Zesto, Vimberg, Merrill Williams, Tri-Planar, Stillpoints, Cardas, Sweet Home Audio | FLAX 2020

Part-Time Audiophile

I found myself missing Doug White of That Voice That Is! at the 2020 Florida Audio Expo–I missed the sound of the big Tidal Audio systems he assembles and exhibits, that feeling of perfection in every detail. The spirit of Doug White was definitely there at FLAX in the room hosted by Clearwater dealer Sweet Home Audio. This exceptional room featured a whole rack of Zesto Audio gear matched to a pair of the Vimberg Mino loudspeakers ($31,000/pair), a brand that uses Tidal Audio designs without the price-no-object approach. $31K is certainly not inexpensive, but as Eric Franklin Shook once said, the Vimbergs are still the greatest bargain in high-end audio. George and Carolyn Counnas of Zesto were running the room, of course, and their warmth and expertise were fully on display with their Andros 1.2 phono stage ($4700), Allasso SUT ($2995), Leto Ultra preamplifier ($9950) and Bia 120 stereo power amplifier ($10,000). The analog rig was equally impressive: Merrill Williams REAL 101.3 turntable ($8900), Tri-Planar U12 arm ($6200) and Benz Micro Gullwing SLR cartridge ($3600). Everything was connected with Cardas Audio Clear Beyond, and the rack was one of numerous Stillpoints ESS racks found at FLAX 2020. I’ve started […]

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