Inside CAF 2025 Luxury Hi-Fi Show Part 1 — Capital Audiofest's Top Floors With 84 Rooms
New trends you need to know about, the latest audio gear, and not to be missed rooms!
Capital Audiofest 2025 Show Report By Rick Becker

Alta Audio, Yamaha, And HiFi-Life
That was a Yamaha integrated amp with a SOTA turntable.

Evolution AV, Anthem, And Paradigm
Evolution AV from McLean, VA, works by appointment only and presented a fairly common (and successful) combination of Anthem electronics with Paradigm speakers.

Evolution AV And T+A HiFi
Evolution AV chose to present some more affordable T+A speakers than the big guns I heard at AXPONA. The Criterion S 230 ($13,490) was the inside pair, and the Solitaire S 430 3-way tower jumped to $38,900.

The amps, left to right, were the PA 3100 HV ($26,990), the very cool Symphonia streaming integrated amp ($10,990), and the MP 3100 HV multi-source player ($25,490).

B.A.D.A.S.S.
Bruce Ball of B.A.D.A.S.S. (Ball Audio Distribution And System Solutions) in Henderson, NV, is the importer of Margules Audio from Mexico and typically has a fine-sounding room with their tube gear.

The Margules Audio U-280 SC 30th Anniversary Limited Edition (reviewed here) puts out 50 Wpc in Class A, and 100 Watts as a monoblock. ($12k) They were running it in stereo with the Margules Orpheo Century Overture monitors with a rich-looking front baffle and a stand with a complementary design.

In the back room where they had a headphone rig on display, Julian Margules (right) was talking business, but graciously moved aside for me to sample the headphones.

The tube-powered music server/amplifier was an OTL design ($4,500) with great transparency. Combined with the Margules planar magnetic headphones with an open-back design and leather headrest ($2,500), the music sounded very good to me.

Also on display were these gorgeous Athenamuse cables with shimmery sheaths. They are expensive, but if you crave the bling or wish to appease your significant other, their sound quality reputedly will not be disappointing.

Zooming in on the photo above, I discovered the RSX DIN Phono Cable Burn-in Adapter, which would come in handy when purchasing new phono cables with a DIN end for your turntable.

Perfect8 And Advanced Custom Acoustics
Perfect8 has repeatedly earned my praise with music that is as transparent as their glass speakers. Add to that an airiness and bloom that is exceptional. The tall model shown here needs no subwoofer. The rig was comprised of fine Triangle Art electronics, which brought out the best in these speakers. Again this year, it was one of my favorite rooms at the show.

Obviously, these are not for the faint of pocketbook, but they offer white glove delivery worldwide if you're concerned about setup.

I was surprised to see the Triangle turntable in black, as Triangle always shows their turntables with a polished gold accent, as we shall see on the 6th Floor. It appears to be even more massive in all-black.

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