NY Audio Show 2013 - My impressions

[docvale]

Yesterday I've been at the NY Audio Show.
I'll start with some (very) negative remarks: several rooms, specially the small ones of the higher floors, there was an annoying chattering going on during the demos. Incredibly, most of the times this occurred with the exhibitors feeding this chattering. What the hell, customers are paying to visit the show rooms and they want to listen to the systems, not to conversation. If an exhibitor wants to chat with a visitor, he should invite him to exit the rooms and speak outside. This chat thing was remarkably annoying in the two Kef rooms, the VPI and the Waterfall rooms. I went away in less than two minutes: too bad, since it sounded the systems were good. But I was not enjoying them at all...

Regarding the show, it was ok. Most of the rooms sounded nicely, some of them very good and some below my expectations.
My first visit was to the Burmester/Genesis rooms. The performance was very good (I just listened to the vinyl setup), despite I cannot tell whether the Genesis were outperforming the Burmester speakers (which I was used to listen with their electronics).
Then, I visited the Innovative rooms, which were way better than last year (when they were in a cubic room). This year, they had 3 rooms: one with Sasha, one with Alexia and one with Maxx3. All of the three were doing extremely well: surprisingly, when compared to my in-store experience, the Sasha were a little more convincing then the Alexia with regards to the bass warmth. I don't know whether this was due to the different gear (VTL/Lamm vs D'Agostino) or different tracks.
Other rooms that impressed me were the ones from GTT Audio: I found the YG Speakers extremely good, either with Soulution or Veloce. Also, I had an epiphany with the Martin Logan CLX (+ subs), driven by Krell: extreme clarity and soundstage. Surprisingly, my (conservative) wife praised their aesthetics
The room with Viola + TAD was indeed very very good.
There were other rooms that sounded nicely, but I cannot recall enough details to post about. On the other hand, I would have preferred more a more aggressive volume in the CH Precision room.
This year I decided not to wait in line for the MBL room. I usually love it, but this year I decided to sacrifice it

P.S.: wait! Impressive outcome fromt the Joseph Audio + Channel D gear with needledrops

 

[caesar]

Thanks for sharing! First, you have an amazing wife. Although I may bring my wife to a car dealer, she would NEVER go to an audio show or many of the live shows I attend.

Now for the chatter, I think it's unavoidable at shows, unfortunately. The dealers are there to sell their gear, and they frequently cannot leave the room. So they have to talk to their potential customers. And the attendees are frequently asking questions and sharing impressions with friends. I think the only thing that may be more annoying is the "singling ladies" playing in most rooms. You should see the looks on the faces of some of the room operators when I politely ask to play some REAL music, like Jimi Hendrix. But I guess you can alwyas come back to the room at another time, if you have the time...

Which YG's were there? I find the smaller ones are great tonally with tubes, but lack balls. Which MBL's were displayed? X-tremes???

Also, which TADs? If you mate the ref 1's with proper warm amps, I think they are the best box speakers on the planet. Andrew Jones is God.

 

[GaryProtein]

I was there this weekend. The highlights were the Genesis, Wilson/D'Agostino, Magnepan, MBL exhibits. The most unexpected great presentation was by a company I was unfamiliar with--Brodmann Acoustics. Their speakers were excellent.

Many exhibits were a disappointment and I walked out.

NOTE TO EXHIBITORS: DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES PLAY "DEMO" MUSIC.

Nothing makes me want to walk out more than that. Play music I will actually listen to.

Some large, well known dealers and companies were guilty of this crime.

Play real music, mostly orchestral and jazz, some rock would be fine also, but do NOT play electronic music or other crap that has no real live intrinsic sound of its own.

 

[Andre Marc]

I was there this weekend. The highlights were the Genesis, Wilson/D'Agostino, Magnepan, MBL exhibits. The most unexpected great presentation was by a company I was unfamiliar with--Brodmann Acoustics. Their speakers were excellent.

Many exhibits were a disappointment and I walked out.

NOTE TO EXHIBITORS: DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES PLAY "DEMO" MUSIC.

Nothing makes me want to walk out more than that. Play music I will actually listen to.

Some large, well known dealers and companies were guilty of this crime.

Play real music, mostly orchestral and jazz, some rock would be fine also, but do NOT play electronic music or other crap that has no real live intrinsic sound of its own.

Continuing on that note...

..More notes to exhibitors:

-Agree, they should play REAL WORLD MUSIC, no more audiophile drivel, played out "demo tracks", and other garbage. If you
would not want to hear it at home, why would you want to hear it at a show?

-Cut the chatter, let people hear the demo that you hopefully spent at least a day calibrating. I don't want to
hear nonsense excuses about "bad sounding rooms". Plenty of exhibitors get their rooms to sound great.

-Provide a comfortable atmosphere. Air conditioning, etc.

-Be WELCOMING. Miserable looking reps are unacceptable. No one is forcing you to be there.

-KNOW YOUR PRODUCTS. Nothing is more off putting then know nothing reps who don't know specs or pricing.

-Have the ability to play music in all formats. Don't tell me you can't plug in my USB stick or play my CD etc.

Can anyone else add anything?

BTW, Jason Victor Serinus wrote an excellent piece on the topic for Stereophile-

http://www.stereophile.com/content/theres-no-business-without-show-business

 

[docvale]

Thanks for sharing! First, you have an amazing wife. Although I may bring my wife to a car dealer, she would NEVER go to an audio show or many of the live shows I attend.

She actually likes (tolerates) the shows. She isn't into the systems, but into the music: perfect for me!

Which YG's were there? I find the smaller ones are great tonally with tubes, but lack balls. Which MBL's were displayed? X-tremes???

I listened to the YG Carmed and, I think, Kipods. The former with Soulution and the latter with Veloce. Both very good. I don't know about the MBL... but what was coming out from the room was impressive by itself!

Also, which TADs? If you mate the ref 1's with proper warm amps, I think they are the best box speakers on the planet. Andrew Jones is God.

TADs were the Ref1.

 

[docvale]

I would definitely like more real music. That's also why I liked the Wilson, ML, Channel D or Genesis rooms! MLs were even playing Black Sabbath! I think that more rock and more symphonic would be healthy for the shows

 

[Fast/Forward]

I would definitely like more real music. That's also why I liked the Wilson, ML, Channel D or Genesis rooms! MLs were even playing Black Sabbath! I think that more rock and more symphonic would be healthy for the shows

At the last TAVES show I commented after entering a room that it was nice to NOT hear Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Tin Pan Alley" (though I love the song for the playing and the sound quality) as I must have heard it too often that day. Guess what they played next!

 

[garylkoh]

From an exhibitors perspective, we need, in a short space of time to impress or leave a positive impression on as wide an audience as possible. If an exhibitor thinks that his primary market is going to be audiophiles then he is going to play a lot of "audiophile standards".

I tried to play as large a selection as possible. From orchestral to electronic dance music. Without the EDM we would lose a large potential and growing market. On Friday, I watched one lady sprint into our room when we put on Swedish House Mafia.She told me that her Dad would kill her if she played that on his system. Way to go Dad! You lost a music lover there and we the industry are the poorer for that.

Not all electronic music is good but there is great stuff out there. Infected Mushroom was founded by members of the Israeli Philharmonic. Yello, Swedish House Mafia, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, all of which we played all are very well produced and I personally think more engaging music than the majority of audiophile offerings.

 

[ack]

Frankie Goes To Hollywood??!? I am with docvale

 

[Johnny Vinyl]

I don't know how many of the exhibitors come prepared with a good variety of music, but I rather doubt that they do...otherwise we'd get some. Unless, of course, they are only willing to play to the strengths of their products. That is a mistake IMO as we don't listen only to music that shows off a system. In everyday life we listen to what we like, be it heavy metal, jazz, classical or hip-hop. How am I supposed to make a determination on what your product can do, if I can't hear what I listen to an a day-by-day basis?

Add-on: Gary is great that way. He comes prepared with a variety of material and more exhibitors should take notice.

 

[MylesBAstor]

I don't know how many of the exhibitors come prepared with a good variety of music, but I rather doubt that they do...otherwise we'd get some. Unless, of course, they are only willing to play to the strengths of their products. That is a mistake IMO as we don't listen only to music that shows off a system. In everyday life we listen to what we like, be it heavy metal, jazz, classical or hip-hop. How am I supposed to make a determination on what your product can do, if I can't hear what I listen to an a day-by-day basis?

Add-on: Gary is great that way. He comes prepared with a variety of material and more exhibitors should take notice.

Depends upon whether you're talking analog or digital. With digital, no problema with music servers. With analog, a more limited selection. Seemed like turntable use was down in NYC this year.

 

[Alan Sircom]

I was there this weekend. The highlights were the Genesis, Wilson/D'Agostino, Magnepan, MBL exhibits. The most unexpected great presentation was by a company I was unfamiliar with--Brodmann Acoustics. Their speakers were excellent.

Many exhibits were a disappointment and I walked out.

NOTE TO EXHIBITORS: DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES PLAY "DEMO" MUSIC.

Nothing makes me want to walk out more than that. Play music I will actually listen to.

Some large, well known dealers and companies were guilty of this crime.

Play real music, mostly orchestral and jazz, some rock would be fine also, but do NOT play electronic music or other crap that has no real live intrinsic sound of its own.

People have very different musical tastes, and as a demonstrator, you have to be able (or willing) to play music that represents their needs. You should also play a broad selection of music to reflect the hopefully broad selection of listeners coming through the door. That has to include both the audiophile playlist, and electronic music, and all points in between.

It ultimately doesn't matter if some of the music requested - or, for that matter, played by the demonstrator - has no live intrinsic sound of its own, because frequently the people who might buy that equipment might have no recordings that meet that lofty demand. Yes, there needs to be a strong component of live, unamplified music played in a natural environment, with no overdubs, etc, etc. But if the person who is waving the cash about is passionate about their music - but their music ranges from Sonic Youth, and Pavement through to GBV and The Fall - no amount of live, unamplified music is going to be representative of their tastes and demands.

One of the great difficulties with handling user requests is the quality of the music can vary enormously. I know people who have been asked to play Oasis tracks at the peak show time, knowing that if they play the request, people who don't know the album will walk away thinking the compression inherent to the recording is a function of the system. On the other hand, a flat 'no' is not fair to the person clutching the Oasis CD. However, if someone pitches up with something absolutely inappropriate for the audience at the time, the demonstrator be polite and should say something like, "sure... but could you come back toward the end of the day? Otherwise we'll only be able to play about 20 seconds before a riot breaks out!" The flat "no" should be met with an equally flat but loud, "screw you then!".

The problem as a demonstrator is the audiophile playlist fills the room. I once ran a completely free-form demonstration where the listeners had free access to as diverse a collection of music as I could muster (we're talking everything from 110-year old recordings of Charley Patton pre-blues hollers to the then brand new album from The XX, from Louis Armstrong to Albert Ayler, from pre-renaissance plainsong to an orchestral tribute to the moon shot written and recorded a few months before the show and all points in between). When I checked the recordings played at the end of the weekend, the audiophile-approved recordings floated to the top time and again. In manning the room, if 'Tin Pan Alley' was being played, the room was filled in respectful silence, but if you played 'Rivera Paradise' (another excellent slow blues from Stevie Ray Vaughan's In Step album), you got at most a minute before someone asked for 'something from someone they have heard of... like Stevie Ray Vaughan'.

 

[garylkoh]

Frankie Goes To Hollywood??!? I am with docvale

That's why I try to talk about the music before playing it so that the audiophiles can run out of the room while the pretty ladies are running in.

 

[ack]

Ladies will buy $80K speakers to listen to Frankie? Is this what the market research shows? And you really want to throw out the audiophiles, in favor of ladies? I am missing something here

 

[garylkoh]

Depends upon whether you're talking analog or digital. With digital, no problema with music servers. With analog, a more limited selection. Seemed like turntable use was down in NYC this year.

With 20 albums, the only request I couldn't satisfy was for kazoo and cello. But I had a cello with trumpet that worked to mollify the guy who told us to 'stop playing that electronic sh*t".

 

[garylkoh]

Ladies will buy $80K speakers to listen to Frankie? Is this what the market research shows? And you really want to throw out the audiophiles, in favor of ladies? I am missing something here

Between his wife, and his daughter who requested Infected Mushroom and as astonished that we had it, I think we made a sale. They came back the next day to figure if their living room and amplification would work. I think that my market is the music lover, not the audiophile who needs endorsement from reviewers.

The wife even knew that Relax was featured in the movie Body Double.

 

[bretdago]

Great Responses Alan and Gary, it is so hard to fulfill all of the different personalities at an audio show. Great variety is always a plus. Music is so personal and so few are truly open minded when it comes to music. Frankie goes to Hollywood on a great hi-fi is outstanding (particularly on vinyl) but it most definitely will not entice all of the listening patrons. The other difficulty is repetitive music selections, many criticize songs that everyone seems to play at audio events, however the first songs asked for many times over, are the tried and true standards that so many find offensive now because of apparent misuse. If you play music that is too diverse you offend many, if you play music that is redundant you are criticized, and forget about levels... nobody seems to agree about how loud or soft a piece of music should be played. Personally I bring 30-40 thousand songs to an event and end up using about 20-30 typically. I also tend to lean toward lower listening levels at shows and ask the audience during presentations, but at home personally I listen pretty loud when having fun..

 

[cjfrbw]

Can't please everybody, can only take your best shot.

 

[Johnny Vinyl]

Depends upon whether you're talking analog or digital. With digital, no problema with music servers. With analog, a more limited selection. Seemed like turntable use was down in NYC this year.

I don't buy that. You're lugging crates and thousands of pounds worth of gear to shows...what is it to include even a small selection of vinyl across genres?

 

[audioarcher]

I was there this weekend. The highlights were the Genesis, Wilson/D'Agostino, Magnepan, MBL exhibits. The most unexpected great presentation was by a company I was unfamiliar with--Brodmann Acoustics. Their speakers were excellent.

Many exhibits were a disappointment and I walked out.

NOTE TO EXHIBITORS: DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES PLAY "DEMO" MUSIC.

Nothing makes me want to walk out more than that. Play music I will actually listen to.

Some large, well known dealers and companies were guilty of this crime.

Play real music, mostly orchestral and jazz, some rock would be fine also, but do NOT play electronic music or other crap that has no real live intrinsic sound of its own.

If you bring your own music you will be able to listen to what you want. If they wont or cant play it then I just leave if they are not playing something I am familiar with or care for.