https://positive-feedback.com/audio...tment-lounge-two-memorable-winter-road-trips/
06-15-2019 | By Maurice Jeffries | Issue 103
Homeward Bound: The Florida Audio Expo
Let me state upfront that I initially had no intention of attending the Florida Audio Expo held at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Tampa Airport Westshore in balmy Tampa, Florida from February 8-10, 2019. I had just returned from my delightful, but frigid road trip to Goshen, Indiana, and was preoccupied with a major family crisis that left me reeling spiritually, emotionally depleted, and genuinely dreading the 90-minute drive from Orlando to Tampa (along with our simply delightful Central Florida traffic). However, Greg insisted that I consider attending the show if only to reconnect with the VSA team, to convey his well-wishes to the enormously talented Doug Hurlburt of Dynamic Sounds Associates (DSA), and to sniff out new high-end goodies to hear.
So, against my better judgment, I made the drive down to Tampa from Orlando late in the morning on the second day of the Expo. Traffic, as expected, was brutal, but I enjoyed very good weather on the trip down, and as I soon discovered, the change in scenery did me a world of good. When I arrived at the Hilton, I readily admit that I didn't expect to see or hear much that interested me. To my delight, what I encountered instead was a very well organized (if small) high-end audio show that seemed well-attended, adequately well covered by the high-end press, and in the several rooms that I visited Saturday afternoon, blessed with very good sound.
Please note that I didn't take a lot of pictures during my brief visit, but I did take a few. Also, please don't read this as a formal show report. I didn't cover the event with the depth and focus that I would normally dedicate to a show visit. Instead, I suggest that you view my brief observations as an invitation to consider attending the Florida Audio Expo in 2020. Based on my brief time at the 2019 show, what I saw, and most importantly, what I heard, I don't think you'll regret the decision.
My first stop was the Atlanta-based Audio Company/VSA/VAC suite where the new VSA ULTRA 55s and a stack of VAC reference-level amps literally burned down the proverbial house. Not to mince words, this room rocked. On the Talking Head's late cold war era masterwork Speaking in Tongues, here an LP of unknown provenance, I reveled in the dense harmonies of "This Must be the Place (Naive Melody)", the system delivering punchy bass and truly impressive scaling. Vocals projected into the room with remarkable layering and focus. In the same vein, Brubeck's "Blue Rondo" bounced and shimmered with musical life, delivering spot-on tone and timbre and holographic staging, this from an Acoustic Sounds 45 LP release. Paul Desmond's wispy, airy alto soared on this track with his west coast "cool" and controlled vibe reproduced fully intact.
The VSA ULTRA 55 speakers that anchored the system I focused on (the Audio Company/VSA/VAC team actually had two top-flight systems on display in their massive exhibition room), a radical rethinking of the classic VR-55 platform, boasted the full suite of ULTRA-level upgrades, meaning all MasterBuilt Audio internal wiring, a custom 7" reinforced ceramic Accuton driver, twin 9" reinforced ceramic mid-bass Accuton drivers, a custom ScanSpeak Beryllium tweeter, and one rear-firing 5" aluminum ribbon super tweeter. The ULTRA 55 also features enhanced triple-wall cabinet construction, hand-selected and better performing capacitors and inductors in the crossover, and a simply gorgeous automotive paint finish (here rocket red).
The VR-55 Aktive remains in the VSA lineup at its current price of $60K per pair, while the new ULTRA version tips the scales at a cool $90K the pair. The ULTRA 55 sang with the same overall transient-rich speed, precision, clarity, and coherence that I heard at Casa Weaver just two weeks earlier, only losing out to the mighty 9s in bass reach and power, soundstage scaling, and dynamic wallop. The Ultra 55 is one amazing speaker.
Here is the detailed component lineup and unit price breakdown: Von Schweikert Ultra 55 loudspeakers ($90,000/pair), Von Schweikert V12XS Shockwave subwoofer ($11,500 each x2), the VAC Statement 450iQ mono power amplifier ($120,000/pair), VAC Statement phono stage ($80,000), VAC Statement line stage ($75,000), Esoteric Grandioso P1 digital transport ($38,000), Esoteric Grandioso D1 monoblock DAC ($38,000 each), Esoteric Grandioso G1 master clock ($26,000), Esoteric N-01 streamer/renderer/DAC ($20,000), Kronos Pro turntable with Black Beauty tonearm and Ultracap power supply ($51,000), Airtight Opus 1 cartridge ($16,000), Critical Mass Maxxum audio rack ($6250 – here utilizing 12 separate rack components at $75,000), Critical Mass Maxxum amp stands ($6250/each), and a loom of gorgeous MasterBuilt cables (I didn't get the cable prices – sorry).
We're obviously talking "if you have to ask" prices here, folks!
06-15-2019 | By Maurice Jeffries | Issue 103
Homeward Bound: The Florida Audio Expo
Let me state upfront that I initially had no intention of attending the Florida Audio Expo held at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Tampa Airport Westshore in balmy Tampa, Florida from February 8-10, 2019. I had just returned from my delightful, but frigid road trip to Goshen, Indiana, and was preoccupied with a major family crisis that left me reeling spiritually, emotionally depleted, and genuinely dreading the 90-minute drive from Orlando to Tampa (along with our simply delightful Central Florida traffic). However, Greg insisted that I consider attending the show if only to reconnect with the VSA team, to convey his well-wishes to the enormously talented Doug Hurlburt of Dynamic Sounds Associates (DSA), and to sniff out new high-end goodies to hear.
So, against my better judgment, I made the drive down to Tampa from Orlando late in the morning on the second day of the Expo. Traffic, as expected, was brutal, but I enjoyed very good weather on the trip down, and as I soon discovered, the change in scenery did me a world of good. When I arrived at the Hilton, I readily admit that I didn't expect to see or hear much that interested me. To my delight, what I encountered instead was a very well organized (if small) high-end audio show that seemed well-attended, adequately well covered by the high-end press, and in the several rooms that I visited Saturday afternoon, blessed with very good sound.
Please note that I didn't take a lot of pictures during my brief visit, but I did take a few. Also, please don't read this as a formal show report. I didn't cover the event with the depth and focus that I would normally dedicate to a show visit. Instead, I suggest that you view my brief observations as an invitation to consider attending the Florida Audio Expo in 2020. Based on my brief time at the 2019 show, what I saw, and most importantly, what I heard, I don't think you'll regret the decision.
My first stop was the Atlanta-based Audio Company/VSA/VAC suite where the new VSA ULTRA 55s and a stack of VAC reference-level amps literally burned down the proverbial house. Not to mince words, this room rocked. On the Talking Head's late cold war era masterwork Speaking in Tongues, here an LP of unknown provenance, I reveled in the dense harmonies of "This Must be the Place (Naive Melody)", the system delivering punchy bass and truly impressive scaling. Vocals projected into the room with remarkable layering and focus. In the same vein, Brubeck's "Blue Rondo" bounced and shimmered with musical life, delivering spot-on tone and timbre and holographic staging, this from an Acoustic Sounds 45 LP release. Paul Desmond's wispy, airy alto soared on this track with his west coast "cool" and controlled vibe reproduced fully intact.
The VSA ULTRA 55 speakers that anchored the system I focused on (the Audio Company/VSA/VAC team actually had two top-flight systems on display in their massive exhibition room), a radical rethinking of the classic VR-55 platform, boasted the full suite of ULTRA-level upgrades, meaning all MasterBuilt Audio internal wiring, a custom 7" reinforced ceramic Accuton driver, twin 9" reinforced ceramic mid-bass Accuton drivers, a custom ScanSpeak Beryllium tweeter, and one rear-firing 5" aluminum ribbon super tweeter. The ULTRA 55 also features enhanced triple-wall cabinet construction, hand-selected and better performing capacitors and inductors in the crossover, and a simply gorgeous automotive paint finish (here rocket red).
The VR-55 Aktive remains in the VSA lineup at its current price of $60K per pair, while the new ULTRA version tips the scales at a cool $90K the pair. The ULTRA 55 sang with the same overall transient-rich speed, precision, clarity, and coherence that I heard at Casa Weaver just two weeks earlier, only losing out to the mighty 9s in bass reach and power, soundstage scaling, and dynamic wallop. The Ultra 55 is one amazing speaker.
Here is the detailed component lineup and unit price breakdown: Von Schweikert Ultra 55 loudspeakers ($90,000/pair), Von Schweikert V12XS Shockwave subwoofer ($11,500 each x2), the VAC Statement 450iQ mono power amplifier ($120,000/pair), VAC Statement phono stage ($80,000), VAC Statement line stage ($75,000), Esoteric Grandioso P1 digital transport ($38,000), Esoteric Grandioso D1 monoblock DAC ($38,000 each), Esoteric Grandioso G1 master clock ($26,000), Esoteric N-01 streamer/renderer/DAC ($20,000), Kronos Pro turntable with Black Beauty tonearm and Ultracap power supply ($51,000), Airtight Opus 1 cartridge ($16,000), Critical Mass Maxxum audio rack ($6250 – here utilizing 12 separate rack components at $75,000), Critical Mass Maxxum amp stands ($6250/each), and a loom of gorgeous MasterBuilt cables (I didn't get the cable prices – sorry).
We're obviously talking "if you have to ask" prices here, folks!
