Back from the Munich show!

Above - using the new perceptual visualiser AI from Perlisten, I entered one of my favourite tracks into the website and it created my own "Avatar". Pretty cool!

 

 

 

 

So this announcement came somewhat out of the blue - a new limited edition speaker of the largest, flagship product from Perlisten the S7t.

 

S series speakers are already exceptional as far as sonic performance, in-room response, finish and completeness of the range is concentred. Utilising Perlisten's unique DPC (directivity pattern control) which controls dispersion of mid/high frequencies via a mid-tweet-mid module, Perlisten created a product with the S series which features a Beryllium tweeter and dual TPCD (thin ply carbon diaphragm) midrange units and carbon fibre woofers, all with a strong magnet system and incredible cabinet design to create a solid, high performing loudspeaker for 2 channel HiFi and AV use.

 

One has to ask - how do you improve upon this?

 

Well - I was fortunate to spend 30-40 mins with Dan Roemer (CEO and designer of Perlisten) on the launch day plus a few hours opposite him at dinner the next evening talking product roadmap, innovation, plans for the future etc.

 

In short - there was a lot of learning on the S series and already, they know what they would need to do to improve further the range but like all things with R&D and production, you have to draw the line somewhere to launch a product.

The S7t limited edition speaker is Perlisten flexing their brain power and releasing some of that learning into a no-compromise product.

 

Some of the highlights (you can read more on the product description below) but for what matters:

 

 

I was delighted to conclude the first sale of these speakers whilst in the room with the team and have a few more pairs reserved for my customers. If you are interested - please let me know via return email and I'll get in touch to get your interest registered, a 50% deposit taken and a build slot ready. Shipping will be later this year (October - December) is what we understand currently so plenty of time to get your funds sorted out.

Last year at Munich, DALI released their new flagship, luxury speaker called the KORE.

At £70,000 each - these incredible speakers will feature in only a handful of homes across the UK but pins DALI back into the luxury HiFi market after a few years focussing on brand development with ranges such as Opticon, Rubicon and Epicon;

 

Now - a year later, the more "affordable" EPIKORE 11 speaker is announced which features much of the technology from the KORE and packages it into an Epicon-like tapered cabinet.

 

Priced at £40,000 - these are once again not cheap but when one looks into what's included and the similarities with KORE, they all of a sudden start to look like the high end speaker DALI has been needing for some time.

 

So what makes them special?

 

 

Our demo pair will hit the store in October. If all things go to plan, I'll be visiting the factory in Denmark to witness our speakers being manufactured as well as spending time with the design engineers responsible for the new speaker design - something I'm super excited about.

Audiolab released the new 9000N at the Munich show - boasting the first ever implementation of Lumin with a colour screen!

 

Available later this year, the 9000N (nb - no "Play" in the name) features a high end ESS 9038 Pro DAC with balanced/unbalanced outputs, volume control and a great interface.

Price expected to be around the £2500 point.

Above (top/middle) - HiFi Rose new RS130 transport.

 

Notice digital outputs only - and a wide range of them! From Coax, switchable I2S, AES EBU, Optical and with USB over fibre inputs, ethernet and wifi plus a new external clock interface (50 and 75ohms) - this is a very high end transport for customers with an existing DAC which they want to get the most out of.

 

Priced around £4500 (we think) and available mid-summer, watch this space for more releases which we *expect* (but no word from Rose on this) a new standalone DAC to partner with this....

 

Above (bottom) is the new RA280 Class D amplifiers - limited info currently but 2 x 200w Class AD with a MM phono stage. We expect this to be around the £4000 mark but no confirmation of this yet.

 

Balanced and unbalanced inputs - analogue only of course.

The highly anticipated Quad Platina Series of separates is scheduled for release in the fourth quarter of this year.

 

Although details are scarce, this streamlined line-up is expected to offer a range of impressive features.

 

The initial launch will include a 200W integrated amplifier with digital inputs, accompanied by a matching CD transport. There are also rumours of a potential music streamer being introduced at a later stage which one assumes will be based on Lumin also.

 

Announced also were the new Revela speakers!

 

A small range consisting of a bookshelf and a floorstanding speaker (above). Two finishes available - walnut/black or all black.

 

Pricing estimated to be somewhere in the £2500-£4000 range.

These will be featured in store too.

 

We'll say no more at this stage, but who knows what may be in store later in the year?