Cross Posted...
Well another CJ has come and gone and I'm sitting here once again nursing a post CanJam hangover-- or what might more aptly be termed post partum CanJam depression. With the exception of running the polls and tours I'd somewhat retreated from the hobby for much of 2024. I'm quite content (still) with my current setup and have grown weary of the constant chase for new and different gear and the need to hear everything under the sun that pops up and gets a bit of hype behind it. Consquently heading into the show my list of stuff I wanted to demo was not that extensive, with nothing I really urgently wanted to hear (with the possible exception of the Fugaku-- more on that later). What ultimately motivated me to make the trip to NYC was all the people I have come to love and look forward to seeing at these events-- a list which expands with each passing year-- and the strong vibe of connection and fellowship that exists between us. On the surface, this is a gear driven hobby, but below that surface is a love and passion for something-- listening to music-- that in its own way touches each one of us at the very core of our being. The music we listen to and enjoy may be different for each person-- but it is one love and passion we all share. This is what CanJam is really all about imho.
Near the end of the show I was in one of the elevators with the glass panels that allows you to look at the various floors as you pass by them. With me in the elevator was was a beautiful young woman and a rep from one of the tables-- Linsoul I think. The girl (who turned out to be a singer) saw the guy's nametag and asked what was going on on that floor". "It's an audio show he said", after a pause adding, "we're nerds!". This is also, truth be told, what CanJam is all about
Despite not having a huge list of stuff I wanted to hear I did manage to have my mind blown a few times on this trip and heard a good many great IEMs (and a few great DAPs). Following is what will pass as my show report for the year...
The weather in NYC was fantastic this weekend-- I've never landed in Times Square with a pure blue sky before and it added a nice boost to the already electric bustle and vibe the city centre offers.
On Friday evening before the show I spent some time with the illustrious
@RTodd and
@Frankie D. At this time I was finally able to hear the fabled "Fugaku" and sonically it did not disappoint, sounding absolutely divine through my WM1Z. Everything about it is so far beyond everything else it's almost silly and tying the whole sonic package together is a rich and heavy note weight and impressive ballsiness to the sound. On the negative side (for me) it's not a very practical device. The portable amp is larger than I was imaginging (I was picturing something along the lines of the Shure KSE set) and not really set up to practically use on the go. On account of this it is fundamtentally a desktop setup. That said it's a testament to how great it sounds that many folks listened to it this weekend and felt tempted to rearrange their lives and use cases to make listening to a Fugaku a more practical option. Another issue I had with it was that everything else I listened to sounded like sh1t for about an hour after I took Fugaku out of my ears.
Then came Saturday and the main event...for which I was nicely swagged up...thank-you to
@HiFiHawaii808 for replacing my nametag and to
@warrenpchi for the thoughtful gesture of the offical CanJam tag.
Immediately at the start of the show I beelined it for the Campfire table to make sure Ken knew about the awards ceremony we were hosting that night, of which the CFA Clara was a recipient. I also asked him qute hopefully if a Trifecta MKii with their new driver was in the works and the response I got was quite encouraging
...though I don't think it's necessarily happening right away.
Following that I made my way to the Musicteck booth, which has become the de-facto hangout for the Watercooler crew at CanJam...so much so that we even got our own banner this year:
Credit to
@goldwerger,
@warrenpchi,
@HiFiHawaii808 and Andrew from
@MusicTeck for making all of this happen.
I didn't take detailed impressions this time but following are some of my show highlights.
The first thing I checked out was the Forte Ears Faust prototype. I don't have a picture of it but knocked my socks off right away. Bass response is fantastic and overall a warmer, richer, more analogue sound than the Macbeth and personally more up my alley.
Following that the Quill Acoustics Satin was a other early highlight-- and one I didn't see coming at all.
Not the most robust build quality, but the sound is superb. Smooth as silk, decently technical and overall a very enjoyable listen.
Thanks to
@JordonEA I got to hear the much vaunted Elysian Dio and it did not disappoint:
Think Annihilator with actual bass and better mids. I also heard it through the grapevine that Annhilator 2025 is in the works. Exciting!
The Moses was another solid IEM:
For me this one does everything at a very high level, and nothing really wrong, but for some reason it never really gripped me on an emotional level or particularly stood out with its own identity. I understand why it was so well loved though, especially by fans of the Elysian stuff. I think in terms of that really high end bracket my own tastes veer more towards the APX SE that, thanks to
@wazzupi I was finally able to hear this weekend:
Probably the closest thing to a perfectly tuned "all in one" IEM I've ever heard. (Not counting Fugaku.)
Out-of-nowhere surprise of the show for me was the Flipears stuff, especially the Legion (below, right).
Lots of air, large holographic stage, wonderful mids timbre and powerful bass. A no-brainer for the price. I was fortunate to receive the above two tour units at the show.
Another massive show highlight for me was the Duality, which heard in its final form for the first time this weekend. I was fortunate to receive this tour kit from
@Chang :
Bass is epic and everything else is very well done and tastefully tuned. Not as technical as the high end stuff but man it's fun to listen to and as anyone who knows me knows how much I love top to bottom DD timbre. Props to Nightjar-- everything they do oozes refinement, professionalism and class.
As far as sources go my #1 wish this weekend was to hear the LP P6 Pro 10AE. Thanks to
@timeslip and
@raylu I was able to hear, respectively, both the silver and gold variants (which sounded the same to me).
I did a track to track AB with my 1Z and the LP players there was a noticable step up in refinement, seperation and clarity. The first players I've heard (including the LP6 Gold and OG P6P) that I would personally rank above the WM1Z in terms of sound (for my ears). If you love analogue musicality, this is your jam.
I was also (thanks again to
@raylu) priveleged to hear the storied LP6 7AE finally.
To my ears this is very close to the sound of the P6P 10AE players. I would personally rank them all about at par with each other in terms of sound.
I was also able to revisit my first love for the first time in 6 years...
Also the first time I heard the OG Solaris through the WM1Z and man oh man it did not disappoint. Solaris still holds up after all this time and at the price it goes for used these days it might be the best cost value proposition available anywhere on the market right now...imho.
I was quite looking forward to hearing the EXT MKii:
It's been so long since I heard the OG EXT that I couldn't meaningfully compare them. Bass is excellent, mids still to die for. More natural highs perhaps? And the fit is better.
It's always a pleasure to hear STORM, even if it's not really my thing at the end of the day:
In terms of raw reference transparency it arguably can't be topped.
NYC would not be NYC without a trip to Joe's with some friends:
Another exceptional highlight of the weekend was the awards ceremony we hosted in the seminar room on Saturday evening to formally acknowledge the winners of the 2024 year-end awards from the Watercooler and Watercooler HE. It was all rather touching and rewarding-- and very well attended. Despite our attempts to hype throughout the day we weren't sure if anyone was going to show up but we had a packed and attentive house. Thank-you to Warren, Jim and Eyal for really making that happen-- I hope we can do it again. This year's cooler group shot was taken right after the awards and is a testament to our ever-growing family:
Lastly, CanJam would not be CanJam without warmth and fellowship...
Clockwise from bottom left:
@emdeevee,
@Zachik,
@goldwerger,
@HiFiHawaii808,
@Frankie D,
@bigquery,
@bigbeans,
@RTodd,
@buke9,
@wazzupi
Thanks to everyone for another great CanJam experience!
. Really curious how they will compare.
