Avatar Acoustics AMR / Dr. Feickert Analog
Dr. Feickert, who is famous for his cartridge setup protractor and Adjust+ azimuth adjustment tool, has been making turntable since a couple of years ago. This year, I saw the Blackbird turntable in multiple rooms.
In the Avatar Acoustics room, the Blackbird ($7,995) was paired up with the Dr. Feickert DFA 12.0 tonearm ($1,495). The arm closely resembles a Jelco 12” tonearm, and if I had to guess I would say it is made by Jelco but modified by Dr. Feickert.
AMR (Abbingdon Music Research) PH-77 Phono stage ($11,995) is something which I would very much love to try in my own system. The PH-77 is supposed to be packed with every imaginable feature under the sun, boasting 21 RIAA equalization curves, 8 gain settings, and 32 loading options, and 4 inputs.
Reference 3A
Over at the Reference 3A room, I met up with Tash Goka, who introduced me to Ricky Schultz, who designed the “Surreal Acoustic Driver Lens” which will be incorporated into Reference 3A’s speakers starting in 2012.
According to Rick, the Driver Lens is an OEM device which cannot be installed by end users. Tash attaches each lens onto the drivers by hand. The Lens is supposed to increase the dispersion of the driver resulting in an increase in clarity; this is achieved by the removal of undesirable vortex type air movement caused by the inverted drivers shape. The lens corrects this vortex and removes the sound associated with it.
NFS Audio
The funkiest room at T.H.E Show goes to NFS Audio’s relaxation room. I wasn’t sure exactly what brand they were representing until a search on Google reveals that NFS Audio actually stands for Not For Sale Audio.
They are simply two audiophiles from Las Vegas who loves good music and wine, and want to provide a hangout to CES patrons. If I had known about this beforehand I woul d have consumed all their wine!
Acapella / Einstein
Here is a remarkable system which can turn a simple recording into a live performance. As I walked into the Acapella/Einstein room, they were playing the song “the Boxer” by The King’s Singers. The Simon and Garfunkel number is one of my favorite songs of all times. The performance came alive as if the six singers were standing right in the room.
The exotic speakers were the Acapella Violin MK VI ($36,000/pr). Einstein equipment includes The Source Mk II CD Player ($13,000), the all new The Preamp ($18,000), and the new Final Cut Ultimate OTL monoblocks ($40,000).
Audio Power Labs
If not the most expensive, the most exotic amplifier at T.H.E Show is defintely the 833 TNT Monoblocks. Audio Power Labs was founded in 2009 by Gerry Moersdorf, who, having sold his publicly traded company for $50 million, decided to pursue his dream of building the best tube ampifier in the world.
The 200W-per-channel amplifier is invidually custom manufactured with 2x 833C, 2x 6550 and 2x 12BH7 in a push pull configuration. The 833C tubes run at rather high temperature so the amplifier is liquid cooled to aid in heat dissipation. The amp is cooled by “heat pipes” which operates by evaporation and condensation of fluids without the use of heat pumps.
Indiviudal components of the APL 833 TNT are all made inhouse in APL’s 15,000 square foot facility in Columbus Ohio. The price tag? $175,000 USD for a pair.
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