AXPONA 2022: Back To Business
Audio Expo North America 2022 Show Report
Show Report By Greg Weaver

And Now, The FAB FIVE...
FIVE - Suite 1521 found the now routine and remarkably synergistic pairing of speaker designer Jeff Joseph, with valve electronics guru "Nick" Doshi. Analog playback was transcribed by the J.Sikora Standard MAX Turntable ($19,995 – $20,995 starting June 1st), using two J.Sikora KV12 VTA pickup arms ($8,495 - $8,995 starting June 1st), one fitted with the Lyra Etna SL cartridge ($9,995), while the second used the Benz LP-S ($6,000), and both fed Nick Doshi's Audio EVOLUTION phono stage ($19,995). The digital source in the room was the Aurender A20 Server/DAC ($14,000).

The rest of the electronics were all members of the Doshi Audio EVOLUTION line, including the EVOLUTION Preamp ($19,995), and the EVOLUTION monoblocks ($43,995/pr.), which uses a 12SJ7, a pair of 12SN7s, and four KT150 outputs, yielding 160 Watts. All of Nick's gear employs only the finest components, including capacitors from British manufacturer ICW, who batch manufactures both their CMR and CSA series Clarity capacitors for Doshi's use. There was also an EVOLUTION tape stage engaged, which I didn't hear while I was in the room. Nick and Jeff know I'm an LP kind of cat!

The transducers were Jeff's beautiful looking, and marvelous sounding, Joseph Audio Peral Graphene loudspeakers ($43,999.pr.), while all cabling was Cardas Audio Clear Beyond series throughout. The flagship of the Joseph Audio lineup, the Pearl Graphen uses two separate enclosures, linked by solid brass points, isolating the Pearl's tweeter and midrange from the dedicated dual woofers in the enclosure below.

The aluminum cone woofers are custom built for Jeff and feature supplementary magnet mass and a copper pole piece to allow for the cleanest, most controlled bass he can generate. Their zinc alloy cast frames provide for extreme rigidity and the use of the narrow basket fingers helps to minimize internal reflections. The tweeter's voice coil uses a field array of tiny yet powerful magnets rather than one single large magnet, allowing for a more open, clear area immediately behind the dome, greatly reducing reflections, again lowering high-frequency related distortions, and improving overall accuracy and extension.

This is the only room in the tower area of the hotel to make my short list. But these guys REALLY pulled this one off. There was no doubt about this system's remarkable dynamic expressiveness right from the first needle drop. The system revealed microdynamic shading, color, and nuance that was to die for. And, as a more conventional dynamic driver/box enclosure type system, they pulled a near-total vanishing act, leaving only the music, especially noticeable when tracking LPs with the Lyra Etna SL cartridge.

When Nick cued up "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry," from the Cowboy Junkies Trinity Sessions for me, Margo's voice was manifest in the room, dripping with texture, rich with authentic tonality and dimensionality. Her voice was so immediate that you felt as if you could reach out and touch her.

When he cued up "Sweet Mercy," from the 1999 Blue Note Erik Truffaaz release, Bending New Corners, the decay of the overtones from trumpet simply trailed on and on, as the fundamentals dwindled more rapidly. This system had a stoopidly engaging liquidity and presented with a sense of speed that worked to shore up its pace, rhythm, and drive. Yeah, this was the real deal.

FOUR - I freely admit to having a weak spot for Burmester Audiosysteme, GmbH. The tragic and untimely passing of the company founder and CEO Dieter Burmester in 2015 seemed to have curtailed their showing in the US as frequently as they had – especially in the heydays of the CES. Yet, as a Mercedes Benz owner who has had several S-Class Coupes, the W126, over the years, it had piqued my interest when, after four years of development, the new Mercedes-Benz S-Class took the stage in 2013 with a sensational sound system from Burmester.

As mentioned, I had not seen a Burmester exhibit in the US for some years, and as such, I was quite excited to make my way into Schaumburg A, and to both an amazing sight, and some glorious sounds. This was a perfect example of why many refer to this gear as "audio jewelry."

When I entered, they were playing the Burmester 175 Turntable, fitted with their Burmester arm and cartridge ($60,000, with its built-in Phono Stage and external power supply). But I also asked to hear the Burmester 111 Media Server ($55,000), with its 3TB of internal storage, it was Streamer, Transport, DAC, and Preamp all in one. It has provisions for three each, analog and digital inputs, three additional RCA inputs, and a 6.3mm (1/4") headphone jack.

The absurdly versatile – and beautiful - Burmester 808 Preamplifier ($57,000) was configured with its standard power supply. But it was the end-table-sized Burmester 159 Mono Amplifiers ($350,000/pr.), making their North American debut, that really made an impact. These striking-looking Class A/B monsters weigh in at four hundred pounds each!

After 7 years in development, Burmester claims that their power and control have reached previously unattainable levels of performance - and measurement! They feature a widely adjustable Damping factor (don't ask, because they didn't explain it), develop 1,200 Watts into 4Ω and are capable of peaks of 6,600 Watts, and have a published harmonic distortion of 0.00039% at 1 kHz. With a continuous current draw of 17 Amps, and peak draw up to 72 Amps, you could damn near weld with these monsters!

Finally, the Burmester BC150 Loudspeakers ($150,000/pr.), in an Apple Wood finish, bring the sound quality, technology, and design from their Signature Line to this more compact form.The solid aluminum frame employs internal stiffeners of aluminum tubes and features a specially developed damping system using both a 4mm thick steel plating and a special plastic coating to stabilize and solidify the integrity of the cabinet, and it is biwire or biamp-able.

A large, 32 cm (~12.5") side-firing, long-stroke diaphragm woofer, derived from the bass driver used in the flagship BC350, is tuned with a flow-optimized, carbon fiber bass reflex port. Its midrange uses a new, oval-shaped voice coil to address and increase the dimensional stability of the lightweight driver membrane. Finally, it uses two Air-Motion-Transformer (AMT) tweeters, one front-mounted, and a second slightly shorter AMT, located to the rear of the cabinet, which is adjustable to tailor the spatial depth of the sound stage according to personal preference and to afford greater listening and placement flexibility.

If you not only dig such attention to craft and design but want to luxuriate in your sound, you will have found a serious match with the Burmester gear. This system offered such delicately rendered detail, was seductively open and natural, and developed a tremendously authentic perception of body and bloom. I was struck by how readily and faithfully this system could deliver and present the sound of a vocalist's chest voice. There may be other systems that can make me close my eyes and almost convince me that I'm listening to a live event, but none that can look as good doing it!?

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