T.H.E. Show Report

[MiTT]

As I mentioned in another thread, just down the street from the CEDIA Show in Denver this weekend was T.H.E. (The High End) show. Since it was but a block away of course I stopped in.

The biggest difference between this show and CEDIA was that everyone was playing MUSIC on these systems,and there was a heavy emphasis on 2 channel, much of it from vinyl. It reminded me very much of the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest (coming up in October), but it was much smaller - 9 rooms vs, the 140 or so at the RMAF. Still, there was some very cool stuff.

One of my favorites was the BAT room where the VK600SE's were making some beautiful music. Check out the carbon fiber amp stand as well...

 

[MiTT]

Conrad Johnson room

Conrad Johnson was running their gear through Magnepan MG20's. The sound was very good, but what caught my eye was this pair at the back of the room; a new pre-amp (on the right) and power amp (left) obviously influenced by their ACT series pre-amp...

 

[MiTT]

Audio Research room

The folks from Audio Research had a large room that was so dark I could barely see. Supposedly they were using Vandersteen speakers but I'll be damned if I could make them out. What I could see at the back of the room was an inside peek at the new Ref 110 amp. Very cool. Who here just got one?

 

[MiTT]

More AR

The Audio Research folks were running a video display of Son Volt in concert that was VERY fun. I wonder if they were using this new Multi Channel pre-amp for the sound. Again, it was so bleeding dark in that room there was no way to tell.

 

[MiTT]

YG Acoustics

YG Acoustics is a company I heard for the first time at last years Rocky Mountain Audio Fest, and they are manufactured right here in the Denver area.

Last year their sound was what I would describe as pretty dry and thin. personally I didn't care for them. Apparently a year of fine tuning makes a difference. The bigger towers were playing some Japanese drum music and the dynamics and soundstage were STAGGERING in their depth. Possibly the best thing I heard at this show. These could be some real contenders one day!

 

[MiTT]

Soundsmith Room

The Soundsmith room had some interesting speakers, as well as some of their own electronics. The sound was good, but to be honest, the fit and finish of this equipment needs some work. It looks like it was literally cobbled together in a garage woodshop. Still, they were spinning a lot of vinyl on this VPI HRX turntable with their own Strain Gauge cartridge and it kept people in their seats enjoying the music - there was usually a line at the door.

If you are wondering, there is a blue LED inside the clear body of the Strain Gauge cartridge. I was not able to ascertain why other than it looked cool.

 

[MiTT]

Eminent Technology

The thing that get's my award for "weird looking contraption that actually friggin' blew me away" was the Eminent Technology TRW-17 Infrasonic Rotary Subwoofer. This thing is intended to be placed in an attic or crawlspace using the back side of that area as an infinte baffle and essentially the entire listening room as the subwoofer enclosure. A 1/3 hp motor turns the fan blades at I believe they said 3500rpm and a pistonic motor (voice coil) moves the whole thing back and forth several inches as the fan blades change pitch as necessary to produce the desired frequency. And what frequencies! Greater than 115dB between 1-20Hz. Yep, that was 1 Hz. During the demonstration they played several test tones and it was entirely possible to hear (and feel) 8Hz content. You can not believe how the entire room felt as that 8Hz wave passed through, it was like a punch in the gut. The walls and ceiling flexed. The door at the back of the room rattled back and forth in the door jam. There would have to be some serious structural Engineering included with any plan to purchase this thing; at a cool $17K mind you. Still, they played some movie scenes and the effect was undeniable.

As an aside, when I was in the room going through the demonstration I was sitting with John Atkinson, Kalman Rubenstein and Wes Phillips from Stereophile.

 

[edwinr]

Thanks for the post, Tim. I especially like the Eminent Technology TRW-17 Infrasonic Rotary Subwoofer. I can't believe anyone could make a sub that looks so downright cool!

 

[twich54]

Tim, Great report, I agree with Edwin that sub looks like a retro 1950's GE Table fan.

 

[aliveatfive]

The folks from Audio Research had a large room that was so dark I could barely see. Supposedly they were using Vandersteen speakers but I'll be damned if I could make them out. What I could see at the back of the room was an inside peek at the new Ref 110 amp. Very cool. Who here just got one?

Me and it's excellent!

 

[JonFo]

Rotary sub links

Infinite Baffle subs RULE!

That Rotary woofer is incredible. Once they drop in price and work out some production challeges, I’ll be adding one to my setup.
Here are some links:

Eminent site on the Rotary woofer, with more pics and descriptions.

An AVSForum discussion on this sub and a test at a members home.

And a companion Youtube video

A good IB (and the Rotary in a well mounted space would be the bomb!) slays all other subs in much the same way a MartinLogan ESL is better than a $5 tweeter.

 

[Robin]

Infrasonic Rotary Subwoofer...

The thing that get's my award for "weird looking contraption that actually friggin' blew me away" was the Eminent Technology TRW-17 Infrasonic Rotary Subwoofer. This thing is intended to be placed in an attic or crawlspace using the back side of that area as an infinte baffle and essentially the entire listening room as the subwoofer enclosure. A 1/3 hp motor turns the fan blades at I believe they said 3500rpm and a pistonic motor (voice coil) moves the whole thing back and forth several inches as the fan blades change pitch as necessary to produce the desired frequency. And what frequencies! Greater than 115dB between 1-20Hz. Yep, that was 1 Hz. During the demonstration they played several test tones and it was entirely possible to hear (and feel) 8Hz content. You can not believe how the entire room felt as that 8Hz wave passed through, it was like a punch in the gut. The walls and ceiling flexed. The door at the back of the room rattled back and forth in the door jam. There would have to be some serious structural Engineering included with any plan to purchase this thing; at a cool $17K mind you. Still, they played some movie scenes and the effect was undeniable.

As an aside, when I was in the room going through the demonstration I was sitting with John Atkinson, Kalman Rubenstein and Wes Phillips from Stereophile.

Tim,

I had read some about the Infrasonic Rotary Subwoofer... It is kinda cool that they have perfected it. It looks way different than the mock-ups, I viewed a couple of years ago.

 

[Robin]

VPI HRX - TT and Strain Gauge...

The Soundsmith room had some interesting speakers, as well as some of their own electronics. The sound was good, but to be honest, the fit and finish of this equipment needs some work. It looks like it was literally cobbled together in a garage woodshop. Still, they were spinning a lot of vinyl on this VPI HRX turntable with their own Strain Gauge cartridge and it kept people in their seats enjoying the music - there was usually a line at the door.

If you are wondering, there is a blue LED inside the clear body of the Strain Gauge cartridge. I was not able to ascertain why other than it looked cool.

Tim,

The VPI HRX - TT really is eye candy. Thanks again for sharing your insights and excellent photos with us...

 

[edwinr]

Me and it's excellent!

You've got one? Excellent! How does it sound?

 

[aliveatfive]

You've got one? Excellent! How does it sound?

I guess many people here selectively read posts. If you've followed all the threads, you'd know I've had mine for almost 3 weeks. I've just reached the 50+ hour mark on this and I'll report shortly. In the meantime, I'll state that the REF series of amps are really special.