a few 2014 Newport Show pics

[Mike Lavigne]

Crystal Ballroom A, 4 different systems in one large room.....quite strange actually as it was hard to focus on the system playing.

Ayon, Accustic Arts, Avm Audio, Gauder Akustic, German Physiks (the system I heard playing), HFX Ripnas, Luminwhite, USA Tube Audio.

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[MylesBAstor]

On A Higher Note, Philip O'Hanlon, (Monarch Ballroom), Vivid speakers, Luxman, Mola Mola

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Is that Arian's new ATR-10 in the picture?

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Crystal Ballroom C, Sony

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[Mike Lavigne]

Crystal Ballroom D, Magico Q7's, VAC Electronics, Synergistic Voodoo.

not a fair way to judge this gear. I did this demo last year and while the demo is convincing what a waste of good gear......too bad you don't get to enjoy music in there.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Atrium Garden Ballroom 4 & 5, The Audio Salon, Wilson Audio, Constellation electronics.

the 'very' red Sashas were a static display. I got there just after the 'live' guitar to recorded demo happened.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

I thought Jonathan's room was indeed one of the highlights of THE Show as well.I have pictures of most of the rooms that I will post later in a separate thread but like Mike, I was singularly underwhelmed by just about everything I heard. There were but a handful of very good rooms IMHO

thanks Steve.

I do want to correct you that this room is a dealer room this year, that So Cal Dealer is 'Audio Association' in Gardena, Ed Sudario. the manufacturers involved (including Jonathan) were on hand to answer questions from time to time, of course.

 

[Audio_Karma]

Still waiting for some feedback on the Wavetouch speakers at the Atrium Hotel, room 231 Thank You

 

[KeithR]

Keep 'em coming Mike! Thanks! How was the Chord/Magico/VPI room? See they were using the Etna.

Not very good imo. But ii blame the Chord amps.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Still waiting for some feedback on the Wavetouch speakers at the Atrium Hotel, room 231 Thank You

Room 231, Wavetouch speakers.

I gave myself an hour this morning to load pictures, and I'm now at almost 2 hours and still on Friday's pics. Yesterday I did make sure to stop in at the Wavetouch room and listen. so I just loaded yesterdays pics and here is a photo of that room.

the Wavetouch did do some good things, particularly play low bass and dynamics quite a ways beyond it's size. however; when you add the $1000 stands to the $1500 entry price, then compare it to other under $5k speaker systems, I'd have to say that based on my brief encounter, that it does not relate the nuance of music like, for instance, the Evolution Acoustic Micro One's do, which are $4k including stands. as far as other $1500 speakers, I have little experience to comment.

 

[LL21]

I know its a lot to ask...but would it be possible, Mike (Lavigne) and Steve (W) and anyone else whose posting Show photos, for you to comment on systems as you post your pictures? I know...about 3x more time/work but with all the caveats that apply...it is fun to read people's comments about Shows that many of us are not able to attend.

Room 231, Wavetouch speakers.

I gave myself an hour this morning to load pictures, and I'm now at almost 2 hours and still on Friday's pics. Yesterday I did make sure to stop in at the Wavetouch room and listen. so I just loaded yesterdays pics and here is a photo of that room.

the Wavetouch did do some good things, particularly play low bass and dynamics quite a ways beyond it's size. however; when you add the $1000 stands to the $1500 entry price, then compare it to other under $5k speaker systems, I'd have to say that based on my brief encounter, that it does not relate the nuance of music like, for instance, the Evolution Acoustic Micro One's do, which are $4k including stands. as far as other $1500 speakers, I have little experience to comment.

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[MylesBAstor]

Not very good imo. But ii blame the Chord amps.

Keith, do you remember which Chord amp they used?

 

[Mike Lavigne]

I know its a lot to ask...but would it be possible, Mike (Lavigne) and Steve (W) and anyone else whose posting Show photos, for you to comment on systems as you post your pictures? I know...about 3x more time/work but with all the caveats that apply...it is fun to read people's comments about Shows that many of us are not able to attend.

i'll try my best to do that when i can. last night I was listening after the 6pm closing time until after 8, then to dinner until 10, then listening again until I went to bed. so this morning as I pack and check out of the hotel I'm doing my best to post some of the pics and comment. i'll be flying back mid-day and so it's possible i'll get back on line to post more pics and comment tonight if I can.

the hurrier I go the behinder I get!!!

 

[LL21]

i'll try my best to do that when i can. last night I was listening after the 6pm closing time until after 8, then to dinner until 10, then listening again until I went to bed. so this morning as I pack and check out of the hotel I'm doing my best to post some of the pics and comment. i'll be flying back mid-day and so it's possible i'll get back on line to post more pics and comment tonight if I can.

the hurrier I go the behinder I get!!!

Fantastic, Mike...really, really appreciate the effort!!! Thank you. Its a lot of work, and the comments will be a lot of fun to read.

 

[PeterA]

Hotel rooms are not built for sound and there's not a whole lot you can do with square rooms. We spend months setting up our speakers and one expects a manufacturer to do it in 8 hrs? Hardly. Put a bunch of bodies in it and all bets are off. Plus what do you do about 50 systems on an AC circuit that wasn't designed for that?

Well, I'm just a hobbyist and some of the exhibitors have years of experience in the field, especially the speaker manufacturers. I expect just a bit more from them, especially if the intent is to impress showgoers with the sound. Perhaps, that is not the intent. And then there are some guys who specialize on set ups like Jim Smith who can do a very good job given one day. So I do expect some good sound from some rooms. And then of course, some rooms do have reports of sounding good. If they can manage it, it must not be impossible.

But as I wrote before, the audience is often talking or moving about, so there can't be much done about that, regardless of how the room sounds. It's kind of distracting.

My 200 year old room that is almost square was also not built for sound, but after some effort, I was able to make it work. I guess I'm getting a bit tired of always reading the same excuse about why a particular system does not sound good. It's almost always blamed on the room. I suspect there are also some other reasons. Perhaps everyone should just bring a Shunyata power suite to deal with the electricity.

 

[mep]

Well, I'm just a hobbyist and some of the exhibitors have years of experience in the field, especially the speaker manufacturers. I expect just a bit more from them, especially if the intent is to impress showgoers with the sound. Perhaps, that is not the intent. And then there are some guys who specialize on set ups like Jim Smith who can do a very good job given one day. So I do expect some good sound from some rooms. And then of course, some rooms do have reports of sounding good. If they can manage it, it must not be impossible.

But as I wrote before, the audience is often talking or moving about, so there can't be much done about that, regardless of how the room sounds. It's kind of distracting.

My 200 year old room that is almost square was also not built for sound, but after some effort, I was able to make it work. I guess I'm getting a bit tired of always reading the same excuse about why a particular system does not sound good. It's almost always blamed on the room. I suspect there are also some other reasons. Perhaps everyone should just bring a Shunyata power suite to deal with the electricity.

Peter-I don't know how many shows you have been to, but in my limited experience of going to shows, rooms that sound good are vastly outnumbered by rooms that sound bad. When you look at the dimensions of a typical hotel room, it's a small miracle that anyone pulls off good sound. In fact, the majority of rooms that actually have good sound aren't in the typical hotel room but rather a suite or even an event room which gives them much more space to work with. The moral to the story is that if you walk into a room at a show and the system sounds horrible, you can't say that all of the components used in that system suck. It's much more complex.

 

[DaveyF]

Well, I'm just a hobbyist and some of the exhibitors have years of experience in the field, especially the speaker manufacturers. I expect just a bit more from them, especially if the intent is to impress showgoers with the sound. Perhaps, that is not the intent. And then there are some guys who specialize on set ups like Jim Smith who can do a very good job given one day. So I do expect some good sound from some rooms. And then of course, some rooms do have reports of sounding good. If they can manage it, it must not be impossible.

But as I wrote before, the audience is often talking or moving about, so there can't be much done about that, regardless of how the room sounds. It's kind of distracting.

My 200 year old room that is almost square was also not built for sound, but after some effort, I was able to make it work. I guess I'm getting a bit tired of always reading the same excuse about why a particular system does not sound good. It's almost always blamed on the room. I suspect there are also some other reasons. Perhaps everyone should just bring a Shunyata power suite to deal with the electricity.

To be fair Peter, the rooms at this show are generally fairly small and fairly narrow. To make things worse, the back wall is typically all glass and as mentioned there is a LOT of background noise. The larger rooms that were utilized, did sound better. Problem is some of these rooms are huge! In some ways too big for the gear. Another problem, many manufacturer's want to display there larger offerings ( speaker wise)....which IME isn't what you want to use in a small room. Perfect example of this thinking, IMHO, was the Raidho room with the Walker TT. The speakers were far too big for this room. In the Evolution room, someone mentioned that the speaker that was displayed was typically designed for a Far East consumer ( presumably with a smaller room) and that this was the reason that this speaker was chosen ( A Larger speaker in a small room being typical). All well and good, BUT perhaps NOT the best choice for the size of the room that was allocated.
BTW, I do agree with Mike L, the music in the Magico Q7/ VAC room was totally unsuitable and un-involving. I asked the rep if he could play the Kronos TT, to which he replied that he didn't have the knowledge to do so and so we kept on listening to the dreck. Why they even had the TT in the system is beyond me??

 

[PeterA]

Well, I've only been to three shows: RMAF and two in NYC. The best sounds I heard were with smaller speakers like the TAD CR1 in typical rooms or the mid size speakers like the Sasha or the larger Sony in a mid size room/suite. An Italian panel speaker was incredible in a small room. I understand the challenges, especially when a manufacturer shows a large speaker in a small room. Odd choice. But since it is made with full knowledge beforehand, it makes me assume that good sound is not the intent.

I have seen neighboring rooms though which seem almost identical, with similar sized speakers in each and one room has good sound and one has poor sound. The excuse is almost always the room dimensions, construction or power delivery. I guess the guys in one room were able to figure it out while those in the other were not. Or, it was simply the gear. Some gear just does not sound that good.

As has been written many times in these forums, attending shows is more about seeing the new stuff, meeting people and representatives, seeing old friends. For manufacturers it is about exposure, marketing and deal making. If there is an occasional good sounding room, that just makes it better. I guess it is about having realistic expectations.

 

[MylesBAstor]

Well, I'm just a hobbyist and some of the exhibitors have years of experience in the field, especially the speaker manufacturers. I expect just a bit more from them, especially if the intent is to impress showgoers with the sound. Perhaps, that is not the intent. And then there are some guys who specialize on set ups like Jim Smith who can do a very good job given one day. So I do expect some good sound from some rooms. And then of course, some rooms do have reports of sounding good. If they can manage it, it must not be impossible.

But as I wrote before, the audience is often talking or moving about, so there can't be much done about that, regardless of how the room sounds. It's kind of distracting.

My 200 year old room that is almost square was also not built for sound, but after some effort, I was able to make it work. I guess I'm getting a bit tired of always reading the same excuse about why a particular system does not sound good. It's almost always blamed on the room. I suspect there are also some other reasons. Perhaps everyone should just bring a Shunyata power suite to deal with the electricity.

But in all fairness, Jim is not exactly starting from ground zero.

 

[hvbias]

Any comments on the Audio Note or Vapor Audio rooms? Cheers

 

[mep]

Well, I've only been to three shows: RMAF and two in NYC. The best sounds I heard were with smaller speakers like the TAD CR1 in typical rooms or the mid size speakers like the Sasha or the larger Sony in a mid size room/suite. An Italian panel speaker was incredible in a small room. I understand the challenges, especially when a manufacturer shows a large speaker in a small room. Odd choice. But since it is made with full knowledge beforehand, it makes me assume that good sound is not the intent.

I have seen neighboring rooms though which seem almost identical, with similar sized speakers in each and one room has good sound and one has poor sound. The excuse is almost always the room dimensions, construction or power delivery. I guess the guys in one room were able to figure it out while those in the other were not. Or, it was simply the gear. Some gear just does not sound that good.

As has been written many times in these forums, attending shows is more about seeing the new stuff, meeting people and representatives, seeing old friends. For manufacturers it is about exposure, marketing and deal making. If there is an occasional good sounding room, that just makes it better. I guess it is about having realistic expectations.

I don't think any manufacturer/distributor goes through the trouble and expense of exhibiting at a show and wants to embarrass themselves and the gear they represent by having a crappy sounding system in their room. I do think some people are better prepared than other people. The better prepared people tend to bring some room treatments with them and they may arrive with gear that has been broken in and not fresh out of the box. Most exhibitors bring some type of power treatment with them to plug their gear into.