AXPONA vs RMAF

[TitaniumTroy]

I have been to all 3 AXPONA shows in Chicago, but have never been to the RMAF show I was wondering what the difference? Like what the overall vibe of the show is, with entertainment, the different distributors and equipment, how are the rooms set up etc...

I thought I read RMAF has less foot traffic, which is good for listening but no so good for the people putting on the show. Also RMAF has the better sounding rooms, acoustics wise anyway.

 

[caesar]

Titanium,

I'm surprised no one has bit on this. My take is that if someone drugged you and dropped off at a Chicago Hotel vs. a Denver Hotel, you would not know which was which. Haven't been to RMAF in the last year, but I think both shows are pretty dead on Sunday.

Soundwise, unless "perfect bass" is your realism trigger, you can have a lot of fun at both shows. Despite imperfect bass, you can easily discern tonality, tube texture, dynamics, midrange quality, treble response, etc. Most importantly, you can still easily tell if certain systems have been hyped up and totally suck, based on your realism triggers.

In addition to listening to systems, there are networking opportunities, listening to gear you only read about, hearing pieces of gear you are familiar with in different systems and rooms, meeting old friends, hearing live music, buying new source material, and anticipating how the gear we love will sound in our own systems, etc. These experiences are all quite pleasurable. And if you like a system, most guys who run the rooms and gear designers are menshes and will let you listen to your own music and will enthusiastically explain their thinking about high end audio.

So I think both of the shows are quite a kick, even if the sound of most systems is just mediocre.

 

[amirm]

I have only been to RMAF but plan to go to AXPONA this year. I can say that RMAF was essentially everything you wanted to see in a high-end show. There was a lot to see and hear. I sometimes have second thoughts about AXPONA being too small to trek there. If it is indeed big, then I very much look forward to it!

 

[slowGEEZR]

I've been to four or five RMAFs and only one AXPONA. The AXPONA I went to was in Atlanta and it was much smaller than RMAF.

 

[Folsom]

This Axpona is not looking small by the amount of attending industry participants.

 

[caesar]

I'm waaaaay behind on my audio reading, but read somewhere that RMAF attendance was down 20% last year.