May 23, 2009 - Part 1
All prices in euros (€) unless otherwise noted.
At time of report, 1 € is approximately 1.37 US dollars.

Wilson Audio Specialties has given the well-known WATT/Puppy a bold makeover. The new model, called the Sasha W/P, is larger, heavier, and shapelier than the WATT/Puppy 8, and it is less expensive as well. The Sasha is priced at $26,950 USD per pair and features revised cabinet materials, a new tweeter derived from the MAXX Series 3, a new midrange driver also derived from costlier models, a new location for the top module’s crossover, and much more. [www.wilsonaudio.com]

Speaking of shapely, Dali introduced the new Fazon Sat speaker. It is wall-mountable and comes in either a black or white finish. This diminutive speaker uses a 4” wood-fiber midrange and a 1.1” soft-dome tweeter, both of which are  covered by a slick-looking magnetic grille. The Fazon Sat is beautifully built with a solid feel that is largely due to its sturdy aluminum cabinet. The price for the Fazon Sat is a reasonable 279 € each.

Dali also showed a more conventional design, the two-way Mentor Minuet priced at 479 € each. The Minuet features a 4.5" woofer and a 1.1" soft-dome tweeter, and it can be purchased with an optional wall-mount bracket.

One material you don't see used often in speaker-cabinet construction is slate, but that's exactly what you'll find used for Fischer & Fischer's new SN/SL 770 loudspeaker. The large three-way SN/SL 770 features Silvercom pure-silver wiring and a Dynaudio Esotar tweeter, among other premium components. The weight is 151kg each, and the price per pair is 25,000 €.

Glass has become an increasingly popular material for audio-equipment construction, and it's what you'll find on the baffle of Revox's new Re:Sound G Prestige three-way loudspeaker, which sells for 3000 € per pair. The Swiss-made Re:Sound G Prestige looks sleek enough to fit unobtrusively into almost any home environment.

We didn't only look at loudspeakers today. Germany's T+A showed the new attractively styled K2 DVD receiver (3000 €). This unit outputs 95Wpc into 8 ohms and 150Wpc into 4 ohms to each of its five channels -- but those channels are not configured for surround sound. That’s right. The K2 has three output channels -- for the left, right, and center front speakers -- and two additional channels for stereo operation in another room. An odd configuration for sure, but one that T+A feels will meet customers’ needs the best.