This review page is supported in part by the sponsors whose ad banners are displayed below What really impressed Patrick was the way Paradigm is attempting to attract younger people and understands how they listen to music. As Patrick says, "the kids who might buy those ear buds and maybe those cool powered speakers now may later buy their bigger more expensive speakers and equipment when they get older and start to make more money. I also like the way they treated me and listened to me." After reviewing their Signature S6 speakers which according to Patrick were the "best speakers my dad has reviewed yet" and having a long chat with Mark and marketing & social media specialist Erin Phillips, I couldn’t help but feel that this company will continue their streak of success well into the future. They seem to have a firm grasp on not just traditional two-channel audio but also home theater, lifestyle systems and the emerging paradigm shift in how the next generation listens to music or watches movies. Looking at where home audio is going especially in terms of integration and ease of use, it would appear that Naim Audio is well ahead of the curve with all manner of slick components. Plurison’s Naim room was a Patrick favorite. It featured Naim’s SuperUniti all-in-one player ($5,995), UnitiServe hard-disk player/server and Ovator S-400 speakers in an aesthetically pleasing non-audio-dweeb setup. No fancy rack or expensive boxes littering the floor, it definitely scored a 10 on the WAF scale. I actually thought this was the most attractively set up room at the show plus one of the better sounding ones too. USB audio, FM/DAB/internet radio, multi-input 24/192 DAC, preamp, UPnP network streaming, iPod... the SuperUniti does it all. Since it includes an 80-watt amp, all you need are a pair of speakers and your source/s. The less expensive UnitiQute on silent display on the 2nd floor offers pretty much the same features albeit limited to 24/96 and lower power. It was clearly evident here that so-called lifestyle systems don't necessarily imply compromised musicality. Unlike some rooms the folks here were more than happy to allow Patrick to play back his MP3s. Patrick was so thrilled that he actually went back to this room on his own. He was especially impressed with how he was treated and that the Plurison and Naim folks patiently addressed his questions. To all you industry folks out there, this is how you attract the audiophiles of the future. I can remember when I was Patrick’s age. How impressed I was with a salesman at audio retailer Bay Bloor Radio in downtown Toronto who took the time to answer my questions and allowed me to listen to several pairs of speakers knowing full well I wasn’t going to buy anything. However I did several years later and not just once either. The seeds planted today are the trees of tomorrow. Patrick and I loved the Ovation Audio room which featured Electrocompaniet amps and sources, Scheu turntable, Isoclean cabling and power conditioning plus Thiel’s CS2.4 speakers for terrific resolution of micro detail, transparency yet also wonderful balance and musicality. I loved those Thiels. I have yet to meet a time-coherent speaker I didn’t like. We both had a serious case of the hots for the CS 2.4. Newmarket-based Audio Eden sported Tannoy Turnberry ($7.300/pr) speakers which perfectly matched the Edwardian décor of the room. Amp and sources were via Sim Audio while the Devialet D-premier DAC/preamp/power amp ($16.500) all the rage these days sat on silent display. Alas we missed the demo. We both cottoned onto the warm inviting musicality of this room. Charisma Audio always has something new and interesting. This time it was the gorgeous Capriccio Continuo stand-mounted speakers. You can tell they’re Italian by their sexy looks. Also exclusive to Charisma is German audio electronics firm Audio Exklusiv. I quite enjoyed the Continuos while Patrick was particularly enthralled listening to music on a laptop via Denon AH-D5000 headphones and Calyx Coffee 24/96 asynchronous USB DAC ($199) with headphone and RCA outputs. This was a perfect university dorm system. The sound was terrific especially spinning vinyl with a Well Tempered Lab Amadeus with an EMT TSD 15 MC cartridge combo. Also on display were Madison Audio cables, a new cable firm which includes Tara Labs boss Matthew Bond among its principals. They kinda do look like Tara Labs, don’t they?