Northern Audio and Visual Show, Part Two | Penang 2024

For Part 1 of the Northern Audio and Visual Show in Penang, click here!

Audio Perfectionist: McIntosh & Børresen

The worst location of the Northern Audio and Visual Show was occupied by McIntosh and Børresen speakers. You have to give credit to Audio Perfectionist (Malaysian dealer for McIntosh, Børresen, and more) for their efforts to assemble a great system in a terrible room. It is actually an open space right on top of a grand staircase, rendering it impossible to play any music. I came back to the room five times, but to no avail. The open space simply wasn’t primed for music without interfering with other demos, or competing for noise.

Words and Photos by Richard H. Mak

McIntosh has revived the old chassis style of the MC225 and MC240. I can’t say I agree with the looks of the C8 Preamp (US $5,200) or the MC830 (US $5,300) Power Amplifier. They look like an MC350 mating with the MC275, which gave birth to the semi-quasi-half-half breed look. But some how they have found their way into many homes, and even movies.

The all new MC350 SACD/CD Player was also on display at the Northern Audio and Visual show (US 7,750).

I regret not having the opportunity to listen to the Børresen X3 powered by McIntosh equipment. Børresen has always impressed me, especially considering the X3’s price point of just US $12,000, making them a compelling choice in that market segment.

Audio Art Malaysia at Northern Audio and Visual: Scansonic, Soul Note, Integra, Appotronics

Audio Art, the dealer for Scansonic, Soul Note, Integra and Appotronics in Malaysia, showcased two systems in one room at the Northern Audio and Visual show. The first system featured the Soul Note A-3 Reference Integrated Amp (US 20,000), S-3 V2 Reference SACD Player (US 18,700), X2 Clock Generator (US 3,850), all driving the Scansonic Q10 (US 17,500)

The Scansonic speakers, with a ribbon tweeter, initially piqued my interest due to their promising features at their price point. They’re competing directly with the Børresens a few doors over. However, the aggressive toe-in of the speaker position collapsed the stereo image and caused the axis to cross to the opposite ear. This significantly detracted from the demo experience, preventing me from carefully listening to the setup as much as I had hoped. It’s just too bad because it almost sounded as if the left and right channels were reversed. Thankfully, they graciously agreed to my request to switch to the second system.

The Scansonic Q10 may look like they were blocking the smaller brother, the MB5 B (US 8,500), but they only serve as the L and R channels in a home theater setup, and the majority of the sound was coming from the center channel, the MB-B (US 2,500).

While they performed “Never Enough” from the film The Greatest Showman, I found myself utterly mesmerized by Rebecca Ferguson. Little did I know, the powerful voice actually belonged to Loren Allred. The scene was so captivating that I couldn’t resist asking to replay it. Suddenly, I forgot I was an audiophile writing a show report; all my usual nitpicking on tonality, frequency extension, bass texture, and soundstaging vanished. Isn’t this the very essence of a musical experience?

The speaker, which includes a pair of Procella Audio P1 Surround speakers (US 550), was driven by an Integra DRX-8.4 11.4 Channel Receiver. Integra is basically a premium division under the Onkyo brand, offering more features and enhancements tailored for audiophiles and custom installers.

Center Circle Audio: Avantgarde, Mola Mola, & Mo-Fi

I recall sitting close range to a pair of Avantgarde Duo speakers 16 years ago and finding them unlistenable. They sounded harsh, shouty, tinny, and sibilant – a combination of bad solid stage sound mixed with a hard top end. How the times have changed, whatever magic formula they deployed seems to be working. This time around, sitting equally close distance versus 16 years ago, I enjoyed the sound immensely coming from this pair of Avantgarde Premium UNO SD (US $48,000), driven by Mola Mola electronics from the Netherlands.

As I listened to Hugh Masekela’s “Stimela,” followed by Santana’s “El Farol,” the UNO SD speakers sounded nothing like the old Avantgarde Duo. They were neither shouty nor sibilant; in fact, they sound quite natural and organic. While they’re not quite GOTO horns, which cost several times more and require you to build your own cabinet and crossovers (almost requiring a course in crossover design), I’m satisfied with the Avantgarde speakers at a fraction of the cost and without any of the GOTO hassles.

Mola Mola, literally means sunfish in English, and its logo also embodies a sunfish. And Mula Mula is a slang for money money in Cantonese. Take your pick.

I was thoroughly impressed with my first Mola Mola experience at the Northern Audio and Visual show, and they must have contributed to the Avantgarde’s organic and natural presentation.

Audio Perfectionist: Børresen, Aavik, Ansuz

The dealer who received the Best Sound of the Show award from me at the 2024 Hi-End Asia Singapore Audio Show is the same group that exhibits at the Northern Audio and Visual Show. They also set up the system in the amazing penthouse sound room mentioned at the beginning of the article. These individuals know how to run a show, and this event was no exception.

The speakers are positioned in the right spot, and the equipment is properly displayed with price tags against a professionally done-up backdrop. Lars Kristensen carefully chose the songs to demonstrate the strengths of the speakers. What they didn’t know is that their playlist became famous, and nearly half the rooms were playing their songs at the Northern Audio and Visual show. What I like about Børresen, Aavik, and Ansuz is that they are consistent in both sonic attributes, quality, and professionalism.

Once again the Børresen, Aavik, and Ansuz sound exudes an elegant and snappy top end that is extended, crisp, and ultra-detailed. The sound is fast, with tightly controlled bass dynamics. The mids are not exaggerated nor voluptuous, they are clean, accurate, and precise.

Perfect Hi-Fi at Northern Audio and Visual: Accuphase, Sonus faber

Accuphase is highly esteemed in Asia and is often likened to the McIntosh of the East. Its design is confidently traditional yet enduring in its dependability and sonic uniformity. The photos don’t do the system justice; the Accuphase, with its gold accents, paired with Sonus faber‘s flawless finish, exudes exquisite elegance. Never mind the sound, I just want to touch it and own it!

The Sonus Faber Olympica Nova III carried a price tag of US $20,000, but with a show special at US 12,500, which usually means the real street price is US $12,500. There were 3 Accuphase amplifiers on display at the Northern Audio and Visual Show:

E280 Integrated (2x90W) $5,000 (Show Special)

E800 Class A Integrated (2x200w) $13,240 (Show Special)

E5000 Integrated (2x240W) $12,250 (Show Special)

One might be surprised to see Accuphase prices much lower than North America, but it is not my place to speculate on the reasons.

Franco Serblin, the original designer of Sonus faber, passed away in 2013. The company has gone through several ownership changes, it is now owned by the McIntosh Group. With a new corporate structure, I feared Sonus faber’s signature sound would disappear. However, the Olympica Nova III has proven otherwise; they sound remarkably similar to the old Cremonas—warm, voluptuous, and musical to the core.

Silent Pound, Perreaux

Silent Pound is a new name to me, and with it comes all the excitement of something truly unique. Audrius Balciunas, the designer of the Silent Pound speaker, flew all the way from Lithuania to debut the speakers at Northern Audio & Vision, and in Southeast Asia, for the very first time. The speaker features a unique design methodology that emphasizes its interaction with the room rather than the speaker itself. Utilizing sophisticated mathematical modeling and intricate design materials, the Silent Pound has demonstrated a threefold reduction in room resonance. The speakers are priced at €28,000 euros.

With a sensitivity of 88 dB at 8 ohms, these speakers require a considerable amount of power. The proof is in the pudding: they were demonstrated in a challenging environment—an open space on the show floor with no side walls on one side and glass windows at the back, making it as difficult as it gets!

I was expecting a lack of focus on the center image, a shallow bass response, and a thin and shallow mid-range. I was wrong!

As much as I am sick of the overplayed song “Take Five,” the Silent Pound managed to convince me that their technology works. Even in that difficult space, there was a soundstage, focus, tonality, and sound that you’d expect from a proper room.

Silbatone Acoustics, Acoustic Energy at Northern Audio & Visual

Silbatone Acoustics, a South Korean-based company, burst onto the Munich Audio Show in 2019 with a dazzling display of funky vintage Western Electric horns. They quickly garnered global attention and became the talk of the town. Yet the company moves in mysterious ways. A Google search shows that its website was hijacked and down for days. As of today, the website still cannot be accessed.

Silbatone showcased the JL107 Hybrid Tube Integrated amp at the Northern Audio and Visual show, featuring the WE310 tube and a transformer-coupled design with copper foil windings. It delivers an impressive 130W per channel at 8 ohms and 200W at 4 ohms, with an MSRP of around $15,000.

The Silbatone was powering a pair of Acoustic Energy Corinium speakers, which I initially mistook for Scansonic. Making their debut in Malaysia, these speakers are priced at $8,500. They are housed in a unique Resonant Composite Cabinet (RSC) material developed by Acoustic Energy. The cabinet is 4.5 cm thick, providing exceptional rigidity and eliminating resonance. The speakers feature a 29mm soft dome tweeter, a 120mm carbon fiber cone mid-range driver, and a 140mm carbon fiber bass driver. With a sensitivity of 92 dB and a power rating of 200W, they are designed in Denmark and manufactured in Indonesia.

Star Pickers Audio Library: Audiovector QR7, Chord and Cayin

The buzz in the hallways is that I must go listen to the Audiovector room, and was told my a few people that this was one of the best-sounding rooms at the Northern Audio and Visual show. If they hadn’t told me the price, I would have guessed they’re US $12,000 to 15,000. Priced at just US $6,500/pr, the Audiovector QR7 is a serious contender rivaling speakers costing two times its price.

Just how good are they? How about a smooth and pristine top end, an accurate and neutral mid, and textured bass notes? Surely at US 6,500 they do not come with Sonus faber style finishing or fancy unobtanium drivers. But I sure can live with a pair in my own living room without wanting more. Ok, I lied may be a bit more.

The one-of-a-kind Chord DAC and Ultima Integrated Amp have a blue light that comes on like Tony Stark’s Arc reactor. But they don’t let show reporters off easy nor patrons as no price tag was displayed anywhere. The Ultima is priced at US $12,500 and the DAC at US $14,000. Last but not least they also showcased the Cayin KT170-based tube amp on static display.

Choy Audio Visual at Northern Audio & Visual: Aries Cerat, Esoteric and B&W

Just like the Audiovector room at Northern Audio and Visual, I was told I must go listen to the “Small B&Ws.” The system consists of:

B&W 805 D5 USD $16,000

B&W FS600 Stand USD $250

Esoteric S05 Power Amp USD $7,500

Esoteric N-05XD Preamp USD $12,000

Aries Cerat Helene DAC USD $16,500

Power Conditioner USD $1,450

The system proved to be a sonic treat; for those seeking accuracy, neutrality, and high resolution, this setup is your ticket. And the Aries Cerat, which came out of nowhere in Cyprus and taking the industry by a storm, is fast becoming a big name commanding very big prices.

You gotta love the metal work and the carved logo. Just to clarify, it has nothing to do with the Baphomet, Knights Templar or the Mötley Crüe.

The AVIA Powertran 8Kva Power Conditioner caught my attention. Equivalent offers from McIntosh will set you back US $6,000, or the Equitech 2RQ has gone up nearly 100% in price, now asking $7,000. The AVIA Powertran is just US 1,500, and it has 4x the capacity of the McIntosh or the Equitech!

It features an industrial, no-frills design, with an input and output voltage meter on the front. It is fitted with an 8,000VA capacity balanced transformer. Two switches allows you to select input voltage, and voltage compensation of + or o 5V if your electricity is not stable. It even comes with surge protection and a circuit breaker. Truly a bargain if you ask me and I would love to get my hands on one to try!

AFC Top Hi Fi: Piega, Tsakiridis Devices, LAiV

Speaking of power devices at the Northern Audio and Visual show, Tsakiridis Devices’ Super Line Conditioner is another option. The Super Athena Conditioner is made in Greece. Housing a 2500W line filter and isolation transformer, it provides two direct line outlets, four line balance filter outlets, and four balance isolated outlets. It is priced at US $1,500.

There was no display of prices, model numbers, or brochures, which made it difficult to decipher exactly what they were showing. I believe the Piegas are the Coax 311 Ltd Compact, which list at approx. US $9,000. Having owned a pair of Piega C10s nearly 12 years ago, I miss the pristine and ultra-smooth top end coming out of the Piegas. Their coaxial ribbon tweeters are one of the finest in the market.

Hi-Fi Man Headphones at Northern Audio and Visual

The headphone business is taking off and there was no shortage of selection at the Northern Audio & Visual show. You can spend a day just at the HiFi Man headphone section.

Cayin HA-300Mk II gets the prize for the largest headphone amp. It is a single-ended triode amplifier with 2x Genelex PX300B tubes and 2x Tungsol 6SN7 GTB tubes. Unfortunately, no price sticker, but a search on Google says it is US $4,200. Can’t wait to get a headphone audiophile gathering, each person sitting in their own corner talking to themselves.

PS Audio at the Northern Audio & Visual Show

The most unique looking speaker award goes to PS Audio’s Aspen FR10 Loudspeaker. At US $7,499, the Aspen FR10 is less then half the price of its bigger brother, the FR20. Despite the small foot print, the FR10 can cover the full frequency range of 30 Hz to beyond 20 kHz. Ribbon tweeter and mids cover the upper frequency and two woofers cover the low frequencies. There are also three passive rear-mounted radiators at the back. Not to worry–no air filter changes are necessary.

The cabinet felt like corian, but they are actually MDF finished with 20 coats of hand-rubbed high-grade lacquer. If I wasn’t listening with my eyes, I’d say these have no chance to sound good. But my ears tell me otherwise, they played Sonny Rollins’ “Blue Room,” which captured my attention. I sat down and listened for 20 minutes more afterwards. They are just fine sounding!! Pretty darn good I’d say.

Ruark Audio at Northern Audio & Visual

I walked into the Ruark Audio room looking for the system and if hadn’t paid more attention I would have mistaken the R810 for hotel room furniture. I absolutely fell in love with the R810, which looks more like a living room console. They remind me of the JBL Paragon speakers, except this takes up a lot less real estate and is more pleasing to the eyes. The price is listed at just US 4,000.

CCY Engineering

At the Northern Audio and Visual show entrance, and also once again in one of the rooms upstairs, I discovered another interesting amplifier by a local manufacturer called CCY Engineering. Chong, the designer of CCY Engineering, explained to me the SS300B amplifier is a 25W amplifier utilizing a single-ended Class A topology, with a MOSFET output driver. Don’t let the 300B letters mislead you, there are no 300B tubes inside. What you will find is an oversized Noratel (previously known as Plitron) toroidal transformer and quality components but no tubes.

The SS300B was paired with a Lii Song Aria speaker featuring a full-range driver. Lii Song was founded in 2016 near Xizi Lake in Hanzhou China. Priced at US $2,350, the Aria features a paper cone full-range driver.

The sound? They could have fooled me for a single-ended 300B tube amp driving them!

Begins Acoustics

Not sure where to begin but Begins Acoustics is one of my favorite rooms at the show. Kenix Chua was nice enough to send me a list of the equipment on display except the prices were left out:

Amplifier: Kinki Studio EX – B7 Monoblocks

Preamp: Aavik Acoustic I-180 as Pre amp

Streamer: Hi-Fi Rose 520

Speaker: Lukang Audio Spoey 200

2nd Speaker: Divini Audio (the white ones).

The cables and power cords are from a combination of Divini Audio Taiwan and Tiglon Japan. They also have Frank Ultrabank to stabilize the power. The Lukang speakers resembles the look of Harbeth or Spendor, and they also have a warmish, organic and natural tone to them, very pleasing to the ears and well designed.

What caught my attention was the colorful, customizable absorption panels displayed on the wall. There was no price information, but I thought they could have a fantastic product in the making, especially if they were to branch out to areas beyond high-end audio. They could prove useful in meeting rooms, concert halls, or even restaurant applications. They are certainly worth investigating for custom room designers.

CMY Audio Vision: Focal, REL and Naim

Last but not least, the CMY Audio room showcased a pair of Focal Sopra No2 speakers, driven by a full stack of Naim Electronics.

Speakers: Focal Sopra N2 US $21,000

Streamer Pre Amp: Naim NCS-222 US $8,999

Power Supply: Naim NPX-300 US $8,999

Sub Woofer: REL S510 x 2 US $2,899 ea

Having listened to so many Focals in my life, I applaud them for consistency in the Focal House sound. I can almost tell which rooms are driven by Focals just by listening on the outside. This time around the REL subs masked the Focal sound, or perhaps my ears are no longer as sharp. But it also turns out to be one of my best Focal experiences ever.

The host was gracious enough to allow me to play Cirque du Soleil’s Egypte, and Kalimando, which was O! SO! SATISFYING! The REL Sub made it into an almost surround sound-like experience that envelopes you with low energy which you not only can hear but feel. Subs are guilty pleasures, I know may we not need it or want it, but when it does caress your body it is a thrill ride!

(Love the screen on the NAIM server which displays the album cover!)

From fit and finish to the sound, the FOCAL Sopra N3 is absolutely stunning in every way.

Final Words

As I boarded the plane and said goodbye to Penang, I reflected on what had been one of the most enjoyable audio shows ever. From the friendliness of the people to the relaxed and satisfying pace of the event, I thoroughly enjoyed my time in this charming city. I found myself spending more time in each room, listening to the systems more carefully than at shows like Munich or AXPONA. While those shows may attract more visitors and feature more high-end systems, the experience at the Northern Audio and Visual Show in Penang was akin to a good vacation—much like the tranquil beaches of Tenerife compared to the hustle and bustle of a large city.

Do I have anything to complain about? Yes. The demo music choice is severely lacking at the Penang show, and if I hear “Make Us Strong” by Ghost Rider once more, I may go insane! Borrensen’s playlist is a good one but when everyone starts copying his list, it becomes a very monotonous show. And please stop playing Tin Pan Alley, Take Five, or Hotel California, as those were outdated even 20 yrs ago.

To encourage a show with some real music, I shall end the report with a recommended playlist of my own so that if gets floated around, at least it will be the songs that I like! The link to the playlist can be found here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4oQLDOb5oqwbQ0RmC9mvtY?si=34c69428024f4630

Or Here

- Egypte – Cirque du Soleil, Mystere Album
- Kalimando – Cirque du Soliel, Mystere Album
- Hellige Natt – Oslo Gospel Choir, Det Skjedde I De Dager
- The Boxer – The King’s Singer, Good Vibration Album