Welco
I – Sonic
Spirits News
II –
Manufacturers’ News
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I – Sonic
Spirits News
On behalf
of
To
summarize, we demonstrated the following products:
DAC/source
– Dodson DA-218 DAC ($7995)
Preamp –
Amp – Blue
Circle BC202 120wpc hybrid stereo power amp ($5295)
Speakers –
Focus Audio FS-78SE (Burr Walnut Finish) ($3450)
Interconnects
and speaker cables – Acoustic Zen
Power
Conditioner – Audience adeptResponse ($3800)
Equipment
Rack – TAOC AS-5
We also
demonstrated some additional gear in the closing hours of the show. This included:
Blue Circle
NSCS Integrated Amp ($2495)
Focus Audio
FS-68SE bookshelf speakers ($2050)
Sonic
Spirits is offering “HE2005 show special” pricing on selected products/models
through the end of May. Please contact
us for further details and/or to place orders.
Congratulations
to the winners of our daily drawings from the show! Winners will receive a copy of “Passion”, a
collection of music produced by acclaimed producer, Winston Ma of First
Impression Music (http://www.fimpression.com)
-
Barry
B. of
-
Oz
F. of
-
John
W. of
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Darryl
A. of
We’ve
already begun to receive coverage from the show:
6Moons.com:
http://www.6moons.com/industryfeatures/he2005/5.html
Enjoythemusic.com:
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/hifi2005/friday/
Look for
our next newsletter for more show-coverage mentions!
A number of
Audiocircle.com members made it to the show, posted pictures and discussed what
they heard here:
http://www.audiocircle.com/circles/viewtopic.php?t=18707
The New
York Audio Rave had a special “After Show Hours Rave” on Thursday night of the
show. Gilbert Yeung (of
http://www.audiocircle.com/circles/viewtopic.php?t=18472&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=28
For anyone
interested in joining our monthly gatherings, please send email to info@sonicspirits.com or check out the
NY Audio Rave forum at http://www.audiocircle.com.
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As noted
above, Sonic Spirits demonstrated the AS-5 equipment rack from TAOC. We are pleased to announce that Sonic Spirits
is now an authorized dealer for TAOC.
Since 1983, TAOC has been producing high-end, cast-iron AV accessories
for audiophiles around the world. TAOC's cast-iron and cast-iron powder filled
equipment stands benefit from the unique damping effects of graphite compounds
contained in cast-iron. TAOC is a member of the
For more
information, see:
http://www.specialtysoundandvision.com/taoc.html
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II –
Manufacturers’ News
Blue Circle
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Blue Circle
has launched its new integrated amp, the NSCS Integrated. This 110wpc integrated has the same preamp
stage as the original CS Integrated, but takes performance to an entirely new
level using the same True Balanced Output Technology design used in
For more
information, see:
http://www.bluecircle.com/index.php?menu_id=3175
Blue Circle
has also received a new review of its BC3000mkII preamp:
http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_12_1/blue-circle-bc3000-preamp-2-2005.html
Focus Audio
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As
mentioned in the previous newsletter, Focus Audio introduced the 10th
Anniversary Special Editions of the FS-68SE monitor and FS-78SE
floorstander. The standard finishes for
these speakers are Piano Black, Burr Walnut, and Birdseye Maple. For a limited time, Focus is testing the
waters with a limited run of both speakers in a “Purple Tiger Eye Wood” finish. Sonic Spirits will have a pair of FS-68SE
monitors in this special finish later this week. Check it out and let us know what you think?
Audience
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Audience
made a huge splash at HE2005 with the introduction of its new adeptResponse
power conditioner! The reviews are
coming out, and it appears that Audience has a winner on its hands. As a sideline to the show, Stereotimes.com
held its annual “Most Wanted Components” award ceremony, and the adeptResponse
walked away with no less than THREE awards (Writers’ Award, Editor’s Award, and
Publisher’s Award).
The first
professional review of the adeptResponse is here:
http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue18/adeptresponse.htm
For more
information, check out the Audience website here:
http://www.audience-av.com/power.htm
The
Audience Au24 cable set also continues to rack up great reviews. Here is the latest one on
Positive-Feedback.com:
http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue19/audienceau24.htm
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One of the
gratifying things about our showing at HE2005 this year was the fact that we
were prepared to get proper setup and treatment of the room. Without the bass resonance issues we faced in
2004, this allowed us to really relax and feel confident that the system would
be able to take whatever kind of music we threw at it. Here’s a list of CDs that got heavy rotation
in our room at HE2005:
Sonny Rollins - Way Out West (
Joey DeFrancesco w/Jimmy Smith – Legacy: The great Jimmy Smith passed away a few
months ago, a week before a scheduled performance with Joey DeFrancesco. This recording captures the energy and
maturity of Smith’s organ jazz, and also represents a passing of the torch to a
younger generation of
Jimmy Smith - Root Down:
Suprisingly not well known among Jimmy Smith fans, but well enough to be
remastered and re-issued by Verve. Jam
bands take note, this is how it’s done!
The re-master has significantly better sonics than the original CD.
Wynton Marsalis - The Magic Hour: We listed this one in our last
newsletter. But for HE2005, this is what
we used to demonstrate female vocals, hoping to find something different from
what everyone else typically uses (Diana Krall, Norah Jones, etc). A great performance by Diana Reeves and
Wynton Marsalis.
John Scofield – Uberjam:
A surprising number of people looking to hear some up-tempo jazz fusion
saw this CD and said “put it on!”.
Dynamic, fast paced, complex. My
favorite John Scofield CD.
Monty Alexander - Live at the Montreux Festival: This one seems to be hard to find, but it’s a
great performance and a good CD to use when looking for a good piano
performance.
Doug McLeod - Come to Find (XRCD): The first time I put this on at HE2005, it
turned out that the producer who recorded it (Joe Harley) was sitting front and
center in the room! This was the CD that
received the most “what disc is that?” question at the show.
Steppenwolf - All Time Greatest Hits: ‘nuff said!
Billy Idol - Greatest Hits: When the day winds down at an audio show, I
try to play a track that will “clear the room” so that we can close the room
down. I tried putting on “Rebel Yell” at
high volume; 8 more people came into the room!
Sounded great, I guess!
Jennifer Warnes - The Well: My other female vocal CD.
Bolero: Orchestral Fireworks (Reference Recordings): A collection of well-recorded and well-known
symphonic overtures and other relatively short performances. A great CD to show off a system that produces
good dynamics and a large soundstage.
Schubert: Quintet, Op. 114 "The Trout" /
Sonata, D. 821 "Arpeggione":
One of my favorite performances of one of my favorite classical
pieces.
FIM Super Sound (First Impression Music XRCD): If there’s anything First Impression Music
does well, it is creating recordings that are amazing to hear on great audio
systems. The performances are always
unique, and the sonics are always a level beyond amazing. This is a good sampler to get acquainted with
the FIM label. The first track, an
orchestral rendition of Carmen Fantasie, is stunning.
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Sonic
Spirits Inc.
info@sonicspirits.com
Authorized
Dealer for:
Focus Audio
-
- Acoustic
Zen - Audience – TAOC - Acoustics First - Eighth Nerve
– Golden
Sound
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