America's premiere DIY gathering, the almost-annual Burning Amp, promises to burn brighter in 2017. Scheduled for Sunday, November 12 at San Francisco's Fort Mason Center, the event has become so popular that hours have been extended and the show now runs from 8:30am to 8:00pm.
With no fewer than 42 pages of audio equipment coverage! Astell&Kern's Ultimate potable player is featured on the cover and gets a workout from Mikey Fremer on multiple road trips. On the domestic front, we have reviews of digital products from Naim, Oppo, and Benchmark, Reed's Muse 3C turntable, and amplification from Rogue and Margules, while Jim Austin lives with Devialet's groundbreaking Phantom Gold wireless speakers.
Saturday October 14, Gig Harbor Audio (3019 Judson Street, Suite D, Gig Harbor, WA 98335), from 13pm, and Suncoast Audio (7353 International Place, Unit 309, Sarasota, FL 34240), from 124pm, are presenting audiophile events.
A revitalized Rocky Mountain Audio Fest begins this Friday, October 6, in the completely renovated Denver Marriott Tech Center Hotel. The three-day show, which opens to the public at noon on Friday, promises 143 active exhibit rooms that will host 358 exhibitors from 27 countries and 36 states. In addition, the show's widely lauded Canjam will host an additional 64 exhibitors within its walls, and seven more large exhibits in the lobby.
The October Issue . . . and "Recommended Components"
Hitting mailboxes, newsstands, and tablets today, the 204-page October Stereophile, offers 36 pages of audio equipment reports and the revised and updated "Recommended Components" listing. Featured on the cover is VPI's Prime Scout record player, reviewed by Art Dudley, who also offers auditions of speakers from Burwell and Wharfedale. Herb Reichert reviews the AMG Giro turntable, John Atkinson report on his time with KEF's Reference 5 loudspeaker, Robert Deutsch lives with PS Audio's Memory Player, and there are reviews of amplifiers from Dan D'Agostino, Rega, and Linear Tube Audio.
What was to have been the first Southern California-based T.H.E. Show organized without input from its late co-founder, Richard Beers, who died in 2016, has been postponed until 2018. The inaugural T.H.E. Show Anaheim, as the former T.H.E. Show Newport Beach is now called, was to have taken place September 2224 at the Hilton Anaheim. The reasons for the late postponement are spelled out in a two-page letter to exhibitors, which was released on September 6 by Beers' close friend and long-time associate, Show President Maurice R. Jung.
The embrace of MQA by audio companies and labels has widened. At last weekend's IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin, MQA announced that its technology will be embedded in LG's new, globally distributed V30 flagship smartphone. In addition, two Sony Walkmans, the WM-ZX300 and WM-A40, will become equipped for MQA music playback. Worldwide music streaming platform Deezer is also planning to go the MQA route, with Bluesound, LG, Onkyo, Moon by Simaudio, and Sony amongst its partners.
Saturday August 26, from 15pm, Sandy Gross, President of GoldenEar Technology, will be presenting GoldenEar's new flagship Triton Reference loudspeaker at New Jersey retailer Electronics Expo (491 US 46 West, Wayne NJ). Stereophile reviewer Robert Deutsch wrote after hearing the Triton Reference at their debut at last January's CES, "The Triton Reference presents a serious challenge to speakers in the multi-$10k range. . ." Saturday's event will be a good opportunity for New Jersey audiophiles to hear the T Refs, judge the speakers for themselves, and discuss the speakers with Sandy.
As you can see from the logo above, Stereophile has accepted an invitation to be inducted into the European Imaging and Sound Association (EISA), as the exclusive US member of the EISA's Hi-Fi Expert Group. EISA's invitation came too late for Stereophile to take part in the 2017 awards, but we will be a full participant in 2018. Meanwhile, here are the 20172018 winners.
The September Stereophile Is Here!
Featuring Mytek's MQA-equipped Manhattan II D/A preamplifier-headphone amplifier on its cover, our new issue132 pages of awesomeis jam-packed with good stuff. There are reviews of Ayre's QX-5 Twenty "digital hub," Kii's ground-breaking, DSP-optimized active speaker, amplifiers from Bel Canto and Octave, and preamplifiers from Shindo and Sutherland. Jim Austin interviews Pass Labs' onlie begetter, veteran engineer Nelson Pass. Robert Baird surveys audiophile-quality reissues of horror-film soundtracks. Mikey Fremer visits revitalized SME in the UK. And kicking it all off, Art Dudley condemns CD player manufacturers who neglect their customers in the long term.
With Quad's reworking of Peter Walker's "Wonder," the full-range ESL-2912 electrostatic, featured on its cover. Inside you'll find John Atkinson on Rockport's Avior II loudspeaker; Herb Reichert on an affordable amplifier from Emotiva and cost-no-object headphones from Abyss; Art Dudley on a Bryston's CD player; Michael Fremer on Brinkmann's MQA-capable Nyquist DAC and Ortofon's Windfeld Ti cartridge; and Jim Austin on PS Audio's ultimate monoblock.
Friday June 30, 4pm until late, Toronto dealer Angie's Audio Corner/American Sound of Canada (12261 Yonge Street, Richmond Hill, ON L4E 3M7, Canada) is holding its 5th Annual Party.
Thursday evening, June 22, 59pm, F1 Audio (311 E Dundee Road, Palatine, IL 60074) is holding an event featuring Evolution series loudspeakers and electronics from TAD Labs and Isotek power conditioners. Attendees will also be able to audition rare, out-of-print Mobile Fidelity albums and test pressings from MoFi's UltraDisc One-Step series and take a test drive in the new Porsche 718 Boxster S and Macan Turbo, courtesy of The Porsche Exchange of Highland Park.