05/2013 - AudioNemesis HOME - AudioNemesis

MUNICH 2013 – SOME SHORT NOTES

Back from the 2013 High End in Munich, I decided to write down some notes.
I attended the show as an expositor for years, till 2011. That year I so too many brands, too many expositors and few distributors. As a manufacturer I felt there  is no need for me to expose again, there are different ways to reach better results for less money. So also this year I was just a visitor for 2 days (with my friend Fabio F.).
This is not a report, just a very short list of photos and notes, very biased.
Too many rooms just with digital streaming sources (servers, notebooks…). Very flat sound there, very similar among them. And one of them with also problems from the streaming (audible errors..). Ok, we agree that such a source is very very easy for a show (try to transport a good turntable, tonearm, cartridge and… boxes of vinyls!), but here we want the best, guys!
In general my feeling was that everyone wanted to show their best models. And I could not find the invasion of Chinese brands. Good news, I think.
As usual the most impressive system was offered by the guys of Silbatone. Two magnificent Western Electric Mirrorphonic Model 2 pushed music in the room. Amplification by Silbatone 300B amps. Despite some magic there, my critic is the total lack of very high frequency, 3D image e impact. Drums were not punching in the stomach (despite the loudness and Deep Purple…), image flat like a paper and high frequency with something wrong. Sunday was better.

These are the GIP Laboratory replicas of the original WE best speakers. I still need to understand why to buy a replica for such amazing prices…


These are the gears from Silbatone. Note the WE211 SE all DC coupled amp (right):

Truextent attended the show also this year. But with a lot of Berillium domes…


This one is amazing:

Von Langa did not miss the chance to show a new system:


I think this has such a lot of good/right things that it could be right (?):

Telefunken pure tube reel-to-reel recorder and playback:

Please take a look at left: Tacet vinyl with Bolero with the track starting from the inner ring and playing to the output edge… Inside-out. Simple and logical.

Elrog ER211 and 845:

I don’t know the wholesale price, but the retail one has no sense to me. I buy the NOS version for sure.

Mega 833 amp!

Jewelry or cartridges?

What’s here in home top quality audio the purpose of this 20000 Watt (20 kilowatts) Class A amplifier?

I could not believe my ears. I am honest: I entered because I have been invited by a kind guy. I recognized the speakers and I sat down. Really an interesting speaker. Top surprise from such a low efficiency system. Not a Sanders ESL panel, but very interesting. They are critical with amps:

I was very curious to listen to a top Kondo system tuned by Japanese guys.
Field coil 90dB 2 way speakers, parallel SE of 211 (55W), Kondo turntable, tonearm and cartridge (field coil too) and everything you can dream.
Wow! Monster dynamic, never heard Night in San Francisco with such a dynamic in an audio fair!
Nothing is perfect and some aspects could be better (magic) or much better (3D image was flat… Oh Japanese!), but really very very nice!

I close with my favourite full range speaker: