The Southwest Audio Fest
(SWAF) arises from the partnership of Gary Gill (Capital Audiofest) and Lou Hinkley (Pacific
AudioFest / Daedalus Audio) and their success with the Pacific Audio Fest event, which is destined to be an annual event for high-end audio in the Pacific Northwest serving the entire Pacific
region. We are pleased to announce a new industry-operated show for another underserved part of the
country... the Southwest Audio Fest in Dallas in Texas.
Southwest Audio Fest's Inaugural Event A successful Southwest Audio Fest 2024 event in Dallas.
SWAF 2024 Show Report By Michael G. Harkins Southwest
Audio Fest kicked off on March 15 with a medium-sized, but lively and
well-attended event at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas. The show's organizers,
Gary Gill and Lou Hinkley, are experienced audio show proprietors, having hosted
the Capital Audio Fest and Pacific Audio Fest respectively. They make it a
family affair for themselves, the exhibitors, and attendees at the show. Many
well-known and lesser-known audio brands, including several from Texas, were
here to show off their latest and greatest. It was my goal to see and hear as
many as possible, and to spend some quality time with them when the rooms weren't too crowded to simply enjoy the
music! ---> Southwest Audio Fest's Inaugural Event.
Greg Weaver's Southwest Audio Fest 2024 Coverage Best Sounding Rooms Video
The Inaugural Southwest Audio Fest
A new 'must-see' show joins the annual event lineup.
SWAF 2024 Show Report By Greg Weaver What
an amazing new spectacle! This remarkable inaugural event was held at the
four-star rated Hilton Anatole in the Design District just north of the heart of
downtown Dallas, Texas, from March 15th through Saint Patrick's Day, the 17th.
I want to take a moment to comment on what an overwhelming success it was.
Veteran showrunners, Gary Gill, who founded and has run a dozen Capital
Audiofests in Rockville Maryland, and Lou Hinkley, founder of Daedalus Audio in
1992, and show director of the now two-year-old Pacific Audio Fest of Seattle
Washington, have teamed up to bring us this new and extremely promising show in
Dallas, a modern metropolis in north Texas, which is both a commercial and
cultural hub of the region. First of all, the Hilton Anatole is exceptional
as its venue. Opened in 1979, with over 1,600 guest rooms, it is one of the
largest hotels in the region and is a major convention and meeting facility. ---> The Inaugural Southwest Audio Fest.
SWAF 2024 Show Reports By Paul Schumann
Preview Pics: Southwest Audio Fest 2024
Show Report
Paul Schumann's special SWAF 2024 preview
pics.
Southwest Audio Fest 2024 Show Report By Paul Schumann Thanks
to our incredible photojournalist Paul Schumann, we have some special preview
photos from the inaugural Southwest Audio Fest 2024 show in Dallas. Enjoy the
Music.com's full show reports will be online shortly after the event. As
always... enjoy the music! ---> Paul Schumann's SWAF 2024 Preview Photo
Show Report.
SWAF 2024 Show Report Part 1 Featuring Kimber Kable, YG Acoustics, Tidal, Emm Labs, Spatial Audio, Raven Audio, and more!
Southwest Audiofest 2024 Show Report By Paul Schumann It's hard to believe, but I've been reviewing for Enjoy the Music.com for over six years. In that time I have been fortunate to listen to a lot of excellent equipment in the comfy confines of my living room. The one thing I
haven't been able to do is go to a high-end audio show. Then, this fall, the stars aligned in my favor. Gary Gill and Lou Hinckley decided to start a new show here in Dallas. This is just a three-hour drive from Austin, so I was eager to go. Before I knew it, I was driving up to Dallas on a Friday morning and arrived in time to get my badge and start walking around just as the show
started. Several of the big rooms on the Atrium and Mezzanine floors weren't quite ready for visitors, so I decided to start at the top and work my way down. ---> SWAF 2024 Show Report Part 1.
SWAF 2024 Show Report Part 2 Featuring Songer Audio, Raven Audio, Avantgarde Acoustic, Ayre Acoustics, LampizatOr, Stromtank, Phasemation, and more!
Southwest Audio Fest 2024 Show Report By Paul Schumann Seeing that Songer Audio made the trip to the Southwest Audio Fest 20924 show, they demonstrated their wonderful loudspeakers was a real treat! In the room were the S1x field-coil speakers ($45,000) powered by a Trafomatic Rhapsody integrated amplifier ($19,000). Front-end duties were performed by Innuos Statement Music Server and Streamer ($18,900) and a LampizatOr Poseidon DAC
($25,000). Power was supplied by Stromtank S-2500 Quantum ($30,000). The SX1x speakers feature the new V4 Nova driver. It has redesigned steel geometry milled from ultra-low carbon steel, and the field coil pole piece is made from
permendur, a hard-to-find high-flux alloy sourced from
Germany. ---> SWAF 2024 Show Coverage Part 2.
SWAF 2024 Show Report Part 3 Featuring Classic Audio, Technics, Kimber Kable, Terry Audio, AGD Productions, and more!
Southwest Audio Fest 2024 Show Report By Paul Schumann One of the rooms I was anticipating was Classic Audio. I had been following these Michiganders since they started with the rebuilding of JBL Hartsfield horns. Dominating the room was the massive T-3.4 Field Coil Powered System ($59,950) with its associated Dual Output Tungar DC Power Supplies ($8,000). Two power amps were being used, an Atma-Sphere Novacron Mk.3.3 ($26,500) and a Classic Audio Push-Pull 300B
prototype. The preamp was an MP-1 Mark 3.3 Preamplifier ($23,890). The vinyl setup was an upgraded Technics SP 10 Mk III, Tri-Planar Ultimate 12 tonearm ($11,500), and a Van Den Hul Colibri Stradivarius Reference Cartridge ($13,000). A Studer 810 reel-to-reel was also a music source. ---> SWAF 2024 Show Report Part 3.
SWAF 2024 Show Report Part 4 Featuring PureAudioProject, Pass Labs, Audio Note UK, Semrad Audio,
Voxativ, Bella Sound, And More!
Southwest Audio Fest 2024 Show Report By Paul Schumann As mentioned, I've been reviewing for Enjoy the Music.com for over six years, but this inaugural Southwest Audio Fest was my first show. This meant I was able to meet some of the people who
I've been corresponding with via email over the years. The first review I did was of the PureAudioProject Trio 15 Horn1, which is a great way to begin. I stopped by the PureAudioProject room a few times before I spied
Ze'ev Schlik. Ze'ev gave me a warm greeting and we had a nice visit while listening to his wonderful system. In the room were his elegant Trio15 Classic Speakers with Voxativ AC-PiFe Center
Driver ($9,990). They were powered by a Pass Labs INT-25 Integrated Amp, ($7,250). The digital source was Mojo
Audio's Deja Vu Music Server / Streamer ($4750) paired with Mystique Y DAC ($5,990). Power for Mojo Audio equipment was provided by an Illuminati
"Brick" power supply ($1,250). ---> SWAF 2024 Show Report Part 4.
Best Of SWAF 2024 Blue Note
Awards Reviewer Paul Schumann gives you his
Best Of Southwest Audio Fest 2024.
Southwest Audio Fest 2024 Show Report By Paul Schumann Attending a high-end audio show is a bit of sensory
overload! There were over 100 companies represented at Southwest Audio Fest 2024. When I got my bearings by the third day, I settled on a few favorite rooms that I wanted to revisit. The top ones are winners of the Best Of SWAF 2024 Blue Note
Awards. The Soundlab room was one of the first I visited, yet I returned several times over the three
days.... Audio Note UK is all about the synergy of its products, but this was the first time I was able to experience it
firsthand.... These words from Keat's poem came to mind as I sat In front of John
Semrad's magnificent horns. The product of a true artisan, they belong in a museum for their craftsmanship alone. When playing, music just flowed out of them like there were no boundaries between the listener and the performer. ---> Best Of SWAF 2024 Blue Note Awards.
SWAF 2024 Details
The show promoters worked for over two years to secure a contract with an amazing event hotel,
which is very safe, family friendly, and great weather in March too! The Anatole
Hilton in Dallas will host the inaugural show that is slated for March 15th
through 17th, 2024, and initially we are focusing on a small but solid regional show.
Both Gary Gill and Lou Hinkley are confident that this show will grow and the Anatole has all the room
a premium audio event needs.
With over 17 million people and exceptional wealth in this corner of Texas, the local demographics could not be better for high end audio.
The location is also very safe and an easy ride from the airport. Couple that with two major hub airports and the ability to get a non-stop flight to Dallas from almost anywhere in this country and beyond,
they have reserved an ideal location for a major high-end luxury audio show. Spring in Dallas is beautiful, the music and clubs amazing and the show venue, pure
luxury.
Seminars, Music, And More!
Seminars daily with live music in the evenings.
Local Wine, Beer and Spirit Tastings
Hi-Fi Marketplace
Vinyl Record Row
Personal Hi-Fi Head Zone with dozens of listening rooms.
Enjoy the Music.com Sponsors
The Southwest Audio Fest 2024 Enjoy the Music.com, premium audio's celebrated online site since 1995 and a leader in providing over 25 years of industry news, thousands of gear reviews, and more than 280 show reports, is pleased to announce we're sponsoring the inaugural Southwest Audio Fest 2024 in Dallas. We're sponsoring the SWAF's Thursday night 'Happy Hour' before the event opens to the public. Scheduled to take place from March 15th through 17th at the Hilton / Anatole in Dallas, Texas, exhibitors and members of the press are invited to join us for food, drinks, and live music.
Enjoy the Music.com looks forward to seeing you there! For over 29 years, Enjoy the Music.com's ongoing
efforts and resources have benefited both the consumer electronics industry and
music lovers by providing leading information
concerning luxury high-performance audio and premium high-fidelity equipment via
the internet. We are deeply honored for the opportunity to support the very
first Southwest Audio Fest event, and in teaming up to benefit both the high-end
audio industry and audiophiles. --->
Enjoy the Music.com Sponsors The Southwest Audio Fest 2024.
Show Schedule
Friday, March 15 10pm to 6pm
Saturday, March 15 10am to 6pm
Sunday, March 15 10am to 4pm
Where
Hilton Anatole
2201 North Stemmons Freeway
Dallas, TX 75207
Southwest Audio Fest 2025 Announced
This exciting news just in from Lou Hinkley and Gary Gill, show promoters for the SWAF:
Our first Southwest Audio Fest was a resounding success and we already have the contract locked in at the Hilton Anatole for March 21st through 23rd, 2025, with 30 more rooms! We appreciate your investment in this new show and sincerely thank you for being part of SWAF. We are confident that Dallas and the Southwest Region will support and promote the growth of a quality
audiophile / high-end consumer electronics event. Looking ahead we plan to incorporate more lifestyle products including home theater, headphones, and personal audio to bring more families and friends to SWAF!
Thank you to all of our volunteers including the many regional audio clubs, groups and societies! Lastly, thank you to the generous sponsors who have made the live music and much more possible including
Enjoy The Music.com, Qobuz, and
Snake River Audio. We will definitely see you again next year!
Musically Yours,
Lou Hinkley – Pacific Audio Fest
About The Southwest Audiofest
Promoters
Gary Gill started the Capital Audiofest
as the East Coast's largest and longest running consumer high-end audio show, and the only show in the Mid-Atlantic area. Started in 2010 by Gary Gill, CAF presents a wide range of music reproduction products for the enthusiast, from start-up and cutting-edge technologies to cost-no-object aspirational gear, and everything in between. Capital Audiofest offers a fun and congenial weekend for the whole family, including live music, seminars and presentations and tastings from local
distilleries.
In 1992, Lou Hinkley founded Daedalus Audio as a manufacturer of high-quality speakers for both professional and home use. For the last 30 years, the highly acclaimed Daedalus speaker systems have been used by professionals in both live and studio settings, as well as in home audio systems around the world.
During the past three decades, Lou Hinkley has exhibited in practically every type of festival and audio show,
plus he knows the industry well from the manufacturer's perspective. Lou started
the Pacific Audio Fest as a way
to reach music lovers in Washington Sate.
Both Gary Gill and Lou Hinkley have partnered
together as show promoters to give us the Southwest Audio Fest show. Learn more
about the SWAF at this link.
High-Performance Audio Reviews
