My very personal, subjective but ad-free, undogmatic and honest High End Munich 2019 show report ;-)

[jazznut]

So here I am again with a little show report! A lot repeated this year and a lot was disappointing, which is why I’m probably not going again for some time, but anyway I tried to find something new compared to my last report to show to you besides some similarities to last year. However I didn’t have a focus on new product launches…I just tried to go into every interesting room having a demo. I just mention those where I expected good sound and was disappointed or pleased and I don’t mention many imo average or below average rooms.

I’ll be posting 4 sections:

The interesting or weird add. with some turntable porn at the end
The “disappointing”
The “nice to impressing”
The “magic”

Except for the first section I always start with the worse (or less good) and end with the better in each section.

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Just for you to be able to judge my preference:

For me it’s important that a setup sounds coherent in tonality and nothing jumps at you unnaturally (certainly e.g. too slow or too loose bass etc., but even if it’s a positive effect like “punchy bass” or “silky highs”). I want to hear as full range (at least enough to transport the soul of the music) as possible, without having to recognize characteristics or features of the equipment. Just music… the equipment should stand behind it without certain peculiarity. As important as coherence and natural sound is energy/livelyness/dynamics and emotional involvement for me…to be dragged into the performance. If one of those three very basic demands (coherence, livelyness, emotional involvement) are missing from a setup’s sound, it’s not for me (and there are tons of setups missing at least one of them…to be honest…the most)

Sophisticated characteristics and high end terms that describe good sound mostly come along with those three demands.

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What were major observations and conclusions for me after this show?

There must be enough high end brands for a 1:1 match for at least 20% of mankind on earth and another 1:1 match of high end sales people for the other 80% of mankind. It’s unbelievable how many folks build something and unbelievable how they can sell their stuff to more than the family. If one established a well known and successful company like PSA or similar…this seems to be a huge achievement in this circus of redundant products…crazy.

Big and/or expensive doesn’t mean good sound

Most exhibitors already fail badly with their selection of unqualified music played.

Optical room tuning (ambience) also means a lot.

Only very few exhibitors seem to know how to tune a room and how to place the speakers for good sound. Room tuning and know how is absolutely essential at those shows.

Only very few exhibitors seem to be really connected to music instead of equipment, isolated sound characteristics and “short phase test and effect listening”.

Solid state electronics in average (with exceptions) fall quite short compared to tube setups when speaking about transporting magic as well as really involving and lively sound.

At least half of the rooms mostly played vinyl instead of digital (I don’t know if for sound or optical reasons, as at a show vinyl is not that convenient). I heard great digital and analog rooms. The tube/solid state influence on sound is much bigger to notice.

Really many speaker manufacturers use ribbons now and in most cases those designs are clearly superior in top end integration, resolution and natural sound…hard to go back to any dome tweeter and only some that can compete (those who can don’t have to be of a weird material…it seems more a question of skill)

Very very few setups really have a magical, involving sound…and although I’m rather a full range guy…power house high end (big amps, large speakers) don’t seem to be the best solution too often.

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What did I miss that I wanted to hear?

Wilson and Gryphon were quite crowded and only made scheduled shows…I didn’t have the patience.
Focal just played home cinema and I totally missed Diavalet, which I would have liked to listen to for refreshing a meaningful opinion about their products…and I didn’t see any PSA component once more unfortunately

So let’s start…

[jazznut]

Section: “The interesting or weird add. with some turntable porn at the end”
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You ever wanted a grammophone-like looking tube amped speaker? There it is!

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You didn’t know that in the bavarian and austrian dialect the sound of the french pronouciantion of the name “Cabasse” (which in fact is a french company) means “no bass”? Makes sense as most Cabasse speakers make no real bass indeed Probably just funny for germans and austrians having heard Cabasse speakers…

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This one looks neat, but it’s huge…really looking as an alien in a home. Isn’t there a famous science fiction “The end of the world” with Tom Cruise? I remember some film scenes when looking at this speaker.

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The open radial speaker dome (close to 50cm diameter) looked like a examined alien head.

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I somehow liked the look of this amp…not cat safe unless you want to barbecue it.

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I always wanted to own a Copland amp, just for the looks…and never did unfortunately…I always loved their design.

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But also the italian have the feeling for good design…

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Don’t look at this absorber too long or this is the end of the show for you!

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Air motion transformer extreme!

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This is not a couch, this is probably the biggest integrated tube amp…see the small tubes…they have the size you know from your amp.

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If you ever thought what’s on a digital master is also on a physical disc, read what they write…if it’s true, their improvement makes the flaw affected physical medium obvious as such.

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Outer cable design seems a matter of taste, too…but if you think looking cheap means cheap, you’re wrong!

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How about a speaker in bath tub design?

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Yes, you saw right…Goldmund is still alive and kickin’…the built quality is not of this earth!

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…and Ted…the TSS is not big enough…see here…the thing on top is just…a DAC…look at the normal components below for a comparison.

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Now the promised turntable porn at the end of sectioon one. No chance to tell anything interesting except the looks of those tables from this show.

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…at the end the Kronos turntable (yes the whole rack content on the left belongs to it). It was used in many rooms, I saw at least five…either it’s that good and/or the distributor or sales guy is female…or both…

[jazznut]

Section 2: “The disappointing”
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After a long time ignoring them I wanted to disable or verify my prejudice about B&W speakers…unfortunately it was confirmed…I don’t want to go deeper than the most obvious…the tweeter is too loud and bright. Why this sound is sold like hotcakes I don’t get.

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Some might know I own and like fully active speakers (not those).

The manufacturer here is Backes & Mueller, a german active speaker manufacturer with historical experience…but what I heard here is not how it should sound. Fast, dynamic and immediate yes, that’s typical, but also stained, harsh, hard, sterile…let’s hope they had a bad day…

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Avantgarde Acoustics with a stained tonality, a detached, too slow bass compared to the rest…horns don’t have to sound like that…hopefully a room acoustical problem, but I doubt it…

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Disappionting last year, disappointing this year…last year they played Pink Floyd The wall, which was sounding awful on this setup. I didn’t want to go in but I gave it a try…guess what they played when I came into the room this year? The Wall, which might be impressive on something like a Gryphon setup…but not with horns, at least not with those…no way anyone would buy this listening to that sound.

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No color, no life, no grounding in this setup, no idea why Chord plays a setup like that.

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In no way better Esoteric…why they play such “small” speakers in a close wall setting, not angled to the listeners with totally unsuitable music…it sounded worse than a good 1,5k complete setup.

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I heard the Magico’s in 2 setups last year and in 4 setups this year. As you could read last year I was disappointed so I gave it a multiple new try this year and mostly sat in the best sweet spot. What must be said is, that they sound coherent in each setup, fast, accurate, neutral, fine dynamic.

The two setups with the smaller speaker had no bass fundament or richness at all without much tonal color, lifeless, flat, uninvolving, really unbelievable for me. A little better the third setup with the big ones, but still quite the same. The setup with the MSB components then had coherent full range tonality with reasonable tonal color, good sound…but still no magic at all, no holographic sound, no breath of life, no emotion, no involvement. It’s not a matter of taste…they don’t have anything I don’t like in particular, it’s just something missing…mainly involvement.

I must be wrong due to all the rave reviews, but for me they seem to be some of the most overrated speakers currently (given their price and approach) until I hear them differently…but I already tried a lot (6 times)!

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Looks as if it could sound great, but this mighty speaker had a sound signature like a small floor standing speaker, quite mid orientated. What appears to be a Fostex ribbon (which I generally know from one of my former speakers) sounded not well balanced and harsh here…no magic or even nice and well balanced sound anywhere.

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I had a good seat at the Martin Logan room. I owned ML’s myself at the beginning of my high end history. What I heard of this and another electrostatic of another brand was still a non coherent tonality with a too slow, very little articulated and detached bass in terms of pace. Hardly dynamics as they should be and a kind of transparency and top end sound, that was fast, but immediately identifyable as the sound of an eectrostatic panel, dominating the music’s own sound. Not bad certainly but far from a standard possible with conventional speakers in it’s price range in most aspects. I think up to a certain price point ML’s still might be a good value, but they are not for me anymore…maybe the panel only versions are still interesting if they still make one like the old CLS.

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What an impressive equipment lineup! But those speakers sound as they appear…like a small surface electrostatic with neither dynamics, nor anything like full range sound, more like listening to a fast midrange/treble driver and even not really great in that.

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I remembered my high appreciation for Verity speakers from the past and tried 3 setups this time.

But except for the third, which sounded really nice, the other two were quite disappointing with no seamlessly integrated treble and nothing special to mention…I expected much more and really wondered about this experience. Not bad but disappointing for what I remembered.

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I have to make a break until the next section which will follow tomorrow…then it get’s positive, I promise

[calord]

Thank You, @jazznut!!

[stevensegal]

Indeed, very personal and very subjective.

For anyone vaguely interested in product launches, which is what this show is mostly about, much of it is here: https://www.whathifi.com/news/high-end-munich-2019-heres-what-to-expect
and here: https://www.stereonet.co.uk/news

The interesting turntable (not shown above) is the new Garrard 301 from SME, which is why they bought the brand from Loricraft. Stupidly expensive compared to the £3,500 refurbs Terry at Loricraft used to do.

High End Munich 2019: Garrard 301 Transcriptor Turntable Makes Updated...

[michael-denmark]

Thank You…

[stevensegal]

Looking at what was on show, it does seem that valve amplifiers are dying out in European manufacture. Besides Prima Luna, Icon Audio, EAR, KR Audio and a few other bespoke manufacturers, there’s not a lot left. Still seem very popular in the USA, but then they are big, bling and are environmentally OK as climate change does not exist over there. That said, the new Chord reference amplifiers probably aren’t that environmentally friendly either.

[jazznut]

Thanks Steven, this is really important to add and I will do so in my first post…I didn’t have a focus on new product launches…I just went around and tried to catch every room…and I went in if it was interesting for me AND if there was a demonstration. I didn’t go in rooms just displaying. My main focus was listening to the performance of interesting setups. A very different focus than magazines have…and I also didn’t have a slight country orientated focus as the UK mags you mentioned.

I also just accidentally pictured turntables as I saw one and liked its looks…I would also have pictured the Garrard if I had seen it.

It just came into my mind when reading from you, that I missed Diavalet, too, which I would have liked to listen to, to be able to tell something about my impression, damn.

My comments certainly are very personal and subjective, I just can tell you that I was totally open to any kind of technology (which you will see by the following posts) and I think I can say I have no strange taste in anything… I’m quite sure, setups that are fascinating for me are fascinating for many and the same in the other direction for inferior setups. Many might accept more flaws than I do, but I’m quite sure, they would mostly have a similar perception of what sounds better. So I hope the posts stay interesting for the folks here.

[stevensegal]

I understand Munich is a proper trade fair. Lots of public go, but it is apparently a place to do business and very much a place to launch products. It must be difficult for USA manufacturers that are price-sensitive (which one’s aren’t?) because the $ is relatively strong against the € and £.
Devialet was not there as there was nothing new to present. They apparently did some trade meetings in their Berlin office, but no need for a big stand to display what is already known in the market.
Brinkmann and Clearaudio are, I presume, effectively obliged to do a stand as it is their local show. I owned a Clearaudio Champion Level II, sold because I hated the Unify unipivot arm (I think PSA has one). Brinkmann are nice and expensive, but the Germans engineer stuff better than anyone, perhaps only the Swiss equal them, like Nagra and the Goldmund speakers you should have bought! $65,000?
The Garrard is apparently £12,500, complete profiteering, as Terry used to do the decks fully refurbed on a nice plinth for £3,500 and SME have just stuck on one of their tonearms.
I have to apologise as I just don’t get valves, Peter Walker effectively considered them redundant in 1967 when he brought out the 33/303, although the valve amps that preceded the 33/303 are still in production. Give the people what they want !!!

[Brodric]

@jazznut

and I didn’t see any PSA component once more unfortunately

I don’t think there was a single exhibitor using anything PS Audio at Munich last year. Not even a Power Plant. Which is a surprise.

[jazznut]

On the one hand I also wonder, but on the other, except for the Kronos turntable I saw no supplying gear or even source gear that was repeatedly used to a noteworthy extent. Seems every exhibitor selects to his own preference very individually…and as I mentioned, there are enough products to choose from, even if one’s limited to a gold coated power regenerator ;-). If you would have looked for e.g. Audioquest power conditioning anywhere or similar it would have been the same result. Not even the big names like Esoteric or DCS sources or even german brands were used repeatedly.

[jlm]

Thanks for the reviews. Seems like we have similar tastes, which makes your posts very useful. Not sure how you covered so much ground.

[wakethetown]

I feel the same way! Thanks for your vivid descriptions. Can’t wait to read more.

[jazznut]

Section 3 „nice“ to „impressing“:
Peformance differences in this section are quite big.
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…starting from weakest to strongest I begin with Piega, which hardly made it out of the disappointing section for me. The beautiful sound from mids upwards couldn‘t be matched by the fundament. Due to the size one expects more fullrange sound it can’t deliver. It’s anyway nice as the price to my knowledge is „only" 15k (can it be true?)…but I think PSA will better this not only in terms of a fullrange performance in its price range.

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I saw those speakers in magazines already some time ago and didn‘t expect much…asked myself how one can make speakers (except planars) more wide than deep. But they really sound impressingly good, also very homogenuous…does serve the music very well! I was surprised, you won’t think about anything missing although not everything’s there.

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Harbeth, which I generally like very much didn‘t sound as good as last year this time, but the very coherent sound with great pace and microdyamics also convinced this time. To live with it…for me, it lacks information and impact in the lower region it can‚t reproduce due to its size and conception…but those are great speakers.

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A taiwanese company was playing speakers sounding very homogenuous…not magic, but with very balanced sound…just not enough for a 120k price imo, but there are other expensive one‘s sounding not as good.

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I love the looks and form factor of this speaker, which sounded very natural and overall very good. No big magic, but this one would sound and imo look nice in any room. The ribbon tweeter once more guarantees a well integrated natural sounding top end.

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Huge component effort for this setup with very nice sound, lacking a bit bite and transients for my taste…a little too tubey sounding.

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Then the Nagra room with less impressing sound than expected but still very very good. Might have been a matter of the music selection and the italian demo guy talking way too much. Look sharp at the sub on the second picture…strong contender for the biggest one available.

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Now there were 2-3 rooms using Rockport speakers and appropriate amps…very good I must say, you wont make a mistake with them…

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Kharma speakers are usually a case for the magic section…and you will see one there…this setup (I should better say room) was less good but still great sounding.

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Now a room with interesting component placement and a very nice ambience…as well as the big Wilson Benesh speakers sounding very good.

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On the same level but with differing sound von Schweikert (I guess he was demo‘ing himself?) brought smaller speakers than last time, but very impressing ones once more…insane effort of amplification as usual. I think 80% of the bigger and smaller best setups used tubes at this show. He played the well estimated out of print one step pressing of Santana Abraxas.

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You will ask what can be magic if not some of these impressing ones? All I can tell is, it doesnt have to get bigger necessarily, there will be two small magic speakers around 15k…so wait and see…

[vsopking]

Thanks, great pictures! Do you have any idea why one needs 2 tone arms on a turntable?

[jazznut]

Thanks…different cartridges used, e.g. a stereo and a mono.

[jazznut]

Section 3 “The magical ones”
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There were many fantastic multi 100k setups pictured already, but I probably wouldn’t have bought one of them given the choice I theoretically had. You will be wondering that there are also smaller ones in this magical section although I’m a kind of “fullrange guy” more or less. Reason is…speakers can make you forget fullrange if they convince with deeply involving you in the music and/or overwelm you in relation to their size.

I will sort again from the gorgeous to the even more gorgeous, but I will have several peak performances this time…too hard to decide. And you will find certain retakes compared to my last years report…but also new additions.
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I’m not sure where to put this setup consisting of speakers and electronics of this brand I never heard of…to the beginning or a little further back…it sounded so good and right, with fortunately not a bass that had to prove that a small speaker has lots of it, but integrating it perfectly into the overall sound and delivering a phantastic tonality and soundstage in a very natural presentation. For my taste it also looks gorgeous and as you might know…the smaller the speakers are, the better the illusion in case they span a very effusive stage. The box in the back is no sub, it’s a power regenerator. Is this really better than some of the huge setups of the previous sections? No and yes…it doesn’t have many things they have, but it has the few more important ones at the same time and it’s extremely impressing for its size. Something in me says: buy this quickly…maybe some time I do (15k just the speakers)…but wait, there’s more!!

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Fascinating as last year (with different horns) once more the Western electric room with horns looking as if fallen from a military truck. This is a sound you won’t hear often anywhereelse…it’s just livelike in its energy and dynamics filling the room…you’ll never forget how a trumpet sounds by those speakers. Nothing to take home, but an unforgettable experience.

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Now it starts getting very difficult with the sequence…here a marvelous setup with the big Kronzilla tube amps creating the absolute magic of a levitating, holographic, room filling sound. The only reason it’s not placed more at the end of the section is that it occasionally just sounded slightly stained and mid focussed to my ears. But anyway a sound to die for.

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Although I think those amps are butt ugly as being part of a comic based movie setting and although the Dagostino/Wilson Benesh setup sounded rather disappointing last year, this time they placed it differently, and chose the smalle speakers. Standing in the middle (all others stood, too there) the soundstage was just HUGE and convincing, the sound dynamic and well balanced. Big high end, great sounding…but not with the magic previously mentioned…anyway very fascinating this time.

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When I sat down in front of this Playback Designs setup I thought…this sounds perfect from top to bottom and it does. The only thing missing is that magical air everywhere around all sounds as e.g. the previously mentioned horn setup has…and that’s very important for me. But only very few setups have it…and compared to the rest, this here is fantastic. Look at that biggest amp I have ever seen in that form factor…will be around 60k.

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Those speakers, this setup has the “wow” effect. You immediately notice, there’s something special playing…so right, so colorful, organic and dynamic and 3D sounding…I don’t remember if it used ss or tube amps, but if it’s solid state, it’s the best solid state I’ve heard at this show. The difference of this setup to the partly even more expensive one of the previous section is obvious.

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Always hard to decide where to place the Kharma setup …here or more upwards in the sequence…as it’s repeatedly marvelous sounding. The Aussies know what they do…they are the only ones shipping? a complete wall set for the room which they build directly on top of the show room walls. They redesign the whole room and care for a great ambience at the same time. Maybe that’s one reason why their speaker sound much better in their room than in others. Makes sense…if you want to sell a multi 100k speaker, you should take some care presenting it…and if I had the money and couldn’t decide between this and another brand’s speaker, I’d buy theirs…just to honor their approach…I love it when people care and try to make it perfect, not only visually.

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Coming with smaller speakers than last year, the sound of the Zellaton/Schnerzinger room was sounding comparably perfect. Easyly the fastest, most dynamic sound of the show, extremely natural and 3D sounding…if it were a little warmer sounding with a little more pleasant timbre, it would probably be the winner…so fine tune this to your likes! Really hard to say, which of those setups to prefer.

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The following two are at one level for me, I can’t decide which to prefer…so first the Odeon horn room.

For the music I heard with this setup, I didn’t miss anything. No discoloration of horn sound audible and an unmatched free flowing, levitating, holographic, room filling sound… this was magical once more!

They used the pictured active NF room protector, of which I know how it helps with that kind of airy, holographic sound.

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Among last years winners for me, this year I was again overwelmed by this small 15k Living Voice speaker with its “25 years long developed” external crossover nearly half the size of the speaker itself and certainly some serious tube amplification.

Again this year people were walking towards the big horns and recognized they were not playing. This (resonating wall) speaker has a natural, vivid, enveloping, room filling sound that is unbelievable not only considering its size. If I’d start with high end again in a normal living room environment, I’d buy this one definitely combined with a very good tube…even better would be to have it as a second setup…not sure if the first (probably bigger) setup would be played frequently then.

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So I’m finished for this show and hope it was interesting again!

It’s ambitious to compete against such speakers and setups and I’m sure e.g. to make a speaker like the two small ones sounding like that means long term occupation and a dedicated long term music listening habit.

[Brodric]

Lots of impressive audio porn to behold, but I am very disappointed at the lack of beer stein porn on display.

[jazznut]

I agree…but I had no time to drink beer that day…was hard working for the forum crowd

[scotte1]

Thanks so much for taking the time. Very informative; and a lot of fun…

If you don’t mind my asking, you use a phrase several times that I have not heard before to describe the characteristics of several systems you listened to – “stained”. This is a new one for me. Care to explain/throw some synonyms at me so I can understand what you meant by stained?

Thanks again.