Audio Show Deluxe 2024

The recent Audio Show Deluxe was another enjoyable weekend, thank you to everyone who visited and took the time to listen to our system and the cable demo.

 

Combining a relaxed and unhurried vibe, the show built on the success of the 2023 inaugural event. Plenty of quality audio systems to experience and as part of that we had 2 great demo areas. A nice big system in Hockenheim room, and a smaller system in room Syndicate 10.

 

The big system was so enjoyable and easy to listen to, just as it was last year. The Hegel P30A and 2 H30A pre/ powers combination was the heart of the system, feeding into the extremely capable EgglestonWorks Viginti loudspeakers. It was fed by both the Hegel Viking CD player directly into the preamp, and an Innuos Statement NG fed through the Merason DAC1mkII. The system was completely cabled with Audiomica and power products and isolation provided by MusicWorks. It had authority, was dynamic and detailed, all without straying into harshness, very coherent and rhythmic, an excellent combination garnering many positive comments.

We also gave a sneak peek of a new brand we are introducing to the UK this year, Luphonic turntables.

The smaller system was Hegel H600 and Viking driving EgglestonWorks OSO. Again Audiomica cables with power and isolation provided by MusicWorks. This room was used by Marcin from Audiomica to introduce the brand and carry out comparative dems. We had many positive comments about this room too, it was great to be able to show how good Audiomica cables are.

 

Overall, a great weekend playing music on a superb system, and showcasing our favourite cable brand.

 

Audio Show Deluxe is shaping up nicely to be an important part of the audio show calendar.

My Audio Show Calendar

One aspect of being a high-end audio distributor is the visits to audio shows around the UK and in other countries. Following the end of the covid restrictions and the resumption of travel the number of such shows seems to have grown and it isn’t now possible to do them all. Given this year has seen me travel to the US for Axpona and Capital Audio Fest, to Munich for the high-end show, to Warsaw for the Audio show, as well as participating in some of the key UK shows it might be useful to give you my perspective on the various events. I will not mention them all and have not included dealer open days as there are too many to cover here although they are usually worth attending if you can. To clarify, my reasons for visiting these events is possibly different to yours as I am there to look for additional brands for the Auden Distribution profile, they also offer an opportunity to meet with existing partners. I haven’t done the Hong Kong show which I believe is also superb, so this is all about the western world.

 

In the UK Auden participates in 4 events, Bristol, Deluxe, NWAS, and the UK Hifi Show. Bristol is the longest running and one of, if not the most popular shows in the UK, it is very well attended and organised, gets good press coverage and there is plenty to see and hear for the visitors. The corridors can get crowded and the allocated bedrooms we use are small, but we always get a good sound. This year we won an award for most welcoming room, we are such a friendly bunch.

 

We don’t exhibit at the shows organised by the Chester Group, although they are well organised, well attended, and cover a broad range of suppliers. They are primarily selling shows and as Auden Distribution doesn’t sell to the public we don’t fit in as well as at other events. They are enjoyable shows to visit, and they are expanding to do a Heathrow event in 2024 so are still developing. They also have events in Australia and New York.

 

The UK Hifi Show at Ascot was in September, we showcased Hegel at this event, and it went down well. There were a lot of positive comments about our room and the event overall, it wasn’t perfect, but it will get better as the organisers, exhibitors and visitors get used to the spectacular venue.

 

The North West Audio Show, more commonly known simply as “Cranage” is held in June and has grown steadily since its inception in the 2010’s. The venue is high quality, and the event has a relaxed atmosphere. There is a good mix of sellers and exhibitors, and for a number of years now this has been our favourite event to participate in. We have a great room just beyond the bar which allows space for a nice big system to breath, and again we always get a good response from press and visitors. If you visit please don’t get too distracted by the bar, our room is well worth a visit.

 

In March 2023 a new event was launched, Audio Show Deluxe. It was held at Whittlebury Hall, a venue previously used by the Chester Group for some of their events. The concept is to allow us as distributors and manufacturers to showcase the upper end of our brands and produce a high quality environment for visitors to listen. To allow this the show is purposely limited in exhibitor numbers so you don’t need to rush round, and there are no small bedroom systems, the rooms are all a decent size. It was a good first event this year and a nicely different addition to the show calendar, I’m looking forward to the next one.

 

There are other events in the UK but these are the ones I have experienced.  We really enjoy both Cranage and Deluxe and both are worth travelling to. The Chester group shows and Bristol have different vibes but are also well established for a reason, they do a good job.

 

Outside the UK things get even more interesting. Not only do you have some cultural differences, but also some excellent brands that for some reason just haven’t transferred out of their own country.

 

April sees Axpona in Schaumburg, on the outskirts of Chicago. Probably the biggest event in the US audio show calendar, and as such, as a manufacturer or distributor if you were to do only one US show this would probably be it. The hotel is quite big and has lots of suites and syndicate rooms. The show utilises about 8 floors of the hotel, and you need a couple of days to see it all, probably 3. It is well attended, and the scale of the venue means it doesn’t feel crowded, although there is usually a queue for catering.

 

May is the time of year for the well established and perhaps most renowned show in our industry. High End Munich is where the business to business gets done, more so than any other event I have visited. Companies from all over the world exhibit here and we are all now well used to the huge venue. For a lot of brands this is where you release new products and meet with international distributors and sales teams. This is seen as the most important show in the calendar for many brands and is definitely a focal point for our industry. If you want to see and hear the biggest selection of brands, many showing new products, this is the one to go to. There is now also a growing off site event called HiFi Deluxe running in a Hotel nearby.

 

At the end of October there is the Audio Video Show in Warsaw, this has been going for many years and has now grown into a very significant event. It is held at the football stadium and 2 hotels in the city. The show is very well organised and is at a scale that will surprise you on your first visit. Unlike Munich this is very much consumer focussed, although I am sure business to business happens, this isn’t the primary objective of the event. It is a very enjoyable show to visit and always throws up something interesting and new to me.  This event is excellent and is probably my favourite of the ones we don’t exhibit at. Not because it is the biggest, not because it has the best sounding systems, (look to Auden Distribution at Cranage and Deluxe for that;-)), and other than the old town, Warsaw isn’t a pretty place. The reason I enjoy it so much, in addition to it being well organised, is the sheer joy of seeing families, couples, men and women, groups of young friends, all visiting the event purely because they want to enjoy music. It is the busiest show I visit, and it is impossible not to be impressed by the passion the Polish people have for listening to music, even some of the pedestrian crossings are music themed. From the UK it isn’t difficult to get to, fairly cheap while you are there, and I would say for audiophiles and music lovers it is well worth a visit.

The final show on my calendar is Capital Audio fest in early November. Held in Rockville Maryland on the outskirts of Washington it is smaller than the other US show on my list but still very interesting and usually showcases a different brand profile. The hotel is again pretty spacious so it doesn’t feel crowded even when it is busy. Whilst the bustling central area on the ground floor fills the needs of the vinyl junkies amongst you, the rest of the exhibition is in the function rooms and decent sized suites in the hotel. Different, but just as interesting and enjoyable as Axpona.

 

There are a few I have missed as I haven’t visited them yet, such as the Dutch Audio Event, The Oslo Audio Show, the iEar show in Tillburg, and the Black Box Audio Show in Athens.

 

Rather than adding links to each of the event websites I encourage you to have a look at the Hifi Pig Diary it is a great way to keep up with the ever growing number of events. 2024 sees even more events happening……..

 

 

 

See you at North West Audio Show!

The weekend of June 17th 18th is the North West Audio Show, this will see our second big room appearance at audio shows this year. In March we had a great time at Audio Show Deluxe and we are expecting NWAS to be just as much fun.
At this year’s show we have several firsts from our brand partners across 2 rooms.
In the Bell Suite, just beyond the bar area, we have our main system and display area. Source will be an Innuos statement. This system will feature the new Amphion Krypton 3X, the first time in the UK following its recent release, we have had amazing results from the previous version here, so we are looking forward to hearing these.
To power them we are using the superb Hegel P30A and H30A pre and power amplifier. This is the first time we are using this combination at a public show and as with the Amphion, we are keen to hear these together.
Just as we have done for more than a decade, we will be wiring the system with Audiomica cables, with power products from MusicWorks. For many years we have also used isolation from MusicWorks, and this year is not going to be an exception. We will also be using their AcouPlex furniture which is a very exciting development from the company.
The DAC we are using is the Merason Audio DAC1 mkII, and this is the first show for us as the official distributor of the brand. We have been very impressed with how this unit performs so it will be good to hear it with the Hegel and Amphion combination.
On display we will have the range of Hegel integrated amplifiers and the Amphion Argon range. You will also be able to get up close to the magnificent EgglestonWorks Viginti, alongside the Nico and OSO.
The weather is forecast to be warm so the space we have and the doors being open make the Bell suite a nice place to listen to some good music on a very good system.
This year we also have a bigger second dem space, room 121. There we have a first at a UK show combination. The CAAS audio pre and 2 mono amplifiers, beautifully made hand made in the UK these are very listenable electronics.

They will be driving the EgglestonWorks Emma EVO, the first time we have used these at a show in the UK. Last year we had the Viginti in the main system and the Emma EVO derives a lot from the technologies and techniques debuted on that model. Fed by a Rega P8/Apheta 3 via a Hegel V10 it will sound great.
Audiomica and MusicWorks provide the cables, power products, and isolation, as always.
With these 2 great sounding systems, we are looking forward to the show, and whilst we understand It can be difficult to pass through the bar, please do as it is definitely worth it!

“Just what I need at home” Bristol Show success.

The 2020 Bristol Show was a great success for the brands we work with at Auden Distribution. Hegel had a room dedicated to demoing the differences between the H190, H390, and H590, and showing visitors just how much you can get out of a moderately priced pair of loudspeakers.

In the Auden Distribution room we showed a modest system in a friendly relatable setting. I have been asked many times about how to get improved sound from TV and movies without sacrificing music playback quality, but also from one system and without a room full of loudspeakers, the objective at this years event was to do just that.

We used Hegel H120 playing into a pair of  Amphion Argon 1, which as usual sounded fabulous, set up on an inexpensive TV stand, a stand which also housed a Blu-ray player and a TV. Music was from a laptop running Roon and all fed digitally into the DAC in the Hegel amplifier. Using MusicWorks for power and isolation products, and Audiomica cables the system sounded excellent. I put this system together quite often and am always surprised how well it performs, the Bristol Show was no exception, in fact I lost count how many times I was asked if we were using a subwoofer.

Many visitors were not only impressed by the performance but also that it was possible without a dedicated audio rack, and often commented “it is just what I need at home”. Switching between music from the laptop, music via airplay, to live gigs on Blu-ray illustrated how versatile the Hegel/Amphion combo is.

It was pleasing that so many visitors understood what we were trying to achieve, and more than a few people left enlightened that it is possible to have superb performance for music and TV from one room friendly system.

 

Short video of the room

Bristol 2020

Spring is usually a busy time for Hi-Fi events and 2020 looks to be no different. Our first and the UK’s busiest is The Bristol Hi-Fi Show on 213t – 23rd February. Auden will be in room 222 as in previous years, and we are demonstrating both Amphion and Hegel. This year we are focusing on the smaller Amphion models Argon 0 and Argon 1 partnered with the newest Hegel, the H120. In addition to the Hi-Fi demo we are adding a TV and Blu Ray player to show the how good the Hegel/Amphion combination is when used as the sound system for your TV. The system will be using MusicWorks isolation and power products and Audiomica cables.

Just along the corridor in room 230 the guys from Hegel will have the other models in the integrated amplifier range on demonstration so we have 2 rooms with different takes but both using great products.

Bristol Show 2019 –

The Bristol Hifi Show last weekend was a resounding success for Auden distribution.

Bristol 2019 room video

We featured Amphion partnered with Hegel to great effect, the system was easy to listen to and garnered many positive comments. Amphion and Hegel do work well together so it was no surprise to us, but we were very pleased just how good it sounded. At this years event we focused on Argon 3LS but the other models were also on display, the usual comments about how nice they look were heard many times over the course of the event. The white Hegel H190 was the heart of the system and did a fine job never putting a foot wrong all weekend, the way Hegel amplifiers grip and drive loudspeakers is always good to hear. We used music streamed from a laptop via ROON into the USB on the Hegel using Audiomica Labs cable, and fed the loudspeakers using cable from the same brand. MusicWorks G3 mains blocks and power cords were in use and all combined to create a very cohesive system that was most enjoyable to listen to. The show takes a lot of work to put together but we had a great time, thank you if you visited, maybe next year if you didn’t.

Scandinavia arrives in Bristol.

Next weekend sees the first hifi show of 2019 in the UK take place at the Marriott Hotel in Bristol. The Bristol Show is the busiest and probably biggest event in the UK show calendar and Auden Distribution will be there once again. This year we are featuring Amphion loudspeakers and partnering with Hegel Music Systems. In previous years we have had the smaller Amphion models as the focus of the system, this year we will be concentrating on the 2 floorstanding models. Argon 3LS and Argon 7LS. Amphion and Hegel make a great combination and we plan to show that you dont need a system that dominates your room to enjoy great music. As usual we’ll be using MusicWorks mains and isolation products and Audiomica interconnects. Come along to room 222, the show runs Friday through to Sunday, hopefully we will see you there.

Success at North West Audio Show 2018

We had a great time at Cranage Hall last weekend for the North West Audio Show.  The usual free entry combined with wonderful weather and a superb venue made it once again a success. The show is growing year by year and is now well worth a visit. The main system we had was sounding fabulous, Amphion Krypton driven by CAAS Audio pre/power, Audiomica cables, MusicWorks mains, furniture, and isolation. Source was a Nadac kindly loaned to us by Ultimate Stream. The system had terrific scale and power yet also retained subtlety and finesse, Gregory Porter to Nine Inch Nails all sounded superb.

We also had a more modest system, featuring the new versions of Amphion Argon 1 and Argon 0. Driven by Hegel Röst and using Audiomica cables, MusicWorks mains and isolation products, it delivered music in a way that belied its apparent simplicity.

Along with all the Argon range from Amphion we had M2tech RockStar series, and the piccolo+ server from Aria on display. It was a good 2 days and we had many, many positive comments. Thanks to those who visited and I hope you found it rewarding.

North West Audio Show 2018

The North West Audio Show is one of our favourites, it is in a characterful hotel, free to enter, and much more relaxed than the “big” shows and this year Auden Distribution are showcasing Amphion loudspeakers and CAAS Audio. The main system will be a pair of Amphion Krypton3 driven by the CAAS e-pre, and 2 e-mono pre-power combination and as we are taking up the whole of the Bell Suite, we have plenty of space to let the system really sing.

CAAS Audio was recently reviewed in Hifi+ where Jason Kennedy wrote “The CAAS trio is one of the most musically engaging and resolving amplification systems around”, we wouldn’t disagree.

The Amphion Kryptons are the result of many years continued evolution and are the Amphion reference for home audio. Trickle down from this model has seen the Argon range garner numerous excellent reviews in the press including Argon 7LS on Hifi Pig and Argon 1 in HifiChoice.

The system will use MusicWorks furniture, isolation and power products, and Audiomica labs interconnects and loudspeaker cables. Source will be a Merging Nadac. All together, an extremely capable and musical system that we are looking forward to playing.

There will also be a more lifestyle system to demonstrate the newly updated Argon 0 and Argon 1 models, it is surprising how good a more modest system can be and as with the bigger system, this is a very enjoyable way to listen to your music.
On display we will also have the M2Tech range including RockStar series, and the Aria Piccolo+ from DigiBit, both the subjects of recent great press reviews.

Well worth a visit, hopefully we’ll see you over the weekend!