Hifi Pig

As the global meeting-place for the audio industry, the forthcoming HIGH END 2016 in Munich is already providing important impetus early in the year. Even though there are still three months until the start of the HIGH END 2016, the outlook is already looking promising for the fair where the industry really shows what it can do.

A positive trend is already emerging for the world’s leading trade show for high-quality electronic home entertainment, even though registration has only just been closed. At present, all 137 enclosed room units between 49 and 297 square metres in the upper atrium floors of the MOC are sold out, which means we can expect another full house for the 2016 fair and there will almost certainly be a waiting list.

The four large main exhibition halls on the ground floor are also already well filled and the planners at the HIGH END SOCIETY are working flat-out on planning and positioning the many and varied stands, and designing the highly demanded music demonstration booths, that were acoustically optimised only last year at the HIGH END and are thus much in demand from audiophile exhibitors in halls 1 to 4.

For Branko Glisovic, CEO of the HIGH END, the challenge of assigning places at the HIGH END is a happy one, although the limited number of conference rooms and exhibition spaces means a certain number of potential exhibitors will have to miss out.

As always, in choosing the exhibitors it has to be ensured that their products and  services suit the remit of the fair, and thus the focus is on increasing quality, which is    far more important to the HIGH END SOCIETY than selling more and more spaces to as many exhibitors as  possible.

The HIGH END has become the world’s leading platform for the audio industry. As well    as the many German sellers, who will be a big presence this year as always, the interna- tional orientation of the HIGH END has significantly increased. In 2015 more than 60%     of the companies exhibiting came from abroad. Many of the world’s leading suppliers    will be presenting their latest developments at this year’s fair. This focus is clearly on network audio technologies. Music systems are becoming smarter and more intercon- nected. Multi-room systems and wireless speakers are in more demand than ever, and   it

is these which are currently driving the growth of the audio sector. At the HIGH END, the exhibitors impressively demonstrate the innovation with which they meet the constantly growing expectations in our high-tech everyday   lives.

At the HIGH END 2016, start-ups will once again have the opportunity to show off their ideas and innovations free of charge. This year, eight new companies will be contribu-    ting new technology and ideas. They include the German company xivero, which will be presenting a precise, software-based “measuring instrument” called MusicScope, which acts as an audio microscope and visualises the various quality features of a music file or collection. You can use it to analyse digital music albums and analogue sources without needing the wide-ranging expertise of a sound engineer. For example, it is possible to easily verify and demonstrate whether a file created by up-sampling standard recordings   is genuine. As a measuring tool to complements our ears, it can provide quantifiable information on the quality of a music recording.

The world’s leading trade fair for the audio industry

From 5th to 8th May 2016, international visitors to the HIGH END will be able to experience  the best that electronic home entertainment has to offer. The
Bavarian capital will once again become a Mecca for fans of innovation from all over the world. The fair provides an unparalleled overview of the entire international audio market. It gives visitors a   unique opportunity to experience a whole range of audio delights, and take time to indulge in musical pleasure.

35 years of the HIGH END – a fair with a long tradition

The HIGH END can look back on a long tradition. First held in Düsseldorf in 1982, it will be taking place for the 35th successive year in 2016. After 21 years in Frankfurt am Main, the oldest and biggest exhibition of its kind moved to the MOC in Munich in 2004, where it has been held ever since.

The HIGH END is a paradise for audio and video demonstrations

With its ultra-modern architecture and infrastructure, the MOC convention centre in the north of Munich offers ideal conditions for presentation. The MOC has now been home   to the annual exhibition for more than a decade. On an area covering 27,610 square me- tres, the HIGH END occupies four spacious exhibition halls and four glass atria with 140 adjacent showrooms. These beautiful, light-filled, individually customisable units offer ideal conditions to make a lasting  impression.

The HIGH END represents the entire audio industry

More than 500 exhibitors from Germany and abroad will be presenting their audio inno- vations. Not only the global players, but also smaller audio specialists will be showing     off their flair for development. Once again, the world’s leading suppliers of electronic home entertainment products will be presenting all their product groups and the entire spectrum of state-of-the-art technology.

Click the image to download last years show coverage by Hifi Pig

Variety, impact and quality of information

This fair makes a lasting impression on all those who experience it. With high-quality individual presentations by exhibitors from every part of the audio sector, fascinating musical demonstrations, exciting workshops, instructive comparative audio tests, inte- resting talks on the technology stage and live music everywhere, the fair is a guaranteed success.

The HIGH END in Munich brings together every aspect of the audio industry

The HIGH END covers every area of technological development. Bringing together traditional analogue hi-fi, the latest digital trends and high-definition video, the fair has everything there is to offer.  Visitors can experience the whole variety of video and    audio systems. People have different tastes, and there is a wide range of ways to listen with pleasure. So, for example, visitors to the HIGH END can enjoy everything from the reassuring sight of a vinyl disc turning to high-definition audio files with sophisticated conversion systems. There is no single method that can please everyone, so everyone  can and should use the variety of media exactly how they want to.

There’s also pure analogue technology

The whole range of tried-and-tested analogue technology will be there, with turntable units, amplifiers, tone arms, cartridges and valve equipment. Vinyl records are also on   sale to go with it. The tactile, heavy vinyl disc has been in growing demand for a number of years.

Naturally, the “sound of the future”

The entire spectrum of recent digital developments will be on show. These days, music    is not just consumed on digital and mobile devices, but also online and in networks. The

products on display include internet-capable receivers and hi-fi systems, as well as multi- room music systems, wireless Bluetooth speakers, sound bars and innovative, state-of- the-art headphones.

HIGH END in the car

Visitors to the HIGH END 2016 will once again have the opportunity to listen to unusual sound systems in different classes of car. This is because during the past decade, many  car manufacturers have used the expertise of the companies in our industry to offer   their customers tailor-made, and therefore better, audio systems. In Germany, a third of all new cars sold are now equipped with a special, optional sound system.

Electronic home entertainment for every age and every pocket

Naturally, affordable entry-level models for newcomers to hi-fi will be presented. Visitors can find everything the music enthusiast needs, regardless of age and listening habits.

After all, the HIGH END will always be a fair for music lovers.

The HIGH END begins with a special day for trade visitors

On 5 May 2016 (Ascension Day), the fair is only open to registered trade visitors and journalists with prior  accreditation.

The HIGH END is organised by the HIGH END SOCIETY, the trade association for high- quality electronic home entertainment, which includes the industry’s leading companies.

FACTS:

Location:  MOC Munich – Lilienthalallee 40 80939 Munich-Freimann

Dates:      5th May – 8th May, 2016

Trade  visitors  day: Thursday, 5th May 2016 (with prior registration only)

Opening times:10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily

Trade visitors:   EUR 20.00 with prior registration(valid on all days)

General   public:  EUR 12.00 / day ticket from Friday to  Sunday

See you there!!!

After 40 years of creating audio equipment, the last thing that artist-designer Kostas Metaxas wanted to produce was “another box with transistors on a heatsink”. He was apparently inspired by ‘the most spectacular architecture, design and sculpture’ he had experienced and ‘wanted to bring that emotional intensity, daring and seductive beauty to an audio amplifier.’

The Solitaire 2016 is the result. Machined from a solid block of either aircraft aluminium, copper or titanium, it’s totally bespoke and Metawas claims that ‘the modular electronics make it future-proof’. Even the circuit boards are CNC machined from 1mm solid silver coated clear polystyrene.  100% designed and engineered by Kostas Metaxas, each amplifier is assembled by his sons, either Andreas or Alessandros Metaxas.

The Solitaire 2016 along with the Ikarus Integrated Amplifier and Opus preamplifier will be “world premiered” at the Munich High End Hifi Show in May 2016. A Studer A80 will be playing 10″ Analogue Master Tapes from a selection of the over 300 Classical and Jazz concerts recorded by Metaxas on his modified Stellavox Tape equipment. Hifi Pig will be there to report back on how they sound.