Ayre demonstrated one new product and
one soon-to-be-available product to great effect, creating standout sound on the first day
of the show -- a remarkable feat. The new product was the KX-R preamp ($18,500), and the
soon-to-be-available was the Ayre/DPS turntable, on which was mounted a Rega tonearm and
Lyra Scala cartridge. Ayre's MX-R monoblock amps ($18,500 per pair) drove TAD Reference
One loudspeakers. We've heard these large speakers at past shows, but they've never
sounded better. The TAD speakers always do the big things -- bass and dynamics -- well,
but here they also sounded subtle and "small," complementing the flowing grace
of analog playback well. All cables were from Ayre, as were the many myrtle-wood blocks
used under the electronics and as cable separators.
This was one system in which top-of-the-line products
certainly produced top-of-the-line sound.
