Capital Audiofest 2024, Part One: The Trend is Clear

By Frank Doris | December 2, 2024 | Issue 213 | Show Report

If I had to sum up Capital Audiofest in a couple of words, they would be:

Clarity.

Fun.

Normally at shows I find everything from rooms that blow me away with incredible sound, to exhibits that I stick my head into and quickly walk past. I’ll reiterate that I never make definitive sonic judgments at shows: my hearing is compromised, the rooms can be less than optimal, the exhibitors might be pressed for setup time and not have enough opportunity to tweak, and the quality of the electricity might be... not ideal.

(A quick aside: the exhibitors are under tremendous pressure. When I and other people I know try a new set of speakers, we can spend months tweaking their placement. A difference of an inch can be critical. Exhibitors don’t have months; they have hours. No matter how experienced they may be in knowing how their speakers interact with rooms... they have hours, not months.)

Capital Audiofest hosted many floors of exhibitors, as seen from this aerial elevator view.

That said, at Capital Audiofest 2024, held at the Hilton Washington DC/Rockville hotel in Rockville, Maryland, I found that I enjoyed a far greater percentage of rooms than usual. In my notes I kept writing things like “clarity,” “clear sound,” “clean and clear,” until I realized that overall, the systems just sounded better overall than at previous shows, CAF or elsewhere. Sure, many exhibitors told me they thought the rooms were better at CAF than at AXPONA, but still... to me it’s a clear, pun intended, indication that audio equipment and loudspeaker technology continues to improve and evolve.

I hadn’t gone to CAF in five years, no thanks to double bouts of COVID and other obstacles, so I was really looking forward to it, and it was just a lot of fun for me to be there. Most attendees, press people, and exhibitors seemed to be having a great time. (Since I hadn't been there in years I can't comment on whether attendance was up or down.) Yeah, the audio world is a bubble set apart from a stressful world, but it’s our bubble, and maybe that’s the point. Shows are always an affirmation of everything that’s wonderful, eccentric, thrilling, groundbreaking, wild, crazy, and emotional about our sonic oasis of music-making machines.

As usual it was impossible to see, hear and get prices on everything, especially as I might be one of the industry’s most inefficient reporters. As a friend of mine said, “you spend too much time bulls*itting and not enough time moving!” Well, I like to BS with friends about audio, so as some of my fellow New Yorkers would say, “what could I tell you?” I did manage to cover a lot of ground, heard some fantastic gear, and encountered some surprises. Some of this gear doesn’t come cheap, and I think some high-end audio pricing is in fact gratuitous, but in many cases (Rosso Fiorentino, Stenheim, Focal, J. Sikora, and I could cite dozens of others), you are most assuredly getting quality products that cannot be cheaply built to a price.

All opinions are strictly my own. Off we go:

Audio Group Denmark comprises the Ansuz, Aavik, Axxess and Børresen brands of cables, accessories, electronics, and loudspeakers. At Capital Audiofest Lars Kristensen and Michael Børresen premiered their Børresen T5 and C3 loudspeakers, Aavik U-588 and U-288 amplifiers and Forte1 streaming amplifier, third-generation Ansuz Generation cables, and more. During a press conference and demo the two men went into great detail about the driver technologies of the speakers, which feature a number of exclusive materials, including a woofer cone that’s 40 percent lighter than conventional drivers, a ribbon tweeter diaphragm with 1/100th the mass of other designs, and metal parts made from zirconium and hafnium alloys. The woofers in the speakers are no larger than 6 inches in diameter, as the designers feel that a bigger driver would lose articulation.

Lars emphasized that different materials have different sonic signatures, and that he’s not fond of aluminum. He noted, “there’s something magic about titanium, but hafnium is f*cking amazing.”

Audio Group Denmark debuted a number of new products.

He pointed out that noise reduction is not only extremely desirable, but that it can be “a strange thing, because you don’t hear it until it’s gone.” I can say the T5 loudspeakers were extremely dynamic and powerful – a percussion track song by Andy Akiho, “Pillar I,” was almost scary in its low-frequency impact, image specificity and sense of spaciousness.

The most interesting and even a little weird aspect of the presentation was when Lars removed a metallic disc about three inches in diameter from the network player: an Ansuz Darkz resonance-control device. The sound changed from more natural and involving to a more ‘hi-fi”-ish presentation. When he put the disc back, the sound returned to its more pleasurable state. Then he turned the disc a bit and played the music... and the soundstaging changed. There are those who will read this and think I’m crazy. But I and others heard it.

It was back to the ’80s with Virginia audio/video dealer Command Performance AV and The Absolute Sound/Tracking Angle editor Michael Fremer spinning some great-sounding records on a system including the new, trapezoidal Audiovector Trapeze Reimagined loudspeakers (which were making their show debut at CAF), along with a J. Sikora MAX Supreme turntable, KV Max tonearm and Aidas Gold Mammoth Tusk cartridge (yep, it’s made from fossilized mammoth tusk), plus Doshi Audio Evolution series electronics, and other delectable gear. The retro theme was carried over with Nick Doshi’s personal 1980s Luxman DA07/DP07 DAC and transport.

I think I have half the records Fremer played in my own collection, including such sonic spectaculars as the UK pressings of Heaven 17’s “Let Me Go” and “The Look of Love” by ABC, “Dancing With Myself” by Generation X, featuring Billy Idol before he became Billy Idol, The Art of Noise and Duane Eddy doing the Peter Gunn theme, Blondie’s “Heart of Glass,” and the legendary UK 12-inch extended remix single of Human League’s “Don’t You Want Me,” which has to be heard to be believed.

These are some of the greatest analog recordings ever made, originally released when I was a young club going 20-something, and sounded big, spacious and walloping through the Command Performance AV system. I’m bouncing in my seat just thinking about it. (For those audiophiles who may not be as fond of new wave as I am, the system also sounded terrific playing Steely Dan’s “Babylon Sisters.”) Ah, memories!

Worth it's weight in gold: maybe not the necklace around Michael Fremer's neck, but that original pressing of Heaven 17's "Let Me Go" certainly is.

My eye was caught by what looked like jewelry to me – which turned out to be exactly that, a display of EAR Micro T10 Bespoke headphones, which are created in collaboration with Klipsch. Billed as “the world’s first high-fidelity wireless in-ear computers,” what grabbed my attention were in fact the cases for the headphones, which house the electronics and which come in a dazzling variety of colors, designs, and materials... some of which are upwards of $100,000. (Prices start at $3,000.) Well, they are beautiful, and are made from a range of sustainable materials including ceramic zirconium, titanium, bronze, stainless steel, gold, silver, and leather. But beauty in this case is more than skin (or case) deep: the many tech specs of the T10 Bespoke include the ability to stream music in full 96/24 with no separate player required; the ability to run open platform hearables apps; dual Cadence Tensilica DSPs, and other capabilities.

Jay Jay French and I were able to try them and were highly impressed. The sound was better than any other in-ears I’ve heard, and certainly light years above the awful streaming audio quality of any hearing aids either of us have tried. The company is emphatic on calling these devices “in-ear computers” or “comput-ears.” My first impression was that the sound was full-bodied, ultra-clean, and extended, with excellent bass and a warm midrange.

Jay Jay French checks out the earbuds as Raymond Zhang and Noah Calderwood from Ear Micro look on.

Their lively product brochure states, “We are musicians, artists, geek engineers, software nerds, and jewelers who collectively set out to change the world of hearable tech.” EAR Micro’s “Innovation Instigator,” known only as Bear, had previously designed audio products for Denon, McIntosh and Klipsch. EAR Micro’s computing platform is smaller than one cubic centimeter. Call me intrigued – I’ve requested a review pair and will be talking with Bear for a future Copper interview.

Matterhorn Audio Group presented the awe-inspiring Kroma Atelier Turandot speakers (starting at $288,000 per pair). These speakers are big, and played effortlessly in a very large room powered by Aavik and Linn electronics and complemented by a Technics SL-1000R turntable ($19,999.95) with Ortofon Verismo cartridge ($6,999), a Linn Klimax DSM Organik digital front end ($42,000), a Creek Voyage CD player ($3,140), And Ansuz, HiDiamond, and PSI cables and accessories.

Here's the impressive Matterhorn Audio Group display. Along with the Kroma Atelier Turandot, they featured the smaller Kroma Thaïs loudspeakers (starting at $24,000/pair), which made their American premiere.

I was bowled over by the presence and sheer magnitude of Johnny Cash singing “The House of the Rising Sun”... and then found out it wasn’t Cash, but an artist who calls himself The Ghost of Johnny Cash. This track became a new favorite demo disc at the show, from a guy who sounds so much like Cash it’s spooky. (Speculation that AI was involved was being bandied about, but unconfirmed.) The track features just vocal and some low-key acoustic guitar, and showed off the system to stunning impressive effect. For those with more modest rooms (I think you really need a big room to show off the Kroma Atelier Turandot), the Kroma Atelier Thaïs made its American debut (prices start at $24,000 per pair).

Florida distributor Bending Wave USA has showcased Göbel loudspeakers at recent shows, and CAF was no exception: this time featuring the Divin Contesse ($60,000/pair), a smaller-sized, high-sensitivity 3-way floorstander that worked extremely well in the smaller exhibit room. The Contesse, like many Göbel models, utilizes an AMT ribbon tweeter, operating into a milled aluminum waveguide, along with custom woofers. The company’s patented bending wave technology doesn’t act like a push-pull driver; rather, sound travels across the driver like it does on a piano soundboard. It works beautifully. It didn’t hurt that the system was powered by Italy’s Riviera Audio Laboratories APL 01 Se preamplifier ($53,000) and AFM 100Se mono amps ($82,800/pair) and the digital source was the new WADAX Studio Player $39,800). This is the second time I’ve heard the Riviera gear (the first time also on Göbel loudspeakers, at AXPONA 2024), and the electronics and loudspeakers are an exceptional combination.

Illuminating sound: a glamour shot of the Göbel Divin Contesse speakers and accompanying electronics.

The High-End by Oz room gave me one of the show’s most moving experiences: listening to Lou Reed singing “Vanishing Act” through Stenheim Alumine Five LE speakers, powered by Viva electronics. I’m a big Lou Reed fan but had never heard this song before (from The Raven album) and I was overwhelmed by Lou’s heartbreaking lyrics (the guy might have put up an intimidating façade, but don’t be fooled) and the warm, rich, sound. His voice was captivating, the piano sounded stunning, and when the orchestra came it, it sounded big and wide and mesmerizing.

I won’t play around here: the Robyatt Audio room dazzled me and was certainly, no question about it, not subject to debate, nolo contendre, one of the best sounding rooms at the show. I mean, incredible. Robin Wyatt was showing the Quad ESL 2912 electrostatic loudspeakers, which at $12,000 a pair had me seriously lusting after them and trying to remember when by law you have to start drawing from your IRA.

You’ve probably heard all the Quad truisms – they don’t play loud, they don’t play bass, they don’t do rock – the ESL 2912 electrostatic loudspeaker handily obliterates these tired, and untrue, cliches. I was walking down the hall when I heard a room playing New Order’s “Blue Monday,” which is not only probably the most renowned 12-inch new wave dance singles of all time but will utterly pummel a lesser speaker. My ears perked up and I stopped what I was doing... I had to hear what exhibitor would be playing this!

Lou Reed sounded absolutely captivating in the High End by Oz room.

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee: the Quad ESL 2912s were a knockout.

I was shocked to see a pair of Quads in the room. Robin caught my eye and surely read my mind: yep, these are Quads! I listened to a few other tracks, from male vocal to Mun Sing’s “Waiting in the Car,” with bass and percussion dynamics that made “Blue Monday” sound like a string quartet by comparison, and the full-range, six-panel ESL 2912 simply excelled in every sonic respect, with the astounding transparency and low-level detail that makes Quad fans insistent on listening to Quads and nothing else, along with spaciousness, image specificity, tonal realism, reach-out-and-touch-it presence, and... well, everything. The rest of the equipment included a Java Hi-Fi Double Shot integrated amplifier ($15,995), a TZAR DST V1 phono cartridge ($10,000) and Bird of Prey tonearm ($15,950) on a VPI HW-RA direct-drive turntable specially made to Robyatt’s specifications ($17,995), a Robyatt Audio SUT R1 phono step-up transformer ($995), and a Sonore Signature Rendu music streamer ($5,350).

I can count on Nola loudspeakers to provide an experience that sounds like music. This time out was no exception, as the company pulled out all the stops (pun intended; Nola speakers love to play organ music) with their demonstration of the Baby Grand Reference Gold 3 ($150,000/pair). Driven by an Audio Research Reference CD8 CD player, Thrax line stage and McGary Audio MA1 mono amps, I confess, I just sat down and listened to cuts like Getz/Gilberto’s “The Girl From Ipanema” and forgot to take notes, except for one word: “superb.” The Baby Grand, featuring four ribbon tweeters and four alnico-magnet midrange drivers in an enclosure-less baffle complemented by dual woofers in separate ported baffles, offered incredibly spacious and dynamic sound with complete ease in a very big room. I felt like I could just walk into the sound and in fact did at one point just for fun, but once seated and listening it was hard to get up to do anything else.

One of the Nola Baby Grand Reference Gold 3 speakers, which effortlessly filled a very large room with sumptuous sound.

Time flies when you’ve been doing audio shows for more than half your life. Gershman Acoustics celebrated their longevity with their Black Swan 30th Anniversary Edition ($95,000/pair), which sounded wonderful, with a pure, spacious sound with excellent midrange and bass extension (down to 18 Hz, which their website points out is “not a misprint”) and great imaging that complemented their medium-large room really well. The Black Swan 30th Anniversary Edition features separate driver enclosures designed for time alignment in what Gershman calls their SSAS Separate Sub Alignment System. Its distinctive triangular enclosure can be ordered in “any colour you desire” using 15 layers of Italian piano lacquer.

Interlude – a few random notes:

Luminous AudioTechnology had posters that proclaimed, “An Audiophile Speaker Cable for $8 Per Foot? YEP!” Those would be the Prestige 3. On the other side of the spectrum, someone told me one of the rooms had a $75,000 power cord. I only found out about this after the show so I’m as curious as all of you are. I did a little online research and found out that Ansuz offers the Mainz D-TC Gold Signature Power Cable at $110,500, and maybe there are even more expensive cords out there. Unlike some internet “experts,” I haven’t heard any of these power cords, so unlike some forum know-it-alls who pass judgment out of hand on products they haven’t heard, I can’t comment.

Disclaimer: I do some very occasional press releases for Audience so I can’t claim to be an impartial observer. That said, I don’t think anyone would be anything but impressed by the capability of the small, crossover-less ClairAudient 1+1 V5 loudspeaker. At CAF, people kept asking if a subwoofer was on. It wasn’t. If you want an unbiased opinion, read the recent review in Tracking Angle.

I learned something in their room – my iPhone dB meter app was inaccurate by 10 dB! The Audience folks had a real dB meter and told me that most phone SPL meter apps are no good, as I found out when I put my phone and their meter side by side. So, I’ve been doing loudness measurements for years that have been wrong. I guess that 1980s RadioShack dB meter in my drawer isn’t just a relic. (And that app, which shall remain nameless, has been deleted off my phone. Anyone know a good SPL app?)

No matter how well you plan, you will always miss something you really, really, really wanted to see at a show. The hotel lobby had a really beautiful and distinctive-looking speaker from local Stevensville, Maryland manufacturer Eastern Bay Sound, made from different, contrasting types of real woods – not veneers – joined together, sporting nautical design touches. (My father would have loved these.) I walked past the speaker in the lobby countless times – and didn’t get to their room. I was told that the pricing will be reasonable and the speakers will be available in 2025. I could name several other manufacturers and products if I wasn’t so embarrassed to admit I missed them. Well, Florida Audio Expo and AXPONA are coming up...

This photo really doesn't capture how striking these Eastern Bay Sound speakers look in real life.

If I was an exhibitor I don’t think I’d have the nerve to rely solely on streaming audio for my music source, but it seemed to work – literally – for many.

If you’re thinking about attending the show in 2025, the EVEN Hotel Rockville is right across the street, and reasonable, though there’s nothing like the convenience of booking a room at the venue (the Rockville Hilton) if budget allows. You’d better book early though. I didn’t, got shut out from both venues initially, and then got lucky by calling the EVEN a week before the show and finding out they had a cancellation.

We got to enjoy two superb live bands at Olive’s Bar, the show lounge: the country-rock-ish Moran Tripp Band (Friday) and the Hazelrigg Brothers (Saturday), an absolutely extraordinary jazz trio who did jazz versions of songs by the Police and Jethro Tull, among others. Since my friends and I couldn’t be in two places at once, we missed the free concerts by pianist Joe Block and his band in the Washington Theatre. I was told they were also excellent. Aside from providing a reality-check reference as to what real instruments like drums sound like, these bands were an invigorating reminder of what high-end audio system strive for: to convey the magic of music.

The Moran Tripp band rocks out on Friday night. Not every band can do justice to the Allman Brothers Band's "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed." They can.

Thrifty travelers: Jay B. Lawrence, president of the Long Island Audio Society and admin of The Audiophile's Room Facebook group, and myself. We got from LI to the Twinbrook Hilton via three trains that cost $79.50 total per person, and the Red Line dropped us off right behind the hotel. Here we're taking a break at Washington, D.C's Union Station.

On with the show:

There have been a number of shows where I couldn’t get into the MBL rooms because they were too crowded. Happily, I was able to get into their CAF exhibit at the end of the day. The company was showing its new, beautiful-looking C41 network player ($11,100), which incorporates the company’s True Peak Technology, said to correct for any potential sound-degrading signal overload from digital files. The system also included the 9011 mono amplifiers ($64,100 each) and the iconic 101 E MKII omnidirectional spherical-radiating-driver loudspeakers ($91,000 per pair).

Well, I learned yet another lesson or three – don’t go into a room with preconceived notions, listen with your ears, not your eyes, and don’t make snap judgments. The 101 E MKII speakers look like large striated shiny silver footballs with appendages top and bottom, and when I first sat down to listen, I felt the sound was too bright for my taste. It wasn’t the speakers; it was the track: “Sharing the Night Together” by Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show. The next selection (whose name escapes me), was just the opposite, with midrange body, extended but not bright upper midrange and treble, and bass reproduction that was among the best at the show. The imaging was excellent, palpable, with beautiful clarity to the electric guitar. If I would have heard just that one Dr. Hook song, it would have left me with an entirely different impression. And that’s exactly what you get from hearing systems at shows – impressions, not definitive auditions.

After the demo I told MBL representative Jeremy Bryan my thoughts about the excellent bass reproduction, and he thanked me for observing that, noting that he’d spent days setting up the speakers. I also asked him if the large bases of the 101 E MKIIs were passive or powered subwoofers – and he told me they were not subwoofers at all. Well, he certainly did an exemplary job of setting up the room. It underscored yet again the importance of taking time and care with system setup, and speaker placement in particular. Nicely done.

Sound in the round: MBL put on an impressive sonic and technological display.

VAC (Valve Amplification Company) and Acora Acoustics partnered at the show, and had what I consider the smartest and most effective exhibit at CAF: three active systems, one in the big main room, and two just outside the room, which was located on the marketplace floor where records, CDs, cables and other wares were being sold. This enabled passers-by to hear the systems without having to go through the closed glass doors and hear the main system. Though obviously many casual listeners didn’t sit in the sweet spot (chairs were provided for those who wanted to sit and listen), scores of people got at least a taste of the companies’ sound, and it was certainly an enticement to go in and listen in the main room, which is exactly what I saw people doing. It didn’t hurt that the Acora Acoustics speakers are made from granite and are utterly gorgeous showstoppers.

The main system Included the Acora Acoustics VRC-1 floorstanders ($218,000/pair), VAC Statement phono stage ($82,000), line stage ($82,000) and 450 iQ Monobloc amps ($67,000/each), with an SAT XD1 turntable and CF-1 tonearm ($238,500, $71,100), plus a Lyra Atlas Lambda phono cartridge ($13,195) and Esoteric N-01XD streamer/renderer/DAC ($20,000). The sound was impressive, big, bold and at times beautiful depending on the source material. Well, surprise, surprise... they weren’t playing the monumental (pun intended; these things are made from granite after all) VRC-1 speakers, but the modestly-sized stand-mount $7,990/pair MRC-1, part of the all-new MRC series. According to Acora, by adopting a more traditional enclosure shape for this series, they are able to “reduce the cost of cabinet production without sacrificing overall performance.” The speakers utilize drivers from Accuton of Germany, along with hand-matched crossovers and other refinements.

They certainly paired well with the no-holds-barred VAC Statement electronics. But I have to say that what I found to be equally cool, and VAC head guy Kevin Hayes agreed, were the smaller Essence 90 iQ monoblocks ($9,990 each). Along with the Essence line stage ($9,990), they’re smaller in size to be more décor-friendly, and have a minimalist gloss black design that I found extremely appealing.

Here's one of the VAC and Acora displays, this one featuring the VAC Essence components. The system attracted many listeners.

The larger Acora VRC-1 and smaller MRC-1 loudspeakers. Photo by Jay B. Lawrence.

******

I want to end Part One on a sobering observation, then a happy note.

About a year or so ago Octave Records released The Art of Hi-Fi Volume 02: Soundstage. Well, I thought I had my speakers set up optimally – their placement had been blessed by the manufacturer and I had spent years tweaking their positioning. So when I played Volume 02 I prepared to sit back and bask in a sound field that would extend far beyond my speakers and room boundaries.

I didn’t hear it. I felt a jolt of panic. What the hell?

I thought something must be wrong with my stereo, or perhaps my speaker placement was actually off. I spent the better part of a weekend futzing around with the speakers only to realize that the speakers were in fact in the optimum position and that the problem was me. My hearing had fallen off to the point where I could no longer hear that kind of magical sound space I enjoyed in the past, at least on my system at the time, anymore. I mean, things still sounded wonderful, but still...

So, when I went to Capital Audiofest I had given up on the idea of hearing the kind of layered depth and soundstage I used to enjoy.

Until I walked into the Caprice Audio room.

They were featuring their top-of-the-line Coretessa noise optimization system device ($14,000), which was resting on Caprice Audio’s new isolation platform. A lot of what Caprice Audio calls their Core technology remains proprietary (and rightfully so – who wants to have their hard-earned work stolen, copied, and knocked off?), but implementing the Coretessa and other Caprice Audio products involves shunting and eliminating noise by connecting the Core devices to other system components and even loudspeakers. The company does reveal the use of high-speed analog filters, and the Coretessa allows connectivity to multiple devices.

The rest of the system included the debut of the Rossofiorentino ARNO40 floorstanding loudspeaker ($15,000/pair) and new Norma Audio REVO DAC-2, with a REVO IPA-80 integrated amplifier and a Lumen P1 music streamer ($5,000).

I was immediately struck by the incredible purity and resolution of the sound and the inviting quality of the presentation, but most of all, I was stunned by the width, depth and immersive soundstage, with vocals and instruments clearly and distinctly presented on a very delineated sound field. Wow, just WOW! I thought I had lost the ability to hear such sonic attributes – a lot of what I heard at Capital Audio Fest sounded like “big speakers in a big room,” and I want to reiterate I am NOT faulting the speakers or setup given my... sigh... sonic handicap... but here I was hearing what I thought I’d lost. Was it because the system was extraordinary in these attributes? Undoubtedly, but I felt like there was something more going on. The effect of the Coretessa? The fact that Caprice’s Luis Alberto is extremely adept and exacting at setup? I think it was all those, plus the fact that the speakers and components were exceptional. There was something very special that happened in that room and I can’t pretend to have the full measure of it. Moments like these are what make high-end audio exciting!

(Also, I’ve recently made some changes to my main system since CAF and things aren’t fully settled yet, but I’ve already heard some improvement, so I think I’m in for some more audio excitement.)

The Coretessa noise optimization unit rests atop its isolation platform.

Here's most of the Caprice Audio system with the Rossofiorentino loudspeakers. It was revelatory in the true sense of the word.

Part Two of this Capital Audiofest show report will appear in Issue 214.

Header image: the gang at Command Performance AV go back to the '80s. From left to right: Anthony Chiarella, Jeff Fox, Jessie Bentley and Bob Stenerson.