stereophile.com n August2019 27
- Driven by MSB’s new M500
monoblock power amplifiers
($118,500/pair, probably available in
August), which output 1000W into
4 ohms with zero global negative
feedback, these Magico M6 speakers
delivered all of Sonny Rollins’s smooth,
warm, sophisticated elegance, Jason
observed. The front end was the MSB
Select DAC with Femto 33 Clock and
Mono Power Bases ($116,000 total),
Select transport with Select Power
Base ($41,000). Cabling was by
Analysis Plus. - “I’m sitting in the Alluxity room
next to Joseph Audio’s Jeff Joseph and
wondering how his new graphene-
cone Perspective2 loudspeakers
($14,999/pair) can sound so big and
solid and transparent when they’re so
far apart,” Herb Reichert wrote. “I’m
looking for the hole in the middle, or
at least a fuzzy-creamy center, but I
can’t find it. All I can ‘see’ are the solid,
accurately described voices of singers
like Ella and Elvis. I turn to Jeff and
say, ‘Something’s wrong here: This
sounds too good to
be true.’ He laughs
and points to a sign
to his right: Every-
thing you hear its true.”
This big, beautiful
sound was fa-
cilitated by a vintage
Technics SL1500
reel-to-reel recorder
with a Doshi Audio
tape preamp and
some burnt-orange
Alluxity electronics:
the Pre Two with
relay-based volume
control (€9850), and
two Mono One amplifiers (€20,000/
pair). Cables were by Purist Audio.- To end at the beginning: Herb
arrived early for the show and got
inside Munich’s MOC the day before
it opened. He took this photo of
preparations underway before advising
hi-fi skeptics—those who think our
hobby is dying—that they need to get
out more.
“Honestly,” he wrote. “Were you to
visit Munich today and experience just
the crazy amount of High End 2019
signage—it’s in the airport, and along the
highway, and in the cabs!—you would
realize that this is truly the Greatest
(audio) Show on Earth. This is the
global crossroads of amps and speakers
and DACs and turntables—the major-
ity of which would probably be new to
you, had you never been here before.
High End Munich isn’t just bigger than
RMAF or AXPONA—it’s spectacu-
larly huge—and it isn’t just more of the
same: It’s completely different. Munich
High End is an immersive education in
global audio culture.” n - The Absolare Passion
integrated amplifier ($26,500),
ReQuest The Raptor Plus music
server (1TB version with DAC
that handles PCM up to 32/384,
and DSD up to 256: $15,900),
Rockport Atria speakers
($21,500/pair), Echole Limited
Edition Power Center power
conditioner ($20,000), and new
Echole Infinity cabling ($TBD)
produced “wonderful, truly mu-
sical warmth and clarity,” Jason
wrote in his listening diary. “On mul-
tiple tracks, starting with ‘Love Man
Riding’ from Philipp Fankhauser, I
was simply and totally seduced by this
system’s warm and inviting sound.” - Jason was impressed with
Apertura’s new flagship speaker,
the Enigma MKII (€23,000/pair in
standard finish, seen here). A two-
way design with ribbon tweeter, a
frequency range of 30-30,000Hz,
±3dB, and impedance of 4 ohms,
the speaker made lovely music in a
system that also included electronics
by CH Precision and prototype Grand
Prix Monza amp stands ($6350 each).
Connections were made by Kimber
Kable and Crystal Cable. - Marten unveiled its new Mingus
Orchestra four-way loudspeaker
(€185,000/pair), which uses the same
drivers and crossover as their top-of-
the-line Supreme 2 (€450,000/pair)
but with fewer bass drivers and a less
expensive cabinet. Jason thought the
new Marten sounded superb.
This room deserves a prize for its
innovative programming, featuring big
band music from Nelson Riddle and
Harry James. Charles Mackerras’s re-
cording of Schubert’s Ninth Symphony
totally filled the space but lacked the
last little bit of air and pliability.
Marten’s Mingus Orchestra stands
more than 67" off the floor and has a
sensitivity of 89dB, impedance of 6
ohms, and weight of 288lb. Also in
the system: Jorma Statement cabling
(€120,000 total); CH Precision’s D1
Drive, C1 DAC, L1 analog preamp,
P1 phono preamp, and M1.1 mono
amps; and the SAT XD1 Record
Player System.
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