Not sure if I'm allowed to comment as a manufacturer/exhibitor at the Axpona show - but everyone here seems very nice, so I'll take a shot! Background: I own both Snake River Audio (cable manufacturer) and Sonist Audio (speaker manufacturer). We were exhibiting up on the 12th floor in room 1238 and were debuting our little bookshelf speaker for $1895. We were using a Baetis music server through a Mytek for digital, but also had a turntable we'd flip back and forth from.
I greatly enjoy reading all of the comments and thoughts of the attendees at the shows, and hearing views "from the other side of the room." We've always had a "lean forward" listening approach to setting up our rooms, rather than forcing people to lean back in fear. I personally take great pride in working for hours and hours to get the room just right before we open the doors. We very regularly get comments on our rooms like "non-fatiguing" and "very relaxing".
Also, I often leave the air conditioning on, with the comment "You wouldn't bake yourself out at home, so why do it here?" Yes, it adds a small bit to the noise floor, but if someone wanted to do some hardcore listening, I'd certainly shut it off for them. Even with the door closed, people laughing and talking out in the hallway add much more than a little cool air flowing in.
One thing I've noticed is that the quality of sound in the room seems to directly correlate with the amount of effort put into setting the room up. Regardless of gear used, a major part of any listening environment is the room. Ignoring the room dynamics and hoping for your system to perform at it's best, is truly unrealistic expectations. I've heard phenomenal rooms with incredible sound from a modest system, while the room next door with an extra zero or two at the end of the price tags sounds horrendous. I'm sorry, but a couple of plastic plants do not a treatment make. However, I digress..
I want to thank everyone who did go to the show, and leaves comments here for us to read. Please know that your thoughts and suggestions aren't falling on deaf ears. At least not from those of us who care. Thank you.
