What HiFi Show Bangalore

[ravi_d]

Thanks for the updates guys. Looking for someone to post some pics of the show.

I visited on saturday afternoon, this was my 1st show. I was having very high expectations, but ...

Other fellow members have already pointed out all points.
I just want to ask one query about "Invention Audio". When i asked the guy which DAC you are using, he said it's discrete DAC chip, it's not any conventional wolfson/Ess/Cirrus.

Can any1 please help me out understanding his in-house discrete DAC chip ?
This thing is eating my head from Saturday, thank you in advance.

Discrete means it's not a chip. That could be based on something like diy discrete soekris R-2R dac.

 

[neo]

Thanks to all who made an effort to visit & esp to the once who also posted their experience. It gives some hope that the hobby that we all love is still alive at some level.
Since i was there last year, it was great following it. It's also nice to assimilate the push & pull of brands mentioned & how people judge & react to the set up.

Guess there were only 5-6 two channel set up's i reckon.
Nice to see invention audio participate yet again & find some followers. But it's strange that he was vary of people taking pics. But i did see one & it seems that the tweeter was way above listening height!! is it correct? Also transmission line is very difficult to get right. Hope he's cracked it.

Lot's of distributors & dealers make a mistake of getting a big setup in a small room. Hope the MBL guys will live & learn form it & not get discouraged for not getting it right.

What was really sad is that a big chuck of dealers & distributors stayed away , this time form bangalore as well . I was surprised last time that the chennai dealers didn't turn up & they have no show to vouch for & yet again none of them made any effort it seems.
Also lots of other distributors & dealers avoided being a part of it from all over the country. Guess we only have a few handful dedicated dealers who make the effort & pains to display at every event possible.
The rest i'm afraid are just nos crunchers. Just selling HT is not going to build their brands. We in India need a big effort to make this grow as hobby & i see a lot of budding enthusiast lossing interest just due to lack of exposure or proper guidance. As no matter what they do they aren't able to step up to another level of sound reproduction. Guess most have no idea what's it all about.

Thanks again
Cheers to all

 

[eloorarun]

:clapping:This year what hifi Show was indeed better compared to previous year, my views

Most of the exhibitors focussed on Surround sound setup

But a few well arranged and passionately done stereo/ HiFi setups on demo

Many reputed exhibitors from the past show were absent this year.. Harbeth, sonus faber.. etc to name a few..

Even though the rooms were either small of poor in acoustics, its was interesting to see how innovatively the exhibitors utilised the wall claddings, some DIY pillows to tackle or improve acoustics...:clapping:

My view on selected demos..

many exhibitors chose the same rooms that they took last year...

KLIPSCH They deserved a bigger and wider room to unleash the potential of their speakers... roksan, jamo was good

PROFX, being the title sponsor,they had a big space, with a KEF CI speakers setup on demo with JVC 4K projection,. big space.. but poor room acoustics , leakage of light from outside, reflection off ceiling etc spoiled the fun...polk demo / display is good, Their all now signature series is promising for 5.1 setup .. the polk woodbourne all in one system is kickass..

i felt the KEF blades & LS 50S deserved a demo room.. they are such a loudspeaker design phenomenons..., sad that they were on static display..:sad:

DEVIALET , nice booth, and friendly guys this is the first time i got a chance to audition them...it was a " WOOOW" moment ...phenomenal audio output... those pistonic woofer excursions will drive you crazy.. nice imaging. dynamics. tight LF.. ( i think this exhibitor got the most benefit of a rather compact room..)

SONODYNE. as usual a setup thats nicely done, less clutter and display of products compared to last show., IWO series of speakers are real compact and value for money.. that sonus Subwoofer is a killer..deep ..tight bass.. performance that gives a "high headroom reserve..." feel.. highly recommended.. the CI 5.1 demo was less impressive.. again small room/ high output and SPL spoiled it..

DYNOX/ ELAC nice setup, ELAC speakers sounds good, smooth rolled OFF highs, since they were awating the PRIMARE range,couldnt listen to it..

BASS N TREBLE Again a first time experience with ZU AUDIO range, with Rogue audio amplification, Ayre DAC , THORENS TT etc...enjoyed a short session of pure ,warm analogue sound...an eric clapton album!!. very transparent and spacious sound stage.. their speaker placements gave me some enlightment ...

KII their room had a unique aura..The speakers are one of its kind.. the team gave me a brief on the tech behind them.. 6 drivers.. 6 dsps.. 6 amps of 250 W each..oh god!!. played few tracks.. precise imaging.... convincing LF extension...at times it sounds clinical...tube/ class A followers will have a second opinion..!!

DNI/ FOCAL They had a 5.1 setup ..those massive ( relatively ) speakers sounds very tamed.. sheer realism...

ROGUE AUDIO May be bacause i heard them after focal and other speakers... it sounds very laid back to me...have to try again later..

TRIAD pioneers in custom install speakers..A nicely done 5.1.2 demo setup..

BABBLER/ Q ACOUSTICS May be they are those few speakers who excels equally well in both surround sound and stereo...smooth , yet detailed.. tight LF.. the subwoofers looks compact and room friendly..

SURROUND SWAR A firm run by a passionate and energetic duo..they had vincent hybrid amplifier and XTZ speakers.. they were musical.. but deserves better and wider setup.. has sweet addictive highs emanating from that ribbon tweeters...played diana krall..hyeah: also some massive subwoofers from POWERSOUND AUDIO and XTZ.


goes on...

 

[raghupb]

Part 2 of my impressions ... Earlier disclaimer still applies
Visited many rooms with fellow HFV members.

1. Tannoy Revolution + Primare Amp (HT Store)
Floor manager Lokesh was obliging to play a few of my tracks. Felt that the speakers needed a bit more separation.
Bass was fantastic, maybe a bit over the comfort mark. Good detail but the room was playing a major role in the reproduction. The Primare amp sounded promising.

2. Babbler Group - Q Acoustics
This was a HT setup. Had never heard these before; quite frequently recommended on the forum. The cuboid shaped boxes are a hit/miss in terms of looks.
On the opening scene of Mad Max Fury Road, they maxed out the room; it felt like there were tactile transducers under the seats.
For folks putting together a HT setup, these should be on the audition list.

3. KII Audio
German company with active speakers; very Scandinavian looks. These boxes are quite deep and tall but not really wide.
They have 6 drivers each with its own DAC/DSP/Amplification. 2 in front, 2 at the back, 1 each on the sides. Only top and bottom are spared of drivers.
Each speaker was hooked up to its own power conditioner (optional). They only have a Coax digital input, so if you are playing out of USB, a converter is required.
Sounded OK, not great; could have been the room. For a 9L price tag, not very convincing, but it is an all in one system.
Allegedly these can be placed close to walls and the DSP magic can be used to the hilt.
This room was also showcasing cables (I am not a cable guy); so I felt like Gulliver with all the cable supports and all.

4. Merging-Nadac + NAD Masters + PSB
The highlight of this room was the DAC (8L-11L price tag; yes 8L for 2ch goes up to 8 ch). It can play all kinds of DSD, DXD etc.
Paired with NAD Master series pre + power playing out of PSB towers. While it sounded sweet, I feel it is an extreme high end niche product.

5. Triad + McIntosh
This was the first time I have heard McIntosh in a HT setup. The amp has 3 blue VU meters so in a true HT setup it should be hidden.
The speakers were all hidden behind the screen or embedded in false walls (show specific). Yes it sounded good, but McIntosh for HT; maybe I am just a time warp guy.

6. XTZ + PSA
The DnD is Chennai based Surround Swarm. Energetic duo showcasing XTZ speakers and PSA subs.
The sub has an 18" driver and looks like a washing machine. HT setup was there. I was more interested in the 2 ch setup.
Vincent Audio hybrid amp with XTZ speakers. The speakers were not convincing, but amp shows promise.
This was the SV-237, if I am correct; for a 1.6L price tag it may be worth exploring for those interested.

7. Axiom Audio
I was quite excited to hear this chain. On day one I did not have time to hit this room. They had the flagship LFR1100 in action; but the Axiom amps were display pieces.
Apparently, something went kaput so they were using a Yamaha IA and a Crown amp. It felt Thor's hammer was pounding me.
Really could not feel the omni directional effect. the speakers may hold promise if paired up correctly with a 4-ohm capable amp.

8. Zu Audio + Rogue Audio
This was an interesting room on 2 accounts; looks and sound.
The speakers themselves were interesting looking monoliths (if they were in black you would be transported to the opening scene of 2001: A Space Odyssey).
They have full range driver (big 10+ inch at least) and a super tweeter for 12K + range.
They were driven from a Rogue Audio's 'The Cronus Magnum II'. I felt that the chain was getting it right, very easy to listen to.

9. Thonet and Vander
This room for me was the surprise of the show. The cheapest active monitors on display were 18K MRP and the guys were offering a discounted price of about 15K.
I was surprised that these boxes were hooked up to the laptop's audio out and still sounding decent. It has a couple of knobs on the side and BT capable. Would make an affordable addition to a TV or PC.
For 15K a very good entry into this madness we all share.

10. Nexus Audio (AVM + Octave + Graham)
See separate follow on post in this thread; it deserves one in my opinion.

Cheers,
Raghu

 

[sud98]

Had a good time visiting the show. Glad to meet a few members like John and RoC.

Profx - HT
Had a JVS eshift 4k (this is not true 4k which the sales guy acknowledged), the picture quality was excellent. The sound in Dolby Atmos was good, but dont have a reference point to judge esp. with the price point.

Profx - Stereo
Heard the KEF reference with my reference track. Sound was excellent in nearfield, the room was large and acoustics were useless as they were multitasking another HT setup.

KII Audio
Really liked the cleanness of the sound. The speakers looked gorgeous in red. The room in terms of acoustics seemed real nice. To me one of the standout sound.

Invention Audio
Spent a lot of time here. One of the FM's really grilled the founder on the mechanics of the speaker as well as his choices from crossover to capacitors. Was a real informative session for me. The sound was excellent. The finish was poor with chips in the speakers. The crossover was exposed, I am assuming it wont be in the commercial version.
Overall sound was worth it, with the ribbon tweeters and the TL design. But lot of work needed in the finish.

Epson
Was interested as I own the 2040 (TW6600) and it was on display. They also had the huge LS10000 which is their laser 4k projector (again not true 4k).
This is a monster of a projector, however, when I saw the movie that they showed it looked like a regular BD movie. They then admitted they dont have a 4k source except few trailers which felt was a bit stupid. Once they put those, it really shone and everyone in the room started saying wow.
The other one is the same projector I have at home. The image in my home looked better so I dont know how they manage it.

BassnTreble
ZuAudio has quite ugly looks but the sound was excellent esp. paired Rogue Audio tube amp. I didnt think I would like tubes but these sounded quite nice. They dont have a dealer in Bangalore.

PSB Audio
Didnt spend much time as I have heard them many times. Although it did sound fine in the brief time I spent.

Graham
Average looking speakers but they sounded quite good. There was another person listening to some tracks which were not my kind of music. I think they will do well in certain genres rather than as an allrounder, but this is just a guess.

Overall, much smaller event than last year but in some respects felt better organized. Most of the local, single shop dnd seem missing, maybe they didnt have a good experience last year.

 

[keith_correa]

Also transmission line is very difficult to get right. Hope he's cracked it.

It used to be somewhat of a black art previously but not any more. There is software available that will accurately sim a TL so the difficulty and the guesswork is taken away. It's only some builders/manufacturers of TL's who make it seem that there is some of rocket science to designing TL's but we all know why they do that - hyeah:

 

[bhagwan]

Hello Friends;
Was at the Show on all days - Thursday through to Sunday.
Went to most rooms - on all days.
I want to mention a few things;
a]
WHF will 'stop' Bangalore Show - Sad. It shall move to ND next year.
b]
HT [Home Theater]
Focal - DNI - Super Job - Compliments to Mr. Srikant for a 'great' install.
Triad - Good Sound - Price Point - Under 8 lacs for a 5.2.2 Atmos Set Up.
Bass needed to be lowered by 2dB
Sonodyne - Great Effort - nice for 8 lacs - fully active - excellent VFM.
The room needed some 'serious' [air fresheners] attention.
c]
2 Channel
Top Sound for me was MBL - Excellent Tone.
7/10 for Tone & 2/10 for set up & 1/10 for 'final result'
Yet, I just loved the tone of this product. Rs. 47/- Lacs.
KII - very well set up. Absolute Sound - Surat - Full marks on 'set up & effort' Rs. 15/- LAcs
I liked the end result.
Nexus Audio - Graham / AVM / Octave - 1 horse pony. Only good for Classical Music. Excellent Set up by Mr. Jilla. Did Cello & Male Vocal well. Female Vocal - I walked away not very happy. The Stoli [Vodka] was a 'great' call me back to this room. Rs. 15/- Lacs.
Invention Audio - Valliant Effort.
From Power Conditioner to Speaker - all made in house.
Fit & Finish was 3/10. Needs a LOT OF WORK.
Price = 16 Lacs.
Sounded great on their 4 Test Tracks.
Bit on my CD's the music was going way above my head - literally - all was just too high.
This was not the best WHF Show I have been to. Small participation. Only 30 rooms - lots of locals were missed.
I feel that Local D & D should participate & show their products. Manger / Siva / B & W / Audire / Proac etc. So many brands are there in South India & none were present.
We need to support our own magazine & the show - else how will it grow ??

 

[raghupb]

Nexus Audio setup at WhatHiFi show Bangalore
AVM + Octave + Graham

I felt that this room and setup deserved a post on its own. Here are my observations and impressions.
On day one when I visited the room it was pretty close to closing time, it was crowded and music that was being played was unknown to me.
So just got a visual impression of the setup. Simple 3 element set up (CDP from AVM, IA from Octave and 2 light brown boxes on sleek metal stands that matched the speakers)
The music being played was pleasant but did not wow me.

On day three, went again after visiting many rooms. The one previous to Nexus setup was ZU + Rogue. Those towers impressed me sufficiently.
The Grahams were playing jazz followed by vocals (again unknown to me) and I took in the music and ambience.
Just standing next to the floor manager and listening. I happened to look at the business cards and saw the name Khusrau Jilla on one of them.
Introduced myself to the floor manager and asked "Are you KJ?". He replied in the affirmative and we started talking generalities.

A couple of FMs I was with asked how long it took to set up the room, KJ replied 6 hours.
My invisible hand was scratching my head going "Why 6 hours? These speakers seems friendly enough."
And then there were people packed into the room, so was it really worth it. So who am I to argue how long it takes to set up a room for listening.
The speakers did sound very good. The vocals were literally floating around. Was thinking how Lenny Cohen or JJ Cale or Mark Knopfler would sound through these.
I am sure they will be a delight when listening to male and female vocals with sparse instrumentation.
They sounded very similar to Harbeth C7ES and SHL5 that I have heard before. Expected as they come from the same design stable, BBC sound.

We had to break for lunch; a few local HFV members hit Jimi's opposite the Ritz, drank beer had bar food and headed back to the show.
Nexus Audio room was still on our minds and definitely on my list to visit again.
This time around KJ was in full flow enjoying himself demo'ing the setup. Had a light conversation with Mrs. KJ (sorry did not get her name).

Then one of our group asked to play a Porcupine Tree track. I had not heard this track but I am familiar with Steven Wilson's work and style.
The Grahams handled PT with grace, kick and melody. Not an easy thing to do for many speakers I have heard, including my own KEF R300s.

I asked KJ to play Floyd's "Run Like Hell". Mind you this is a very difficult track; high dynamic range, noisy with overdubs and parallel riffs, Waters bleating/squealing and lots of background voices.
I have never been able to sit thru the song without cringing, until I heard it on this set up.
Grahams were the boxes that brought it together. I just sat there and was entertained.

Is this not what music reproduction should be? Being drawn in and being entertained. Thanks KJ, for providing an opportunity to listen to a fine set of speakers.
At 5L per pair (with stands), assuming one can play this budget range, Graham LS 5/9 is a must on the audition list.

Cheers,
Raghu

 

[Hari Iyer]

IME with TLs, its easy to design an average TL easily, but difficult to design a very good one due to various conflicting parameters of the line and drivers. Had it been that easy then there would have been many commercially designed ones around. Also getting consistency in a production run becomes difficult for mass manufacturing and hence has to be hand crafted only.

 

[stereoboyindia]

spent more time on the Stereo rooms.

1. Invention Audio: If you might have missed this room then you actually missed the show itself. Worth to visit and I have been said not to touch the speakers as there are vibration isolators which are in between the speakers and for all cabinets.
The look was strange when asked replied stating an antique finishing and they do custom finish as demanded.

when asked the entire chain manufactured by them that is interesting and quite makes sense as it was sounding good.

The sound was amazing it hard to describe with words. Nice achievement and was very clear that all the emotional detail was there and it was not just there but its very emotional and first time I should call as the speakers has nice presentation skills ( am I addressing it as Human being ? ). I heard the other systems which were more clear more powerful but none of them were soo close to music and yet very involving. Talking about just Transmission line doesnt make sense to me as if you observe the entire speakers disappeared just like magic and there was literally no seam in between the electronics either. There were no cable ground lifters as observed as in other Kii room. Overall the soundstage is scarily good. The subtleties never heard of. Very ruthless in presentation of bad content as one song was not recorded properly it seems and it showed up. For me the best sound of not just the show but I have never experience music like this.

One song was in church and when the chorus came out it literally raised my hairs and was on goosebumps it started tingling to my spine. I can see layers and layers of singers singing and they are cascaded vertically like in a theater.

I found out few links on youtube taken from their facebook page and its interesting to see someone giving a review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mFbFxik81o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNEF4SZSFVQ

2. Absolute Sound: KII room

The system is fantastic all high tech next generation kind of equipment and auditioning nice tone in vocals but rest need some improvement and I felt somehow that the midrange is more forward and says Im here kind of sound.
The tonal quality in midrange is good. Highs were not as resolved as in the InventionAudio room.

3. Graham AVM Octave:
The system was good in the overall tonal characteristics but despite of having a tube amplifier the tone might be great to someone but vocal resolution especially female vocal resolution is something which needs to be corrected in the system. The reception is warm but more surprised by the overall sound which is very good but not great.

4. MBL:

I dont understand whats wrong with them. The setup was poor as there was only few feet distance between speakers. We are not talking about depth of the soundstage
there was one thing that beautiful tonal quality. Like other FMs mentioned the dealer seems to develop good knowledge.

5. Focal: Was drilling into the ears sound nothing else to say.

6. Zu audio: They have great reputation but the setup especially the electronics were not matched properly and placement was not making the speakers to come out. Nice sound but I still had great expectations out of the Zu speakers.

7. NAD PSB: Its more Bass centric as the bass to lower mid its good system but emotional music i see its struggling. All together I liked two rooms InventionAudio being the first and NAD PSB being the second.

 

[square_wave]

Visited on Saturday for a few hours. Also, have been talking to some friends outside the forum. Will try to summarise those points as well.

Overall, I think the participation from the Bangalore chapter was sorely missed. I wish things will improve next year.


Merging tech Dac.
This is a state of the art dac. The room could not present the reasons for such a dac . The setup did not match. Not sure why it was not setup with the right kind of gear. The people promoting the dac are pioneers from the recording industry. A good opportunity missed.

Graham Octave
This came across as a very mature music system. It focusses on things that matter in music reproduction. Very musical. Great body in the musical images. Superb communicator following the great BBC tradition. Fantastic and well thought out music collection. Great job guys.

Devialet Phantom
I wanted to hear this fellow. I had tried for an audition in Singapore the last time I visited but the dealer had shut shop by the time I had reached. This is a great speaker for those into lifestyle sound. Extremely simple to use and produce great sound for the size and convenience you get. A creation from a combination of psychoacoustics, creative design, PR and marketing. This means that it is not for people who are serious about tonal purity and neutral sound. But I am sure it will sell well. At the cost of some of the higher goals in high end audio, they have made something that will impress a large portion of the casual but chic lifestyle audiophile demographic.

Kii Audio
Great job with the setup here. Many others have talked at length about the technology so I wont go into it much. This is a serious loudspeaker. The low freq response has been limited / tuned to work with the room so I am sure we have not heard the full capability of these speakers yet. Great timing and fantastic insight into the recording. This is one speaker that one needs to setup in ones room and its dsp explored fully to see if it will float ones boat. While the Graham - Octave is like a mature full bodied whiskey, this one will appeal a little more to the scientist in an audiophile. But it somehow manages to tread a fine line between the scientist and the music lover in ones head. Appreciate the guys for bringing this to Bangalore.

Invention Audio
What a brilliant effort by the Hyderabad based brand. They made an impact with their home grown r2r dac last time around. This time they came with a complete custom developed system. R2r dac, class a amp, power conditioners, modular speaker system with an elaborate outboard passive crossover. The speaker looks a bit like the verity Parsifal but with 3 modules instead of 2. The bass section is a transmission line design. The first thing that stuck me is the brilliant timing of the system. Tonally clear and very neutral sounding. When one has complete control of all components that go into a system, you get to do something special. This was very evident with this system. One thing that troubled me slightly was the body of the images. Not that there was something very wrong here but I listened to the Graham Octave before I had entered this room. The Graham is a body and communication champion. Along with the sumptuous collection of music in the Graham room, of course !! Now that could have clouded my mind just a little !! The fit and finish needs a lot of work. The speakers were too tall, with some images going above the head. Needs a bigger room / seating to solve this. This is a manufacturer to watch out for in the future.

MBL
These speakers are special. Needs a different dealer and mindset for us to explore.

ZU Audio
Nice effort. The sound did not tickle my senses so did not spend much time here. But there is a lot of potential for people who like the zu sound.

 

[Naturelover]

Many thanks to all who have shared their experiences :clapping:. But still no photos .
Maybe @bhagwan will be the one? He usually does.

 

[sidvee]

What Hi-Fi Banglore 2016 Show Report
Cheers,
Sid

 

[bhagwan]

What Hi-Fi Banglore 2016 Show Report
Cheers,
Sid

Super Report.
Thanks.
I did not take pics this time around, but not needed, SV has done a fabulous job. Thanks.

 

[square_wave]

Where can a potential non buyer listen to a pair of well setup MBL speakers ? Purely from an experience and learning context. I listened to 2 songs at the show. Dizzy Gillispie : Alternate blues and a Nikolai Rimsky piece. That speakers ability to bring out the emotion and content is outstanding. I can only imagine the potential of these speakers. The tone, overtones, all the finer nuances in the trumpet laid bare. Brilliant. I had to lower the volume and listen. The room was causing a lot of issues so I just blocked out everything from upper bass downwards in my mind to make some sense of it all.

 

[arj]

The room was causing a lot of issues so I just blocked out everything from upper bass downwards in my mind to make some sense of it all.

I agree, and its not the just the room the setup was all wrong. If the intent was to make the MBLs sound good then they should have been setup where the Revox were. i anyway told them that and went out


...also I had to listed to a spiel on the Loewe TV despite several suggestions that i dont care as i dont even watch TV.

 

[soundbuff]

Square wave was lucky, at least he heard some music! All I was given to hear was 'breaking glass' and some whoosh boom. I too would like to hear these speakers in a better environment and with some music.

 

[Nikhil]

One of the rooms which was not optimally setup for stereo but still made an impression on me was the Axiom Room. It was the first time I had heard of this brand and came away surprised at the sound from the tall M100 Line Array speakers.

During my visit there was a problem with the stereo amp so they were driven by an AVR. They still sounded incredible to me given that they sounded clean and dug deep into the bass region. Would have been even more impressive to hear them setup well with a good stereo amp and source.

The tall Axiom M100 is their flagship Floorstander. Bass was clean as a whistle.
I don't think you can ask for anything more in their price range.

 

[Naturelover]

Surprised, and pleased, to see Axiom having a dealer. No mention of it on their website, though. Always thought they were a direct only company.
How do the prices compare with the USA prices?