Toronto Audiofest 2026 Show Report Part 1
High-End Audio Highlights, New Gear Debuts, And Must-See Listening Rooms
Top-performing listening rooms, exciting product introductions, prestigious audio gear, and value-packed hi-fi sound systems that captivate music lovers.
Toronto Audiofest 2026 Show Report By Rick Becker

344  Audio One And Simaudio
Audio One is a retailer in Vaughan, Ontario, on the north side of the GTA, that has been around for 40 years. This is the first I recall seeing them at the show. They deal in more mainstream products. Simaudio MOON and B&W speakers are often paired together, and this is about as deep into the high end as Audio One gets. Here, the new fifth-generation (V5) 800 series speaker was introduced. That was an AudioQuest power conditioner on the floor, and AudioQuest cables were used.

That's a Network Player/Preamplifier on the left, and a Power Amplifier on the right. I suspect these were new models from Moon. Using a credenza for your equipment is quite acceptable, but you are leaving a lot of sound quality on the table without accessory footers, or, as I learned later at the show on Sunday, a special component shelf.

The new V5 series speaker looked very nice with the textured brown cabinet topped off with gloss black on top. As with many rooms this year, there was no room list available.

348  Audio Note UK
Just hearing the glorious cello music, I knew I was walking into the Audio Note UK room. It was sounding very good at this show, suggesting they were demonstrating some of their upper-level products. As I've said before, the Audio Note room is such a constant that it has become a benchmark in high end audio, varying only slightly as you move up or down through their four levels.

Vincent Belanger, their resident cellist, was on hand to perform live vs. recorded comparisons, and they are worth the time if you haven't already experienced his demo. Sit as close as you can to experience the overtones live. As usual, this room was busy both times I visited.

The amp without a roof was the Oto Phono SE integrated amp with phono stage. Below it was the DAC 2.1X Signature. Below the turntable was the CDT One/II CD Transport. And on the bottom shelf was the TT PSU power supply for the turntable. They make their own cartridges and cables, too.

With the blue woofer, this may have been one of their more expensive speaker models. They are designed to be placed close to the corner to reinforce the lower end, but I've heard them sound pretty good against a flat wall, too.

Noted on the table was the book above. You can read a brief summary from the Stanford Law School here. It's not a pretty picture, and it definitely is not a follow-up to Robert Lewis Stevenson's Treasure Island. Hopefully, the mostly small companies that make up the high end will not be gobbled up by private equity firms.

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