Capital Audio Festival 2025 Part 2 Coverage

no groping!

Capital Audio Festival Part 2 coverage begins with the final room I visited on Sunday thanks to a tip from Stereophile's Herb Reichert. A chance lobby encounter had Herb going on about the goings on on the 8th floor in the La Dolce Audio room. Herb's tastes run to esoteric tubey stuff, just as he insists mine are towards "oligarch" products. I plead guilty, though I also try to review affordable stuff.

Fortunately I took Herb's word for his claims and shortly before the show closed, I made my way up to the 8th floor. In room 814 I met Terry Gesualdo and encountered a system that was not expensive (by high performance audio standards), went against most of my usual hi-fi predictions and reproduced the CD edition of Rufus Reid Presents Caelan Cardello as accurately as I've ever heard it—especially Rufus's bass. I think you'll enjoy that visit!

Mr. Gesualdo and his system (there's much not visible atop the wooden box!)

Also in this video two High Water Sound rooms were Jeff Catalano always manages great sound—also often with tubes and horns. Catalano's rooms featured the unique Alieno Audio electronics from Italy driving YG Acoustics speakers in one room and Zeiler electronics and the company's new loudspeakers in another, source by a Torqueo idler wheel drive turntable.

Torqueo turntable

Luphonic turntables oft seen at Munich High End made their American debut at CAF, Revox's room featured an all-Revox system anchored by a B77 MkIII R2R tape deck and a selection of Lori Lieberman tapes. I'm thinking of licensing the Rufus/Caelan material (with permission from Caelan and Robin Wyatt of Robyatt Audio, my partner in that release). The Air-Tight, Reed, Umami, MSB, Stenheim room was worth a long stay and listen, as was the Burmester, YG room. With companies like Wilson, Magico, B&W and other "mainstream" high-end speaker companies not participating, CAF presented YG with an opportunity to present its high end speakers to the crowd and it did a good job stating its case for why YG is in the top speaker manufacturer echelon. YG managed great sound with big speakers in small rooms.

Luphonic turntable features Corian, neoprene sandwich

SOTA, Triangle Art, Ypsilon, The Wand, Audio Research and VPI round out the brands shown in this video, with one more video to go.

The Wand Turntable and arm

Triangle Art Ultimate SE looks better in black IMO

VPI Avenger Direct Drive