DUTCH AUDIO EVENT 2024 REPORT PART 2

Join Lin and Stu for the second day of our visit to the Dutch Audio Event 2024, with Part 2 of our show report.

ALL IMAGES AND TEXT ARE COPYRIGHT HiFi PiG AND MAY NOT BE USED WITHOUT PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT FROM THE EDITOR

We hope that you have read and enjoyed our Dutch Audio Event 2024 Report Part 1, if not click here to read what we heard and saw on the first day of the show…

DUTCH AUDIO EVENT 2024 REPORT PART 2

A great night out in Eindhoven and an early night had us bright eyed and bushy tailed for the Sunday at DAE 2024…

Basel Acoustics, Boenicke, Vertere

Basel Acoustics is a new company that is a partnership between Sven Boenicke and Piotr Misiewiscz. The speakers cost 12860 euros. The top speaker is completely suspended, they are made of solid wood and are available in ash or oak. There’s a tweeter on the back that is set up to play “ambient”. Playing some very Sunday morning jazz on a Vertere DG1S record player and a CH Precision all in one DAC and Amp with a Innuos Statement streamer. Lovely sounding system that was a great start to the final day of Dutch Audio Event. The ambient thing on the speakers certainly adds something to the mix.

Penhold 

Roland 303s are a great way to wake up an audio show and the Thorens Soundwaall open baffle speakers (11K) sounded great playing a bit for techno – not experienced these before. The turntable was the TD 1600/TP160 and the phono stage was by Fezz in the form of the Gratia Prestige (1850). The Lybra 300B amp is a lovely thing and a bit of a bargain at 5349. The Fezz Equinox DAC was also being used at 2500 euros. 

Grimm

I’m a big fan of Grimm Audio and how they have managed to successfully fuse pro audio know how with home audio savvy to create a luxury lifestyle product. The full system was the LS1C speakers, the latest version with new firmware and a new tweeter with the latest Hypex modules. The new tweeter is made in conjunction with SEAS and moves away from the previous Beryllium. The digital source was the MU1 the turntable A Dr Feikert turntable was paired with a PW1 (phono Wizard) phono stage – JFET design with lots of loading options along with different gains. It has a specially designed power transformer with very low magnetic stray fields and low common mode coupling, allowing an integrated power supply and therefor a compact design. They were playing Arooj Aftab, a Pakistani singer that you should check out.

ERCT  

Davis speakers don’t get nearly enough airtime in the British HiFi press and I have no idea why this should be as they have always sounded great whenever we’ve have heard them at shows or reviewed them at home – the DAE 2024 was no exception. Electronics were by Norma in this system along with an Eversolo streamer. A Thales turntable was also in this room but not being used when we were in there. 

ERCT 2

The second ERCT room was rammed to the point of us having to come back a little later – this is a good thing. The Daniel Hertz M1 Delta loudspeakers with the Maria 800 amplifier. The speakers are huge and are made of plexiglass. For those that aren’t aware Daniel Hertz is the new brand from Mark Levinson.  The way the digital processing is done somewhat differently with DH which aims to be a more analogue way of processing. They played me a track called Howler by MG -The Third Chimpanzee. 

Angstrom AudioLab

This was an interesting looking system. The brand is Italian and so are the speakers by Le Soprano Audio – Apollo Xiii. They are made by a company that makes custom-made drums (14K). The cables are made in the Alps and are called Cableless – cool name for a brand. The stands are AriaMateria. Angstrom is an interesting brand and fuses valve technology with solid-state designs. Love the idea of having the top off the amp so that you could have a look inside. 

Hifinesse

Hifinesse were showing off a very nice sounding system made up from Gryphon, Nordost and VPI to a packed room with standing room only. 

LEEMA, HANA and Raidho

At two-grand a box this new Leema Quantum kit seems to be a bit of a bargain. I’ve reviewed these Raidho speakers in the past and they are incredibly revealing and offer nowhere for the electronics to hide…not that there is any need for these to hide. 

HANA cartridges are a bit of a fave at HiFi PiG Towers but we didn’t get to hear them. What we did get to hear was a bit of Infected Mushroom that was punchy and tight on this system. 

Goldmund and Clarysis

Clarysis are full range ribbon speakers based on the old Apogee designs that readers of a certain age will remember well and I know that Lucas at Lampizator has just bought a pair for his home listing room and will be pairing with the brand at the Warsaw show. The Modus Audio power amp was being used to drive the speakers. The Bergmann turntable was paired with the DS Audio W3 cartridge and equaliser. The Amps are built to order and you can have them in any colour you like – even if it’s not black. As you would expect, these speakers are fast and the classical piano that we got played sounded very in-the-room-live. 

Another system using small Clarysis speakers and Goldmund electronics was set up in the room but we didn’t get a chance to hear that one. 

Big Boys AudionToys and Omega Audio Concepts

We first came across Italian brand Omega Audio Concepts at the Deluxe show in Munich a few years ago and were immediately impressed with the way the system was displayed – very different and very cool. They do electronics, speakers, and cables so you can have an Omega Audio Concepts system from front to end. The full system was the Assolo integrated. All cables are solid core. The CD player is a separated into transport and DAC in two boxes with separate PSU for each box. All the boxes are milled from solid aluminium, as are the speakers which cost 18K -this seems very reasonable for the speakers that are a four way system that has a 15” woofer hidden inside. 

Music 2 Audio Imports

And the prize for the first playing of Stevie Ray Vaughn goes to M2AI. Blumenhofer Genuin FS 3 MkIII speakers were paired with Trafomatic Elegance Evolution valve amps and preamplifier. I joke about this song but it did sound splendid on this very elegant-looking and sounding system. A very nicely put together room too. 

Actual Audio and Live Fidelity 

Interesting room this one with Bastanis open baffle speakers paired with mainly SW1X and Allnic electronics., though a Metronome steamer was also in evidence. Playing a mainly percussion-based track showed these to be a dynamic speaker, even in this very large room – which they filled effortlessly. 

Driade and Flow

A SoulNote amplifier was paired with the Driade Model 9 standmount speakers – on SolidSteel stands that we use at home. These are a new speaker brand to me but are an interesting front-ported design that sounded excellent at Dutch Audio Event. 

JoeNit

A full Rega set of electronics (bar the DAC and streamer) was partnered with Totem speakers in this system. The Planar 8 turntable uses the ND7 cartridge, a moving magnet design that went into the Aria phono stage from Rega. The amplifier was the Rega Aetos integrated using the Innuos streamer and the DAC is a Chord Electronics Qutest. The speakers are the Forest Signature which I thouught would struggle to fill this very large space, but they didn’t struggle at all. 

Audio Analogue and Airtech

Another well-put-together room that used the Aitech ATS01 loudspeakers with Airtech Zero series cables. The new Audio Analogue Maestro 2 200 W amplifier along with the AADAC DAC and AADRIVE CD transport. The speakers are interesting and combine magnetoplanar and dynamic technologies. The bass driver is a 165mm unit to allow for fast bass. It’s a 2.5 way design that is reflex-loaded.

Leica

Followers on social media will know that I’m a bit of a Leica fanboy and shoot an M10 on a daily basis. However, an audio show is not necessarily the place you would expect to find this giant of the camera world. However, this is a great showcase for the Leica Cine One projector. The speakers are the new Linn 150 and the Klimax DSM provided the juice. Leica fans will note that the first camera is the new 43mm Q.

City Audio Trade 

City Audio Trade promised Thivan Labs amplifiers but was using a SoulNote A2SH into QLN Prestice Three speakers. Power conditioning was by Audes. The Merason DAC 1 MKII DAC was in evidence as was the Blue Amop Surzur balanced mm/mc phono stage (6K).

Mafico

Mafico are a big name in audio in these parts and we are expecting an announcement with regards Mafico and the Dutch Audio event in the near future…watch this space. In this room we had Morel Sopran 634 from 15K) speakers paired with the fabulous Chord DAVE DAC (still one of my favourite DACs even after all these years). The rest of the system was a Chord M Scaler, Ultimate Pre 3, and the Ultima 3 monos. Good sounding system and always great to see the good folk at Chord wherever in the world we find ourselves. What I loved about this room was that the folk running it seemed to be having a blast playing their tunes. 

Cyrus and Audio Physic

The new Cyrus 40 series was making its show debut at Dutch Audio event. In fact everything in the system was new including the new Audio Physic Tempo loudspeakers. The Cyrus 40 series is made up of an integrated amplifier, integrated CD player, network streamer and external power supply. The team are also working on a brand-new phono preamplifier, which we have been told will be available later next year. 

Engineered from anodised aluminium and with all key components custom-designed, the 40 series is made in Britain, the home of Cyrus. The first thing you’ll notice about the 40 series, is the all-new sleek design. The front panel is uncluttered, with a headphone connection and a beautiful edge to edge glass finish that hides a high-resolution TFT display, bringing full-colour album art to streaming fans.

It is good to see that the attention to detail did not stop there, with the main chassis being made from aluminium, and finished in an eye-catching anodised brushed black. The volume control has been custom-designed from five separate elements and also engineered from solid aluminium, providing very positive feedback to the user. Read more in the news here.

This is the first time I’ve seen this brand spanking new 40 series of electronics and it looks even better int he flesh than it does in the images we got sent. You can read the review of the CD 40 here. 

Klipsch, Onkyo, Sonoro

DeVore Fidelity and Riviera Labs

The “Handmade in Brooklyn” Orangutan speakers by John DeVore (who was in attendance at DAE) are a masterclass in stripped-back design that sound very natural, particularly on the end of the excellent Riviera Labs electronics. The Riviera Labs APL01SE preamplifier made up the heart of this system and went into a pair of AFM mono power amplifiers. This system was a treat for the eyes and ears – I genuinely think that Riviera Labs represent one of the very best-looking set of electronics out there at the moment and matched very nicely with the DeVore speakers.

HiFi Corner 

Steinway Lyngdorf were making nice sounds at the Dutch Audio Event. The system playing when we went in was the TDA1 media amp and FR1 loudspeakers that cost just 3500 and were making a great sound playing Golden Earring Radar Love (live).

Dynaudio, Luxman and Auralic

A really nicely designed room with a distinctly Japanese vibe. Very busy with punters checking out the latest gear from these brands. There were two systems as follows:

Set up 1 was: Luxman L-505Z, ⁠Luxman D-03X CD player, AURALiC Vega S1 + S1 PSU, Dynaudio Contour Legacy  making its first show appearance in the Benelux. Official introduction will be on October 29^th.  AudioQuest William Tell Silver loudspeaker cables.

Set up 2 was: Dynaudio Confidence 50, Luxman NT-07 streamer, Luxman DA-07X DAC, Luxman C-10X Control Amplifier, Luxman M-10X Power Amplifier (2 pcs in mono configuration), Luxman PD-191A Turntable with LTA-710 tonearm and LMC-5 cartridge, ⁠Luxman EQ-500 Phono amplifier, ⁠Luxman D-10X SACD player and Luxman Ultimate 15000 series cables.

Takumi, Moonriver and Vienna Acoustic

The Takumi turntable is a very nice looking bit of kit and all sounded very good through a pair of Vienna Acoustics Liszt speakers that cost from 15, 750. The MoonRiver 505 pre and the 404 were being used in this system. 

Audio Group Denmark

Audio Group Denmark don’t do things by halves and brought a few different systems to the Dutch Audio Event. In this room X1 speakers were paired with their Axxess Forte 3 streaming amplifier, the A3 Powerswitch and the Axes power distribution box. Static displays included the Axxess L1 and L3 speakers. This is the Danish brand’s entry-level electronics but it sounded great though the  X1sn playing a Hans Zimmer tune at volume. 

Audio Group Denmark Part 2

From the entry-level AXXESS products in one room to a somewhat more pricey system next door. The speakers were the Borresen C3s at 35K. Then there was the Aavik U588 at 30K, the D2 Powerbox at 4K, the Mainz8 D3 at 8,500 and the Ansuz PowerSwitch d3 at 5,800. The U588 is an all-in-one box and was designed by Fleming at AGD. The system in the other room was very good, but this was altogether a better system. The C3 speakers are very cool. They are 90db sensitive and go down to 35Hz. They use the RP94 Ribbon Planar tweeter and four DCC5 bass and midrange drivers. The cables were Ansuz 3 series throughout. 

Innuos

Innuos are another brand that I have a lot of time for. YG Acoustics Vantage 3 speakers fronted this system that was made up of Statement Next Gen music server/streamer, Zenith Music Streamer/server along with a  PhoenixNet network switch.

A D’Agostino integrated provided the juice in the system and a Mola Mola Tambaqui DAC dealt with the conversion.

CEC, Guru & Merrill Audio

Alan McIntosh that writes for HiFi PiG about all things reel-to-reel uses a CEC CD 2N player. They are belt driven and have long been on my must-have list at some point. I’ve been a long-time fan of the Merrill Audio amps (Ellements 110 monos) and used their Thors in our second system up until only a few days ago when they were moved to a new home. Pre amp was the Merrill Audio RoseQX. Great sounding room that was effortless throughout the GURU 28 floor standers. The CD was placed on a WellFloat stand. Audes ST900 (from Estonia) power conditioner made sure the leccy was clean. Great to spot Music First Audio on display too!

AEquo

The last room of the day was our good friends at Dutch brand AEquo, whose speakers we’ve had the pleasure to review at home in the past. At the Dutch Audio event their Stilla speakers were powered with Westminster Labs amplifiers and Innuos streaming device. The Stilla speakers are a very good-looking speaker.

New things are coming from the Dutch brand, involving new cabinet materials (and a new factory to build the new speakers in). Paul at AEquo was keen to show us a demonstration of their cast metal and normal cast metal. Basically, two hulks of metal hung from a pole being hit with a hammer The normal casting rang like the proverbial bell, whilst the AEquo metal was for all intents dead sounding. This has to be a good thing for speaker cabinets! The speakers have always sounded excellent to me and it’s been great to follow the brand grow, we will be bringing more on their new developments very soon.

And that was the show done for us. And what a great event the Dutch Audio Event is. Our thanks go to the organisers, all the exhibitors who made us feel very welcome and to all the people who stopped us for a chat, and of course Electrocompaniet, our coverage sponsors.

If you missed Part 1, click here to read it now….

ALL IMAGES AND TEXT ARE COPYRIGHT HiFi PiG AND MAY NOT BE USED WITHOUT PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT FROM THE EDITOR

Linette and Stuart Smith