Guangzhou AV Fair 2009 Show Report
1 USD = 6.82 Chinese Yuan/RMB
Report By Steven R. Rochlin

  Welcome to the 2009 Guangzhou AV Fair, the city's largest high-end event that brings in well over 25,000 people during a three day weekend. My hopes are to discover and share with you some amazing products made in China, with a few of the usual brands making an occasional appearance too.

 

Avantgarde Hong Kong was showing the Ologe Acoustic speakers. They construct their own drivers that include a 1-inch soft dome and mounting brackets are an aluminum alloy waveguide.

 

Auxdio had a very interesting media player model AM8180 with touchscreen. It can handle controlling 100 rooms via wired Ethernet and accepts NAS drive. A wireless system is scheduled to appear next year. This is an audio only model, though they also offer a video version as well. Very interesting and yes from China.

 

And yes there is more than just Chinese brands, seen here is Audio Note Japan with the Ongaku and other goodies

 

Kharma cables make their appearance at the Guangzhou AV Fair 2009 show.

 

Ayon loudspeakers.

 

Various Orpheus amplification units on stands by Accordeon.

 

Orgue hornspeakers are designed in the USA by a guy named Alexander (that is all they'd tell me) and built in mainland China. The smaller 12-inch Supremo S1201A to the right is 98,000 RMB per pair. The woofer reminds me of vintage drivers by various USA companies with multi-folds on the surround and paper cone. A 1.5-inch compression horn covers the upper frequencies.

 

Interesting tube amplification by Thoress, with a special notation on the totally retro-looking preamplifier in the center of the equipment rack. The turntable is called Musical Life.

 

Ok, now this is why i am glad to endure such a long flight to visit China! Line Magnetic had some serious hornspeakers and tube amplification unlike any seen in Europe or America that i can recall. Look, i won't even try to tell you about them, the photos should get your juices flowing to discover more about them online. Field coil hornspeakers and....

 

This cool roundish tubed amplifier by Line Magnetic is an adjustable power supply for WE-555/WE-597/WE4181/etc. You can adjust the field current with the right knob and see the output on the left meter.

 

Oh, and Line Magnetic also had their LM-1 212 monoblock tube amplifier that, well, is very tall and intricate. Eat your heart out tube lovers! There is at least 20 transformers in this unit, was stuffed with NOS tubes and the wires were of the cloth-covered variety. And yes, my mouth is watering because after a few decades in doing this i want something... different. British enameled wires for the transformers and switchable between the 212 and 211 output tube. There are two synchronous outputs with 300B if you desire. Hmmmm, 211 for bass and 300B for upper frequencies? And the price, only 180,000 RMB ($26,400 USD). While i pretty much never talk about the sound of rooms at a show, will break my 'silence' and say this room was producing some very, very good music.

 

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