Day Zero did now go as planned… I intended to get over to the Venetian to do some shots of the lobby and environs with the very wide angle lens (rectalinear 10-22mm), but got trapped here at the St. Tropez… which I *did* get a chance to photograph:

CES 2007 Day ZERO - the pre-game show

Now it is off the the main convention center and the Venetian.

The plan is to do three posts per day: Breakfast, Lunchtime, and Dinner … and maybe another time if we can fit it in.

See how this goes…

Yes, we KNOW the CES high-end audio show is not at the Alexis Park this year

But we are:

I think this is the old Nagra / Wilson Audio room, but I would have to look at last year’s program guide to be sure

It took us an extra hour and a half to get here, 12.5 hours, because of blowing snow on I70 beforfe the Eisenhour tunnel (people just gawking at it, slowing us down to 10-15 mph for almost an hour?) and severe blowing snow in the middle of Utah.

Neli did most of the driving [its her car], and she either putts along if there is the *possibility* of ice on the road, or goes so fast one would be hard pressed to even see the speed limits signs. But I exaggerate. ;-} But I of little sleep [didn’t get out of Boulder until 1pm due to the previous day being spent on snow removal efforts by us human snow blowers] can be excused my marriage endangering comments on the blog… right? I guess we’ll find out soon enough….

OK, now to try and unload [as in walking back and forth 100 times - realistically more like 20, but it FEELS like 100 - carrying potentially heavy, always expensive and often awkardly-sized gear from the car to the room and back] this chock full A6 Allroad (aka wagon) into the two Audio Note rooms next door at the St. Tropez, where the THE SHOW show is being held.

It is with great pleasure that we accept the honor of being the U.S. distributor for not only one of the best lines of high-end home audio equipment in the world, bar none - but one of the largest as well.

The Audio Note product line comprises several hundred products and stretches from excellent price /performance for the frugal audiophile to excellent price / PERFORMANCE for the extremely ambitious audiophile, along with lots of juicy stuff for everybody in between.

Audio Federation carries only product lines that have proven themselves to be of unusually high quality - based on application of our well-published methodologies - and Audio Note U.K. has proven themsevles several times over here at the ‘Audio Federation Proving Grounds’.

As the Audio Note importer, we will be able to help put even more, higher quality, better sounding [aka ‘more better’] equipment into the hands of more people. This has been and always will be Audio Federation’s raison d’être

As we continue to expand our repertoire here with respect to Audio Note we will continue to fully support and work closely with each of our product lines. All of the product lines we carry bring something to the party, and are fully able to compete side-by-side in any fair competition.

[Not quite STAY TUNED FOR AN OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT-speak, and I just couldn’t bring myself to write in that oh so common PRESS RELEASE-speak. BO-ring. So what we have here is perfect Audio Federation Blog-speak… and I should know …you got your soto voice and smiley faces and … everything.

Anyway, we are really psyched and look forward to supporting the Audio Note dealer network, Audio Note owners, and all ya audiophiles-at-large so that as many people as possible get to hear what this stuff can do. WE are impressed, and we think most of you will be too.

We haven’t mentioned this to anyone in the industry… until now - so all you out there are getting the news at the same time. This neatly solves / sidesteps our problem of in what order we were going to have to let everyone in on the news. ]

It is not so much that it is snowing a lot here compared to, well, some of the places where you all live, but that we are unprepared for this.

If it snowed like this all the time then we would have snow blowers and a plow person and more snow shovels (we are down to one, two broke today).

We actually had a plow guy, for several years, but he is a whiner, and that was when it only snowed about 3 to 5 times a Winter anything more than 3 or 4 inches, usually maxing out at 12 inches or so.

Anyway, weather either goes back to normal or we get a snow blower and a real plow guy. Enough is enough, and that was today.

We are packing the car with gear for THE SHOW for the Audio Note room - and to get the gear, get it in to the car, and get the car out of Boulder is taking some doing. But we are good to go, assuming the weather stays dry for another 12 hours or so…

By the way, I, through the blog or show reports, call this show ‘CES’, even though high-end audio will be mostly at T.H.E. Show this year. That is because CES is what it is traditionally called, CES attracts 120,000+ people, and high-end audio, whether we are talking about the section that is part of CES itself, or not, only attacts a very small percentage of those people. It is like just another small ‘conference hall’ in the scheme of things considering the overall gigantic impact of a show this large.

We went to CES several times without seeing the real conference at all. We stil called it ‘going to CES’. Heck, many people who go to the main conference hall don’t see CES either, they only see 10% or so if they only have a limited time and/or interests.

So, it is not meant to be dissrespectful or to display my ignorance when I say ‘CES’ as an abbreviation for ‘high-end audio including T.H.E. Show at the St. Tropez, High Performance Audio at the Venetian, and the main conference halls ‘ .

When I display my dissrespect and ignorance, I do it in other, hopefully more sophisticated ways…

Are we ready?

Are YOU ready?

CES 2007 Show Report home page

We should be getting there late Saturday night, if all things go as planned.

We will be staying at the Alexis Park hotel, which is where last year’s CES High Performance Audio Show was held, and it is still next door to the T.H.E. Show aka the Home Entertainment Show, aka the St. Tropez aka the worst name for a show ever assuming that it WANTS people to be able to find it using Google [or you LIKE typing stuff like “home entertainment show las vegas”]

Getting there early lets us spend Sunday scoping out the environs and visiting a few exhibitors that we know well [another reason (the real one) is that we are (sacred poopless) trying to be flexible (tilting at windmills) what with the weather (rapid-fire blizzards) lately].

For this reason this year there will be a ‘pre-game show’ page with pictures of the hotels and stuff. We’ll see how this works out.

To bow to the people with poor eyesight and/or research skills, we have modified the links in the show reports to be a little bit more obvious:

For some reason I just don’t think this will make much of a difference… you either care to learn about who wrote what you are reading, assuming you can find out anything substantive about them at all, or you don’t.

Either way, it should be a blast to attend and hopefully a blast to read about.

[This is the official poop. The previous post will be redirected here. Still think the burgundy metallic is going to be the “cat’s meow” … after the gloss black, anyway ]

CES 2007 and THE SHOW - Jan. 8th, 9th, 10th, and 11th

Harmonic Resolution Systems (HRS) will have static and
active exhibits on display again at CES 2007 in Las
Vegas. Please stop by and see our new and existing
products on display and in use by industry leading
companies. Representatives from HRS will be available
for technical and sales consultation.

Our rooms at CES and THE SHOW are as identified below.
We will have the new production SXR frame in the
Asthetix, Shindo, and the HRS static rooms. This new
audio stand frame was designed to be a very high
performance frame designed specifically for use with
our reference level M3 Isolation Bases. The SXR is a
sister model to our reference level MXR frame. The SXR
has a similar engineering approach as the MXR but was
design to be very cost effective for use in low profile
systems. The SXR like the MXR will also be available
is single and doublewide versions. The SXR is also
available in amp stand configuration (1 shelf), which
will be featured in the Asthetix and Vendersteen Rooms.

We will also have a bird’s eye maple version of our MXR
on display in our static room. This is a custom MXR
finish that a few lucky customers have enjoyed over the
past year but we have never displayed this finish at a
show so please stop by and see this unit in person.
The birds eye maple MXR will also include the new
billet machined aluminum cable organizer system
designed for the MXR series frames. This MXR option
was design to allow organization and controlled routing
of signal cables and in particular have the ability to
support the weight of network box cables like that
produced by MIT. Other features at CES this year will
be a new burgundy metallic finished MXR in the BAT room
and a gloss black MXR in Vandersteen room. Rockport
Technologies is using a MXR-1921-3V (shorter 3 shelf
version of MXR) in our mahogany finish over at THE
SHOW.

Harmonic Resolution Systems Inc. - Static Display
Venetian Tower 29-201

Active rooms using Harmonic Resolution products are:

Rockport Technologies - T.H.E. Show
St. Tropez All-Suite Hotel - Room 1104
455 E. Harmon Ave.
Las Vegas, NV 89109
(702) 369-5400

Asthetix - Venetian Tower 29-221

Balanced Audio Technologies - SandVenetian Bassano 2704

Shindo and DeVore Fidelity Ltd. - Venetian Tower 29-327

Vandersteen Audio - Venetian Tower 29-203

A Very Special CES Invitation

Globe Audio Marketing and Brinkmann North America cordially invite you to a very special presentation during the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show 8-11 January 2007.

This invitation only demonstration will take place in a private estate with an audio listening room similar in scope and size to what might be found in a normal listening environment. Comprising a WLM active loudspeaker system, Audio Aero Capitole CD player and the Brinkmann Audio Balance and LaGrange turntables, the Brinkmann 10.5 and 12.0 tone arms, the Brinkmann/EMT Titanium phono cartridge, the Brinkmann Mono amplifiers and Marconi line stage and the world debut of the Brinkmann Edison vacuum tube driven phono stage, as well as the Breuer Dynamic tone arm and Nirvana Audio cables. Demonstrations will take place in the afternoon and evening hours during the CES Show and will include a light dinner and product discussion.

This demonstration is in addition to the exhibition at Consumer Electronics Show in the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino suite 29-320 where the WLM loudspeakers Diva, Audio Aero Capitole CD player, a Brinkmann LaGrange turntable, Brinkmann 12.0 tone arm, the Breuer Dynamic tone arm and the North American debut of the RCM Bonasus vacuum tube integrated amplifier will be shown.

Contact Information:

Jody Hickson, Globe Audio Marketing
Email: info@globeaudiomkt.com

Lawrence Blair, Brinkmann North America
Email: information@brinkmann-usa.com

Here is the latest, mostly purloined from Triode and Company:

System One - Primarily Level Three
NEW! CD2.1x/II - The return of the one-box cd player to the Audio Note line-up
CDT3, DAC 4.1x Balanced
TT Two, Arm Three Vx, IO1, S4
M3 Phono pre-amp
Conquest Silver mono amps
E/SPe HE speakers with new hemp cones in Apple veneer cabinets

System Two - Primarily Level Two
NEW! CD1.1x - Top Shelf Performance for Everyman
TT One, Arm One, IQ3
OTO SE Phono integrated amp
J/SPe speakers

and

AN-La25/BW speaker cable
AN-Vx10/P interconnect
AN-C10/GP-AG interconnect
SOGON15/XLR-AN-P interconnect

Kind of going in the affordable direction this show - interesting to see how that works out.

We have the reviewers who eschew anything in the top half of the price range (mostly online reviewers), and those that prefer to write about the best and only the best, mostly in the print magazines. And Audio Note does really well at both extremes, which should mean that ALL of them should be writing about Audio Note equipment, right?

Reposted here.

December 26, 2006

The ML3 Signature Power Amplifier

LAMM INDUSTRIES, INC. is proud to introduce its crowning achievement, the ML3 Signature power amplifier. The ML3 is a single-ended amplifier with a separate power supply utilizing a very powerful direct-heated triode GM70 (plate dissipation 125W).

The ML3 continues the fine tradition that began with the Lamm ML2 single-ended amplifier, and takes it to unimagined heights of performance attainable only now.

The ML3, along with the renowned Model ML2.1 amplifier, is practically the only single-ended amplifier on the market capable of reproducing the entire range of audio frequencies. The ML3’s midrange is beautifully rendered, along with a natural and extended bass, and unparalleled high frequency reproduction, up to now only available in our ML2, ML2.1, and ML3 models.

The ML3’s innovative circuitry enables a recreation of the original spectral balance and harmonic structure of the recorded material without loosing a strand of low-level detail or nuance. Another unique aspect of the design enables the ML3 to recreate a three-dimensional soundstage without boundaries or limitations, while maintaining an extraordinary transparency of perceived sound. The ML3 truly demonstrates what a properly designed single-ended amplifier can do.

Technical Aspects in Brief

The ML3 is a 32 Watt, no overall feedback pure class-A single-ended amplifier. It’s built on one of the most sophisticated power supplies ever used in audio, and its most prominent features are:

* Separate plate and filament transformers
* Six filter chokes
* Six rectifier tubes
* Highest quality film capacitors used in high-voltage power supply feeding the output stage
* Refined soft-start and delay circuits
* Option for turning the amp on/off controlled via Lamm preamplifiers

While the ML3 has no overall loop feedback, the amplifier features an option allowing the user to introduce small amounts of local feedback in the output stage. You can choose between two levels of feedback: NFB1 and NFB2, which differ in their levels. This allows for three feedback options: No feedback, NFB1 or NFB2.

A multi-turn trimming potentiometer, accessible through a special opening in the amplifier’s chassis, along with a set of test points, allow the user to adjust and measure the plate current of the output tube via an external voltmeter.

Absolutely unique custom-made output transformers, along with our unique output stage and sophisticated power supply, allow the ML3 to drive most real-world speakers yielding tremendous sonic impact and stability under the most dynamic conditions. Although the ML3 can drive most speakers, their full potential is best realized with high-efficiency speakers of 92dB and higher.

The design goal of the ML3 was to use best modern technology and processes in a style reminiscent of equipment from the golden age of vacuum tubes. Each amplifier is carefully constructed and handcrafted of the finest materials and world-class parts, some of which include military-graded DALE metal film resistors, PRC wirewound resistors, CADDOCK power film resistors; BOURNS multi-turn potentiometers; CORNELL DUBILIER and UNITED CHEMI-CON electrolytic capacitors, ELECTROCUBE, ROEDERSTEIN and ELCON film capacitors; HAMMOND chokes; gold-plated NEUTRIC and FISCHER connectors; military-graded low-noise long-life vacuum tubes.

Special attention was given to designing the plate and filament transformers that have no mechanical contact with either the transformer cover or the chassis, and are suspended in a special encapsulant that almost completely absorbs even residual mechanical vibrations. This plays a significant role in assuring absolutely unique clarity and micro-resolution.

Tube Complement:

* One 12AX7/ECC83
* Four 6N30P-DR / 6H30П-ДP (cyrillic)
* One GM70 / ГМ70 (cyrillic)
* Six 12AX3/12BE3

The ML3 is designed to function on AC line voltages throughout the world — 100/120/220/230/240 V — and can be internally adjusted without elaborate modifications.

Suggested retail price (preliminary): $126,290.00/pair

See you at the Venetian at CES, Suite 34-309!