CLEARANCE

To receive the current list of personally owned sales items (amplifiers, digital components, cables etc) which Jim Smith is liquidating, email us with a request for the itemized listing of available items or call me at 770 777 2095.

From time to time, US-based Avantgarde dealers may wish to refresh their display inventory by offering their demonstrator models at a reduced price. Such models may sport minor cosmetic blemishes from short-term customer loans and in-home demos. Availability is contingent on dealer participation and which of their models -- and in what finishes -- fall into this category at any given time. Please email for details and pricing.

And now for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Remember the Stereophile Show in San Francisco two years ago?
"... When I made my list of the best sounds at the show, my top two picks happened to represent opposite extremes of the technology spectrum. The first system was easily the most technically sophisticated and advanced at the show: Meridian's 861 controller, 800 DVD-Audio player, and five DSP8000 active digital loudspeakers...

...Ironically, my other favorite at the show featured LP playback, tubed electronics and horn loudspeakers. I'm talking about the Avantgarde Trio and Basshorn loudspeakers powered by all Balanced Audio Technology electronics (see Wayne Garcia's full description later in this report). This over-the-top system was staggering in its resolution, dynamics, and musical expression. I sat through two structured demos, and both times the audience of about 25 people spontaneously burst into applause at the end. In all my years of attending Hifi shows, I've never seen an audience react that way to a demo. I'd never really understood the attraction of Avantgarde horn loudspeakers (probably due to demos in small rooms and very close seating positions), but now I "get" it. This system was capable of resolving very fine degrees of nuance and expression, coupled with powerful dynamics and a sense of palpability. Bravo." - Robert Harley [Editor-in-Chief]

"... Speaking of Balanced Audio Technology, the best sound I heard at the show was a pair of Avantgarde Trios (notoriously difficult to get "right" at shows) backed by the company's Basshorns (yes, huge), BAT electronics (multiple VK-150SE amps, the VK-51SE preamp [reviewed in this issue], the VK-P10SE phonostage with Super-Pak power supply, and VK-D5SE CD player), Cardas cables, and a phono rig comprising the La Luce turntable and a Cardas Myrtle Heart cartridge. On the Classic Records pressing of Satchmo Plays King Oliver, the sound was exceptionally fast, dynamic, and present in a way that only horns can be, while Elvis' version of "Fever" was the next best thing to having the King in the room with us..." - Wayne Garcia [Editor]

Own this very system of Trios and four BassHorns that set the entire industry on its ear in San Francisco and has since played in my home. With the launch of the Meta Primo, I need to move this system to set up the newest Avantgarde Acoustic model in my Atlanta showroom. It's the only reason one mint pair of Trios and four BassHorns are now available to the first buyer interested in scoring this world-class system for an uncommonly low price.

Not that you needed it but here's yet another industry endorsement (of this exact system played in San Francisco): "... Not surprisingly parked in the last category of the alpine go-for-broke plateau, my personal favorite? The Avantgarde Acoustic, Balanced Audio Technology, Cardas Audio, Grand Prix Audio, Running Springs Audio and Spotheim La Luce demo. By Saturday, this system had settled in to produce what for this thrill seeker was the emotionally most gripping, dynamically most unrestrained performance, feeling phenomenally "live" and exciting on a grand, real-life scale...

Bass performance of this full-range setup was contingent on position. Where in the large ball room did you sit/stand? A differential of just one seat could spell profound differences. During the first public day, the principals, on a lark, decided to experiment. They spun the opening cuts of Pink Floyd's crowd pleaser Dark Side of the Moon to enthusiastic response. After playing small-scale ensemble male and female vocals and hitting the usual show-off categories, BAT's Geoff Poor announced the Gran Finale to this controlled, closed-door demo. Were 113-115dB peaks okay with ever'one? During my demo, nobody objected. The subsequent "Bricks in the Wall" had more intelligibility of the background din and vocal fragments, more slam, projection and sheer gut-wrenching impact than anything else at the show - without getting hard or unpleasant like some others attempting same. That was a sign of extremely low loudspeaker distortion, plus the obvious way horns couple transducer radiation to the air differently. These one-track-only SPLs didn't clip ears but translated as a whole-body experience instead. During my turn, the audience broke into unprompted applause, many milled about to ask questions or ogle the monstrously radiant La Luce CS Centoventi turntable, which George Cardas himself had transferred from his personal listening room in Oregon's Bandeon-by-the-sea. .." - Srajan Ebaen, 6moons.com

Always wanted Avantgarde's very best but writing the check made your pen dry up? Because this is my personal distributor pair, it will be priced as used. Please email for details and pricing or call me at 770 777 2095.