The Absolute Sound

1 day ago | theabsolutesound.com | Alan Taffel

In an increasingly unpredictable world, the fact that AXPONA 2025 played out exactly as expected was something of a comfort. Old friends and familiar brands converged on Schaumberg from around the globe, “Hey, now” boomed through the halls, and steakhouses grilled up prime fare for the winers and diners. In my category, there was just one surprise, which was the relative dearth of significant introductions.

1 week ago | theabsolutesound.com | Jonathan Valin

It’s a tough job, but somebody has to do it. Happily, this year that somebody was me. Fifty grand may seem like a high floor for a show report, but if you’ve been to AXPONA (or bother to read this article), you’ll know that the number of very expensive loudspeakers on display in Schaumburg is beginning to approach High End Munich levels. There are a lot of pricey transducers out there—and some of them showed extremely well.

1 week ago | theabsolutesound.com | Alan Taffel

Goldmund’s new Telos 800 occupies a small and rarified niche in the audio market. It’s a stereo power amp that, at an eye-watering $89,000, costs as much as—more, really—than most high-end monoblock pairs would fetch. There are other members of this elite class from the likes of Soulution, MBL, and Constellation, and they all beg the same question: If you had that much to spend on amplification, wouldn’t you just go the monoblock route? For me, the answer is not as obvious as it might seem.

1 week ago | theabsolutesound.com | Greg Gaston

A A A Led by Black Francis, the Pixies have performed with many incarnations since their debut in 1988, breaking up in 1993 and then reuniting to tour in 2004. Releasing new music since 2014, this influential Boston band forges on with their just-released The Night the Zombies Came, a playful collection of dark, quirky songs that echo their prime years. A surreal lyricist who likes to play with words, Francis implants a horror motif that cavorts through some Zombie songs.

1 week ago | theabsolutesound.com | Jacob Heilbrunn

Contrary to the Beach Boys, there are no good vibrations, at least when it comes to an audio system. Whether it’s a turntable or a CD player, preamplifier or amplifier, vibrations can exert a deleterious effect upon the reproduction of music.