Thomas Mulready of CoolCleveland stopped by the 2024 edition of AXPONA, Audio Expo North America, the largest high-end audio show in the United States, and spoke with a number of interesting entrepreneurs, manufacturers, designers and media figures about the changing world of high-end home audio.
Feel free to share this page, and scroll to the bottom to view similar interviews from AXPONA 2023, 2019, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014 and 2013!
Kat Ourlian of SME & Cadence has accepted a new position since we last spoke with her at AXPONA 2023 (https://youtu.be/_5YjU99-n_k) and is now based in London, England as an international director of one of the largest audio companies comprised of storied brands such as SME, Garrard, Siltech, Loricraft Audio, Spendor, Audio Lounge, Timberworx, and Crystal Cable, and distributing brands such as Avant Garde, Aurender, Bel Canto, Boulder, Ortofon, Rockport, Nagra and YG Acoustics. View the video here: https://youtu.be/xi5QqfEFpO4
Cadence: https://cadenceaudio.com/
SME: https://sme.co.uk/
Steve Guttenberg the Audiophiliac discusses what he loves about AXPONA, the largest high-end audio show in the United States. He goes on to talk about what he listens for, and what is actually happening to our hearing as we age. View the video here: https://youtu.be/RW_id_mGzfo
Patreon: patreon.com/Audiophiliac
Audiophiliac Podcast: audiophiliacpodcast.buzzsprout.com
Twitter: twitter.com/AudiophiliacMan
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac
Michael Fremer is the editor of The Tracking Angle and senior editor of The Absolute Sound. Michael never fails to entertain, provoke and raise eyeballs with his avid advocacy for vinyl and his highly opinionated takes on all things audio. Listen for his takes on old people in the audio industry, young people taking over vinyl, technology improvements in all things audio, distortion, state-of-the-art headphones, how to listen, why he got a headshot, how his father broke a Modern Jazz Quartet record over his head, how he opened for The Jam, Television and Root Boy Slim and the Sex Change Band, and how he appeared on MTV with Peter Gabriel and Neil Young and Dave Mustaine.
His advice for people in their 20’s: “Whatever you’re doing now, make sure it’s important.” View the video here: https://youtu.be/DjBvwqpC2rI
The Tracking Angle: https://trackingangle.com/
The Absolute Sound: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/
The legendary and iconoclastic Richard Vandersteen of Vandersteen Audio reveals his latest pre-amp, the Vandersteen L5-ACC Audio Control Center. The line stage only, solid state, JFET design, features a remote control with defeatable tone controls and surround sound. “I always try to do something that hasn’t been done before. We’re at this 46 years now, and it’s just as joyful today as it was in the beginning.” View the video here: https://youtu.be/D0NRgV0iLLU
Vandersteen Audio: https://www.vandersteen.com
Jeff McCabe of VPE Electrodynamics shows his Airfoil low diffraction DSP loudspeaker and their Model 2 Dipole Woofer that is custom designed to sit behind and integrate with Magnepan speakers. View the video here: https://youtu.be/GHYnukTPMgk
VPE Electrodynamics: https://www.vpeelectrodynamics.com/
Samuel Laufer of Porzilli Audio auditions the amazing Porzilli Notes line array speakers paired with the darTZeel LHC-208 MK II integrated amplifier with DAC streamer. View the video here: https://youtu.be/fXb8aHrcLlQ
LauferTeknik: LauferTeknik.com
Gary Gill is the founder of Capital Audio Fest and has his hand in two other US audio shows: Southwest Audio Fest and Pacific Audio Fest. He talks about the popularity of audio shows, given the lack of audio retailers and the changing dynamics and audio. View the video here: https://youtu.be/IhHavV61kUE
Capital Audio Fest: https://www.capitalaudiofest.com
Southwest Audio Fest: https://www.southwestaudiofest.com
Pacific Audio Fest: https://www.pacificaudiofest.com
Charles Kirmuss of Kirmuss Audio has become a familiar figure on the high end audio scene with his white lab coat and his scientific approach to not just cleaning records but restoring records through an ultrasonic record cleaning machine. How does it work? Just listen to Charles. View the video here: https://youtu.be/KgU9lzVfkug
Kirmuss Audio: https://kirmussaudio.com/
Katie Wilson of Linn, the legendary maker of turntables and audio equipment, introduces us to her colleagues. Gordon Inch has been with Linn for 20 years, and Lorenzo Pacitti is celebrating his one year anniversary with the company.
They discuss Linn’s 50th anniversary, Linn’s new high end product line of amplifiers, and how tangible music on vinyl is booming mainly due to younger people. View the video here: https://youtu.be/CXCBLbm2ZvE
Linn: https://www.linn.co.uk/
Music Is Life: The Story of Linn 50th anniversary documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vss9ZA00PNQ
Besflores Nievera is not only the brand ambassador for Music Direct, one of the largest online retailers of high end audio and music, but he serves the same virtual role as a public voice for AXPONA itself. He is becoming known for his session on Where to Begin? Starting in Audio Without Breaking the Bank or Losing Your Mind.
Bes reveals how newer (and younger) people get interested in high quality music, how they interact with music, and how to move through what can be a daunting industry while keeping focused on the passion. Bes gives us a peek into his vision for the future which will probably include connected televisions and AI music. View the video here: https://youtu.be/HP4Y4F-_TAg
Music Direct: https://www.musicdirect.com/
Zach Mehrbach first spoke with CoolCleveland in 2015 (https://coolcleveland.com/Eqy1C) when he first started ZMF Headphones. Now, he has 15 employees and his hand-crafted high-end headphones are the objects of desire for those looking for incredible craftsmanship and beautiful sound, and his business is the envy of large corporations looking to crack the headphone market. Zach says, “That’s the fun of it, creating something you really like, and slowly growing the business part of it.” View the video here: https://youtu.be/aQupcc9EJWA
ZMF Headphones: https://www.zmfheadphones.com/
Mike Crowder of Gus Fugazi Records trades, buys, sells and plays near mint imports, rare and hard to find records. “There’s nothing more that I enjoy than spinning an old record at ten o’clock at night with a little glass of good Kentucky Bourbon.” View the video here: https://youtu.be/rBuIyoO9Slk
Gus Fugazi Records: GusFugaziRecords.com
Emma, Leah, Angel, and Lilliana are audio production students at Columbia College in Chicago visiting AXPONA 2024. These young women are looking to the future after graduation and thinking about working in the audio-visual industry, producing audio for video, taking part in studio internships, maybe even owning their own recording studio someday. View the video here: https://youtu.be/f5dRWvm-3OU
Columbia College Chicago: https://www.colum.edu/
Paul Barton of PSB is a legend in the audio industry. Over more than 50 years he has designed and overseen the development of the wide range of audio products from his own company PSB and parent company Lenbrook Group, which also owns NAD Electronics, and Bluesound. View the video here: https://youtu.be/IKpF_VTQgco
Lenbrook: https://lenbrook.com/
Paul Barton of PSB gives an overview of some of the differences between tube and solid state approaches to amplifiers and pre-amplifiers. View the video here: https://youtu.be/IKpF_VTQgco
PSB Speakers: psbspeakers.com
Herb Reichert, contributing editor of Stereophile, talks about the state of the art at AXPONA 2024 and says, “Between 1975 and 1985, there was a golden age of high-end audio… and we’re in another one.” View the video here: https://youtu.be/65uIoyMdTcM
Stereophile: https://www.stereophile.com/
Tiffany is a first-time AXPONA visitor who was warned about the lack of diversity in high end audio. But she likes what she sees at AXPONA 2024. “I’ve sort of fallen in love with some of the things I didn’t even know I could, so it’s been great. Wonderful, actually.”
What would Tiffany suggest to make an improvement? “Movement. I understand how you’re supposed to be in a specific spot. But for me there’s been several times when I’ve wanted to get up and move with the music.” And she has other suggestions as well. View the video here: https://youtu.be/YFvYDdWRp90
AXPONA: https://AXPONA.com
Check back here for more coverage of AXPONA 2024.
View CoolCleveland’s coverage of AXPONA 2023: https://coolcleveland.com/ufAO3
View CoolCleveland’s coverage of AXPONA 2019: https://coolcleveland.com/P3shB
View CoolCleveland’s coverage of AXPONA 2017: https://coolcleveland.com/S8sXC
View CoolCleveland’s coverage of AXPONA 2016: https://coolcleveland.com/ugNdr
View CoolCleveland’s coverage of AXPONA 2015: https://coolcleveland.com/Eqy1C
View CoolCleveland’s coverage of AXPONA 2014: https://coolcleveland.com/cGdmi
View CoolCleveland’s coverage of AXPONA 2013: https://coolcleveland.com/6a3Ji