Is it necessary to spend a fortune on truly great sound? Report on the High End Show held in June in Vienna Austria

 

For many years now, I’ve been planning to visit the HIGH END SHOW in Munich, one of the year’s biggest audio showcases. Fortunately, as fate would have it, the exhibition moved to Vienna this year, making it easier for us to finally get there.

My friend Gábor and I decided that we’d be there on both public days – that is, on Saturday and Sunday – so we spent Saturday night in a brilliant hotel,  whose rooftop bar gave us this view of the hustle and bustle of the Prater:

 

Click on each picture to reach better quality

 There are plenty of people who aren’t excited by listening to music,
but rather by the craziest, most stomach-churning rides.

 

You can read the definitions of the  (Hungarian) names I previously created for audio device categories here and here.

I’ll start with a disappointment. Posts  appeared in the Facebook MQA Experience group, suggesting that perhaps even we mere mortals in Vienna might be able to attend a demonstration of Lenbrook’s brand-new MQA-based music streaming service, following their acquisition of MQA technology. According to the reports, the demonstration was (supposed to have) taken place in the Dali Room of the Melia Hotel. Well, as is customary we went there and found the Dali Room, but on Saturday it was already empty, the only reminder of the demonstration was a few Lenbrook name cards left on the table. (In our frustration, and given the intense heat their, we each drank a bottle of sparkling mineral water that had been left there.😊 )

It later transpired that, contrary to our experience they ,,had been there all week so their 250 guests invited were able to enjoy the A/B tests. Unfortunately, we were not among the invitees, so I cannot report on how the new service sounded (nor is it yet known) when it will launch, just as we do not know what the sound produced by AIRIA’s (formerly MqAir) wireless technology might be like.

Regardless of our sense of anticipation , we are eagerly awaiting the launch of the new streaming service fully based on MQA technology. We doubt  have no that it will deliver excellent sound quality, which many audiophile music listeners will enjoy, as  soon as it finally becomes available...

Our respect and admiration go to Lenbrook for recognising the business potential in a technology (MQA) that, in the opinion of many, is already a thing of the past, and for investing their money in it, confident of a glorious future. One thing is certain: we’ll be among the subscribers when high-resolution music produced using MQA technology becomes fully available again via the streaming service.

With nearly 500 exhibitors taking part in an event like this, it’s very difficult to take it all in. I have been following the development of the industry’s ever more exciting devices for many years, yet nearly half of the exhibitors were unknown to me. There were suppliers, cable manufacturers and specialist companies whose products are affordable only to very wealthy customers.

Gábor and I both really enjoy listening to music through headphones; Gábor, just like me, listens to music using Meze 109 Pro headphones, but he uses an iBasso DX240 DAP as his source, whereas I have been using  recently the compact iBasso Nunchaku USB dongle, which is equipped with a small tube amplifier. That’s why, for us, the most interesting hall at the exhibition was ‘World of Headphones’.

I’ll soon be publishing a review of the Japanese final Tonalite TWS that I recently bought. Warning, spoiler: the Japanese have incorporated one of the most exciting innovations of recent years into the Tonalite by realising that a music player placed in the ear canal was designed for a completely average ear and head shape, whilst everyone’s different head and ear shapes, which means the sound from the music player won’t be perfectly natural. That’s why the final system is able to fully customise the device to the owner’s specific characteristics using a mobile phone camera and an app. The end result is a sound as if we were sitting in the auditorium at MÜPA (with beat acoustics in Budapest), listening to the music there. 

Meanwhile Gábor has purchased pair of wireless earphones, the Bowers & Wilkins Pi8 TWS and according to him with the help of the earphone case, which provides aptX Lossless (wireless) codec, deliver fantastic sound quality . There’s a good chance we’ll pit the two TWS models against each other in a joint test and we report of our experience.

The Tonalité’s retail pack includes several Fusion G ear tips in different sizes, made from three different materials, which are extremely comfortable and provide excellent sound isolation. 

I’d been hoping to buy some spare eartips at the exhibition in Vienna, and as soon as we stepped into the world of headphones, we spotted the final stand straight away. I soon learnt that they hadn’t brought any eartips with them, but they did suggest we have a listen to a few devices.

 

final Inc. (Japanese)

 

final has always been renowned for its scientifically engineered, typically dynamic drivers, which – just as with Tonalité – are capable of reproducing even the finest details whilst producing an extremely low noise level.

My friend Gábor started trying out one of the best headphones from the final range, the D 8000 DC Pro Edition (€4,800), whilst I was listening to music on the A10 000 in-ear monitors (IEM), the most expensive model (€3,000) in the range.

The device I used to listen to music from was a top-of-the-range Questyle portable DAC / headphone amplifier, whilst Gábor played the music through an American-made Schiit Mjolnir headphone amplifier.

Gábor listened to the music for a quarter of an hour with a rapt expression on his face, then took the headphones off and, with a visibly happy expression, simply said: ‘These are the best headphones I’ve ever heard’ 😍 .

I wasn’t quite as enthusiastic, although it’s true that the A10000 sounded excellent. However unbelievable it may seem, when comparing the sound of the final Tonalité – which I bought for €315 – after personalising it, with that of the A10000 costing €3,000, I didn’t feel there was a world of difference. Of course, this is obviously a strong bias on my part, but in the tranquillity of my own home, it is much easier to appreciate a device with good sound quality than at a trade fair visited by thousands of people. This was particularly true of open-back headphones, for which this exhibition was not the best occasion to judge the ‘real’  sound.

 

A pleasant listening experience at the final stand.
In the past, at exhibitions like this, we used to test headphones with music
played from a CD player;  these days, however, every pair of headphones
had a tablet or a laptop, typically
QOBUZ or TIDAL streaming services were available
 – either directly or via the ROON music software.

 

 

 

The final D 8000 DC Pro Edition. The essence lies in the details...
Naturally,  I gave it a listen myself and it really did sound astonishingly good 😍

 

HIFIMAN (USA)

HIFIMAN is a very popular headphone brand, with a range stretching from the €130 HE400se model, through the iconic €6,700 Susvara planar magnetic model, to the €8,800 SHANGRI-LA electrostatic headphones. It was the latter that made the biggest impression on us in the HIFIMAN room.

 

The centrepiece of the exhibition was the HE1000 WiFi model shown in the wall-mounted photo,
which the gentleman on the right spent so long trying out that we couldn’t wait any longer.

 

The SHANGRI-LA tube amplifier was one of the most beautifully designed units
 we saw at the exhibition, and what’s more, it sounded outstanding.

 

We have to admit that we tried out the Susvara headphones in this room and on about three other systems. Perhaps our expectations were too high for one of the world’s most famous headphones, but none of us was particularly blown away by the sound of the Susvara.

 

MEZE Audio  (Romania)

 

We both listen to music at home using the Meze 109 Pro dynamic, open-back headphones; I also have a Meze 99 Classics V2 dynamic, closed-back headphones, which I take with me when travelling (because when I use these, other people can’t hear the music I’m listening to).

So, it’s worth noting from the outset that we’re somewhat biased when it comes to the headphones from Baia Mare, yet we’ve tried to assess their range impartially.

 

At the Meze stand, where the headphones could be listened to in a fairly small, enclosed room.
It is unclear whether this was due to a fault with the air conditioning or
the lack of one, but it was very hot inside and there was little oxygen,
just like at the World Cup matches in Mexico...😎

In the small room, Meze had on display almost all its models, including the flagship ARTA – unveiled in Vienna – which costs €6,000. This is how Meze spanned the range from the 99 Classics, which enjoyed global success in 2016 and costs 100,000 forints, to the 2 million forint high-end model.

Naturally, we listened to the ARTA, but the circumstances did  not allow to listen an open-back planar magnetic headphones in complete tranquillity and silence, so the sound quality being less good than expected does not yet mean that the ARTA will not become a new benchmark.

 

Gábor is listening to the ARTA.
He’s had it on his head for much less time
than the final D8000 DC Pro😉
 It’s worth mentioning that the design is marvellous!

 

 

In this room, Gábor liked the Meze Elite best; admittedly, this was his first time hearing them, but he’s been round to mine many times, and they really are sensational headphones. Meanwhile, I tried out the Empyrean II , which sounded very good with the Serbian-made AURIS Headonia tube amplifier.

What surprised me was that one of the best sounds in this room came from the new STRADA closed-back dynamic headphones – with a wooden finish reminiscent of the Meze LIRIC’s design – which, like the 109 Pro, cost €800.

 

 

RAAL 1995  (Serbia)

 

Reporters at previous exhibitions spoke with great enthusiasm about the sound of the original RAAL SR1a model, emphasising that the ribbon headphones combines  the best features of various systems, namely the astonishing detail of electrostatic headphones and the natural sound of dynamic headphones.

 

The original model had a very unusual design,
but its sound is reportedly sensational .

 

 

RAAL 1995 Magna (€5,400). These headphones have a more conventional shape,
and the small, cylindrical device plugged into the Magna is necessary
because the impedance of RAAL headphones is extremely low (less than 1 ohm!),
so this cylindrical impedance booster was needed for older systems,
which, with its 32-ohm output, can then be connected to the amplifier.

 

The gold-coloured Immanis model costs €7, 900 and the company’s newer
amplifiers already incorporate the impedance booster.

 

The Immanis, with its latest headphone amplifier costs €10,000 – that is, 3.5 million forints – so  we might well lcall it an ‘oligarch’s headphone’  .😏

Regardless of this, I take my hat off to the Serbian developers, because for me, the RAAL 1995 Immanis headphones were clearly the real star of the exhibition. The sound quality of these headphones is absolutely brilliant, and they were also very comfortable to wear. I didn’t hear better sound quality from any other headphones at the exhibition. And that practically means that the RAAL 1995 Immanis is currently the best headphones in the world! 💖

 

 

ZMF Headphones (USA)

 

A typical scene from the exhibition: the best headphones could be listened to using either
the Serbian Auris, or the Polish Feliks tube headphones amplifiers.

ZMF’s wooden, very expensive high-end headphones sounded great, particularly when paired with tube amplifiers costing over €10,000, but I must say that I found these units too heavy; as a result, I would certainly have taken them off my head after half an hour of listening, something that hardly ever happens with my Meze headphones. In terms of comfort, apart from the most comfortable MEZE models, the HIFIMAN, Dan Clark and RAAL 1995 headphones were the best.

écoute (USA - Canada)

 

 

For those with smaller ears,
this very special pair of headphones is ideal.

During the final hour of the exhibition, I was able to try out these headphones, which feature a built-in DAC and a tube (!) amplifier. What’s more, the écoute is even capable of LDAC wireless playback and surprisingly, the pleasant wired sound didn’t deteriorate much even in wireless (Bluetooth) mode. That said, these headphones do not quite reach the level of the very best. They cost 400,000 forints.

 

 

Dan Clark Audio (USA)

 

The 500 attendees at the exhibition severely limited the time we could spend with any one exhibitor’s equipment, but as I was determined to listen to the American Dan Clark Audio products – which had been showered with awards at the end of last year – we took the opportunity in the final moments of the exhibition to listen to two models: the (new) Noire X closed-back headphones and the EON Core model.

             

Dan Clark Noire X (dynamic),                     Dan Clark EON Core (closed-back)
closed-back headphones                      planar magnetic headphones

(price: $1,100)                                                    (price: $900)

 

The time we had was enough to conclude that these headphones sound excellent and are comfortable too, making them suitable for listening to music for longer periods . Next time, it’ll be worth spending a little more time at the Dan Clark Audio stand...

 

 

The best experiences at the exhibition 😍

 

Feliks Audio (Poland)

 

We received the warmest welcome from them.  We had a very good chat with Michael Feliks, who, together with his brother, made the Feliks brand famous.

Michael explained that their father had been trying to build valve radios as early as the age of 11 (!!!). When Michael and his brother grew up, they tried to persuade their father to set up a business, as they saw great potential in the development of valve amplifiers. At the time, their father didn’t really believe in the whole thing. Later the boys convinced him and today Feliks Audio has become one of the world’s best-known and most successful manufacturers of tube amplifiers .

I’ve also been using a Feliks unit for quite a few years now (the Feliks Echo), which I  told about Michael, and of course I told him what a joy it is to enjoy an analogue sound from a digital source (Bluesound Node 2) thanks to this excellent piece of kit. I was quite honest with him when I mentioned that the price of the Echo has risen very significantly in recent years, and how lucky I was to have got hold of one at a good price.

Michael acknowledged the significant price rise, which he attributed to a substantial increase in the cost of raw materials.

At the Feliks exhibition, the tube amplifiers were presented in a very stylish manner, mounted  on a wooden stand:

The new Echo costs €750.

 

The Envy, considered one of the best on the market, costs 13,000 € (!)

I’d been wanting to listen to the Envy for a long time, and I have to say, it was one of the best headphone amplifiers at the exhibition. It’s no coincidence that numerous headphone manufacturers chose this amplifier to showcase their new models. Its design is impressive, but it’s the sound that’s truly brilliant.

 

His father regarded valve amplifiers merely as a hobby, but together with his sons he managed to achieve great success and earn the recognition of tube amplifier enthusiasts worldwide.

 

 

Ruark Audio (England)

 

We found ourselves returning to this room time and again.
Ruark’s equipment is characterised by superb design and excellent sound.
We listened to the music through the R710 on the left and the Talisman-R floorstanding speakers.

 

 

 

The Ruark R710 is an all-in-one device equiped  with
 Burr Brown DAC, a streamer (Spotify, TIDAL and QOBUZ connect),
and a 2 x 200 W Class-D amplifier, which has equipped even  with Bluetooth (aptX HD) support.
Incidentally, you can slide a CD into the slot on the top right and play it too!
The remote "dial" similar to the one on top of the unit, is a design masterpiece in its own right,
and could well be the deciding factor in persuading your loved one to buy it! 😘

The R710 costs €2,600, whilst the Talisman-R floorstanding speakers cost €1,750, so the complete, superb-sounding system can be purchased for €4,350 (i.e. approximately 1.5 million forints), although prices here at home may be slightly higher – which, despite the significant strengthening of the forint, comes as no great surprise to us.

At the High End exhibition a home audio system with such superb sound quality and such a visually stunning design was considered exceptionally good value for money; it is no coincidence that Ruark’s products have won numerous awards on the Show.

 

SOUL NOTE (Japan)

 

The Japanese engineers have packed their knowledge and experience into large,
 very heavy boxes; so I have to say 
that these enclosures truly have turned out to be aesthetically pleasing.

 

 

We were surprised to discover that the equipment from a manufacturer unknown to us delivered one of the most pleasing sounds. Later, at another stand, we learnt that SOUL NOTE was founded by a group of Japanese engineers who had previously worked as developers at Marantz (oops!).

These are genuine high-end electronics, including DACs (digital-to-analogue converters), SACD- players, transports, streamers, pre - amplifiers, as well as amplifiers and power amplifiers. Prices for products range from €13,000 to €22,000. 😲

 

 

ALBEDO + Faber’s Cables (Italy)

 

We knew that Italian coffee, food and drinks all are excellent, but we were somewhat surprised to find that the best sound at the exhibition by far was at an Italian company’s stand. 😃

 

Perhaps it is no coincidence that the beautifully crafted Italian ALBEDO speakers
were driven by the aforementioned Japanese SOUL NOTE equipment.

In this hall, thanks to the decades of experience of Fabrizio Baretta distinguished Italian expert, the music sounded as though we were sitting in the auditorium of the Opera House!
It is also worth mentioning that the music was played this time on an AVID turntable (turntable: €21,000, tonearm: €6,300, cartridge: €9,600), so literally we have to spend a fortune for this system. , however, when we closed our eyes, the performance by violinist Kyung Wha Chung and the London S Symphony Orchestra (Saint-Saëns: Violin Concerto) sounded incredibly natural and lifelike. We heard a vast soundstage, not only to the sides but also upwards. It was a fascinating experience that drew us back to this room time and again.

 The very kind Mr. Baretta told us that once Andrea Bocelli had visited his showroom (see photo). As he heard such an incredibly spacious soundstage, he went over to the speaker and, feeling it with his hand, realised it was a small speaker. He asked how could this little speaker produce such superb sound in every direction of the room, which Mr. Baretta proudly explained to the world-famous opera singer.

 

Let there be no doubt that there were even more expensive systems at the exhibition, but we didn’t hear better sound anywhere else! Mr. Baretta even adjusted the so-called target curve (such as the Harman target/curve) on a small (black) unit. Well, if someone spends decades honing their skills and is passionate about what he dos, he’ll be capable of such magic. 👍👍👍

 

 

 

HEED AUDIO (Hungary)
at the Chronos (Taiwan) stand

 

We were delighted to discover that my friend Zsolt Huszti’s company – the manufacturer of the HEED amplifiers I use in my home system –,  was also exhibiting at this show and I wasn’t at all surprised that we heard one of the best sounds in the room.

HEED wasn’t listed amongst the exhibitors, but their audio system could be heard at the stand of Chronos, a Taiwanese company. The system, which showcased almost the entire HEED range and was complemented by Dorn floorstanding speakers – also developed by Zsolt’s team – sounded absolutely beautiful right from the start.

Here and now comes a slightly funny anecdote, but I’ll try to tell it with a straight face. 😐

The Taiwan-based manufacturer brought the full HEED range to the event so that, as a showcase, using it  they could try to sell their own in-house design: the small "cube", positioned between the black Obelisk and the silver Lagrange.

The Taiwanese claimed that the little cube, on offer for $5,000, significantly improves the system’s sound quality!

Well, we listened to the sound without the cube, and then with it. Then Gábor and I looked at each other, and we both agreed that, whilst the system did sound slightly better, we weren’t “ sure” that this improvement in quality would be worth spending that much money on. 😏

 

 

CYRUS + NEAT ACOUSTICS (England)

 

 Among the best-sounding systems at the exhibition, we must mention
the CYRUS 80Amp (all-in-one) network player/amplifier and the Neat Vito Classic
floorstanding speaker pair, which sounded absolutely superb.

 

The new Cyrus 80 Amp is a streaming amplifier with a colour display, fitted with an ESS DAC, a phono (turntable) preamplifier and a headphone amplifier. It is based on the BluOS streaming platform, which I also use and favour, and is one of the very few devices available today that it is a device capable of full MQA decoding, which is ready for Lenbrook’s new (upcoming) streaming service.

The sound quality in this room was quite exceptional; we heard a very natural, distortion-free and lifelike sound, although it is true that you have to pay considerably more for this system than for RUARK’s devices. The 80 Amp costs €7,000, whilst the new pair of Neat speakers is expected to cost €6,000.

Needless to say, most of the equipment on display at the High End exhibition costs considerably more than this, even though a good number of those super-expensive units were unable to produce sound quality of this calibre.

 

HYDRATION BREAK (relaxation)

 

I’d like to reassure everyone that we haven’t reached the quarter-mark of the article , dear reader, but are already two-thirds of the way through. However, in reference to a much-discussed new feature of the current football World Cup, here’s a light-hearted section with a few amusing and interesting images.

 

 The Wilson Audio Autobiography (priced at $788,000)
 could even play a leading role in the next Transformers film 😂

 

The proof of the pudding isn’t always in the eating; in this case, it’s in the listening.
I spotted these in-ear headphones (TWS) at the Chinese Moondrop stand.

 

 

 

 

 

Clever marketing at the British company iFi’s stand: the company’s devices
featured in famous paintings (although Botticelli’s ‘The Birth of Venus’
doesn’t really go with the ZEN DAC 3). iFi’s latest release
was the successor to the xDSD Gryphon, which I’d previously reviewed:
the GR2 portable DAC/headphone amplifier (€550)

 

 

The image even has a title: Adele Bloch-Bauer and
the iDSD Valkyrie, the latter priced at €1,700.
Poor Gustav Klimt must be turning in his grave...😎

 

 

 

We saw this pink pig in many rooms;
perhaps was the exhibition’s mascot (?)

 

 

A favourite amongst ladies might be this classic handbag, reminiscent of the
Jamo HYG Flow Bluetooth speaker, priced at €129.
We really liked it.

 

 

The turntable-cum-desk and pair of speakers, designed by the Austrian company TONE Factory – clearly with young people in mind is designed for those
who don’t want to put their audio equipment on stands in their rooms.

 

 

I’ve been wondering whether this image belongs in the ‘fun and colourful news’ section,
namely the ‘ hydration break ’,  but in the end I put it here.
Unfortunately, we didn’t get to hear these speakers, but I really liked their design. 👌

 

 

These funnel-like devices, designed to produce sound,
are quite striking to look at, but they weren’t
pleasing to the ear, especially given their price…

 

 

Thorens’ sister brand, the German company Coturn, unveiled this "portable" turntable,
which is capable of streaming audio via Bluetooth (aptX) to a Bluetooth speaker
 (at the exhibition, it was paired with a Bang & Olufsen Beolit 20 speaker).

At first glance, I really liked this design, but I quickly found myself wondering,
why do we love vinyl? Well, because it has an analogue sound.
 Now, if we digitise the signal read by the analogue cartridge and
send it to a speaker via a Bluetooth transmitter, it seems like a really cool idea, but
in reality, we’re actually removing the very benefits of the system! What’s more, it costs €377!
We have to ask ourself: Is it really a good idea ???😉

 Let’s hope that when using the headphone output, the owner of the device
can still enjoy the signal from the Audio-Technica pickup in analog form. (?) 

 

 

 

 

 

Further points of interest

I hope everyone took exactly three minutes to read the colourful news items
intended for the hydration break . 😄

 

 

The Chinese company Cayin exhibited tube amplifiers and portable
music players, which sounded excellent.
  Cayin develops and manufactures very high-quality devices.

 

 

Alongside Birkin bags, these are another status symbol.
The reason two tonearms are fitted to a high-end turntable
because this avoids having to swap out tonearms and cartridges,
which is not such a straightforward manoeuvre.
This allows the music enthusiast can try out cartridges
(such as MM and MC types) and different sounding tonearms.
(Note: we even saw turntables fitted with three tonearms at the exhibition!)

A few disappointments

 

We were absolutely delighted when we realised that, within minutes,
at the Yamaha stand, the world-famous, highly discerning ECM record label’s
Zsófia Boros – a guitarist of Hungarian origin living in Vienna –
would be appearing as a guest at the Yamaha stand.
As we could see that the artist’s guitar case was there we were quite hopeful that we’d
listen her playing live, but to our great regret, once the artist had been introduced, the music
was played on the  Yamaha playback system, much to our regret.😞

 Fans of Yamaha equipments should not take this comment as a criticism;
the criticism merely pointed out that where a live concert is possible, nothing beats it.

First of all - I’m not joking - we asked each other why
are there two screens in this room? Is someone going to get changed in here?
Of course, we soon realised that these weren’t screens,
but electrostatic loudspeakers. I’ve heard good sounding speakers
in this genre  (such as Martin Logan), but
these speakers didn’t sound very good at all; the problem wasn’t just the lack of bass,
but generally speaking, I didn’t like the sound they produced .

 

Surprising price reductions in the final hours of the exhibition

By the time we arrived at the Topping stand two hours before the exhibition closed,
we noticed that the remaining units had been marked down by 40 per cent!
The DX9 desktop DAC/headphone amplifier shown in the photo is the company’s top-of-the-range model. The Chinese exhibitor didn’t want to take their units home, so they decided to sell them at a deep discount - the DX9 for $780 instead of $1,300, which is a very good price for such a superb piece of kit. Gábor hesitated, but in the end it wasn’t him who bought it, but someone else...

I’ve already written about the Chinese company Fosi Audio and some of its products in my
year-end round-up. (Use Google Translate for an English version)
 They were also there in Vienna, so we had a go at
the K7, which costs €210 in Europe – surprisingly compact in real life, but
I really like the design of the desktop DAC/headphone amplifier, and on top of that
with Fosi’s own i5 planar magnetic headphones:

The i5 is available here in Hungary for 220,000 forints.

 

The Fosi K7, paired with the i5 headphones, sounded very good for the price. In this instance – which is very rare – Gábor and I didn’t see eye to eye, because when the not-particularly-professional Fosi staff – sent some young people over – who were probably not developers but salespeople – offered a significant discount on the K7 (€139 instead of €210), I told Gábor: if I were you, I’d take one of these home.

When he connected his iBasso DX240 music player to the K7 using a USB-C– USB-C cable, Gábor’s player unfortunately froze after a while, so evaporated his confidence in the device.

He also liked the sound quality, but said that the DX240 sounded at least as good as the K7, which was high praise for the K7, given that the iBasso DX240 had previously been available for 400,000 forints, whilst the K7’s discounted price would have been just 50,000 forints. 😲

 

Admittedly, there are compatibility issues ( such as the fact that it’s not easy to connect the K7 to an iPhone with a Lightning connector), but we have at least established that Fosi Audio’s products offer outstanding value for money, so the K7 is highly recommended for audiophiles and, above all, gamers – and it’s available here in Hungary for 77,000 forints!

 

 

Unfortunately, it wasn’t really possible to listen to the devices from some of the manufacturers that are very popular these days (such as EVERSOLO or WIIM), so the most I can say about them is that their design was attractive.

 

 

This report perhaps captures well just how tiring, yet thoroughly enjoyable this trip to Vienna was for music lovers, and how rewarding it was to listen to (a part of) the equipments on display there.

Gábor and I have agreed that we’ll only attend the Vienna High End exhibition every second year.😘

However, anyone whose interest we’ve piqued is welcome to mark the dates in their diary:
HIGH END Vienna – 6–9 May 2027.

 

 

As I visited the Leonardo da Vinci Museum (among other places) in Rome last week,
I can say with certainty that the smile in the Mona Lisa isn’t quite strong;
it’s quite likely that the marketing people have presented it this way, but, as
we know that every saint’s hand leans towards themselves.