Room 7007
NEAT Acoustics / Audia Flight / AnalogueWorks / HiFi Racks
“Every time I encounter Paul Manos (Hifi Services), who represents the British-made Neat Acoustics loudspeakers and AnalogueWorks turntables (and other good products), I always get a big smile stuck on my face. He beams and glows and puts out a smart, enthusiastic energy that fills the whole room. And the sound Paul gets from his products makes me want more, and never to leave.
This year he was showing the knee-high Neat Iota Alpha loudspeakers ($1995/pair), which sit gnomelike on the floor but push out music the same way Paul pushes out strong smiles. The sound coming from these little floor standers was surprisingly big, lucid, and detailed. My only question was: what kind of duster should the owner use to dust them?
The Iota Alphas were driven by the FL Three S integrated amplifier ($3995) from Italian manufacturer Audia Flight, sourced by an Audia Flight FL CD Three CD player ($2795)—plus a totally cool and very high value AnalogueWorks TurntableZero turntable with a Jelco SA750 tonearm ($1995 complete).”
—Stereophile, Herb Reichert
High Fidelity Services Pulls Neat Trick, Takes Flight
“If I’d been blindfolded, I would have thought I was in another room, listening to some towering statement transducers driven by hulking monoblocks. But beyond the resolution was a rare intangible factor. I hate to use the word “magic” in the high–end, where there’s already too much attempted hocuspocus, but these speakers truly had something special.”
“The FL Three [Audia Flight] is a marvel for its price range. Its thick faceplate, attractive display and hefty aluminum remote convey elegance and fine engineering.”
“This approachable gear joined my short list of the stuff I most want to get into my home listening room for full review. Neat, indeed.”
—Part-Time Audiophile, John Stancavage
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- HiFi Racks “Podium” Rack w/ Optional Isolation Plinths
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- AnalogueWorks “TT Zero” w/ Jelco 750 Tonearm
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- Vibex Power Distribution, Conditioning, and Isolation Products
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- AnalogueWorks “TT One” w/ SME 309
Room 7025
Verity Audio / Bel Canto / HiFi Racks / WyWires
“Last year, Bel Canto’s Black D/A amplification system was our 2015 Amplification Component of the Year, so I was intrigued to see similar cutting edge digital technology—a 64bit A3P processor, a DSP implemented tilt control, and a 40 femtosecond master clock) and Hypex NCore classD power amplifier modules—featured in the Minnesota company’s new Black ACI 600 integrated amplifier ($25,000). Featuring a programmable MM/MC phono stage and offering 300Wpc into 8 ohms from a small elegant package, the ACI 600 was being demoed with Verity Audio’s Parsifal Anniversary speakers ($24,995/pair) with WyWires speaker cables and USB cable and Shunyata Hydra Triton V2 power distribution ($6998). Complementing the Marriott for their efficient Ethernet wiring, Bel Canto’s Mike McCormick explained that there will be an app to control the amplifier and that it is room-ready and will control Tidal streaming.”
—Stereophile, John Atkinson
“Bel Canto Black Series ACI 600…combined with Verity Audio’s wonderful Parsifal Anniversary speakers via WyWire Diamond Series cables, the system produced tremendous bass extension and ambience on Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, and outstanding clarity and excellent timbre on piano recordings.”
—The Absolute Sound, Jim Hannon