CES 2012 - Las Vegas, USA

Torus Power hit new low price points with the introduction of their new IS-series power conditioners. The IS 10 (top) is priced at $1295 and the IS 15 retails for $1495. Both will output high instantaneous current and have noise filtration courtesy a toroidal isolation transformer.  [www.toruspower.com]

We've seen prototypes of the Bryston BHA-1 headphone amplifier at previous shows, but the company is now shipping the product to dealers and what you see in this photo is the production model. The BHA-1 is priced at $1295. [www.bryston.com]

The Klipsch Console might be a throwback to the '50s and '60s in terms of styling, but it is utterly modern when it comes to performance. The glass of water you see on top of the unit is not there by mistake, but was placed to demonstrate just how immune the Console is to vibration when playing loud. The water didn't even show a ripple. And loud it can play: the Console has two internal 12" subwoofers, along with dual 10" midrange drivers and two 1.75" compression tweeters. The Console's price is expected to be between $6000 and $7500 when launched later in 2012.

The Meridian M6 is the newest loudspeaker from the stalwart British company. This one is designed to fit right into its surroundings. You can see it is rather unassuming . . . 

. . . in the way it is easy on the eyes and the environment it resides in. This DSP-controlled loudspeaker is fully powered with 150W for the bass region and 100W to the high-frequency ranges. The price is $9000 per pair.

Krell introduced two new products at CES 2012. On the left is the S550i integrated amplifier ($5000), which outputs 275Wpc and is powered by a massive 1750VA toroidal transformer and 68,000 microfarads of filter capacitance. On the right is the Phantom III preamplifier, which, with the optional 24/192 digital-input board, is priced at $6000. 

Italy's Eventus Audio is known for some pretty pricy speakers, but at CES 2012 they introduced two new speakers that are affordably priced. The floorstanding iO.f (yes, that's the model name) is a four-driver, three-way design that's priced at $5500 per pair. The smaller, stand-mounted iO is a two-way design priced at $2500 per pair. The build quality of both speakers looked very high indeed.

Italy's Audia Flight has new flagship electronics. The Strumento No.1 preamplifier (Strumento means "instrument") is available in basic form for $18,000. It can also be ordered with an optional phono stage or DAC board due to its modular construction. The larger . . .

. . . Strumento No.4 is a 220-pound beast of an amplifier that is powered by a 3000W transformer and 48 output devices. The No.4 retails for $24,000.

Marten Design of Sweden debuted their highest-value loudspeaker to date at the Venetian: the Django. This model is a five-driver, three-way design that has Accuton ceramic mids and tweets and three 8" aluminum woofers. The Django weighs 104 pounds and retails for $15,000 per pair.

Designed to visually match the Paris turntable, Oracel's Paris CD player (right) and DAC are striking in their red finish. Each is priced at $3500 and features . . .

. . . a beveled corner with logo that matches the aesthetics of the Paris turntable.

The Vienna Acoustics Beethoven Imperial Grand (we're nicknaming it BIG) is a four-way, five-driver loudspeaker with trickle-down technology from their flagship Klimt line: most notably, the Flat Coincident Driver that handles the frequency band from 150Hz up, as well as a supertweeter. The BIG is priced at $9000 per pair. The . . .

. . . Flat Coincident Driver is proprietary to Vienna Acoustics.

Furutech's Stride is a headphone amplifier modeled after the company's Cruise ($540), but has simpler casework and is therefore priced at $395. According to company reps, the electronics are identical to the Cruise and, therefore, the sound should also be. [www.furutech.com]

The $999 Furutech Esprit is jam-packed with functionality. It's an analog-to-digital converter that uses an Asahi Kasei AK5385B chipset with enhanced dual-bit architecture that the company says offers 114dB of dynamic range. It's also a digital-to-analog converter using a 24/192 Wolfson WM8716 DAC chip. Oh, and it's also a headphone amplifier and a digital preamp. [www.furutech.com]

Switzerland's CH Precision has added the A1 power amplifier (bottom) to their product line, which also contains of the D1 CD/SACD transport and C1 digital-to-analog controller. The A1 is rated to deliver 100Wpc into 8 ohms, 175Wpc into 4 ohms, and 300Wpc into 2 ohms. It is fully discrete and has a variable feedback control. The price of the A1 is expected to be $40,000 when it becomes available later this year.

Ulrik Madsen, designer of the Argento Audio cables, is holding the company's Flow Master Reference (FMR) phono cable, which is priced at a whopping $13,000. The FMR is made of parts entirely manufactured by Argento, right down to the five-pin DIN plug and triple-layer, carbon-fiber housings . . .

. . . that are high quality and very distinctive.

On the left is the EgglestonWorks Rosa Signature ($13,900 per pair), and on the right is the Isabel Signature ($6500 per pair). Both models have Dynaudio Esotar tweeters and carbon-fiber Morel midranges and woofers, as well as aluminum front-baffle plates.