It was called Hi-End Audio Show in Kaoshiung, Taiwan.
It was my first audio show in Taiwan, and I was not disappointed.
I've been living here for over 15 years now, and I haven't been able to hear any of the new designs as most do not come all the way over here, but this year, many big names dropped by and it was interesting to see/hear some of the expensive behemoths in the audio industry.
Yes, shows are far from perfect, hotel rooms are far from the ideal listening place, but if a company is charging that kind of money, you'd at least hoped they tried to make it sound good.
It was interesting to hear the different approaches speaker companies take.
In order of preference, I heard:
- Kharma Veyron 2... my favourite monster. Room filling, enticing. sharp, nuanced... it was my favourite, whether they had a good speakers, or their setup was better than the others.
- Burmester B100, in term of balance, this was my favourite.
- Avalon SAGA... angular tower, good presence, nice transition between the drivers. Cleaner sound than the Kharma, but not as enticing... it was lacking a bit of life.
- Dali Epicon 6, I didn't know them prior to the show, and it was a nice surprise. I liked the presentation these speakers offered.
T+A CWT 1000-8 SE, the only line array at the show... I like line arrays. I really do. Being a short array, one needed to sit within the array, but the tonal change was not as extreme as I had expected when standing up. There might be something happening with the tweeter array.
- JMR ’ABSCISSE Jubilé, the highs coming from that ribbon were very sweet.
- Avantgarde UNO XD, big conical horn. I stopped to listen for a while, then a few notes hit, and I remembered why I don't like horns so much... just not my thing in the way they project some frequencies.
- Magico M6, this one was a bit of disappointment, whether it was the speaker, the setup or my musical taste... it was lacking in range, clarity and involvement into the music compared to the other ones.
- I'll pass on the Devialet, B&W, Dynaudio and Canton that completely failed to impress.
There were other speakers, some that carried an expensive price tag and a very disappointing lifeless, or mid-bloomy sound that were not deserving of mention.
Some headphone amps, but that's not my cup of tea.
Some big boxy, tube amps priced in the stratosphere (kinda like the Kharmas!) that were lost in a hotel room environment. There was no way to appreciate them in that context. They did look massive! As did some of the turntables.
All in all, a good interesting show, not overly big, but a good representation of what's happening in the audio world lately, so it was fun to attend, even better to be invited.
It was my first audio show in Taiwan, and I was not disappointed.
I've been living here for over 15 years now, and I haven't been able to hear any of the new designs as most do not come all the way over here, but this year, many big names dropped by and it was interesting to see/hear some of the expensive behemoths in the audio industry.
Yes, shows are far from perfect, hotel rooms are far from the ideal listening place, but if a company is charging that kind of money, you'd at least hoped they tried to make it sound good.
It was interesting to hear the different approaches speaker companies take.
In order of preference, I heard:
- Kharma Veyron 2... my favourite monster. Room filling, enticing. sharp, nuanced... it was my favourite, whether they had a good speakers, or their setup was better than the others.
- Burmester B100, in term of balance, this was my favourite.
- Avalon SAGA... angular tower, good presence, nice transition between the drivers. Cleaner sound than the Kharma, but not as enticing... it was lacking a bit of life.
- Dali Epicon 6, I didn't know them prior to the show, and it was a nice surprise. I liked the presentation these speakers offered.
T+A CWT 1000-8 SE, the only line array at the show... I like line arrays. I really do. Being a short array, one needed to sit within the array, but the tonal change was not as extreme as I had expected when standing up. There might be something happening with the tweeter array.
- JMR ’ABSCISSE Jubilé, the highs coming from that ribbon were very sweet.
- Avantgarde UNO XD, big conical horn. I stopped to listen for a while, then a few notes hit, and I remembered why I don't like horns so much... just not my thing in the way they project some frequencies.
- Magico M6, this one was a bit of disappointment, whether it was the speaker, the setup or my musical taste... it was lacking in range, clarity and involvement into the music compared to the other ones.
- I'll pass on the Devialet, B&W, Dynaudio and Canton that completely failed to impress.
There were other speakers, some that carried an expensive price tag and a very disappointing lifeless, or mid-bloomy sound that were not deserving of mention.
Some headphone amps, but that's not my cup of tea.
Some big boxy, tube amps priced in the stratosphere (kinda like the Kharmas!) that were lost in a hotel room environment. There was no way to appreciate them in that context. They did look massive! As did some of the turntables.
All in all, a good interesting show, not overly big, but a good representation of what's happening in the audio world lately, so it was fun to attend, even better to be invited.