If you were keeping your eye on of Facebook and Twitter pages this weekend, you’d have noticed that we were among many of you, scoping out the latest and the greatest products and concepts from within the world of hi-fi at the wonderful Bristol Show 2015! This year, the final tally for exhibitors was 195, so as you can imagine there was a great deal to get through. But we ploughed on as best as we could and got lots of lovely pictures, as well as a few sneak-peeks of the kind of gear that we will be stocking in the coming months. It was long and tiring, but it was most certainly worth it!
So, without further ado, here was our Bristol Show 2015 as seen by Alex and Richard and a rundown in alphabetical order. Because when you have no order, it’s best to alphabetise…
Arriving @ The Marriot Hotel (Bristol City Centre)
Arcam
Our friends at Arcam managed to sneak us in to their room between demonstrations so we could get a closer look at their new products.
The closer look was much appreciated! They had their usual array of FMJ, but what we were really interested in was their production mock-up of their Solo Movie! This may or may not be what it looks when it becomes available, but the inner workings will be pretty much that. And from what we saw and heard, we are sure it will be a real hit! We’ll be sure to give you a fuller report in a short while.
Atacama
Stands of every shape and size. This was a very busy room!
SCV
The SCV room included Benchmark separates and new speakers (including the new Benchmark model) as well as Fostex headphone amps and headphones. It sounded as good as it looked!
Creek & Epos
The Epos K3 (a popular model name this year it would seem!) and the Creek Evolution 100A integrated amplifier made for a phenomenal pairing. And we were also treated to a look at the gory innards of a 100A. Tech-heaven!
Cyrus
A beautiful exhibit with some beautiful equipment (and their acclaimed stands, of course!) We even got to take a good look at the exciting new Stereo 200 power amp. Suffice to say we can’t wait for that one to land…
Dali
Dali, Dali, Dali – they never disappoint! This year they were showing off their colourful array of Kubiks (and its soundbar compadre!) as well as a sampling of bookshelves and floorstanders.
Fostex
We had just enough time for a little peak at the latest Fostex headphone amp and headphone combo. Looking good!
Goldring
The Goldring stand was particularly impressive. Plenty of history and a good chance to get up close to the cartridges!
Grado
We were happy to see that the Grado stand very closely resembled our own showroom (and its headphone demonstration bar!) in many ways.
Henley Designs
The Henley room was stocked to the rafters with plenty of Henley heaven,with Pro-ject firmly at the forefront of their focus. This meant there were plenty of pretty turntables to drool over!
Icon Audio
The lovely folk at Icon Audio had made the room nice and dark so we could get a good look a the glow of the valves as they demoed their wares – including their flagship mono block power amp!
KEF
One of the most popular rooms of the day – the queue was probably the most impressive, and their gorgeous speakers went down an absolute storm!
Mission
A quick look at the mighty Mission Aero. Expecting big things from this this year!
Naim
Naim put on a show that got everyone’s tongues wagging, from showcasing their existing lines, to revealing their incredibly impressive Statement, not to mention their new range of high end Super cables!
Onkyo & TEAC
Onkyo and TEAC had once again joined forces to show off their impressive array of audio equipment – including their beautiful turntables!
ProAc
We adored the ProAc room. One of the best rooms of the show! The 138s and 148s sounded fantastic.
Q Acoustics
This was something we were really looking forward to: the reveal of the new Q 3000 range! Let’s just say we weren’t disappointed. These speakers sound gorgeous! Definitely one to watch out for.
QED
There were tonnes of cables (from the low to the very high end!) and uPlays on display ready to buy, and plenty of helpful advice on hand. Thanks Gary!
Quad
This was an interesting room. Their headphone amp and new S Series speakers were real head turners, but it’s there as-yet-unnamed seperates that have really piqued or interest. Watch this space!
Roksan
The new K3 (… a popular name!) was fantastic, and particularly excellent when paired with the amazing Pro-ject 2 Experience SB. Our favourite turntable of the show!
Ruark
It was lovely to see the whole new range of Ruarks all gathered together. These were real crowd pleasers!
Tannoy
Another hotly anticipated moment – the unveiling of the awesome Revolutions. They were absolutely stunning, on every level. We can’t wait to get these in our showroom ourselves! They also had a beautiful Westminster Gold Reference which was incredibly charming.
Vinyl
If you ever needed any proof of the growing popularity of vinyl, it was right here in Bristol. By far one of the busiest rooms!
Wharfedale
The new Diamond (200) series looks absolutely incredible in person. And yes, they sound as good as they look!
Wilson & Benesch
Not something we stock (… yet) but definitely worth a mention. The Wilson & Benesch room really opened our eyes and ears to how high high-end can go. And we loved the speaker cut out!
Yamaha
There was just enough time to pop in to see our friends over at Yamaha before we collapsed in exhaustion. As you can see, they were pretty busy!
Home to Birmingham…
… with very sore feet. Ow.
We’ll tell you all about how you can order the new items showcased at the show shortly. Once we’ve had a little breather…
One thought on “Bristol Show 2015: The Audio Affair Report”
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Thanks for sharing.
Kindly confirm the names of the tower speakers in Benchmark room and in Icon Audio room.
regards