As Jason said, I started my coverage of the much-expanded RMAF with the Atrium rooms, and at the corner of the ground-floor level, I encountered Gary Leonard Koh of Genesis Advanced Technologies. Gary brought me up to date on what has been happening with the Seattle company since parting ways with veteran speaker designer Arnie Nudell.

The Model 5.2 that I favorably reviewed in February 2006 is now the 5.3. The impedance is now above 3 ohms at all frequencies, and the "wolf-tone" problem I had noted with the circular ribbon tweeter is said to have been eliminated. A different amplifier is used for the active subwoofer and a new plinth supports the speaker.

Gary demmed the 5.3s using a new class-D monoblock amplifier Geneis will be introducing, along with an Einstein tube preamp and a Reimyo CDT777 CD transport and DAP777 processor. Nice. very nice.

John Atkinson and I have made an agreement. When John is not taking part in any of the eight "Demonstration of Live High-Resolution Recordings" seminars he has scheduled over the course of the Fest, he will cover the exhibits in the Marriott's Atrium rooms, and I will cover exhibits in the Tower. Of course, each of us is free to cross over to the other side if we're dying to hear something. But that's the plan.

As I head to the Tower, I stop to say hello to Robert Stein of UltraSystems, Inc./The Cable Company. (You know, 57 varieties, all kosher. Robert is excited about HiFi-Tuning’s Noise Destroyer, a parallel AC filter (wall-wart) that plugs into a "free socket" within the AC circuit and gets rid of RFI and EMI pollutants. The filter, being parallel, is doesn't limit current, and reputedly does not adversely affect dynamics. In the photo, Robert uses a meter to show that only 3.6% of noise originally measured on the hotel's line remains once the Noise Destroyer is plugged into the circuit. What is not shown is the performance of a rival product, which simply did not cut it. Retailing for $249.95, or $449.95/pair, Robert has cut the price in half for show visitors. Very, very convincing.

I was utterly intrigued by the innovative speakers from Dr. Shelley Katz’s UK-based Podium Sound ($5995/pair). Katz produces panel loudspeakers that mechanically vibrate via electromagnetic drivers. Inherently free from phase error and less sensitive to placement than electrostats, they operate full-range without any filters.

Katz, who graduated from Juilliard and received his PhD at the University of Surrey in Guildford, first started his company on December 1, 2006, 13 years after he began researching loudspeakers. His PhD thesis, on the cognition of expression in music, allowed him to spend years investigating how human beings react to mechanically reproduced sound.

Of course, Podium sound speakers do not make sound on their own. Equal credit is due to the Behold electronics, which are imported by Luafer Teknik of Brooklyn. The wonderful sense of air and depth produced by this system, combined with its ability to create sounds that seemed to rise organically out of the listening field, left me eager to hear the set-up at a time when I could spend hours exploring its strengths.

Santy Oropel of Twin Audio Video Inc. of Loma Linda, CA was producing some very nice sound with Triode Corporation’s TRV-A88SE, a KT88-based, 12Wpc, single-ended integrated amplifier ($1800) and TRV-4SE Limited Special Edition tube preamplifier ($2750). Everything save the faceplate and casing is made in Japan.

Nelson Pass is up to good again. Following the wonderful sound of Ella and Billy I heard in the corridor, I discovered Nelson's prototype open-baffle speaker system. It sports both a Lowther PM6A full-range driver and a pair of SEAS W26 10" woofers. The 40"-high open baffle, which at this stage of the game is not intended to be a final design statement, has no side panels, only a central brace in the rear. The system was bi-amped, with the Lowther driver fed using a 60Hz, 6dB/octave high-pass filter feeding a First Watt F3 7Wpc JFET amplifier. The woofers were driven by a Pass Labs XA30.5 fed by a 12dB/octave active crossover. No equalization was employed. That the sound was so good was especially amazing, considering that the digital front end was pieced together at the last minute after the originally intended computer drive arrived minus its charger chord. I look forward to hearing the finished product.

"I virtually had to make no calls to get exhibitors this year," Marjorie told me the night before the show opened. "They were all calling me. We sold out two months ago, and had to do lots of work to get additional rooms from the hotel. We also managed to assemble 40 volunteers, with the Minnesota Audio Society pitching in to augment our Colorado forces."

The fourth Rocky Mountain Audio Fest: Gear for the Ear includes a 118-page book of exhibitor contact information and ads, which Marjorie somehow managed to get to the printer right before the deadline. The Show also features spiffy Audiozilla t-shirts for support staff.

The fourth annual Rocky Mountain Audio Fest is taking place this weekend at the Denver Tech Center Marriott. Registration was up 15% this year; snapped in the line in front of the registration desk at 9am was erstwhile Stereophile staffer Jonathan Scull (sensible suit, smart tie, and flashy glasses), these days a successful PR and marketing consultant.

Last year, people attended from 44 states and 12 foreign countries; this year’s statistics are not yet available. Attendees include a host of spouses and significant others, for whom a Saturday “Spouse Outing” complete with tea, art museums, and mall shopping has been arranged.