLH was a full-range electrostatic, the Janszen is a nearly full-range ‘stat. In the modern version, which runs $21,900, the planar panel covers everything from 200Hz up. Below that is a line array of six 8” dynamic woofers. At AXPONA the low-sensitivity speaker was underpowered by AGD electronics, so Beethoven’s 7th didn’t fare well. However, on less strenuous source material, such as Brubeck’s “Take Five,” the amps kept up and the speakers showed remarkable neutrality, convincing timbre, and excellent imaging. On no occasion did I hear any discontinuity between the planar and dynamic drivers. Sometimes taking liberties pays off.

AT_3 GE
GoldenEar’s slim T66 is the company’s first major introduction since its acquisition. Its sound bodes well for future releases.

GoldenEar T66. The long-delayed revamp of GoldenEar’s famed Triton series starts now, with this handsome, under $8k/pair floorstander. The T66 marks the first core-product introduction since the company was acquired by the Quest Group, which also includes AudioQuest. Compared to its predecessors, the T66 exhibits noticeably superior industrial design and finish. Featuring a ribbon tweeter and powered sub, the T66 sounded smooth and lush when driven by McIntosh tubed electronics. I’d like to hear it with some good solid-state gear, but the T66 bodes well for GoldenEar’s next chapter.

AT_4 Q Acoustics
Coming to America: the Q Acoustics 5000 Series from Britain.

Q Acoustics 5000 Series. This British brand is more familiar to Europeans than Americans, but that may change with new distribution here and decisions like announcing an entire new line at AXPONA rather than waiting for Munich. The 5000 series ranges from $750–$2000, and every model features technology from the doubly expensive Concept Series. At AXPONA, powered by the always good-sounding Soul Note electronics, the mid-range model 5040 ($1499) displayed surprisingly high resolution and dynamics for the price. Even the cabinet was beautiful.

AT_1 MoFi
The MoFi SourcePoint 8, at just $3k, breaks new ground as to what’s possible at its price point.

MoFi SourcePoint 8. Designer Andrew Jones’ latest is a boundary buster. The SourcePoint 8 demonstrates just how much audiophile-grade sound can be wrung from a $3k/pair of speakers. The SP8 is the baby brother of the stellar SourcePoint 10—itself an incredible bargain at $4k/pair—with the difference being the woofer size. Both models feature Jones’ trademark concentric-driver approach. The SP8 may give up a smidge of bass extension compared to the SP10, but its low end remains powerful and tight. As with the SP10, The SP8’s imaging, resolution, dynamics, and pretty much everything else are ridiculously good for the price. AJ does it again!

Auspicious Debuts

AT_6 Pureaudioproject
The PureAudioProject Trio 15 features interchangeable and expandable modules.

PureAudioProject makes open-baffle speakers that owners can modify by adding or replacing modules. For instance, the midrange can be handled by the buyer’s choice of a horn, coax, or full-range driver. The latest model is the Trio 15, which includes a pair of 15” woofers and the coax mid/hi for $8900/pair. Its sound at AXPONA was smooth and soulful, with great spatial dispersion. There were no box colorations, thanks to there being no box.

Tannoy was yet another brand from hi-fi’s golden age that was sprucing up its old catalog. The Stirling LLLZ Special Edition ($12,500) is based on a 1967 design, but its parts trickled down from the flagship Kensington model. Like many of these retro-inspired speakers, there are user adjustments; in this case, for tweeter level and roll-off frequency. Tannoy offered only a static display of the Stirling, but the Kensington, which is larger but has identical specs, was playing. In the Tannoy tradition, it sounded rich and sonorous.

Gershman XdB. The XdB is a stand-mount speaker with a difference: the stand itself is part of the system. As I understand it, the stand functions as a bass trap, dissipating excess bass from the sealed enclosure. In another departure, there’s an anti-vibration, mass-loading disc atop the cabinet. The speakers, $12k/pair including stands, are rated down to an impressively low 23Hz. At their AXPONA introduction, bass was shockingly extended and powerful. The rest of the spectrum was equally good, especially in terms of dynamics. A remarkable debut, especially—I’ll say it again—considering the price.

AT_7 JM Reynaud
JM Reynaud’s OrfeoGrande($19,500) hybrid made its U.S. debut with Jadis electronics.

JM Reynaud’s Orfeo Grande ($19,500) had its U.S. premier at AXPONA. The French company’s new flagship model employs a planar tweeter and dynamic mid and bass drivers, all of which integrated artfully. Paired with Jadis electronics, the combo sounded every bit as sweet as you’d expect, but not overly so. There was a surprising degree of instrumental body and weight for such a small footprint.

Dynaudio pulled out all the stops at AXPONA. The company showcased three speakers: the Confidence 50, which impressed JV; the Confidence 20, whose sound was such that it had no business costing just $13k including stands; and the $11k Focus 50, making its first trade show appearance. These are wireless, powered, 3-way, tri-amplified speakers with built-in streaming, room correction, and WiSA inter-speaker connectivity for low latency. Although I didn’t get to hear the F50, I was impressed by its range of support for streaming platforms (Tidal, Roon, Spotify), wireless connectivity (Chromecast, external WiSA sources up to 24/96, AirPlay 2, Bluetooth), and hardwired inputs (Ethernet, coax Digital, TosLink, analog). As befits a truly modern speaker, everything is configurable and controllable via an app.

In Other News

 Canadian speaker company Rethm introduced the Maarga floorstander ($12,900). An active speaker, the Maarga incorporates a 400-watt amp to power its quad 7” isobaric woofers. Prana Fidelity showcased the final version of its long-gestating Dhara stand-mount speaker ($9500/pair including stands). Although squarely in the “pleasant” school of sound, the Dhara was never monotonous thanks to plenty of rhythmic energy. The crossover offers various options for roll-off, resistor values, etc, all of which are user-switchable.

Ironically, just across the hall from the big MBL omnidirectional system was a much smaller-scale—and far less expensive—execution of the omnidirectional approach by Phillips Design. Making its world debut was the model OH-16 ($4500-$6k, depending on finish). The speaker consists of a coax mid/hi driver firing upward into a dispersion cone, and a down-firing 12” woofer.

Martin-Logan chose AXPONA to launch an entire new line: the Motion Series. All the Motion models are hybrids, with AMT planar tweeters, fiberglass midrange drivers, and either aluminum or Kevlar/Nomex composite woofers, depending on model. Prices range from a mere $500 to $5500.

The Wharfedale Dovedale, another speaker reborn from the past, is a new entrant in the company’s Heritage Series. The Dovedale hails from the 60s, when it could be purchased as a kit! The new version mimics the original’s size and shape. Each driver has its own internal cabinet. Built in the U.K., the 3-way Dovedale costs $7k for a mirror-matched pair.

Another longstanding brand, Definitive Technology, introduced the new Dymension Series. Of greatest interest to two-channel audio fans will be the floorstanding DM40, 60, 70 and 80. They sell for $2–$5k/pair. Each model is a bipole tower with an attenuate-able rear driver. The sound was pure and highly coherent.

Paradigm’s new Defiance XR11 subwoofer ($4k) powers its 11” woofer with 1100 watts. The sub includes room correction and a derivative of the woofer used in the upscale Persona line. Phase, polarity, and level can all be controlled by an app.

Focal is replacing its popular Chora line with a new series dubbed Theva (the ‘h’ is silent). Designed for both home-theater and two-channel applications, the speakers range from $1–$3k and boast upgraded cabinets, crossovers, and drivers.

AT_8 Devialet
The wireless, rechargeable, softball-sized Devialet Mania is the perfect picnic speaker.

Finally, the Devialet Mania is a tiny portable sphere of a speaker. Barely larger than a softball, Mania is active, wireless, rechargeable (one charge lasts 10 hours), and supports Apple Airplay, wi-fi, and Bluetooth. Grab your phone, a Mania, and a bottle of wine and have yourself a picnic anywhere.

Best of Show

Best Sound (Cost no object): Among larger rooms, I never felt the joy of sonic and musical discovery as keenly as with the Acora/VAC system. Within smaller rooms, kudos go to the extraordinary new Magico S3.  

Best Sound (for the money): No contest here. The MoFi SourcePoint 8 speakers driven by a Hi-Fi Rose integrated amp/DAC/streamer cost less than $7k for an entire—and entirely mind-blowing—system.

Most Significant Introduction: A tie between the MoFi SourcePoint 8, which shows just how much terrific sound $3k can buy, and the Magico S3 ($45k), which leverages the company’s latest design and testing technology to create a new sweet spot in the line.

Best Joke: In a packed elevator, Muzak wafting from the ceiling, an attendee quipped, “This is the best sound I’ve heard at the show.” The entire elevator exploded with laughter.

 

Tags: AXPONA FLOORSTANDING LOUDSPEAKER SHOW STAND-MOUNT

Alan Taffel

By Alan Taffel

I can thank my parents for introducing me to both good music and good sound at an early age. Their extensive classical music collection, played through an enviable system, continually filled our house. When I was two, my parents gave me one of those all-in-one changers, which I played to death.

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