2019 Stereonet Melbourne Hi-Fi Show - Reports & Feedback

[cyberkank]

First time attending the stereonet hifi show. So not sure what to expect.
There were a few stand outs and few were underwealming rooms.

Standouts:
Kii audio / ATC room: was quite impressed with the sound. The kii (with bass module) sounded very detailed and good 3D soundstaging. The ATC 100 active had a wonderful sweetness in the midrange which I loved. Also the reps seem to know exactly what they were doing and presented great music.

Magnapan: the best bang for buck room. I can't believe the 1.7 can sound so good at under 4k. Best thing is that it sounded good even standing up. If I am looking for a pair of speakers now, that demo have sold me. Well done to Bill to set that up.

Lenehan: never heard of lenehan speakers so not sure what to expect. Surprisingly good! Everything sounded balanced and cohesive, can't really fault it. Also very simplistic setup, and had a great chat with Mike in regards to isolation platform that was on displayed. Very impressive room. The brand of amp is new, so not really familiar with it. Sounded great regardless.

Meze headphones + chord gears: superb sounding, might not be the most accurate, but very musical and comfortable. Can throw a lot of different genre and it all sounded fantastic.

Audioquest:
Really love their displays of cables and the Epicon setup sounded really detail and punchy. The room was huge too, so in a proper evironment it will sound even better.

Disappointed:
B&W: sounded very bright to me, also when they demo the 800d on one of track the right tweeter seem to have distortion. Not sure if it was the track or speaker fault.

Kef: attended the LS speaker demo, 90% sales talk and 10% trash music. Enough said.

McIntosh: terrible sound. Subwoofers were way too high, sounded more like jbhifi demo.

Linn/kef: screeching sound, came back a few times to try as I was really interested in the kef R11 but it sounded the same to me regardless of songs. Very edgy and not enjoyable.

[audiofeline]

14 hours ago, Ittaku said:

My concern with these sorts of demos is hearing about other questionable demos where a different file is played upon switching the device, cable, whatever. I couldn't see what he was doing on his iPad, just that he said it was the same file. The other thing was using the Harvard mechanical resonance video saying this is respected science, but there was no mention of how electronics have anything in common with metronomes by Harvard. Anyway, I digress and am sorry for being such a cynic. Back to the topic...

I thought the Harvard uni demo of the metronomes falling into sync was fascinating.  But I also thought what does mechanical synchronization have in common with electronics.  And I'm aware of the dubious comparison demos Monster cable did years ago with TVs.  I'd like to think the Nordest guy was doing a genuine comparison, however we will have to take his word for it. 

 

Edit:  And I'm not implying that the demo was not reputable.

 

Edited October 20, 2019 by audiofeline

[audiofeline]

3 hours ago, Marc said:

... (I) want to put to bed a couple of things:...
...3. Car parking sucked!! Issues has been raised with hotel. Never ever has it been $10. It’s always been $25 to $35 depending on time and day...

I've edited my original post to clarify that I was in error, and apologies to all concerned.

 

I will also repeat an earlier comment - that the organisation and running of it was excellent, and a credit to @Marc and his team.  Despite some of the discussion, I would be confident that most (including myself) would be looking forward to another show next year.

 

[euphonia]

Gotta say I thought the show had a different vibe to last year, but I enjoyed it and took more time in each room this time around. I was impressed with more booths this year than last, with the smaller rooms seemingly set up better this time around. That said, some demonstrations were consistently too loud and interfered with the sound in adjacent rooms at times - I guess this is inevitable, if inconsiderate, at such a show...

 

Onto the winners ... I was mightily impressed with the openness/airiness and depth of sound produced by the Brodmann speakers - simply stunning with acoustic music. The Avantgarde speakers in the foyer were also amazing - I preferred them to the Kharmas in the "out-of-this-world" expensive price range. They produced such an open and enveloping sound, and filled the large space with beautiful, rich music in spades. Others that sounded great: M8 audio Sweet Maxwells - they pack a tremendous punch for bookshelves, and sounded much better than last year's setup to me. The Yamaha NS-5000s are exquisite, too, though I thought they stole the show last year and were not quite as spectacular this time around. The Auralic/Audio Tech/ Fyne speakers were fantastic, too, given the constraints of the small room. I liked the Pure Music room as well. The Hulgich Audio Dukes from last year's show were missed...

 

Losers ... The following didn't impress me when compared to the above - VAF, DEQX, Kii audio, Osborn, B&W & Linn. 

 

All-in-all, I really enjoyed the day and hope it comes back next year...Btw what is going on with that carpet - a psychologist would have a field day!

 

 

[joz]

Hmmm, 

went back for seconds today as I couldn’t function properly on Saturday, dam that Friday gtg knocked the poo out of me.

The surprises for me were the Serhan,M8 and depending on the speaker playing was the Theophany room, but their biggest speaker just overpowered the room, so depending on what was playing in what room had an effect on my listening pleasure. Not suggesting these were the best rooms but they did surprise in a good way.

 

Probably my biggest let down we’re the KIIs, no meat and sounding clean but too lean for my liking. Perhaps just over hyped?

Also the Osborns, not sure this year?

 

What looked like a massive show marketing/branding booth for Kharma was actually all sound/ room treatment, nicely done
Although the bass imo was a bit hot I enjoyed them. Any wonder with a setup approaching $500k!

But regardless I thought it was great and again enjoyed the show immensely.

 

 

 

[darth vader]

2 hours ago, Mauro said:

Not angry merely dissatisfied. One always compares the current meal at a restaurant with the last time visited, in the past we dined at the Steakhouse66, this time around I feel like I went to Maccas.

Hoping next year's dinner will be superior.

I cant recall meeting you at this years Hifi show dinner.

 

It wasn't at macca's.

 

 

I'd like to thank @Marc and all the SNA crew that make this show a successful enjoyable event.

Past events have had some nice stuff that sultans and oil rig owners can buy. It was refreshingly pleasant to see a lot of gear that a mere mortal could aspire to owning.

 

Thanks Marc

 

 

[Hi-Fi Whipped]

Not having attended any of the Hi-Fi shows in Melbourne due to living up on the coast I find the ****ing on here nothing but childish!

 

the posts suggesting "better to have a Hi-Fi show than no Hi-Fi show" couldn't be more accurate!

 

the fact anyone can say they were so disappointed with the sound of anything is staggering, I mean cmon self proclaimed audiophiles, just like any Hi-Fi shop on the globe these systems are not working in acousticllay optimised conditions..... it's a hotel, it's 4 days I mean what did you expect??

 

for me the show is where you can see all the cool **** in one place, and all taken with a grain of salt, see something you think you like? Speak to the distributor or dealer and take the inquiry further.

 

RANT " the parking was expensive" - do some research before you leave and own your decision to park where you choose and the costs involved!

 

RANT " "it's not as good as last year" - dumbed down its Amps, speakers, dacs, turntables and the old streamer......... I mean what were you expecting to be different or better? Popcorn?

 

RANT "someone tried to sell me something and I didn't like it" - dah, it costs money to let you listen, why not try and  get some ROI?

 

 

 

[darth vader]

@Hi-Fi Whipped

 

As Molly said...do yourself a favour

 

Make a plan to come along one year. you wont regret it

Edited October 20, 2019 by darth vader

[Hi-Fi Whipped]

2 minutes ago, darth vader said:

@Hi-Fi Whipped

 

As Molly said...do yourself a favour

 

Make a plan to come along one year. you wont regret it

Agree, I wouldn't!

[TerryO]

Quite astounding to read over the last three days so much whinging about this years show and sorry to say it but much of it was kind of petty.

Do none of you guys realise that most of the advertisers will be reading these threads to gauge how their displays and the show in general was received? Then in part based on feedback here on SNA they will decide if it’s worth investing the money and time to come back with another display next year.

 

Keep bagging the show out and see what happens, it’s hard enough to get just about any business at present to spend money on any marketing exercise outside the shop based norm given the current economic climate., let alone hope that many of  them might come back next year to support what is for many an interstate trip when quite a few of its more vocal longstanding enthusiasts then rubbish this years show publicly.

 

Might be time to move the show to another town Marc, seems like many of the locals don’t appreciate the convenience of having such a great opportunity to see some excellent gear in their town anymore.

 

... Terry

 

Edited October 20, 2019 by TerryO

[genkifd]

to me the Kii room - at the time they played some techno music way too loud. also i could hear exactly where the speakers was. besides that the bass was very tight and quick. 

[Carlton Audio Visual]

On 19/10/2019 at 6:38 PM, Mauro said:

I found this show rather lackluster this year, very disappointing. I was in and out in under 3 hours. This has never happened before to me. I guess you can put it down to the economic times (I fear for next years fare).

 

Some small observations:

All the rooms should be ready at the bell no tuning going on up until Saturday and beyond. I always arrive on Friday @ 12.00 and expect everything finalised. This could not be their fault due to entry time limitations placed by the organiser.

 

The Carlton Audio room was displaying the very desirable Yamaha M5000 setup. The owner of said outfit should learn not to insult when talking to people and also be less brash. He made a comment regarding if you don't understand something then you need to go to JB hifi. The Yamaha's are built very well are are very beautiful in person.

 

VAF should have not bothered,  displayed very little in that tiny room and some free standers in the Park room.

 

The "Mr speakers" headphone setup and others was superb.

 

The EGM Audio room (Lenehan) was nice, had a pleasant chat with the head man.

 

My favs was the Linn setup in the Lake 1 room which sounded nice although track dependent and the Kii setup was good as well.

 

I found Osborn surprisingly weak this year, I usually spend a lot of time there. He or rather Focal has finally ditched him so this calamity has forced him to replace the midrange on his 3 way setups and the Bass drivers on the mighty Grand Monument. I found the sound on the Monument is now flat and lacked the dynamism of previous models (could have been my appointment of the show which affected my ears).

 

I hope next year will be better and the economy too.

 

 

 

 

Actually what I said was ... in jest ... “I bought this music from JB Hi Fi and if you don’t know what it is then you really shouldn’t be here”.

We were playing Fleetwood Mac Rumours.

Regards

Rab

Carlton Audio Visual

[Guest]

As a (first time) exhibitor my take on things will be very different of course. It's no secret that getting a system to sound decent in a room that is unfamiliar, relatively small (for many) and has "bleed through" from adjacent rooms is tough. To try and do it in what is a very limited time frame is even tougher. Many of us spend days, weeks, months fine tuning speaker positions, seating positions and room treatments, so the fact that we got close to reasonable sound felt like quite an achievement. Sure, Marc could have kept each second room empty to keep the "neighbours bass" at bay but that would have almost doubled the cost of entry for exhibitors and counted many out I'm sure.

 

I didn't get to many rooms sadly, but feel that, for me, it was well worth the cost and effort involved. Sure you get tired and footsore but it was a really enjoyable experience being able to introduce people to something they weren't previously aware of, and to get the feedback we did.

 

So for me- hats off to @Marc, especially after his challenging year. Also to all of the other organisers, who made sure they got around to each and every room and introduced themselves despite some being terribly jet lagged! 

 

Thanks to all, now get some rest!!

[Kaynin]

6 hours ago, Hi-Fi Whipped said:

Not having attended any of the Hi-Fi shows in Melbourne due to living up on the coast I find the ****ing on here nothing but childish!

 

the posts suggesting "better to have a Hi-Fi show than no Hi-Fi show" couldn't be more accurate!

 

the fact anyone can say they were so disappointed with the sound of anything is staggering, I mean cmon self proclaimed audiophiles, just like any Hi-Fi shop on the globe these systems are not working in acousticllay optimised conditions..... it's a hotel, it's 4 days I mean what did you expect??

 

for me the show is where you can see all the cool **** in one place, and all taken with a grain of salt, see something you think you like? Speak to the distributor or dealer and take the inquiry further.

 

RANT " the parking was expensive" - do some research before you leave and own your decision to park where you choose and the costs involved!

 

RANT " "it's not as good as last year" - dumbed down its Amps, speakers, dacs, turntables and the old streamer......... I mean what were you expecting to be different or better? Popcorn?

 

RANT "someone tried to sell me something and I didn't like it" - dah, it costs money to let you listen, why not try and  get some ROI?

 

 

 

 

4 hours ago, TerryO said:

Quite astounding to read over the last three days so much whinging about this years show and sorry to say it but much of it was kind of petty.

Do none of you guys realise that most of the advertisers will be reading these threads to gauge how their displays and the show in general was received? Then they decide if it’s worth investing to come back with another display next year.

Keep bagging the show out and see what happens next year, it’s hard enough to get just about any business at present to spend money on any marketing outside the norm given the current economic climate., let alone hope that many of  them might come back next year to support what is for many an interstate trip when quite a few of its more vocal longstanding enthusiasts then rubbish this years show publicly.

 

Might be time to move the show to another town Marc, seems like many of the locals don’t appreciate the convenience of having such a great opportunity to see some excellent gear in their town anymore.

 

... Terry

 

 

 

 

It happens every year, usually the first complaint being about the music being played was not to their liking...

 

I, for one, had an awesome time.  I didn’t enjoy everything, but that’s personal taste.  I’d prefer it stay in Melbs.  I could only see me heading to Sydney if the locals put on GTG’s and dinners like here - not sure they’re up to the task...  

[Eggmeister]

2 hours ago, Rab said:

Actually what I said was ... in jest ... “I bought this music from JB Hi Fi and if you don’t know what it is then you really shouldn’t be here”.

We were playing Fleetwood Mac Rumours.

Regards

Rab

Carlton Audio Visual

It was nice to hear something different @Rab. Well done.

[sir sanders zingmore]

6 minutes ago, Grizzly said:

As a (first time) exhibitor my take on things will be very different of course. It's no secret that getting a system to sound decent in a room that is unfamiliar, relatively small (for many) and has "bleed through" from adjacent rooms is tough. To try and do it in what is a very limited time frame is even tougher. Many of us spend days, weeks, months fine tuning speaker positions, seating positions and room treatments, so the fact that we got close to reasonable sound felt like quite an achievement. Sure, Marc could have kept each second room empty to keep the "neighbours bass" at bay but that would have almost doubled the cost of entry for exhibitors and counted many out I'm sure.

 

I didn't get to many rooms sadly, but feel that, for me, it was well worth the cost and effort involved. Sure you get tired and footsore but it was a really enjoyable experience being able to introduce people to something they weren't previously aware of, and to get the feedback we did.

 

So for me- hats off to @Marc, especially after his challenging year. Also to all of the other organisers, who made sure they got around to each and every room and introduced themselves despite some being terribly jet lagged! 

 

Thanks to all, now get some rest!!

Your room really was an oasis @GrizzlyWas so nice to get away from the in your face hot treble that some other rooms had. 

The setup was one that didn’t shout for attention because it didn’t need to. Well done, one of the highlights for me. 

 

[Ittaku]

Maybe it didn't come across, but I absolutely loved the show myself and was looking forward to it all year as a major calendar event. I'm also potentially a very big spender and impressions on the day of equipment I otherwise never may see count a lot for what it's worth.

[Luc]

Short term memory loss has had an impact and I blame @joz and the  shifty Sydney crew led by @scuzzii and then @jakeyb77 for bringing it on. They kept feeding me drinks and I had to accept them out of politeness. It's rare you'll see me drinking much at all.

So the show is a blur.

@Marc is a gent for giving me free entry and a genuine nice guy for charging Eggmiester double and banning him from requesting Celine be played at every damned room.

The big round red things screwed onto to some black scaffolding were  rather nice and those little black speakers in another room were excellent.

 

The music selection was vomit in some rooms and I enjoyed the knowing looks and winks of exhibiters.

They just need a break every now and again so they play 'room clearers'.

 

All up I had a ball once again gave my liver a hiding and my wallet and meet up once again with a heap of friends once again and also reconfirmed that really... Some of us shouldn't be let out by ourselves in the daylight. 

 

 

[scuzzii]

Was great to see you @Luc

 

You weren't alone regarding Sat being a struggle.  Just shows how excited we all get for this annual catch up.

[RankStranger]

20 minutes ago, Luc said:

 

The music selection was vomit in some rooms and I enjoyed the knowing looks and winks of exhibiters.

They just need a break every now and again so they play 'room clearers'.

 

Ha!  

[ArthurDent]

We had a great time at the show yesterday. Free parking on the street. Coffee and food in the hotel foyer. Caught up with a lot of friends, social and industry.  Stayed away from the record fair so saved some money. Good mix of systems and components. Especially enjoyed the extended Yello session on both the Avantgarde Accoustic systems. Thank you to Maxmedia for indulging us and also a big thank you to Bowers & Wilkins for the headphones. Nice bonus for wearing their tee-shirts for a few hours. Thank you  @Marc for putting the event together.

Edited October 20, 2019 by ArthurDent

[Candyflip]

40 minutes ago, ArthurDent said:

 Stayed away from the record fair so saved some money. 

Haven't heard anyone else mention it yet?

How was it for everyone this year?

 

 

12.28pm on Commercial Road, Prahran, trying to head West towards the Show, for the second time.

The traffic had been like this for 90 minutes beforehand.

As soon as the cops got through the middle, the traffic all closed in again and we stared at bumpers for another half hour.

 

I gave up at this point.   

My fault of course - should have planned it better and come in thru the city (as the wife suggested) or from the West, or even south through St.Kilda.
But when you are in Bulleen, you always try the short route from the East first.

Edited October 21, 2019 by candyflip

[rantan]

13 hours ago, BruceS said:

Looks like Marc can't win.

The parameters are all improved on last year but it is not good enough!!!

Maybe it is just better & different!!!

Yes, it was different.

I don't want the same.

Well, this punter is happy.

Good job (again) Marc.

Bruce

Could not agree more.

 

Some people just want to be dis satisfied,no matter what but MEH, it is only white noise.

[~Spyne~]

Congratulations to @Marc (and team) on another superbly ran Show. Number of exhibitors and people through the doors is just one measure of how successful this year's event was.

Exhibitor and spectator enjoyment another - now you would, after reading some of the replies here, think there were a lot of disappointed spectators, but we all know they're just a minority of grumpy old men needing something to whinge about...

Myself, and all the exhibitors I had a chance to talk to, had a great time. I was there Saturday and Sunday and completely ran out of time Sunday to get a good listen in all of the rooms, not to mention some were simply too busy/crowded each time I walked past.

 

Standouts for me were the ATC SCM100ASLT in Warwick's PMG room. I was stunned by these and ended up spending a good 45 minutes in there over two visits. The Kiis, while good, paled in comparison for me.

The Magnepans in Bill's room demonstrated fantastic value for money. I was very surprised there were no subs at play either, considering they were only the baby 1.7i model.

The Osborn room was much the same as previous years, though sounding slightly different with the Scanspeak drivers compared to the previous Focal speakers. The lower models, I think, give great vfm, providing a big, full sound. but this at times can also sound a bit too full, fat, loose in the bottom end. I'd be interested to know how much design goes into the crossovers, and to a lesser degree, the cabinets.

The Wyndham Audio BR1s were as nice as I remembered them. Worked very well in that small room. Sadly I didn't get a chance to be there for the Contrast speakers or bigger BR2s that were hiding in the back corners.

There were a few others that sounded great too, oh, Fyne were another set of speakers I really enjoyed listening to. Also chatting with the gent there representing the brand. Got a good history of the brand and then a nice walk-around of the speakers explaining pretty much every part of the design. Really enjoyable with not a hint of sales 'push'.

 

Some of the disappointments included the Yamaha room (way too bright and shouty), Linn/Kef (I think it was the Kef R11?...Just didn't sound very nice in that room at all) and the Kef LSx/LS wireless. Very underwhelming for the design premise and money.

I was also sad to miss any sort of Vaf demo - the Kharma and skype presentations were happening whenever I went to check out the room.

 

All in all, another great show and I look forward to hopefully another in 2021.

 

 

12 hours ago, mt100z said:

What was there was great, but I felt like I would have liked to have a taste of the very top high-end audio... the show made me want to listen to what I can never afford

Kharma, Avantgarde, B&W....$40k - $180k speakers not high-end enough for you?

Like you, I love seeing all this gear that's leagues out of my budget. One can dream.

 

Whoever replied in jest to the whingers about wanting more and suggesting popcorn. Funnily, there was actually popcorn at one of the previous shows!! A sad omission this year...but that would have just been "more of the same" and result in further complaints. Maybe a bag of licorice all-sorts or Werthers Originals next time, to keep the codgers happy....

[Stump]

Only made it to Sat-Sun this year.First stop was the Soundsmith's Peter Ledermann Skype! This was the 3rd one I have sat through and always walk away with something new .Hope Vaf continue with this format.The Kharma stood out in the room while having the Vaf designer Simon in the room I got the first hand information of the latest Vaf upgrades.

Favorite rooms for me were Warwick Pure Music  XTC speakers. Grizzly Contrast Audio with Brinkmann turntable nice natural sound.Talking with Australian makers like Richter Audio and Nano Audio Technology is part of my enjoyment when going to Shows.DEQX demo was highlighted by the Bass integration. Good to see and feel the Solid Steel racks.Dohmann Audio new TT very appealing as was the Yamaha GT5000 which I am hoping to win.. The Linn room with the Nordost QPOINT Resonance Synchronizer had me reaching for my wallet but I did resist.

 

Overall vibe of the Show compared to previous shows may have been that less SNA members attended this year but given that numbers were UP and my own experience of talking with punters who are not members is Marc has done a great job exposing the exhibitors to a NEW audience which I hope turns into more sales in the following year.For the disappointed punters who would like to see   $ half million dollar systems in each room try to enjoy what is there rather then be disappointed at what is not there. Also staying longer gives a better chance to hear the rotation of equipment in the various rooms.

See you next year.

Stump