CES 2008 ?  Nothing stands still at Metropolis Music or SOM, there’s always something new.  

CES 2008 ?  Nothing stands still at Metropolis Music or SOM, there’s always something new. In January 2008, Jamie and I were accompanied by Martin Brewster from Audio Reference to the Hi-Fi show in Las Vegas and as usual, there were some pretty impressive products to witness and now bring to your attention. Even though we are supposed to be in tough times, the show was packed and the industry seems to be as buoyant as ever. We are delighted to bring to you some fabulous new products from Boulder, Hovland, Exemplar and Acoustic Solutions.

  BOULDER 1021 FRONT

BOULDER 1021 REAR

All of these had some pretty impressive products to kick the new year off with style. The new Boulder 1021 CD player was possibly the most interesting new product of the show and I believe that this will be the way to go in the future for top CD players. Basically, the 1021 uses a CD drive only for data retrieval and then the clocking and signal processing are separate from the drive to eliminate any sonic degradation associated with previous methods. It has a wealth of very special features, (See the Boulder section on Metropolis-Music) and looked to be a really new and innovative idea. The sound was very good (as always difficult to really evaluate at a show) but we will have the first test sample shortly and hopefully will report on the results soon.

NEW HOVLAND PREAMP

Also showing some very impressive amplification was Hovland with a new CD player and a new pre-amplifier which had very stylish looks and if the performance here is as good as the Hovland Stratos monoblocks already in stock they will surely set another new standard of amplification from this well respected company. The CD player also had some innovative functions here again using a CD reader but in a slightly different way. It can also play from a computer source a little like the Boulder. Both the CD and the pre-amp are due later in the year so we will keep you more informed at the time.

EXEMPLAR XP-2 PICTURES COMING SOON !

For some months now I have been using a prototype pre-amplifier the XP-1 from Exemplar, the company owned and run by John Tucker (the man behind the LSA integrated amplifiers) and the performance I have been getting from this unit in standard version has been exemplary (sorry) to say the least.The standard model is now finished and an upmarket version of this, the XP-2 is due in early February. Both units were on display and their looks are well presented for high end products.I hope to report that the XP-2 is an improved version of the XP-1 and in the Lumley reference system I have at home, I am hoping for another lift in the already very special performance achieved.

Lastly – Acoustic Systems room tuning devices. This is, what do we say ? - hair shirt material.Yes, you have to be a little out on a limb to consider these amazing little devices at all as they really shouldn’t work. But they do. In fact, without exaggeration I would have to quantify this by stating that the improvement to the Lumley system is as good as a £5-10K upgrade. I have watched these devices move up through the market for some years now and have sought to try some for some time. We were lucky enough to be offered the distribution of this peculiar product on the Vegas visit and the proof is in the pudding. You don’t have to believe me as at SOM and other dealer outlets in the UK, you can try these amazing products for yourself. They are an easy item to fit, their resulting upgrade is instantly audible and they come in several stages of cost so that you can start quite cheaply or go right to the top for a complete system tune up and benefit from something that is quite uncanny immediately. What do you get ? Better separation, better and smoother HF, better and more controlled base, and ease of listening that is somewhat difficult to describe and a new transparency that defies what they actually are, but if you seek clarity and musical performance that is not always easy to achieve, these amazing items take you quite a bit closer. And the best sounds ? Ypsilon, Rockport, Hansen, Magico, BAT, Western Electric, all stood out pretty well. Come and see us.