I missed out last year so I decided to make a trip back and visit the Axpona show as it's only 40 minutes from my house and I have to say I had a good time. While I probably took about 100 pictures, I wanted to highlight a few that really stood out for me. GoldenEar had No presence here, but I heard some really well designed and sounding speakers. I also had chance to talk to Dan at Emotiva on their new XPA-7 Gen 3 amps they had on display.
Speakers:
If I had to point out one pair of Speakers that really stood out to me it was the
Salk Exotica 3. It happened to be the first room I went in to, but left a lasting sonic picture with excellent sound stage and detail, especially on the low end. It was in a larger room compared to other speakers I auditioned, but I was thoroughly impressed. (I apologize for the low light picture) It doesn't do the cabinet justice
A second favorite of my auditions that I happened to listen to were the
Legacy FOCUS XD. As a big fan of ribbon tweeters, these did not disappoint and shed every detail of Sculthorpe: The String Quartets with Didjerido" The strings all remained quite distinct, clear without being harsh. In another large room, the way they definitively played the pipe organ to the point with eyes closed, you would be hard pressed to tell the difference from the speakers vs live. Not sure the price point of these vs. the SE, but given that SE's are under 10k? sound like a lot of value.
I also got a chance to talk to Dan from Emotiva. I am really curious to see/hear how their new XPA-7 Gen 3 sounded, and I will have to say from my limited audition I came away pretty amazed how they could offer so much at that price point. So much so I may actually pick up a 2 channel and compare it to my A21. They had one up close and Dan explained their power implementation, which I will have to apologize is way, way over my head, (especially when I asked him to compare and contrast the technology vs Sunfire) but the bottom line is that it will run very cool, will eliminate the 60hz hum and is very plug and play. On top of this, performed well in their demo room. He mentioned that they will be able to offer a 14 channel version with blade expansion
This is all I have time with for part 1. I apologize that I can not break it down in a more technical nature, but I will follow up with some others I really liked and some uniquely designed speakers.
I will update with some of my personal favorite bookshelves. It was nice to hear so many brands that I never heard of in all the rooms I visited. On a side note: I happened to bring the Legacy Speakers demo disc home and put it in my Triton Ones. They still bring a smile to my face and I am perfectly happy and content with what I own
