The 2024 Capital Audio Fest: Jacob Heilbrunn

Even if the crowds were down a bit (numerically and temperamentally), exhibitors were without exception pleased with CAF. That’s because, in the words of one audio exec, “the show was highly productive.” Translation: a lot of business was transacted. Companies took orders in high numbers, and that’s about the most welcome outcome they could ask for.

Because rooms at CAF are gradually transitioning from dealers to distributors and manufacturers, we’ve split up coverage a bit differently this time. To do justice to all the product introductions, Andrew and Alan focused exclusively on those intros, dividing them as usual between Inspirational (relatively affordable) and Aspirational (not so much). That freed Jacob to report on the best systems he heard at the show—and there were plenty of good-sounding ones.

So, without further ado, here’s what we found and heard at this year’s Capital Audio Fest.

My TAS colleagues, Alan Taffel and Andrew Quint, tasked me with writing about the rooms at Capital Audio Fest 2024 that I found most intriguing. Needless to say, I welcomed the challenge, but should confess that I did feel rather outfoxed, if not discombobulated, after I headed to the Command Performance AV room, the very first one that I visited. There disco music was blaring loudly enough to send you into sensory overload. Adding to the sense of confusion was the fact that Command Performance’s employees had donned fluorescent period wigs, rendering them almost unrecognizable. Good golly! For a moment, I was convinced that I really had gone back to the future.

Upon regaining my bearings, I was encouraged to discover that I had no trouble identifying one Michael Fremer, a longtime reviewer for TAS and full-time cognoscente of rock and pop music, who was, of course, well-suited to perform the eleemosynary role of DJ for several hours. He employed a beautiful J. Sikora Standard Max Supreme turntable ($38,500) paired with a Doshi Audio Phono Stage ($20,995). This union of Polish craftsmanship with American electronic wizardry produced some excellent audio alchemy. The Audiovector Trapeze Reimaged speakers, which retail for $19,950 a pair, displayed impressive punch and slam. Ultimately, I left the room shaken as much by the garb of Command Performance’s employees as by the dynamics.

A more soothing experience was provided by Jeff Catalano of the estimable High Water Sound located in New York. His Teutonic system—Cessaro Horn Acoustics Opus 1 SE loudspeakers ($55,000 per pair) coupled with two Opus Subs ($24,000 each)—sounded ravishingly sweet and inviting. Perhaps sweeter than the real thing, but who’s complaining? After playing an LP with tintinnabulatory effects, Catalano whipped out what I think was a Decca LP of Elgar that was more than a little enticing. His rig was not only a sonic treat but also an aesthetic one. He showcased the gorgeous TW-Acustic Raven LS-3 Copper turntable, which retails for $24,000, coupled with the Raven 12** tonearm ($6500) running into a. Raven phonostage ($25,000). It almost goes without saying that I was quite smitten by the sound.

At the other end of the spectrum was the Potomac Room featuring the Acora Acoustics VRC-1 at a not insubstantial $218,000 per pair, not to mention a passel of VAC Statement gear. The VAC Statement phonostage, which produces sublime sound, comes in at $82,000 as does the linestage. Add in the SAT XD1 turntable for $238,600 and a SAT CF1-09 tonearm at $71,100 (both the brainchildren of designer Marc Gomez) mated with a Lyra Atlas Lambda phono cartridge at $13,195, and you truly are talking about a statement system. And the overall sonic effect, as the music swelled and ebbed, was as prodigious as the nearby Potomac River.

Then there was United Home Audio’s demonstration of an MBL system. As always, I was taken by the ability of these omnidirectional loudspeakers to throw a marvelously stable, effortless and filigreed soundstage. The MBL 101 E Mk.II loudspeaker ($91,000 per pair) was coupled to MBL 9011 mono amplifiers ($64,1000 each). A new MBL C41 network player ($11,100) and the United Home Audio Apollo (currently in Jonathan Valin’s domicile, I was told by United Home Audio’s Greg Beron) analog tape deck supplied the musical goodies.

I only had a brief moment to pop into the superb gear that Elliot Goldman of Bending Wave and Jonathan Halpern of Tone Audio brought to the Jackson Room, but it was mouthwatering stuff, ranging from the Gobel Divi Comtesse loudspeakers ($60,000 per pair) and the highly touted Riviera APL-01SE preamplifier and AFM-100 SE monoblock amplifiers, respectively $51,995 and $82,000. Would I like to audition these remarkable electronics? You betcha. The hot new thing—the Wadax Studio Player ($38,800)—was also in situ.

Nothing seemed more ubiquitous than Stenheim loudspeakers, which I encountered in at least three separate rooms. The first was in the VPI room, the second at Alma Audio’s room, and the third at the House of Stereo’s room. I heard a few strains of the Janacek Quartet playing a Dvorak string quartet in F major on a Decca LP, but it was hard for me to make out what was occurring in the VPI room, at least musically, because there was some scuffling among reviewers far more important than yours truly about who was top dog. I made a hasty exit. In the Alma room, the Stenheim Alumine Five SE ($76,500 per pair) was on display along with Vinnie Rossi Brama Gen 2 monoblock amplifiers ($59,950) per pair) and a preamplifier from the same company at $38,995. It’s always hard to know exactly what you’re listening to in a show environment, but the Stenheims seemed to deliver alacrity and clarity. A knuckle rap indicated immunity to resonance above and beyond the call of duty. The Stenheims were also on display in the Lincoln Room where the House of Stereo paired them with a passel of Viva equipment, which has always appealed to me. Here it was with a Viva Audio Solista stereo amplifier ($30,000) and a Viva Audio Line preamplifier ($32,500). To my ear, Viva has always punched above its price class. But then again, I’m a sucker for the venerable 845 tube that the company likes to employ.

I don’t want to sound like I’m shirking the stern mandate that my colleagues gave me, but I can’t help concluding that the Capital Audio Fest isn’t really about deciding what’s “best at show,” or about drawing what the lawyers like to call invidious distinctions. If I had to pick a new product that intrigued me the most it would probably be the new Wadax Studio player, partly because of its cool looks and partly because it’s not priced in the stratosphere, at least by high-end standards. The room that, in many ways, I liked best is a simple one—the central atrium where various vendors were busily selling LPs, both ancient and modern. To me, it, more than anything else at the show, represents the essence of the hobby.