The 2023 Florida International Audio Expo | Alan Taffel And Andrew Quint Report from the Show with a (Slightly) New Name

We begin with the news that FLAX, as it’s come to be known, will be no more—at least, not under that moniker. Not that there’s any issue with the health or sustainability of the South Florida show that just completed its fourth annual run. Quite the contrary. The show, held at the cumbersomely named Embassy Suites by Hilton Tampa Airport Westshore, sold out all available exhibitor rooms—all fourteen floors of them—and attendance was the best ever.

But perhaps you noticed that the name of the show has changed, from Florida Audio Expo—FLAX—to Florida International Audio Expo, reflecting the robust participation of foreign manufacturers and audiophile visitors. We can assure you that the show will return in February 2024, and in subsequent Februarys, but we’ll be needing a new shorthand for referring to the show. Maybe simply “Florida” or “Tampa.” Definitely not FLIAX.

The growing success of the Florida assemblage owes a lot to the efforts of Bart Andeer, the show’s Operations Manager and one of the four individuals who founded it. Andeer is a former tugboat captain whose specialty was moving oil rigs around, so it’s no surprise that he has a gift for logistics. Sure, there were annoyances that no one could control—lines for the elevators, some iffy Internet connectivity when everyone wanted to stream “Keith Don’t Go” at the same time—but for the most part things ran very smoothly. The registration process was efficient, signage was helpful, and the availability of food and drink in a convivial central location allowed attendees to concentrate on listening and networking.

Bart continues to fight the good fight to expand high-end audio’s constituency—not just to improve his bottom line but to invest in the future of the industry. He advertised the show on jazz and classical radio stations and on college campuses. He let in the spouses and kids of ticket holders for free. While the halls were still mostly filled with throngs of middle-aged men, there were signs of hope.

As in the past, the two of us have divided our coverage along admittedly blurry lines. This time, Alan focused on “Inspirational” products—those that many of us can realistically consider from a financial standpoint, if they float our boat (sorry, Bart) sonically—while Andrew took on “Aspirational” gear—the stuff we’d contemplate for the ultimate in sound quality, if cost were truly no object. As in the past, we set no concrete dollar boundary lines. How did we determine which systems were inspirational and which were aspirational? To paraphrase former Supreme Court justice Stewart Potter’s 1964 comment regarding hard-core pornography: “We know it when we see it.”

Below you will find what each of us judged the top ten most significant product introductions in our category. You’ll also see our top five systems. For the Best of Show awards, we allowed ourselves to stray beyond our designated realms and consider the entire show. We apologize in advance for those with worthy products or rooms that we didn’t have space to write about.

Alan Taffel 

Ten Inspirational New Products

Aesthetix has had great success with its Mimas tubed integrated amp. And why not? Its modular design allows buyers to pay only for what they need; it sounds terrific; and the price is right ($9k plus $1250 per optional card). But there are unquestionable sonic advantages to giving linestages and power amps their own chassis and power supplies, as well as to separating digital and power-amp circuitry. For those seeking those benefits, Aesthetix has essentially split the baby into the still-modular Pallene linestage ($6500 plus optional cards) and the 160Wpc Dione stereo power amp ($7500). You do pay a premium for those dual chassis, but Aesthetix believes customers will still find the combination a good value. In the Upstream Audio room, driving Focal Kanto No. 2 speakers ($11k), the sound was big and punchy, yet relaxed in the traditional Aesthetix manner.

The cable company M101 was showing, for the first time, the production version of its Nova Ethernet cable ($1199/1.5M). In a demo comparing the Nova with a generic Cat 8 cable from Monoprice, the difference was stark in terms of transient definition, tonal density, and spaciousness. Bravely, the company also compared its new cable with AudioQuest Diamond. The two had different tonal balances, with the AQ sounding fuller in the mids and bass but less extended on top.

You may remember Soulnote from our Capitol Audio Fest report. The Japanese company’s engineering staff exclusively comprises Marantz veterans. At CAF, Soulnote made its U.S. debut and showcased a raft of new products. Florida saw a hugely expanded range, including the A-1 and A-2 integrated amps, which put out 50 and 100 watts/channel, respectively ($4k, $8k), the E-1 phonostage ($4k) and the D-1 and D-2 DACs ($7k, $9k). The D-2 distinguishes itself from the D-1 with an external clock input, quad (rather than dual) ESS DAC chips, a higher-voltage power supply, and copper-wrapped circuit boards to reduce noise without relying on filters.

The venerable Toronto firm Gershman Acoustics was celebrating the 30^th anniversary of its Grand Avantgarde speaker. The anniversary edition ($17k) features a new bass trap, which looks like a thick plinth under the speaker. Said to do a better job of dissipating low-frequency back waves, the new trap certainly proved its mettle in Florida. Indeed, the speaker’s bass was deep and extraordinarily clean—among the best I heard at the show regardless of price. The rest of the system was no slouch, either, aided by VAC electronics and Cardas cables.

Right at the upper end of my category, MC Audiotech showed off the TL-12 transmission-line speaker ($25k). The model acts as a dipole from 300Hz to 20kHz and boasts 92dB sensitivity. As driven by Modwright electronics, the speaker proved wonderfully open and dynamic, with excellent timbral differentiation.

CAD (Computer Audio Design) had some new tricks up its sleeve in its line of grounding accessories. The GC1.1 and GC3.1 ($2250 and $5500, respectively) have been given a .1 appendage to reflect refinements that trickled down from the flagship GCR ($29k). Yet CAD’s coolest introduction was a USB Control Stick that runs just $750. CAD says you plug it into any open USB port in the system (even one used for firmware updates), and it will filter ground noise. The same filter is also built into the new USB II-R cable ($1500) or as an in-line adapter ($750) for USB cables from any other brand.

Transmission-line speaker debuts were a thing in Florida. Besides the MC Audiotech TL-12 above and the Clarisys models described in Andy’s report, Eminent Technology was showing a prototype of a new model dubbed the 18 LS (approx. $15k). The speaker is a hybrid design, with six 8** dynamic woofers and two rear-facing 6.5** woofers handling low frequencies, while neodymium planar-magnetic midrange and tweeter drivers hold up the mids and highs. At the room’s exit was a white board where visitors could scribble their reaction to the speaker. Comments ranged from “Best sound here!” to “Wowzaa!! Blown away!” The sonics were, indeed, outstanding.

Audio Group Denmark, which includes Aavik electronics, Børresen speakers, and Ansuz accessories, has been busy. At the Florida show, in a series of rooms organized by Next Level Hi Fi, the Danes introduced two significant products. The first, the Aavik Forte 41 ($5,500) is an integrated amp with built-in streamer. The unit puts out 100 Class D watts/channel. The new amp was driving the nearly as fresh Børresen X3 speakers ($11k), featuring the firm’s ubiquitous ribbon tweeter, a 5** bass driver with a carbon-weave cone, and an identical 5** passive radiator woofer.

Acora has now become so established that its mere name on an exhibit room door is enough to generate considerable buzz. For the first time, Acora was at a show in not one room but three. Many lined up to hear the little QRB, which in Florida was being driven by a pair of new 60-watt Ampsandsound Casablanca monoblocks ($16k). The amp’s first outing was a success, driving the Acoras with ease and delivering a highly rhythmic, appealing sound.

Finally, allow me to introduce you to a new-to-the-U.S. cable company. Viablue hails from Germany and brought its full line to Florida. These are very complex cables, with multiple wire types, sizes, topologies, insulators, and air pipes within their bendable sheathing. Despite that, they’re all quite affordable, as these things go. One-meter runs cost anywhere from $500–$1000. I suspect we’ll be hearing a lot from Viablue.

Alan Taffel’s Top 5 Inspirational Systems

In one of the first rooms I entered, the Linear Tube Audio/Meitner/Credo room, the system was pulling off that rarest of phenomena: playing a piano recording that actually sounded like a piano. Indeed, everything else in this under-$25k system, which also included van den Hul cabling, came across with zero “hi fi” artifacts, leaving only good sound and good music. There was even solid bass from the demure EV 350 Reference speakers.

As it did at CAF, Fidelity Imports booked a block of rooms, each highlighting products at a specific price point. The best sound, unsurprisingly, came from the top-tier system, which still (marginally) qualified as Inspirational. The Soulnote A-2 integrated amp, D-2 DAC, and E-2 phonostage ($9k) made an ideal match for the Perlisten S7t speakers ($20k). The source was a Michell Audio Gyro SE with TechnoArm2 ($5500). Together, they melded old-school looks with a mellow tonal balance that still packed plenty of jump and resolution. This was one of the most musical systems at the show.

The Haniwa Audio system was unusual but effective. The box-less speakers consist of a single 6** driver with a large waveguide that had everyone mistaking them for horns. The point-source transducers come bundled with a 400 watt/channel Class D amp, two subs, cables, and a DSP unit that handles crossover, phase-, and frequency-correction functions. All for $24k. Just add a source. How did it sound? It turns out that when you eliminate multiple drivers, boxes, and crossovers, what’s left is pure, relaxed music.

More conventional was the setup in the Orchard Audio room. With extremely affordable Orchard electronics (e.g., the $2500, 500-watt/channel Starkrimson Stereo Ultra power amp and the $550 PecanPi streamer), Soundfield Audio M1V2 speakers ($2200/pair) and Triode Labs cables, the total system came in at just over $5k—the least expensive system I heard at the show. Yet the sound was far from bottom of the sonic pack. As you’d expect at this price point, there were some limitations, particularly in the area of high-end extension. But this system got the midrange just right, and bass was surprisingly impressive. Arresting sound at a steal of a price.

The last system I’ll highlight was simplicity itself. In the Mobile Fidelity room, the ever-effervescent Andrew Jones held court, describing his $3699 SourcePoint 10 coincident-driver speakers that made such a splash at CAF. Driving them was the new HiFi Rose RS520 integrated amp/streamer that happened to list for nearly exactly the same price. Add in cables, and you still have a system that comes in under $10k. But, boy, did it sound like it cost more than that! Performance highlights included outlandishly good bass, great imaging, plenty of resolution, and an equal degree of drive. If I had $10k to buy a complete system, this would be a prime candidate.

Alan Taffel’s Best of Show

Best Sound (price no object)

The obvious choice is the Acora room, with the amazing new VRC speaker and an impeccable VAC/Oracle system behind it. Yet, I had a slight preference for the MBL system. Consisting of the 101-Mk II speakers (not the Extremes), the company’s flagship electronics, and a new UHA tape deck, This was the best I’ve ever heard the 101s sound—so much so that I understood why MBLs are JV’s reference. The system had a touch more warmth than the Acora room did, which I liked, and the speaker’s omnidirectional radiation pattern meant that every seat was a winner.

Best Sound (considering price)

Only the treble roll-off kept me from bestowing this award on the least expensive system I heard, the roughly-$5k ensemble in the Orchard Audio room. Instead, the title goes to the Mobile Fidelity/Hi Fi Rose room, whose $10k system had no such limitations. Listen to this system, reminding yourself that it only costs $10k, and your jaw will drop involuntarily.

Most Significant New Product

Unquestionably, the Acora VRC described in Andy’s report. It had he most impressive bass in spades, but its tubed amps couldn’t quite match the iron grip exerted by MBL’s 840–watt (not Class D) monoblock colossi. This was a system to die for.

Most Significant Trend

I was delighted to note the ever-expanding supply of modular integrated amplifiers. Virtually every new model at Florida either included or had the ability to expand beyond basic functions, with options such as DAC, phonostage, and streaming. This trend is a boon for the space-challenged audiophile.

Best Demo

In the Suncoast Audio room, one could hear before and after demonstrations of the Shunyata Altaira grounding system that RH praised so highly in a recent TAS cover story. Despite such fanfare, one always approaches such accessories with a healthy skepticism. But in this case any skepticism was misplaced. The Altaira is the real deal. As demoed on an excellent system, removing the Altaira rendered the sound muddy, spatially flat, and dynamically constrained. Putting it in restored these qualities, and also dramatically increased bass articulation. While Robert’s complex system required a similarly complex (and expensive) Altaira implementation, the Altaira in Tampa cost a mere $6k, which Shunyata says is typical of normal systems. Let me tell you, the improvement was far more than you’d expect for that kind of money.

Best Joke

At a lively dinner discussion with Eli and Ofra Gershman of Gershman Acoustics speakers, we were playfully discussing whether cryogenically freezing speakers could have a sonic benefit. Then we wondered, even if it did work, how you would do it. After some cheerful brainstorming, Ofra, whose Toronto speaker factory gets the brunt of Canadian winters, had the best idea: “We’ll just put them outside!”

Andrew Quint

Ten Aspirational New Products

Presented in public for the first time in North America by Suncoast Audio of Sarasota were two loudspeaker models from Swiss manufacturer Clarisys Audio. In business since 2014, the company’s stated mission is to build full-range ribbon transducers in the style of those produced by Apogee between 1981 and 1995. (In fact, Clarisys can refurbish your old Apogees, if you’re so inclined.) The Minuet Neo ($33,800) stands four feet tall, weighs in at about 165 pounds, and has a frequency response specification of 28Hz to over 25kHz. The Auditorium Neo ($140,000) is 6* 8**, tips the scale at more than 500 pounds, and operates from 16Hz to more than 25kHz. Apogees were notorious for their challenging impedance characteristics; not so with the Clarisys Auditorium model, where even the treble panel doesn’t dip below 3 ohms. Both models—the Auditorium in a large space and the Minuets in a typical hotel guest room—manifested pretty much limitless dynamic range, subterranean bass, and realistically precise imaging. This is a brand that will be going places on this side of the Atlantic.

The busiest place at the Florida International Audio Expo (other than the bar, of course) was the TAD room. Shinji Taratumi, now CEO of Technical Audio Devices Laboratories, was visiting an American audio show for the first time and, throughout the weekend, recording engineers Jim Anderson and Ulrike Schwarz gave presentations related to their roles in the production of Patricia Barber’s latest album, Clique! TAD had two systems set up in one big space, one with the flagship Reference One TX loudspeakers ($160,000) and the other showcasing the brand new CE1Tx stand-mount ($35,000/pair with stands.) The latter were punchy, powerful, and light on their feet, largely free of coloration when allowances were made for their being played in a room that may have been a bit too big to show the speakers off to their best advantage.

Also debuting at the Florida show, courtesy of the Jacksonville dealer House of Stereo, was the Avantgarde Acoustic DUO GT, which represents just the second “generational” advance for the DUO in 30 years. An XT3 supertweeter has trickled down from the TRIO and a pair of XB12 bass drivers has made it over from the Spacehorn subwoofer to each DUO. There are actually two new products, an active version ($77,000) and a passive one ($61,000). To clarify, the bass modules are active with both, the woofer driven by an integral 1000-watt amp, but the active model has a single-ended iTron amplifier module built in that eschews negative feedback. Little power is needed, as the tweeter/midrange component of the speaker has a sensitivity of well over 100dB. Tonally, the speaker was quite neutral—no horn colorations in evidence to my ears—and there were excellent dynamics and low-end foundation with symphonic music.

Acora Acoustics, the loudspeaker manufacturer that famously fabricates its enclosures from granite (and, more recently, from quartz as well) launched in 2018 with three models that have remained the only purchase options to this point. CEO/designer Valerio Cora chose the Tampa show to introduce a new, larger speaker, the VRC ($220,000), a 3-way that stands about 52** tall and weighs in the neighborhood of 400 pounds. It will play as “big” as any physically larger and more complex loudspeaker you’d care to put it up against, and yet it has the footprint of, roughly, a Wilson Sasha. Its sonic performance can only be described as imperturbable—the stability of the image presented to the listener will not change one bit no matter how loud or complex the source material becomes. Remarkably, music’s more intimate moments are also correctly scaled.

In the same system as the Clarisys Auditorium Neos were the soon-to-be-released Shunyata Research Omega speaker cables ($24,995 for a 2.5-meter pair.) Designer Caelin Gabriel, explained that these are the company’s new flagship speaker cables, surpassing in performance those in the Sigma range. Responsible are several of Shunyata’s alphabet soup of technologies, including the distortion-reducing Zi-Tron and HARP methodologies and, especially, KPIP (the Kinetic Phase Inversion Process) that is said to obviate the need for cryogenic treatment or even cable break-in. I wasn’t there, but when the Omega cables were substituted for a well-regarded Scandinavian wire that was certainly no bargain-basement item, the system’s performance improved substantially.

Mostly, I consider headphone listening a necessary compromise for when setting up full-range floorstanding loudspeakers is inconvenient—say, on a two-hour airline flight. But I could definitely learn to love “personal stereo” if my point of reference was the Warwick Acoustics Aperio Black ($36,000), a limited edition of just 50 sets of headphones. The transducer is a “Balanced-Drive High Precision Electrostatic Laminate” (BD-HPEL), and the headphones come with a full-feature preamplifier that includes dual-mono 32-bit/385kHz DACs and pretty much every analog and digital input interface you could think of, as well as their own flight case. On Alan’s recommendation, I listened to “Kathmandu” from the Dave’s True Story Unauthorized album. Rarely have I felt such an immediate musical connection to an unfamiliar song as with these elite ’phones.

Spinning the LPs in the capacious ballroom hosting the new Acora loudspeakers was a new Oracle turntable, the Delphi Mk 7 ($13,900.) It takes a lot for this 44-year-old Québec manufacturer to advance a version number but, after 13 years of incremental improvements, they felt they had to. Director of Operations and product designer, Jacques Riendeau reviewed with me a dizzying list of changes involving motor, power supply, driver electronics, platter (it’s a two-piece affair), and bearing. The price seems almost perversely low, given how long the ’table has been around, and the increasing number of far more expensive record players that are out there. Fitted with the Reed 1H 9.5** tonearm ($3750) and a Lyra Atlas Lambda cartridge ($11,995), the Oracle’s spatial presentation and pitch stability was as unwavering as a digital source.

JV’s comprehensive review of the United Home Audio Ultima 5 tape deck ($38,000) is in press as of this writing, but the machine got its first public demonstration at the Florida International Audio Expo, with designer Greg Beron at the controls. Beron played a mouth-watering selection of 15ips reel-to-reel tapes that, I sensed, had much of the mesmerized crowd in a darkened room wondering if this was the only was to fully appreciate the analog medium.

Triangle Art got its start building no-compromise turntables (and it’s still at it, to say the least), but they also manufacture gorgeous electronics. Getting its first North American hearing after a Munich debut last spring was the striking METIS horn loudspeaker ($59,000), the company’s very first. Perched atop a sturdy bass enclosure (a single 15** Acoustic Eloquence woofer lives inside) is a sensual solid walnut horn, driven by a 6.5** Beyma cone. A RAAC ribbon takes the treble out to 60kHz. With 95dB efficiency at a nominal 8-ohm impedance, it’s an easy load for pretty much any amplifier. With familiar material, I heard a slight “cupped hands” sort of coloration, but the ease of the musical presentation was undeniable.

The affable Ozan Turan, with a portfolio of audio products that’s imaginatively curated and always evolving, was playing a super-system detailed below. New to the U.S. was a line of silver monocrystal cables from the Polish company Albedo. Those in use at the show included the Metamorphosis Signature XLR interconnects ($7250 for a 1m pair) and the Metamorphosis Mk II speaker cables ($10,000 for a 1m pair.) The company manufactures the products from scratch, smelting the silver and extruding the wire themselves.

Andrew Quint’s Top 5 Aspirational Systems

Nothing succeeds like excess. These five systems, all but one presented in large spaces on the hotel’s main floor, were all “reference quality” yet they were quite different from one another. The most ambitious—some might say over-the-top—rooms at the Florida International Audio Expo gleefully provided equipment lists, with the associated expenditure, down to the last interconnect. Fully reproducing them would not only take up an inordinate amount of space, but also emphasize cost over sound quality. So please settle for some aggregate prices. And dream on.

Kennedy Meeting Room: High End By Oz. Lansche Audio No. 5.2 loudspeaker ($49,500) + Thrax Audio Reference Series electronics ($221,920) + Thrax Audio Yedre/Schroeder/Trajer analog ($30,000) + S.I.N. Audio power reconditioner/power cables + Abbedo silver monocrystal cables + HIFISTAY racks/Spikes/Footers/Vibration control.

Lansche speakers utilize that rarest of transducers, the plasma tweeter, that covers the frequency range from 1500Hz to a lofty 150kHz. Though the plasma driver needs to be cleaned once a month, Oz Turan promises it will last for 15,000 hours. With Thrax electronics connected with Albedo cabling, the system manifested remarkable speed and timbral accuracy. On “Bird on a Wire” from Famous Blue Raincoat, the exposed triangle was presented as a small and precisely localized sound, clearly audible in the company of bigger, louder instruments; Jennifer Warnes’ voice was at once pure and richly characterized. Orchestral weight and dynamics were totally satisfying.

Suncoast Audio (Room 915.) Clarisys Audio Minuet Neo panel loudspeaker ($33,800/pair.) + Hegel electronics ($27,990) + Aurender N200 streamer + Rega analog ($5740) + Shunyata cables.

Those unfamiliar with the Clarisys brand, such as myself, got to hear two models in the manufacturer’s product range and it was the smaller of the two that made the better impression and in a smaller room. Bass was authoritatively deep and articulate and, with my chronic orchestral reference selection (the Haitink/Concertgebouw recording of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 15), the opening glockenspiel notes were stunningly precise. The hard-hitting rock virtuosity of the band Polyphia, on a track called “Playing God” that was requested by another listener, registered at a very visceral level. Everything I heard played through this system was, at once, involving yet nonfatiguing.

Tampa Terrace: MBL North America. MBl 101E MkII loudspeakers ($91,000) + MBL electronics/CD transport/DAC ($228,260) + United Home Audio Ultima 5 tape deck $36,000) + Wireworld eclipse cables

It may have been an exceptional run of bad luck, but I’ve never heard MBL speakers sound good at an audio show—not with their own electronics or with anyone else’s. They were usually played at assaultive levels and the widely praised spatial characteristics weren’t evident. This time, corporeal images hung in the air disconnected from the devices that created them. Correct scaling of instruments was maintained, as with the Anthony McGill/Gloria Chien clarinet and piano recording (Cedille Records) that I played throughout the show. Dynamic nuance was impressive.

Westshore Ballroom: Acora VRC loudspeaker ($220,000) + VAC Statement electronics ($310,000) + Oracle/Reed/Lyra analog source ($29,665) + Aurender/Lampizator/Oracle digital source ($118.920) + Cardas cables.

Val Cora wrangled the finest ancillary components he could get his hands on and again paid top dollar to secure the biggest space at the Tampa show. He deployed dozens of pillows on a ledge near the 30-foot ceiling to tame a reflection problem—all to assure that his new loudspeaker would make the best possible impression. Cora seemed exceptionally motivated to guarantee that anyone who set foot in his room would have a transformative experience. The chair in the middle of the first row of the listening area was marked “Private Concert” with a piece of tape, and Cora took all the musical requests that I witnessed sent his way. Listeners, I think, grasped that this was a true assault on the state-of-the art and tended to stay a while. The system was utterly unfazed by orchestral or rock cataclysms and the dimensionality of the sound field was mesmerizing. The price of admission is very steep but Cora maintains, could actually work in a smaller, more typical domestic setting.

Bayshore Meeting Room. TAD CE1TX stand-mounted loudspeakers ($35,000) + TAD electronics ($78,500) + Wolf Audio Systems server ($10,000)

The less imposing of the two systems assembled by TAD, which featured the manufacturer’s new stand-mount loudspeakers, impressed me more than the one including the considerable more massive (and expensive) flagship transducers—it was more agile and transparent without giving up all that much low-end weight and dynamic power. Nearfield listening was rewarded, a sure sign that this system would succeed in many real-world domestic applications.

Andrew Quint’s Best of Show

Best New Product (cost-no-object)

Acora Acoustics VRC loudspeaker. As good as anything I’ve heard anywhere. The price will put it out of reach for most but, for once, not the space requirements. The designer says 15* x 15* would be fine.

Best Sound (for the money)

Gershman Acoustics Grand Avantgarde 30^th anniversary loudspeaker. There actually were some products that everyone could agree were inexpensive and thus exceptional values—the $200 DAC from Geshelli Labs, for instance. Maybe I’m desensitized from listening to too many half-million-dollar stereos for three days, but these $17,000/pair loudspeakers feel like a real bargain to me. They produce prodigious bass and are unafraid of dynamic challenge. A true full-range speaker in a compact package.

Best Demo

Ted Denney of Synergistic Research
The man many audiophiles love to hate was in top form, demonstrating a range of SR products including grounding devices, acoustic dots, resonance generators, and plenty more. Whether you feel he deserves a tenured position in the Physics department of an esteemed university or a grand jury investigation, you need to see Denney in action. Personally, I’ve yet to encounter an SR product at one of TD’s presentations that didn’t affect the sound—and the change is usually for the better. It’s at once disturbing and exhilarating, especially for hobbyists who haven’t already concluded that everything they can hear requires a traditional “scientific” explanation.

Most Significant Trend

High-end speakers that can be rained on.
I know it’s just a mini-trend—there were only two exhibitors with loudspeakers designed for outdoor use—but who knows what will come to pass? Focal (their speakers were disguised as rocks) and Coastal Source (the company’s tagline is “defy the elements”) had products on display both inside and poolside, though the latter location didn’t seem to be much visited. Audiophiles don’t always do well in direct sunlight.