WAS it just our imagination or were there more female visitors to the KL International AV Show this year? It seemed that way.
You would usually see a number of “showgirls” hired by exhibitors and a handful of ladies helping their spouses run the rooms or booths. This year, though, there seem to be a significantly higher ratio of women visiting the JW Marriott, at least on the first day, to view the hi-fi and AV fare on display.
This could be a good sign, the sort of rejuvenation the hi-fi industry needs… new ears, fresh perspectives… balancing the rhetoric and hyperbole from men who’ve made high-fidelity their religion!
As far as the exhibitors go, the usual suspects were there with a smattering of esoteric hi-fi and AV gear, some bread-and-butter stuff, a feast of vinyl and offers galore, right from day one! Oh, and there was some karaoke gear, too.
Among the things that caught our eye – an attempt at resurrecting the spirit of Apogee all-ribbon speakers, Touraj Moghaddam with his Vertere Acoustic products, some interesting turntables and digital gear (the CD being mostly replaced by laptops and USB DACS/amps), a Finnish manufacturer displaying “adjustable” speaker cables (thus going wholly against the conservative belief that wires should not be used as tone controls) and amps the size of small coffee tables.
The show continues this weekend (July 5-6), so here’s a trailer for those about to pay a visit… if not, perhaps this collection of photos will “transport” you there.
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