View Full Version : Vienna Hi-End 2026
This certainly makes a sound that makes sense to me. Sounding fab playing Grace Jones on vinyl.
Big B100 Lux monos.
Wouldn't mind trying the B100s on my speakers.
Better sound than my system? Course not;)
Needs proper speakers, though I generally do like Martens.
That Lux TT sounds fab. Seriously good.
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Talking to the reps - cartridge is a prototype Luxman, out in a bit. B100 monos are £52K Euros out in a month.
Foyer.
Smoker friendly - can do so on every floor.
No more Munich I am in the 2nd floor and I need a fag nightmares:Dhttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/139f228f69ba48b76e4cb7d25ab1debd.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/1a201ddbd9c1ee5c8509d68a7377cc77.jpg
Wilson Atrocity Loudspeaker.
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That Luxman turntable looks absolutely gorgeous .
Always liked Luxman products, never in my price range though . . . unless I win on ERNIE.
Goldmund. Used to dream about the TT just cos the design/engineering was awesome, not cos it looks great.
Listening to the speakers now.
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Tim - In the flesh it looks even better.
Butt side on.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/efc9c9d97425f6a164f5ee3f37dcd7b3.jpg
The whole point of monoblock power amplifiers is that they are located as close to the speakers they drive as possible. This is so the connection between the amplifier and speaker is as short of possible. Furthermore all monoblock amplifiers ought to have a balanced input, because the input cables from the preamp will be long.
"Atrocity" is a good name for those Wilson speakers. Regardless of their audio quality, the cosmetics is IMO atrocious: two of them are a pair of atrocities! :sofa:
Cool stuff from Elac. Unexpected.
Glass reflections, unfortunately.
Martin dug one of these up recently.
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Fuck off from China's ESD.
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Wadax/Gobelhttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/f30eef9f59d985d099920803b0bf5ec9.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/1f729d2a443cf2ba053977827429fd7e.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/ff5ccb4bb688433ebe35247afc67f907.jpg
A lot of the design of this stuff makes me laugh out loud, but that Elac Rubiks Cube sub is a master stroke!
Just listened to drums on the big Gobels.
Presented as being very fast, as drums are.
Trouble is I have heard these speakers quite a few times, and fast they are NOT.
They do sound very pleasant, though, if very samey, across a lot of stuff.
Gonna check it out when I get back. Snap taken from the presenter's tablet after I asked nicely, and not after I told him the speakers didn't have the speed to do it justice, LOL.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/a1edd00f2da519e9592d8cac76e4334f.jpg
I owned MLs for 17 years.
These Neoliths are sounding absolutely killer with the EMM Labs setup.
Way better than my system even has a hope of.
Top. And better than the last time I heard a pair.
Then the panels go wrong... and they will need replacing after a few years. Don't believe otherwise.
Another flaw is the bass only emanates from the bottom of the speaker leaving the mid/top sounding lean height wise, if that makes sense.
Still awesome, though.
But as I left they played something that made my last criticism stick very firmly in my head, triggering memory neurons of past times.
It's not something I want to go back to. Especially at 130K Euros a pair.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/bcbb993e7ffd95f740845aafe0045e82.jpg
I owned MLs for 17 years.
These Neoliths are sounding absolutely killer with the EMM Labs setup.
Way better than my system even has a hope of.
Top. And better than the last time I heard a pair.
Then the panels go wrong... and they will need replacing after a few years. Don't believe otherwise.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/bcbb993e7ffd95f740845aafe0045e82.jpg
The combination of panel drive units (regardless of whether they are electrostatic or magnetic ribbon type) with moving coil drivers can never be successful, for reasons of polar distribution: panel drive units have a dipole distribution, moving coil speakers in an enclosure have a monopole distribution.
It didn't work way back in the late '60s with the Bowers & Wilkins DM70, and it doesn't work now.
Quite like the Palatine TTs.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/37978067d6cae6f06609687588c1c885.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/53dfbc258cf27f47b3ff8be165e12f44.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/b97de1204577b616209c0732573e3642.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/35f19b173f4819ef484ef2e43def0927.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/ca0909ed3d6814888ad178c0f7e9384c.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/d08d974f06787de2aa057673b7a2e929.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/1c3b3376ab2ca9a996d29e30c27ce486.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/edac937a71123b004ce278cf82ba7c7a.jpg
The combination of panel drive units (regardless of whether they are electrostatic or magnetic ribbon type) with moving coil drivers can never be successful, for reasons of polar distribution: panel drive units have a dipole distribution, moving coil speakers in an enclosure have a monopole distribution.
It didn't work way back in the late '60s with the Bowers & Wilkins DM70, and it doesn't work now.They have front and rear firing bass units to make them dipole like. The biggest issue is the one I described, but that's still really due to mixing driver tech.
Can you see if you can get a listen to the new Wharfedale Rosedales?
I lost my site map and some has nicked my nice leather tobacco pouch out of my shoulder bag thinking it is a wallet.
So no idea where they might be at the moment:)
Getting a new map is no probs. But a new tobacco pouch is £20. Not amused.
Have some vintage WE courtesy of Silbatone.
IMHO this is a better venue than Munich MOC. Feel much less herded around and for the most part it feels way more spacious even though it isn't bigger.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/552577f4e110e5ddeb6bebf35517b97c.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/6a2dd0539f18320ad1b048c1e82e10a3.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/9f91105b220bf53e6852143a9735b39a.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/f80927e257216bc242f80ead8676e823.jpg
Bingo!
Inertia Creeps - Massive Attack.
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Very easy going listen across three tracks. Warm, quite good imaging.
But he's swapped to Elysian 4R and it's much brighter and a lot more forward.
Pipe and slippers versus modern higher performance type of sound. Lots more res from the AMT driver in the Elysian.
Both are good. I'd probably prefer the Elysian for the sort of stuff I like.
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I do like the looks and build quality of T&A stuff.
Particularly the blue thang. Don't care what it does or is.
The photo didn't get it well but in the flesh it IS nice.
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These are seriously good stats.
Better than any modern Quad I have heard.
They have real strong dynamics for a stat and excellent clarity.
I could live with a pair. Add two feet to the height or maybe a bit less and they'd be brilliant in my book.
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Just been talking to the designer.
More later.
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These are seriously good stats.
Better than any modern Quad I have heard.
They have real strong dynamics for a stat and excellent clarity.
I could live with a pair. Add two feet to the height or maybe a bit less and they'd be brilliant in my book.
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Now that looks like something I could go for. Any idea how much they would cost?
Whilst good he just told me they are 120K Euros.
Not so good. But the design is cool. True balls in a Quad size speaker.
That's nearly £104,000 - definitely something I can ill afford. Mind you, I was expecting them to be expensive - a lot of work has gone into their design and construction, so with a limited number of potential customers expected, they will be priced so as to recoup the time spent on the design and still make a profit.
That's nearly £104,000 - definitely something I can ill afford. Mind you, I was expecting them to be expensive - a lot of work has gone into their design and construction, so with a limited number of potential customers expected, they will be priced so as to recoup the time spent on the design and still make a profit.I did tell him quite plainly I thought it was too much. Anyway, the bass panels are triple loaded - three diaphragms in each unit. I think he said triple for the mid, double for upper mid and single for the treble. All hand tuned.
Do not quote me on that. But you get the idea. Very rigid frames etc look at the web page.
They don't go as low as my Apogees, but they do have as much balls.
Love it when you discover something you have never heard before and been totally blown away by it. I walked past earlier thinking nothing going on in there.
Big mistake. Huge.
LOL.
Probably not a good side shot, but best I could do in the lighting and awkward position.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/d5b27246bfd0c54c82710d574ee9b264.jpg
Very easy going listen across three tracks. Warm, quite good imaging.
But he's swapped to Elysian 4R and it's much brighter and a lot more forward.
Pipe and slippers versus modern higher performance type of sound. Lots more res from the AMT driver in the Elysian.
Both are good. I'd probably prefer the Elysian for the sort of stuff I like.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/004efef5163a834d35bf9243ae5c7a22.jpg
About what I expected then. They do look good, proper old school.
About what I expected then. They do look good, proper old school.They are OK. I was sort of expecting an old Tannoy type sound, but not really.
TBH a good pair of Monitor Golds and I do mean a good pair would be where I would go for this type of vintage look and I think appreciably better sound.
Bad boy JBLs playing really quite loudly when I was in there.
Look a bit like the old Everest DD67000 with extra drivers. I always thought the 67000 was too harsh, and there was some of that in there.
Also, the horn's dispersion versus the dynamic driver's behaviour means there is quite an obvious change of character i.e. you know there's a difference in the way the top of the speaker behaves and emanates sound versus the bottom.
Hybrid tech. Very difficult to make work well.
The total opposite of a dull speaker, though. Fun at volume with great scale if you can cope with the mid range aggression.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260606/387b2f7a1a4bfc7eeb7552222a8e5a1c.jpg
Outstanding pictures Justin . . . bravo :)
Outstanding pictures Justin . . . bravo :)Just thought I'd feed the forum a bit, Tim. It's very quiet here these days.
TBH YouTube probably has some excellent videos already that when played through a good system will give some clues about what some kit sounded like.
That's unreliable and no substitute for actually being there, of course.
Destination audio over at Hi-Fi Deluxe.
Sounding very decent - spacious, airy, natural etc. Even the horn/bass integration seems OK.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/dda88cfba005900e8ae19646c2f1915b.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/ae137be56b08157e95c4ac4e130ca2b3.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/18629c5d34aebe7ba46f79b622815add.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/47617014abb41cfc577016f853fef405.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/bf50d50293d950aec9d7a2dfebb82310.jpg
Curious collab.
That's a Pro-ject Harley TT.
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Not out yet but this transport only device has HDMI out.
Transport only. No price.
Gonna keep a watch out for it.
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Not out yet but this transport only device has HDMI out.
Transport only. No price.
Gonna keep a watch out for it.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/7c98479b6e159570bfb5512ce163c021.jpg
Ugly looking thing. Top looks like the stuff British Leyland used to cover the top of the dashboard. It'd be good if more modern components didn't look like they were designed by Stevie Wonder.
Ugly looking thing. Top looks like the stuff British Leyland used to cover the top of the dashboard. It'd be good if more modern components didn't look like they were designed by Stevie Wonder.I remarked on the leather top. Apparently, that's not finalised.
In the flesh it looks fine IMHO, especially compared to the rest of their stuff.
Maybe the leather top is to put your pint on?
:cool:
Maybe the leather top is to put your pint on?
:cool:
It's for your driving gloves and any spare change :)
Want.
Ever since it first came out.
Marantz Project T1.
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OK my poor fellows. You haven't done well enough in life.
Here's the proof.
You just can't afford it.
Don't even ask the price.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/7e1bdd53626171735e8826d16e347295.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/fd6e96a1a68c51a0c0e33e0b4c5eb1a8.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/eb4abfae8bfdb0488d983eb3cf179fa9.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/8a239a51f62c280f8b19200adadaf7d6.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/6a3baa5d3aa80816321c72f6382e3805.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/dbe2e573397a77108ec49bd90f503611.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/a06e7805c6a3fa616889e460eec5b818.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/f11207e33b97d775fe4662ed3fe7b4e8.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/b0cdb020ea14ac27a811f2ee2bdd3730.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/0c992c0525fc5b250bf4b1521266e861.jpg
More stuff you can't afford.
Post previous: all Aeres Cerat.
Post current: Aeres Cerat/Clarisys loudspeakers.
All in the Aeres (would you believe) hotel close to the main show.
Very pleasant sound from both systems.
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From the top of the Aeres hotel just outside the Aeres/Clarisys room.
Amazing view.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/19e0fdb0a351999bd6939c2d0339838d.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260607/ae6b62b57f4ad3a309624a03084d8c8a.jpg
Even if I could afford those last two systems, I wouldn't buy them. They look absolutely hideous, and to have to navigate your way around all that hardware in order to put a record on the equally hideous-looking turntable would not be for me.
(Don't get me started on cables the size of hosepipes and the need for cable lifters! :doh: )
Cessaro room.
Plus My First Cessaro.
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I quite like the look of that Helix One turntable. £65K though.
I need to learn it's Aries Cerat. Not Aeres.
I like that TT, but my wife does not.
Pigmy Pony
07-06-2026, 17:26
Even if I could afford those last two systems, I wouldn't buy them. They look absolutely hideous, and to have to navigate your way around all that hardware in order to put a record on the equally hideous-looking turntable would not be for me.
(Don't get me started on cables the size of hosepipes and the need for cable lifters! :doh: )
I'm with you on that Barry. Just too much stuff going on. If music stopped coming out of the speakers, or just sounded wrong, I wouldn't know where to start... and that turntable, it looks like someone's disassembled Robby the robot from Forbidden Planet, and thought "I wonder if I can make a turntable out of these bits?" Apparently they can, doesn't mean they should.
Plenty of other stuff at that show I could live with though, and it does look like an interesting way to spend a weekend. Better than Alton Towers and without all that queuing :)
Some amazing gear there Justin. Thanks for all your photos.
Yes, great photos Justin, we appreciate you taking the time to share them.
I suspect if you could afford one of these really high end systems, you'd have a room/concert hall just for the hifi. Or else you'd build an extension, not just going to cram it into your spare bedroom, are you!?
Most of it is not to my taste, but I can appreciate it for what it is.
I'm with you on that Barry. Just too much stuff going on. If music stopped coming out of the speakers, or just sounded wrong, I wouldn't know where to start... and that turntable, it looks like someone's disassembled Robby the robot from Forbidden Planet, and thought "I wonder if I can make a turntable out of these bits?" Apparently they can, doesn't mean they should.
)
That reminded me of Robbie the Robot too. Or his arms, anyway.
I'm with you on that Barry. Just too much stuff going on. If music stopped coming out of the speakers, or just sounded wrong, I wouldn't know where to start... and that turntable, it looks like someone's disassembled Robby the robot from Forbidden Planet, and thought "I wonder if I can make a turntable out of these bits?" Apparently they can, doesn't mean they should.
Plenty of other stuff at that show I could live with though, and it does look like an interesting way to spend a weekend. Better than Alton Towers and without all that queuing :)
Oh I'm sure the record player made from recycled Robbie the robot parts can play a record, the trouble is the only record it can play is the theme tune to 'Forbidden Planet'.
Clarisys Aria - fishnet stocking fetish I reckon.
I think most hifi systems look pretty questionable and they get more polarising the higher the price tag.
When you actually see that Aries Cerat stuff, though, the build quality is fabulous. As are many of the other items people feel look shite.
The point is the money goes somewhere.
Whenever I get back from Hi-End shows I realise how great my system is for the outlay, for me, at least.
That just comes from decades in the hobby, working out what I like.
Agree there's often a high standard of build and finish on the mega money stuff but a big chunk of the price is still just buying exclusivity alone.
Any of those speakers costing hundreds of thousands you could get the same sound (quality and presentation) for a lot less.
I like to get a listen to the crazy money stuff myself but even if I was that wealthy I wouldn't actually buy it.
Zoning out without hallucinogens.
Before I took this shot they were all in intergalactic fully reclined zonked out stasis mode.
But the instructor summoned them back to reality.
Cruel.
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Whenever I get back from Hi-End shows I realise how great my system is for the outlay, for me, at least.
That just comes from decades in the hobby, working out what I like.
Same here, agreed!
Pete The Cat
08-06-2026, 08:21
Excellent photos.
Apart from the price the other problem with this 'hi end' stuff is the weight of it - you couldn't be setting it up and tinkering with it if you have a bad back.
Chez Marantz with a bit of Denon.
Some nice old kit here.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/c0930323855df01b6ef2e2197d3ebcc4.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/18035bc6fe958d705e8346e799a6711f.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/048457b7e200a5e2a23cb6cbfa61b937.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/532c6e2f46f5fc7c26e4a7fca1f6cb6b.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/a11d1b6ab9f43c9df552b0333241de67.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/c14436580a644ea615338b4752cb376d.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/f2b912df3045ad0f5834650e05d1f9dc.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/2fa0945daa69b52fa94e05e1b9e84fdc.jpg
Thorens latest bestest.
Try moving that around.
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Excellent photos.
Apart from the price the other problem with this 'hi end' stuff is the weight of it - you couldn't be setting it up and tinkering with it if you have a bad back.
If I were to buy one of the systems featured here, given the overall expense I would expect it to be installed for me.
The only bit of the Marantz kit shown that would interest me is the Marantz 10B tuner. However, given that they frequently need realignment to maintain their superb selectively performance, and some of the components used are no longer available, I would now be happy with a Dynalab Magnum tuner.
Superb photos BTW. Thanks.
Just spotted on a high street.
Hm.
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Alsyvox - I think the best planar magnetic speakers in the world right now.
This is where the Aries Cerat gear sounded best, I think. By that the most accurate sounding. It still had an Aries Cerat sound signature to it that was common across all systems that used it, IMHO.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/39dd08e607bae4ec64523758ecfa47eb.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/68d830056f2db5c44ecf19702e51e078.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/34ea8df076b5d152618617055f9eed44.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/d7dd86445829014242defb909efe14b9.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/c8d8a750ce4b320e500fe239c2112ee7.jpg
I thought they were cannabis plants on first glance. But it's just bamboo :(
Was talking to Kevin Scott of Definitive Audio about those at Whittlebury. They used to be available for hire at Munich
He used to pay the dosh for them, because he said they broke the sound up nicely, creating a spacey, airy effect.
Interesting fact number two. A room for 4 days starts at about 20K Euro for a small one with false walls in the middle of a big hall, to about 60K for a larger proper room and upwards for the biggest, I expect.
Lovely Lux and better T&A shot.
The Luxman has to be one of the best looking integrated amps on the planet.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/986e993b5746c1f7e10de7e449b5ca33.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/d5705eab17ca36b78132869389aacf20.jpg
Some Transrotors.
There were loads.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/4820b9f116bcdb7c14a9d8fae4c8bbed.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/68a4c006940dfd0939a652ea9b8288e3.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/cef054210226f0206bd176ffcb210fc8.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/d9aaf5383926717c9ad6537b9f6fe4c4.jpg
That copper really does punch you in the eyes.
Latest D'Aggy stuff.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/f5af8c474b5cca802b09cdffa0dfdfb8.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260608/2581b5485546e376da36d1fb88f025f5.jpg
The Luxman has to be one of the best looking integrated amps on the planet.
:thumbsup:
rigger67
08-06-2026, 21:50
Really interesting post, this - thank you for taking the time to share your amazing photos.
Given the last time I went to a show was in Bristol in about 1988, I'm not really up with modern trends in hi-fi, especially high-end, but it's all fantasy-land for most of us anyway.
I had a pair of Rega Juras a few years back and they sounded so good two of my oldest friends bought a pair off eBay. I'd actually sold mine by then, but them buying a pair each made me buy a second pair, which I now use in my gaming system.
It's all about levels, isn't it ?
For them, my super-budget set-up blew their own systems away.
For a few pounds, they massively improved them.
This is a whole new system of economics where the law of diminishing returns is very much in evidence.
As Marco said earlier, you don't need to spend that much to get a really great sound .. but it's fun to be a voyeur.
I was a bit dumbstruck when I saw these.
Just sat there. Nobody even noticing them, really.
Connected to nothing.
With some STC 4242 valves that looked as though they had never been used. I know that by looking at the filaments and other obvious clues when you've been using valves for decades.
They probably have been powered up a few times. But Jesus, these suckers are rare and in superb condition.
It doesn't look as though the chassis they are in can deliver what they could do on terms of power output.
Interesting, nonetheless. And they aren't going to be cheap. Love to hear these on something efficient.
But I'd much rather see such valves able to deliver what they are capable of in a high power design.
That said, I haven't even attempted to look up the spec. So don't take me too seriously. And also, I am fairly sure I have seen these in the flesh elsewhere in the past. Which doesn't really have any inherent meaning apart from the fact they exist.
Whatever. They just seem worth a post.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260610/3129d6617eaec83d8c16f643eed30218.jpg
Zellatron Plural Eco.
Introduced by an ultra skinny Japanese lady from planet alien who was extremely into the harp.
After hearing a lot of Zellatrons over the years, I like the silver coned cheaper versions better.
They are good albeit expensive speakers.
Would I buy a pair?
No.
That amp might be insane.
But in the land of expensive stuff, the speakers are OK.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260610/3baa43a36bc81f832b34786129557b31.jpg
Zellatron Plural Eco.
Introduced by an ultra skinny Japanese lady from planet alien who was extremely into the harp.
After hearing a lot of Zellatrons over the years, I like the silver coned cheaper versions better.
They are good albeit expensive speakers.
Would I buy a pair?
No.
That amp might be insane.
But in the land of expensive stuff, the speakers are OK.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260610/3baa43a36bc81f832b34786129557b31.jpg
What are those stands at the back, are they some bizarre tweak?
Ich weiss nicht.
Strange omni weirdness.
Followed by full range stats that remind me of the Burj Al Arab.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260611/3f1057d16292c858772b7fd6cd026603.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260611/a5364e769f91aa0c837f379d2308e002.jpg
So I get back from all of this.
And I am 100% convinced I didn't hear anything as highly resolved as my system.
Or ultimately one I liked better.
Take me to a normal doctor.
Give me a psychological assessment.
Inspect my lug holes.
Put me on a lie detector.
That said, my faves were the Luxman/Marten and Emm Labs / Neolith systems this year.
Both cost too much money. The first one does cost a lot less and has decent resolution.
The second I will call out for what I already said about it. But it is good.
The third award is to that Quad thingie that costs > 100K list. See above.
£10K would be a fantastic retail price for them.
Quad would go out of business very quickly.
Or at least the speaker making division.
Ain't gonna happen, unfortunately.
And I did mean the Quad ESL section going out of business.
They should buy a pair and check them out.
Pigmy Pony
13-06-2026, 22:36
So I get back from all of this.
And I am 100% convinced I didn't hear anything as highly resolved as my system.
Or ultimately one I liked better.
Take me to a normal doctor.
Give me a psychological assessment.
Inspect my lug holes.
Put me on a lie detector.
That said, my faves were the Luxman/Marten and Emm Labs / Neolith systems this year.
Both cost too much money. The first one does cost a lot less and has decent resolution.
The second I will call out for what I already said about it. But it is good.
No need for any of that - what you have is what most of us are striving for :) Though the manufacturers won't want to hear that, chronic dissatisfaction with your set up is what pays their wages :)
The Luxman/Marten system would be my choice - oozes quality without being ostentatious.
What did you reckon to the venue?
Article here by Roy Gregory effectively saying it's an acoustic disaster
https://gy8.eu/blog/high-end-2026/
Although the only audio shows I have attended have been in London, I have never come back to my own system with a feeling of disappointment. I may have listened to vastly more expensive, and possibly superior gear, the size of the demonstration rooms are often acoustically quite different to my listening room.
Because of that I no longer attend audio shows - I am happy with what I have and am unlikely now to upgrade.
BTW I'm still using my 50 year old original and unmolested Quad 57 ESLs. :)
Although the only audio shows I have attended have been in London, I have never come back to my own system with a feeling of disappointment. I may have listened to vastly more expensive, and possibly superior gear, the size of the demonstration rooms are often acoustically quite different to my listening room.
Because of that I no longer attend audio shows - I am happy with what I have and am unlikely now to upgrade.
BTW I'm still using my 50 year old original and unmolested Quad 57 ESLs. :)
If ever there was a speaker that's truly stood the test of time it's the ESL.
Only time I have been at a show and thought 'I really need this in my life' was the year they had the Mark Levinson/JBL 4365 system.
For a couple of years I went with money in my pocket thinking that if anything really grabbed me then I'd buy. But that didn't happen, at least not with anything I could actually afford.
Really it's more of a calibration exercise. You hear systems costing well into six figures which are mostly nothing like as good as they should be for the money and think 'I've actually done pretty well for what I spent!'
Pigmy Pony
14-06-2026, 07:17
I only bother with the NW Audio Show - it's not too far away, and it's free, both important considerations. I would normally only hear perhaps half a dozen systems that really do it for me, but it doesn't matter. For me it's a day out, a beer and a bite to eat, and seeing the odd familiar face.
Next one only two weeks away :carrot:
Yes it's something to do instead of sitting in the house, that's the main attraction for me.
I do get fed up of the crap 'music' a lot of them play.
What gets me is people complain that it's all Pink Floyd or Dire Straits and I wonder if those people ever actually go to shows.
Reality is when you do very, very occasionally go into a room where they are playing something like that it's like 'Thank god, some proper music!'
That's just music taste though isn't it? Certain records do make a system sound good and it's clear a lot of the demonstrators music knowledge isn't that broad.
There's an American guy who goes to Bristol, can't remember his name now but he's clearly really passionate about music and plays different stuff. But his knowledge is extremely broad.
Personally if I hear Dire Straits or Diana Krall I'm outta there pronto. I love it when I hear something I don't know - Alex Brady from Nordost Cables plays great music at shows, he's clearly a muso.
Pigmy Pony
14-06-2026, 08:23
I do get fed up of the crap 'music' a lot of them play.
What gets me is people complain that it's all Pink Floyd or Dire Straits and I wonder if those people ever actually go to shows.
Reality is when you do very, very occasionally go into a room where they are playing something like that it's like 'Thank god, some proper music!'
We have occasionally asked the bloke doing the demo for something we're familiar with. That way we can better evaluate the set up's talent. But by and large they will default to whatever cack plays to their products' strengths. That's never going to change.
That's just music taste though isn't it? Certain records do make a system sound good and it's clear a lot of the demonstrators music knowledge isn't that broad.
There's an American guy who goes to Bristol, can't remember his name now but he's clearly really passionate about music and plays different stuff. But his knowledge is extremely broad.
Personally if I hear Dire Straits or Diana Krall I'm outta there pronto. I love it when I hear something I don't know - Alex Brady from Nordost Cables plays great music at shows, he's clearly a muso.
Wouldn't really put them in the same bag but it isn't about musical taste it's about music vs 'not music'.
I don't mind hearing something new as long as it isn't audiophile crap.
Here's an example of what I mean at 44.06. Happily the swimming baths acoustics and all the talking drown it out a bit
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCigU1f1jZQ
I thought all the systems demonstrated in the video sounded crap, but I put that down to the itsy bitsy teeny weeny speaker in my smartphone.
No doubt if I had been there I would have thought differently, but not by much. I would have loathed those large horn speakers that look as if they had come from a decommissioned cinema.
(When I have time, I might see if I can connect my laptop to my DAC using a USB cable, and give the video another go.)
I thought all the systems demonstrated in the video sounded crap, but I put that down to the itsy bitsy teeny weeny speaker in my smartphone.
No doubt if I had been there I would have thought differently, but not by much. I would have loathed those large horn speakers that look as if they had come from a decommissioned cinema.
(When I have time, I might see if I can connect my laptop to my DAC using a USB cable, and give the video another go.)
well yes you can't tell anything about the sound quality from a video played back through entirely different speakers, it was just an example of crap demo 'music' that I was highlighting. The quality is irrelevant. If you really want to hear the speakers you have to actually go to the show - which is the whole point of having a show.
Pigmy: Someone could get a flavour what I have by buying these.
https://ebay.io/m/BGx3TS
This is insanely cheap IMHO. And They can be maintained by Jon Oakley in Birmingham.
These were refurbished in the states by Rich Murray. They aren't like mine Duettas in that they don't have all the structural changes Jon and I did with mine.
The owner prefers his Scintillas which you can also see in the pic.
There are caveats to owning these. Size, weight, required amplification etc. And you could probably get Jon to make them to a spec close to mine.
Blatant plug. But TBH people seem to not know what these things are these days, which is a great shame.
What did you reckon to the venue?
Article here by Roy Gregory effectively saying it's an acoustic disaster
https://gy8.eu/blog/high-end-2026/I am amazed at what I just read. I don't think that's a fair assessment at all.
There's way more space between the rooms at the ACV. A lot of rooms are so far apart that you can't hear noise breakthrough from other rooms to anywhere near the same extent as Munich.
Granted the third floor was full of tiny rooms. The worst place to be without question.
But at the ACV you don't feel like a sardine. And that's a big plus. Huge, in fact.
I really wasn't that aware of AC and temperatures inside the venue were very pleasant.
So basically, I am calling BS.
I did hear some rantings about the organisation from an exhibitor, together with an accusation they didn't like Germans. Maybe that's why the AG demonstration was so small compared to Munich. Then again, I don't know that for a fact.
WRT to prices of hifi gear, the cost of attending these shows is high, and it has to get factored into the selling price. Think about what is involved in getting these huge systems into the show. It ain't cheap.
Let me add I am only talking about the main show and not the two others I also went to. One good, one bad.
I don't mind hearing something new as long as it isn't audiophile crap.
100% :)
100% :)Most of it was crap. It always is.
If you like classical it may not be as bad. But I actively dislike it.
Don't get me wrong I will say there were some rooms that were definitely a huge fail.
Last year at Munich these speakers sounded fabulous with Audio Research gear.
https://acoraacoustics.com/
Here they just failed totally. Ultra near field listening 3rd floor issue no length to the room.
Another Clarisys room was also dreadful.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260614/c862b877bc5cd20e5833b1f3dc52d050.jpg
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20260614/04d6dac253112b6aeef662200ace2645.jpg
I am amazed at what I just read. I don't think that's a fair assessment at all.
There's way more space between the rooms at the ACV. A lot of rooms are so far apart that you can't hear noise breakthrough from other rooms to anywhere near the same extent as Munich.
Granted the third floor was full of tiny rooms. The worst place to be without question.
But at the ACV you don't feel like a sardine. And that's a big plus. Huge, in fact.
I really wasn't that aware of AC and temperatures inside the venue were very pleasant.
So basically, I am calling BS.
Okay that's interesting. Roy Gregory talking BS is nothing new I suppose.
On the German front perhaps they haven't forgiven them for the Anschluss? They bombed our chippy but that was 28 years before I was born so I got over it quite quickly.
Are you going to the NW show at the end of the month or are you all 'showed out' now?
No is the simple answer.
I really did enjoy that bake off AoS did when we were both there, though.
No is the simple answer.
I really did enjoy that bake off AoS did when we were both there, though.
That was a good weekend. Keep hoping that place will re-open so we can do it again but must have been shut now for ten years almost.
Pigmy Pony
14-06-2026, 12:28
I thought all the systems demonstrated in the video sounded crap, but I put that down to the itsy bitsy teeny weeny speaker in my smartphone.
No doubt if I had been there I would have thought differently, but not by much. I would have loathed those large horn speakers that look as if they had come from a decommissioned cinema.
(When I have time, I might see if I can connect my laptop to my DAC using a USB cable, and give the video another go.)
What would be the purpose of doing that? Just asking, not trying to be a smartarse :scratch:
I did skip through a few parts of that video, and tbf I quite liked some of the music used. As for Macca's chosen track, well, who doesn't like a good xylophone solo? Takes me back to my primary school days :)
What would be the purpose of doing that? Just asking, not trying to be a smartarse :scratch:
So as to be able to play the video soundtrack through my system with its better speakers. :eyebrows:
Pigmy Pony
14-06-2026, 14:04
So you would then be listening to your system with accompanying pictures of other kit ;)
That was the whole point of the video. By relaying the audio through my system I would be improving the quality of the 'soundtrack' over that of my smartphone.
Pigmy Pony
14-06-2026, 14:30
Ah, so not to assess the quality of the systems being demo'd through your set up then :doh: I know that sounds like crazy talk, but no dafter than the countless videos people post to demonstrate the abilities of high end kit!
Well I guess the quality of the soundtrack is only as good as the microphone in his smartphone. So thinking about it, I may as well not bother.
Of course if I had been there I would have used a Nagra IV-S portable reel-to-reel recorder and a pair of Schoeps or Sennheiser microphones. :eyebrows:
If you like classical it may not be as bad. But I actively dislike it.
I do Justin, kind of where I started in some ways - big symphonies though, not mad on noodling classical, don't dislike it though. But I'm with Martin, I really don't like audiophile music either.
I do like this thread though, been a brilliant read.
Lawrence001
14-06-2026, 23:26
Thanks for the photos and comments Justin you were a lot more organised than me I don't think I saw half of what you did. Small enough place to bump into you outside though!
Thanks for the photos and comments Justin you were a lot more organised than me I don't think I saw half of what you did. Small enough place to bump into you outside though!I wouldn't have gone to the Xclusive show if you hadn't mentioned it, so cheers for that.
Surprised you remembered me from Munich TBH.
I didn't only go for the show - it's just a good addition to a week's holiday which is how I always viewed Munich.
Odds say it never happens again, LOL. It did seem like a complete fluke.
Whatever, we all appreciate the effort you have gone to in describing the equipment and taking the excellent photos of the rooms you visited.
The only time I visited Munich it was for the Beer festival!
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