Saturday, April 2, 2005
All prices in Canadian dollars unless otherwise noted.

Doug Schneider loved the sound of Wharfedale's top-of-the-line Opus 3 ($6500 per pair), which uses custom drivers in a cabinet with no parallel sides and some of the smartest binding posts we've seen. The speakers come in three finishes, with the rosewood one shown being the most popular.

Wiener Lautsprecher Manufaktur loudspeakers use the soon-to-be-patented PAC tweeter, which certainly sounds open and natural. The WLM Lyra in makassar finish costs $13,080 per pair.

In addition to its new Parsifal Ovation, Verity Audio was showing the new Tamino v2 and h2, the distinction being how each speaker will be used, either mounted vertically or horizontally. The speaker sells for $2400 each no matter how you mount it.

The top slab of FIM's Isolation Platform seems to float mysteriously just above the plate below...,

...but three ball bearings ride in recessed areas to complete the illusion. The cost is $300.

Each of the the new Orelle electronics from England comes in a rounded chassis that is said to be integral to the sound the products produce. On top is the CD100 EVO2 CD player ($3300), with the SA100 EVO2 80Wpc integrated amp ($3099) below.

On the same rack were the Orelle CA100 EVO2 preamp (top, $2600) and SP100 EVO2 100Wpc amplifier ($2600).