I am always amazed at the amount of companies making really cool stuff that I have never heard of. Sure some of it is boutique and for deeper pockets than mine, but it is ALWAYS FUN to check out.
Fully agree. Furthermore I’m always amazed that there’s enough customers purchasing all these brands to support them all; especially with the price tags
Wow ... how about Steve's totally new and awesome narrated stills video? It reminded me of Brien Foerster from St Paul, MA (he's on You Tube with forbidden archaeology, dig him up if you care). I almost wrote 'tills video' but you know ... not everybody is buying at these events.
Yes, your coverage is much appreciated! Thanks , though I could never afford this level of audiofidelity I can dream and imagine some day that I might. Great pictures too as I love to look at innovative design. This is just awesome 😮
Yes, please keep doing these kinds of episodes. You’ve introduced a lot of brands and combinations and ideas that may be new to people, in a very short time. I’m wishing I could hear the black ice and zoo combination. There’s so much great stuff out there. It blows my mind.
Yes, I think you should keep doing show reports! It's interesting to see the systems, but it would be nice to hear more details about what you liked or disliked about the sound in each room. I know the hotel rooms might be problematic for doing an audiophile review, but it would be interesting to hear more about how the PAP Trio15 compared to your home system.
Did you say 'the PAP Trio 15?' I looked it up and ... also noticed then that Clayton Shaw sold Spatial Audio in July, as reported on AudioCircle web forum. Wow I thought Steve never yet heard and these Open Baffle new speakers are not Clayton Shaw no more but that it would be interesting as you said to learn why they are still the new Clayton Shaw. Woofers look German and they're rear mounted with the old cutaway diameters that Revox had in the 1970s and nobody ever yet explained neither.
Thank you Steve, I enjoyed your report from the show but I’m so sorry that I didn’t run into you. I live nearby the venue and I dropped by Friday and Saturday. I really enjoyed the Zu/Black Ice room also. It was a pleasure to meet and chat with Sean Casey and listen to his speakers. I told him that I sold a pair of DW speakers and I regret it to this day. I really value your opinion and always look forward to seeing your videos.
Hi Steve. Great stuff. Sorry to miss this show right in my backyard but good to have your coverage. Lots of nice looking gear to oogle over. Interested to hear a review of the Consonos audio, as well as the pure audio project trio and Clayton Shaw open baffles. Thanks
I went on the Saturday, my first time at an audio show in many years. Thanks for showing the price lists - what's clear is that almost no-one was showing anything at the more accessible end to bring new and younger and less well-heeled enthusiasts into the hobby. Dropping five figures *per component* is not realistic for many. I don't mind the really high end stuff, but the shows should encourage manufacturers to also demo stuff that is attainable not just by the 0.1%.
There were several vendors on the higher floors that had “reasonably” priced gear on offer. A friend and I went Sunday and spent most of the time avoiding the over-the-top rooms. To be honest, after hearing some of the moderately priced systems, the high end didn’t always distinguish itself adequately to justify the added expense, even when playing the same track for direct comparison.
Steve, This was so well laid out. Visits to the Better rooms, proper information provided. Sound is a problem I know as they may be taken down. But I like 10 seconds of each room if there is a way. Glad to see you at the shows.
I really like it Steve! Very concise and to the point! I would think it would be interesting to talk a little more about where the various products are made! I’m personally interested in the USA made products, but I think it is interesting where all of them are made especially if not made in a low wage Asian factory.
I believe that Philharmonic Audio was there and would like to have see that room. Sound clips would be nice, although I know that YT won't provide best sound. It would still be nice.
Well done report. I especially like the fact that you are not introducing crowd noise or trying to do an unintelligible interview in a noisy room the way some other reviewers do. I'd like to see more.
I find the equipment lists very enlightening, not just for the price and the stuff they are selling, but for the ancillary equipment chosen to support what they are selling. I figure guys trying to make a sale, and with deep product knowledge from working in the industry, will be careful about choices. Speaking of old friends at the show, my heart soared like an eagle when I saw someone using a Michell Gyro to demonstrate product, because I own one, and sweated bullets about that buying decision , because I was buying from reports off of the internet only, never having heard one. Nice to see a design from 1982 is still that strong in a very competitive market.
Wish I could've gone this year, looks great! Makes me think of the late Rocky mountain audio fest. I guess maybe it's bigger? Anyways, thanks for the tour and nice to see all those tables selling vinyl, etc..
It was also my first capital audiofest and going to a show at all. If you haven't done it, please do so and send your ears to the day spa. I thought I had a good system, but there is so much (more) out there and this is a great way to treat your senses to some amazing stuff. Speaker/Systems I would love to hear more about: MbL, Dyptique, Quad, Cessaro, Von Schweikert, Songer Audio, Viva, AER
My favorite setup at the show was the TAD room with floorstanders, the new G1s at about 65K for the speakers. Second was the new Acoustic Energy Cornium? Cant recall the precise name, but sounded a LOT like the TAD at only 8K for the speakers.
Very cool Steve, when are you going to review some Audio Note pieces? Just read a review of their dac and transport at P.T.A. seems like their gear would be in your wheelhouse.
Those AGD "tubes" are not vacuum tubes. They are simply a small solid-state class D amp circuit board enclosed in a glass tube with some LED lights, strictly for show. The company also makes amps with the same Class D circuit not enclosed in the glass enclosure, but just mounted inside a cabinet like most normal amps. About the only advantage of the glass enclosed circuit board is that in theory, if the company issues an upgrade, the customer can simply pull out the old glass enclosure and insert the new one (a rather dubious prospect if you ask me, especially considering the amount of money they charge for that flexibility, compared to their own traditionally mounted circuits inside a box). Some customers are likely to be deceived into thinking that it really is some kind vacuum tube, with sound characteristics associated with tubes, but it is actually 100% solid-state class D (although class D is sounding a lot better these days than in the early years).
Yes, and making a PCB board that could be switched out by the consumer would be cheaper though not as "sexy" I guess. Schiit does this with their Bifrost 2/64 DAC so it never has to become obsolete or sent back to them for an upgrade.
@@rosswarren436 The claim by the manufacturer that it makes upgrades easy is mostly BS. The real reason is clearly that it looks like a tube amp, and some people will actually be fooled into thinking that it is actually some kind of hybrid vacuum tube. The circuit board is enclosed by glass in the shape of a tube, but not in a vacuum. The level of BS in high-end audio can get out of control at times. Nevertheless, some people say the amps do sound pretty good, but the same company makes a cheaper version amp using of the same circuits without the fake tubes.
I was pleased that you thought the sound from ZU and Black Ice was as good as anything you heard. A system less than $15,000 that can compete with $100,000+ is music to my ears!
Great to see you featuring Clayton Shaw’s Caladan open baffle speakers! For $3k you can’t beat them in terms of bang for the buck. Any audiophile on a budget would be crazy not to get a pair.
@@scottcw31 Ron at New Record day posted a sound demo of them you can check out. They sound a lot like the Spatial Audio M3 Sapphires which Clayton also designed.
Sorry I didn’t run into you, whatever day(s) you were there. The Consonus speakers were my favorite (pretty much the only ones I would’ve bought and took home right on the spot) but the multiple presence of Joseph Audio speakers never disappointed. Seemed to me that most rooms weren’t taking full advantage of music that would’ve showed off their systems - most of it was dull, non-dynamic and muffled piano offerings so I started being drawn to rooms that were playing something a little more lively. Yes Steve, I like to hear what you have to say about your time at the CAF.
Those consonus speakers were one of the best rooms at the show, wish I had more time that day to go back and listen some more. Wish they had a website up with more information, I never saw the price of the speakers or the system
Very nice walkthrough, Steve. I posted a walkthrough of the Tokyo International Audio Show (some of the same vendors as yours) on 11/3 on my YT channel. The next Tokyo show will be July '24 and I hope to do some short interviews with visiting western vendors exhibiting at the show. I invite you to take a look at my newest video and offer me any pointers for future audio fair videos, as it was my first one. Cheers.
I’m going to say the quiet part out loud: there is a distinct trend in audio of quality gear becoming much more affordable. This has been fueled by a number or factors, but the big one is probably direct to consumer models. Even within this model, there have been innovations. Pure Audio Project has a model where you assemble you speaker like IKEA furniture and can mix and match certain parts of the speaker. I could go on, but I’m seeing these innovations in speakers under $10,000 and often closer to $5,000. If you have the skills, kit speakers from places like CSS Audio and GR-Research have gotten much more sophisticated. Class D amps used to be a joke and used at most for subs. Now there are good Class D amps that can be used in the entire system at a fraction of the cost of Class A or AB amps with similar power, DSP has gotten better and cheaper. I could go on and on. With this trend, all the “action” is on the more affordable end of the spectrum, not the extreme high end that few audiophiles will ever hear outside an audio show, much less purchase.
Yes, good concept for the video. Well paced overview.
Yes, please cover future events and audio show rooms. It’s very inspiring and informative . Thanks!
Love your show report. Thank you
I am always amazed at the amount of companies making really cool stuff that I have never heard of. Sure some of it is boutique and for deeper pockets than mine, but it is ALWAYS FUN to check out.
Me, too.
Fully agree. Furthermore I’m always amazed that there’s enough customers purchasing all these brands to support them all; especially with the price tags
Wow ... how about Steve's totally new and awesome narrated stills video? It reminded me of Brien Foerster from St Paul, MA (he's on You Tube with forbidden archaeology, dig him up if you care). I almost wrote 'tills video' but you know ... not everybody is buying at these events.
Great video Steve! Thx
Yes, do more shows please! It's great to see what people are making. All the new ideas in audio. Thanks.
Love the format. To the point.
Excellent coverage! Would love to see more in the future.
Steve, thanks I liked it, much better than a show report on "paper"
Yes! Great presentation.
Thanks for sharing. Wonderful gear and room.
Yes nice to see what equipment goes around there. It’s different than here. So it was interesting to watch. Would love to have been there.
This is how you do show coverage! Other RUclipsrs should learn from you, Steve!
Enjoy your thoughtful commentary
Excellent
Would love to see more shows like this and unique customer systems..
Great report!
Like this a lot, Steve. Very informative.
Yes, your coverage is much appreciated! Thanks , though I could never afford this level of audiofidelity I can dream and imagine some day that I might. Great pictures too as I love to look at innovative design. This is just awesome 😮
Yay Steve! Lots to cover there but your sampling was great. A diverse range of gear is always fun to learn about. Thx.
Yes, please keep doing these kinds of episodes. You’ve introduced a lot of brands and combinations and ideas that may be new to people, in a very short time. I’m wishing I could hear the black ice and zoo combination. There’s so much great stuff out there. It blows my mind.
Yes, I think you should keep doing show reports! It's interesting to see the systems, but it would be nice to hear more details about what you liked or disliked about the sound in each room. I know the hotel rooms might be problematic for doing an audiophile review, but it would be interesting to hear more about how the PAP Trio15 compared to your home system.
Did you say 'the PAP Trio 15?' I looked it up and ... also noticed then that Clayton Shaw sold Spatial Audio in July, as reported on AudioCircle web forum. Wow I thought Steve never yet heard and these Open Baffle new speakers are not Clayton Shaw no more but that it would be interesting as you said to learn why they are still the new Clayton Shaw. Woofers look German and they're rear mounted with the old cutaway diameters that Revox had in the 1970s and nobody ever yet explained neither.
@@keplermission caladan are the new clayton shaw speakers they were there also.. 3grand and amazing apparently..
My comment about this cover - like I have been at the show myself! Thank you
Great review! Lots of others doing some deep dives into rooms. But this was a nice once over! Yes repeat this.
Great video and yes make more. I am sure I am not alone in wanting more videos of almost any kind from you.
Looks fun 😊👍
thank you fo doing the show report! fun!
Great video Steve, Enjoyed it
Great viewing, even without listening to the gear! Thanks for sharing your experience.
Was great seeing you there! Please keep rocking! ❤
Keep doing these for sure. They’re great
Thanks for your impressions Steve. Greetings from Germany
Thank you Steve, I enjoyed your report from the show but I’m so sorry that I didn’t run into you. I live nearby the venue and I dropped by Friday and Saturday. I really enjoyed the Zu/Black Ice room also. It was a pleasure to meet and chat with Sean Casey and listen to his speakers. I told him that I sold a pair of DW speakers and I regret it to this day. I really value your opinion and always look forward to seeing your videos.
Great review. Thank you for putting that together for us
Hi Steve. Great stuff. Sorry to miss this show right in my backyard but good to have your coverage. Lots of nice looking gear to oogle over. Interested to hear a review of the Consonos audio, as well as the pure audio project trio and Clayton Shaw open baffles. Thanks
Good to see so many diy available drivers in such high end products. For those of us looking for value, eye the designs here!
Nice to meet you at CAF, Steve. Thanks for being so gracious and having your picture taken with me.
Steve, I liked your review of the Capital Audio Show and would like more. Bob
Oh, it seems you had a great time! Thank you for sharing.
I hope to meet you at Axpona next April.
I went on the Saturday, my first time at an audio show in many years. Thanks for showing the price lists - what's clear is that almost no-one was showing anything at the more accessible end to bring new and younger and less well-heeled enthusiasts into the hobby. Dropping five figures *per component* is not realistic for many. I don't mind the really high end stuff, but the shows should encourage manufacturers to also demo stuff that is attainable not just by the 0.1%.
There were several vendors on the higher floors that had “reasonably” priced gear on offer. A friend and I went Sunday and spent most of the time avoiding the over-the-top rooms. To be honest, after hearing some of the moderately priced systems, the high end didn’t always distinguish itself adequately to justify the added expense, even when playing the same track for direct comparison.
Geshelli Labs had some reasonably priced gear that sounded good, but yeah a lot of crazy expensive items.
Steve,
This was so well laid out. Visits to the Better rooms, proper information provided. Sound is a problem I know as they may be taken down. But I like 10 seconds of each room if there is a way. Glad to see you at the shows.
I like the show tour videos, and would watch even if it was 15-20 min long.
Fun clip with lots of cool equipment on order.
I really like it Steve! Very concise and to the point! I would think it would be interesting to talk a little more about where the various products are made! I’m personally interested in the USA made products, but I think it is interesting where all of them are made especially if not made in a low wage Asian factory.
Thanks, the thing is the only US companies making under $1000 products are Grado, Schiit and TEKTON..
I believe that Philharmonic Audio was there and would like to have see that room. Sound clips would be nice, although I know that YT won't provide best sound. It would still be nice.
I appreciate such hi-fi show coverings.
Great video! You should do it again. I like how you was not long-winded, and kept moving with the gear. Great coverage do more.
Steve, I would like to see you post more videos regarding the shows you attend.
Quick scope of products familiar and not so familiar. Enjoyed it
Well done report. I especially like the fact that you are not introducing crowd noise or trying to do an unintelligible interview in a noisy room the way some other reviewers do.
I'd like to see more.
The High Water Sound room looked like a lot of care went into it. No wonder it sounded so good!
Thanks for the video. Did you get to hear Dennis Murphy's Philharmonic Audio speakers?
I’d like to see something like this come to Boston, MA.
Keep em coming.
Great to meet you at the show! Excellent show.
👍👍👍
Fun to watch
Appreciate the effort from you as many of us can’t or just are not able to go. Definitely jealous but happy to get some idea of what was happening 😊
Thanks Steve for the video. 😎
Thanks for the great work, and I'm curious about the next show that you will cover
Thanks, Axpona is next
I find the equipment lists very enlightening, not just for the price and the stuff they are selling, but for the ancillary equipment chosen to support what they are selling. I figure guys trying to make a sale, and with deep product knowledge from working in the industry, will be careful about choices.
Speaking of old friends at the show, my heart soared like an eagle when I saw someone using a Michell Gyro to demonstrate product, because I own one, and sweated bullets about that buying decision , because I was buying from reports off of the internet only, never having heard one. Nice to see a design from 1982 is still that strong in a very competitive market.
Yes, it was a nice change.
Cool video
No love for OCD Mikey, Fischer & Fischer, Playback Designs, Jeff Rowland... ?
Would have like to here about this too. Oh well
Getting to meet you was one of my highlights of the show!!!
Wish I could've gone this year, looks great! Makes me think of the late Rocky mountain audio fest. I guess maybe it's bigger? Anyways, thanks for the tour and nice to see all those tables selling vinyl, etc..
Absolutely Steve. Your coverage is singular.
What about parallel universes?
It was also my first capital audiofest and going to a show at all.
If you haven't done it, please do so and send your ears to the day spa. I thought I had a good system, but there is so much (more) out there and this is a great way to treat your senses to some amazing stuff.
Speaker/Systems I would love to hear more about:
MbL, Dyptique, Quad, Cessaro, Von Schweikert, Songer Audio, Viva, AER
I wondered if you would drop in on OCD Mickey and give a verdict on the Jeff Rowland plus the Fischer and Fischer. 🤔
Oh yeah, I’d love to see more of this type of content 🤝
Those pure audio project drivers look like Eminence guitar amp speakers. Lots of big driver designs use them.
More reports if you can also if you could mention notes impressions of the systems rooms etc longer versions ...Cheers
Super excited for the Clayton Shaw speaker review!!
Me too!
ATC all the way!
Excited to see optical cartridges becoming more available.
I would love to bump into Steve at an Audio show!
My favorite setup at the show was the TAD room with floorstanders, the new G1s at about 65K for the speakers. Second was the new Acoustic Energy Cornium? Cant recall the precise name, but sounded a LOT like the TAD at only 8K for the speakers.
Very cool Steve, when are you going to review some Audio Note pieces? Just read a review of their dac and transport at P.T.A. seems like their gear would be in your wheelhouse.
Next time double our pleasure for those of us who can't make the shows. Great looking stuff with good sound too!
So as usual with those hotel-rooms, everything was just great and amazing 🙂
Just in the rooms I covered, there were another 120 rooms I left out!
Sorry I missed you this past weekend, but I will see you at CanJam NYC 2024
I live in the area and forgot about the show. Dammit, I've got to stop paying so much attention to work! 😉
Those AGD "tubes" are not vacuum tubes. They are simply a small solid-state class D amp circuit board enclosed in a glass tube with some LED lights, strictly for show. The company also makes amps with the same Class D circuit not enclosed in the glass enclosure, but just mounted inside a cabinet like most normal amps. About the only advantage of the glass enclosed circuit board is that in theory, if the company issues an upgrade, the customer can simply pull out the old glass enclosure and insert the new one (a rather dubious prospect if you ask me, especially considering the amount of money they charge for that flexibility, compared to their own traditionally mounted circuits inside a box). Some customers are likely to be deceived into thinking that it really is some kind vacuum tube, with sound characteristics associated with tubes, but it is actually 100% solid-state class D (although class D is sounding a lot better these days than in the early years).
Yes, and making a PCB board that could be switched out by the consumer would be cheaper though not as "sexy" I guess. Schiit does this with their Bifrost 2/64 DAC so it never has to become obsolete or sent back to them for an upgrade.
@@rosswarren436 The claim by the manufacturer that it makes upgrades easy is mostly BS. The real reason is clearly that it looks like a tube amp, and some people will actually be fooled into thinking that it is actually some kind of hybrid vacuum tube. The circuit board is enclosed by glass in the shape of a tube, but not in a vacuum. The level of BS in high-end audio can get out of control at times. Nevertheless, some people say the amps do sound pretty good, but the same company makes a cheaper version amp using of the same circuits without the fake tubes.
What are speakers at 7:31?
Cube Audio speakers
Loved it. Would like to see again, but a longer video with more coverage...if the editing doesn't kill you.
I was pleased that you thought the sound from ZU and Black Ice was as good as anything you heard. A system less than $15,000 that can compete with $100,000+ is music to my ears!
Great to see you featuring Clayton Shaw’s Caladan open baffle speakers! For $3k you can’t beat them in terms of bang for the buck. Any audiophile on a budget would be crazy not to get a pair.
Do they sound like Magnepan?
@@scottcw31 Ron at New Record day posted a sound demo of them you can check out. They sound a lot like the Spatial Audio M3 Sapphires which Clayton also designed.
Great vid!
Have yout tried Mon Acoustic speakers? I wonder what your impressions are.
Sorry I didn’t run into you, whatever day(s) you were there. The Consonus speakers were my favorite (pretty much the only ones I would’ve bought and took home right on the spot) but the multiple presence of Joseph Audio speakers never disappointed. Seemed to me that most rooms weren’t taking full advantage of music that would’ve showed off their systems - most of it was dull, non-dynamic and muffled piano offerings so I started being drawn to rooms that were playing something a little more lively. Yes Steve, I like to hear what you have to say about your time at the CAF.
Those consonus speakers were one of the best rooms at the show, wish I had more time that day to go back and listen some more. Wish they had a website up with more information, I never saw the price of the speakers or the system
Missed it this year but God willing be there '24
Who makes the billet aluminum speaker at 7:37?
YG Acoustic
Very nice walkthrough, Steve. I posted a walkthrough of the Tokyo International Audio Show (some of the same vendors as yours) on 11/3 on my YT channel. The next Tokyo show will be July '24 and I hope to do some short interviews with visiting western vendors exhibiting at the show. I invite you to take a look at my newest video and offer me any pointers for future audio fair videos, as it was my first one. Cheers.
does anyone know what happened to the Analog Planet channel?
Steve, longtime subscriber. What speakers would you recommend mating with a Uniti Atom in a relatively small room, approx. 10x10. Appreciate you.
Cool
Yes. Nice way to cover a show.
The Italian Viva equipment reminded me of Italian sports cars. 🤔
Nothing from Daniel Hertz? I was sure Mark Levinson would be displaying there
I’m going to say the quiet part out loud: there is a distinct trend in audio of quality gear becoming much more affordable. This has been fueled by a number or factors, but the big one is probably direct to consumer models. Even within this model, there have been innovations. Pure Audio Project has a model where you assemble you speaker like IKEA furniture and can mix and match certain parts of the speaker. I could go on, but I’m seeing these innovations in speakers under $10,000 and often closer to $5,000. If you have the skills, kit speakers from places like CSS Audio and GR-Research have gotten much more sophisticated.
Class D amps used to be a joke and used at most for subs. Now there are good Class D amps that can be used in the entire system at a fraction of the cost of Class A or AB amps with similar power, DSP has gotten better and cheaper. I could go on and on.
With this trend, all the “action” is on the more affordable end of the spectrum, not the extreme high end that few audiophiles will ever hear outside an audio show, much less purchase.
Wonderful report, just wish it was a few minutes longer reporting on more worthwhile rooms
Steve what did you think of those slate speakers that OCD Mikey was showing?