Hi-fi Wigwam Show 2022 - Photos

[Macca]

Here's a few photos I took at this show earlier today. As usual I didn't get time to go in every room and there's a few I went in where I forgot to take photos, but here's some of what I have.

For those who don't know this is an enthusiast's show not a trade show, people bring their own equipment and demonstrate it. There were a couple of trade exhibitors, just to help with the costs I suppose. And there was a record stall and another stall selling all sorts of bits and pieces.

Venue was the North Staffordshire Hotel in sunny Stoke On Trent. It actually was sunny today. Hotel was built in the 1840s to compliment the railway station opposite and is Grade II* listed. Inside it still retains echos of its early Victorian grandeur. I didn't take this pic, just a stock photo:



(Note - the room names are as they appear on the show's programme).

So, off we go -

'Alchris Audio' was the first stop - this was a trade room, showing their V200 Domestic Monitors. A lot of speaker for £4.2K, easily filled the very large room:




'Baggawire' - Minty Yamaha NS1000M and Sony Pre-power, a good combination:




'Orbscure' - I really liked the sound in this room. Omar Skinner CR502 loudspeakers and the irresistable charm of Accuphase:



Had to take some close up pics of the Accuphase kit:





And this Technics SP10 that was the source in use when I was in there. I don't do vinyl anymore but still have a soft spot for the 70s and 80s superdecks and the SP10 is my favourite. It sounded impeccable:





'Max The Sony Guy' -

He really is and I suspect he only brought a fraction of what he has. Sony STR6120, absolutely mint, into a SQA 2030 Quadrophonic decoder and on into various models of the Sony APM speakers. I do love classic Sony and the sound quality was excellent.

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'Keith/MF1000' 'mega system' -

Did what it said on the tin. Custom built subs using 18 inch Volt drivers with cabs on top using a mix of SEAS and Volt units, bass powered with Behringer amps, mid and tops are 845 Ming Da tube amps. Effortless - as you'd expect.



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'Lurch and IDS' -

Big Martin Logan Summits with NordNC5000MBS monoblocs, Brinkman TT, Lector CD player. First time I have had a listen to any of the really big MLs, I can see the attraction.




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'Ed Howarth' - great system this one. When I went in something was playing that I recognised but could not place, and it sounded fantastic. After a minute I realised it was 'Blowin' Free' by Wishbone Ash. Got the album but not listened to it in years.

Anyway - Q Acoustics 2020i which are tiny, with an REL S3 sub, crossed over at 100Hz with a cut off so the Q Acoustics are not fed anything below 100hz. QUAD 606 power amp. And it really worked so well.

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'Jester 7 & Vinylystas'

Kii3 with the bass modules - say no more. I keep having to talk myself out of getting some of these. They are expensive but they are so perfect, especially in the lower frequencies. They just start and stop like nothing else, ever:




'Orangeart & Making Light' - Linkwitz Orions with KFF audio MA-01 amps. If there's a bad Linkwitz speaker I've not heard it yet. These could have done with a bigger room to stretch their legs a bit but still sounding faultless.




Got a few more pics I think, might put them up tomorrow.

[Wakefield Turntables]

Looking forward to seeing more pics. Nice picture of the hotel, I stayed quite a few times when I did my MSc.

[Floyddroid]

Great pics. Thanks for sharing. I wish i could have made it but i had no transport. The Alchris Audio speakers are fantastic. I know that to be true.

[walpurgis]

Good photos and some very interesting gear!

[Macca]

It really was a great show, so much you don't see at the trade shows. Like that Sony room - you just don't see some of that equipment anywhere now. The bloke reckoned the big APM speakers were the only pair in Europe.

[Barry]

Great photos and description Martin. Thanks for sharing.

[Swann36]

Super photos thanks for sharing with the comments , I’m hoping life allows.me to get next year

[Jac Hawk]

Yes it was a very good day, not too many people like has been the case in the past, i think the venue was great with plenty of parking nearby, my only criticism would be that some of the rooms were just too small and some of the bigger rooms such as the ballroom weren't used, in addition there was no hot food available only very disappointing pre packed cheese and ham sandwiches, why the hotel didn't bother opening up a restaurant is a mystery to me as they could have made a killing, the only obvious nearby food outlets are a Subway, but apart from that all good.

As Martin has said, unlike trade shows you see all sorts of gear, the Sony room took me back to the 80's, i used to have a pair of the Accurate Pistonic Motion (APM) speakers i think they were the APM 12ES, the Sony guy had i think 3 pairs, definitely something you wouldn't see at a trade show.

i felt so sorry for the guy with the Klipsch Cornwall's, huge boxes in the smallest room in the place, they should have been in a much bigger room to let them breath a bit, but they actually didn't sound too bad, however they do tend to be a bit of a marmite speaker and some people just can't hack em.

one thing that really did intrigue me was in the Alchrist Audio room, Allan had a side pivot arm on the turntable a Supatrac Blackbird which i was most impressed with, basically a horizontal unipivot arm, which used the drag of the cartridge on the record to pull the arm onto the pivot.

Overall it was great, the room allocation could have been better, and the lack of decent food was the only grumbles for me, well done everyone who took the time to make the show as good as it was.

[narabdela]

...and the lack of decent food was the only grumbles for me, well done everyone who took the time to make the show as good as it was.

That was the only downside for me also. Compared to Scalford, the beer was meh, and the food on offer was abysmal. They really need to get that sorted if they return there.

Otherwise, all good. Did anyone who visited the room with vintage Philips gear pause to wonder if we've really come very far since the 1970s?

[Jac Hawk]

That was the only downside for me also. Compared to Scalford, the beer was meh, and the food on offer was abysmal. They really need to get that sorted if they return there.

Otherwise, all good. Did anyone who visited the room with vintage Philips gear pause to wonder if we've really come very far since the 1970s?

I did think it sounded rather good, but it's an industry and it needs to move forward and make new "better" things to survive. Most of the of the household audio brands of the 60's, 70's and 80's don't exist anymore for one reason or another and if they do are happy making the cheap crap you see at Curys, i'd say over the years things have improved but nothing in HiFi is night and day or at least hasn't been for a very long time, one thing that definitely was good in the old days was the build quality of a lot of gear, especially stuff from Japan, it was built to last, and if things did go wrong it was fixable, unlike a lot of gear nowadays