This review page is supported in part by the sponsors whose ad banners are displayed below
George Tordai from Audio Oasis proudly displayed his extensive line of Audio Zone electronics, Hypex-based 200w class D amps,  two preamps and an NOS DAC.



Looking small and intensely overbuilt they were doing an admirable job delivering fine music to a pair of daunting Audio Zone Eliminator hornspeakers.

Planet of Sound Distribution offered a nice setup which succeeded at being less hifi and more music. An Airtight integrated provided the horsepower with Kuzma doing analogue and an Audiolab M-DAC translating the digits. Harbeth speakers completed the show.

Tri Art Audio was back this year looking very slick and polished. Their wooden turntable and arm were simply stunning. The company’s damped concrete approach to resonance control was serving them well.

The attractive wooden sleeved cabinets may have drawn crowds but the sound quality into the Rosso Fioretino Certaldo loudspeakers kept them there.


Tube Magic Audio Systems was in delightful voice with their tube electronics fed by the MHZS tube CD player with 24/192 DAC.


Paired with the Reference 3A monitors the combination replaced the boundaries of the room with an unstrained lifelike performance.


Marsha and Greg McLean of Onda Systems showcased their high-purity solid-core silver cable  with a system composed of Grandinote Shinai integrated, Trigon Chronolog music server and Audio Physic Virgo 25 speakers. Very minimalist, very musical.  

Richard Kohlruss of Vmax Services was pumping out some lovely tunes by the Persuasions that floated into the room in convincing fashion through a pair of Atohm GT5.0 speakers fed by an Aurender sever through a Norma Audio Revo integrated amplifier.  

Alex Tiefenboeck of Crown Mountain Imports offered a nice point of refuge from the bombastic room shaking of some exhibits. His little Kudos Super 10s and Mimetism electronics did a pleasant job unravelling music and letting it flow in a detailed and unforced manner.  

The Audionote room was another superb antidote for the moments when too much hifi intruded on the musical enjoyment. The full Audionote combination was big, enveloping and allowed the music to be dramatic rather than the system. A fine disappearing act where emotional involvement took center stage.  

Inner Ear reviewer Ernie Fischer made space to showcase a bit of homegrown Canadian audio talent in his room. Playing were the small Reev Designs Aatma speakers, Tenor 175S amp, Allnic L3000 pre and a Bryston source to sound quick and incisive with lots of kick.


Mystic Audio was showing the distinctive Blue Circle Audio product. What looked to be a lovely blue-bodied wooden knobbed headphone amp was spotlighted nicely but the showstopper were their aesthetically tongue-in-cheek effective power line filters. Several models were on display with incremental performance improvements finished in basic black pipe and clear goo. Rene Evans of Mystic Audio happily explained the approach with both good knowledge and a great sense of humour.  

Despite the sheer depth of offerings, in the huge Bryston room the highlight was the introduction of their first loudspeaker, the Model T (which does come in colors other than black).


Built for them by Canadian Axiom loudspeakers it delivered wide response, excellent dynamics and a soundstage that matched size with the large suite. 

 
Kimber Kable, Oracle, Primacoustic and System Audio combined forces to put together a rather formidable system that spoke eloquently with power and articulation.

McIntosh exhibited traditional virtues of effortless power, kick and control. The trademark huge glowing blue meters were easily identifiable.


Altronics courageously brought a full Quad electrostatic system but the sound fell short of ultimate capabilities under the limitations of the room. Of course these wonderful products are worth a followup listen to hear them sing with full conviction.


Italian manufacturer Casta Acoustic was playing its flagship hornspeaker surrounded by AURALiC, JE Audio and Antelope Audio components. The sound was promising but needed a better venue to test its real virtues.  

Sonic Artistry had an intimate system comprised of Manley integrated and Simon Yorke table with the Living Voice Auditorium 2 speakers. Again too brief an exposure that warranted considerably more time.  

The Audio Sensibility table was drawing in good crowds with their extensive and well respected cable and accessory line, featuring Ohno continuous cast copper and silver but Mr. Yuang’s popularity only allowed for a very brief discussion.  

Monitor Audio had strong product lineup on display, showing quite a lot of ribbon hybrid models but lack of time didn‘t allow for more than a passing listen.



Focal was also showing their extensive wares with the crowning flagship Grand Utopia revolving on a turntable for viewing but sadly silent.

Moon man Paul Candy who will shortly also begin to contribute to Positive Feedback Online to expand his scope trawled the hallways for review inspiration.

Last but far from least software. There was a cornucopia of offerings from numerous sources including Liberty Trading who had brought out a large catalogue of High End recordings from many different labels in a number of formats including vinyl. Mr. Waldrep of AIX records/iTrax was selling his true hi-rez 24/96 recordings in stereo and 5.1 audio as well as HD Blu Ray video and 3D. For those download inclined, this he also makes available. 

Todd Garfinkle’s m.a. recordings offers purist stereo microphone recordings in CD as well as DVD-ROM WAV files up to 24/176.4. All these pit stops were extremely musically rewarding but quickly lightened the wallet as my bag of treasures grew. So that’s it for my whirlwind tour. Many potential high points were sadly missed or graced with too short a visit. Kudos to the exhibitors who worked long and hard to assemble these sonic works of art and also to the TAVES staff who brought it all together.


As a parting thought I’d like to thank the Ontario Vintage Radio Association for giving us a perspective as to how far we’ve come. Humble beginnings. Do we enjoy our musical experience today as much as those in days gone by? We must because we’re still listening. Looking forward to TAVES 2013!