CAS Exhibitor Profile: Eigen Audio (dealership)

Respondent: Joseph Hakim, Eigen Audio, Room 5220.

What’s the “elevator pitch” description of your company?

Eigen Audio sells high end audio equipment to the Greater San Francisco Bay Area – in particular the South Bay , an area that is relatively underserved in terms of high end audio dealerships. We focus on providing exceptional service and value to our customers. While we cater to the higher end of the market, we exclusively select manufacturers and product lines that represent a high dollar-to-performance value. We also provide in-home demonstrations and loaners whenever possible as we feel that is the best way for our customers to evaluate high end audio products.

What makes your company and products special – how do they stand out from the pack?

At Eigen Audio we differentiate based on technical expertise, service, and the highest quality components in each product category. The President of Eigen Audio is an Electrical Engineer and leverages his many years of experience designing audio and video products to support and advise our customers. We provide loaners of several of our products for in-home trials, free of charge. We will even bring speakers to your home for audition as we believe you need to evaluate components within your own system and in your own listening environment.

Which of your products do you plan to demonstrate at CAS 2018?

We will be demonstrating the Von Schweikert E3 MKII speakers which are an exceptional value in its class, along with the Critical Mass Systems MAXXUM rack, the Aurender W20 streamer, and MasterBuilt Audio Reference Line cables.

Which sorts of CAS attendees should be interested to see and hear the products you will be demonstrating – and why?

Any attendees from the Bay Area or surrounding areas that need help in building their high end audio systems or that want to learn more about the products we carry. We are showing the E3 MKII speakers specifically to attract folks that are new to high end audio and want a reasonably priced and approachable starter speaker. This speaker can compete with models costing much more and will scale as electronics, cables, and racks are upgraded.

What do you like most about exhibiting at smaller, regional audio shows such as CAS 2018?

CAS8 is a perfect venue for our dealership – not only because it is in our back yard, but also as it represents a very approachable show for newcomers and folks who are serious about auditioning equipment in a more intimate environment. Folks can spend more time in our room and get a very personalized experience. There is also more time to chat with attendees and get to know more about their needs and interests.

In your product space, what are you most excited about in terms of technology and market trends?

There’s a lot to be excited about these days – all product categories are benefitting from the many years of technology development and design expertise accumulated by the manufacturers. In particular, speaker technology has advanced significantly in the past decade with exotic materials used in the construction of transducers becoming commonplace.

Assuming you had the resources, what product would you like to create?

At Eigen Audio we do not manufacture equipment, but if I had to pick a product category that would interest me in terms of design, it would be amplifiers. I would very much like to design a DHT based tube amp (e.g. 845) as I find the sound of these tubes enthralling in their realism and clarity.