I was contacted by the marketing manager of Xavian Loudspeakers (Italian design/manufactured in the Czech Republic) requesting an Audiophilia review of the ‘Perla Esclusiva’, a stand mounted monitor from Xavian’s Natura range of loudspeakers and the recent successor to the original Perla.

We lost contact for some months after the initial request. Later, I was contacted informing me the newest iteration of the Perla was ready for review. The pair was shipped from the Czech Republic to the island in a solid, quality cardboard box (wrapped in cling film) with hard foam around the speakers ensuring safe passage. They arrived in pristine condition.

Several years ago, I experienced Mike Levy’s original loudspeaker design, the FRM-1s, at a well attended CES. The sound was wonderful but the design was hamstrung somewhat, needing four channels of amplification and DEQX room calibration.  Score one for the sound, but zero for the needs of everyday audiophiles. 

For more than a few years after the show, Levy received requests to modify the speaker to a standard two channel amplification design so the beautiful sound could be enjoyed by all. Well, maybe not all, at $15,000 (plus stands), but the thoughts were pure. 

I had a lovely Facebook Messenger conversation with Lars Kristensen of Denmark's Raidho Acoustics about how much I was loving my X-1 Loudspeakers -- more like adoration, if truth be told. 

He mentioned the X-1 now had an upgrade to XT-1 and that he could organize that for me if I wished. Giddyup! True to his word, my speakers were picked up, shipped to Denmark, and were upgraded and back on their stands in less than three weeks!  The cost of the upgrade is USD $1,500 /pair plus shipping. A new pair of XT-1s will run you USD$7,700/pair plus the proprietary (and necessary) stands. 

Readers may find my original review of the X-1 helpful. 

Michael Levy, the owner of Long Island's Alta-Audio and designer of its range of speakers, is as passionate an audio professional I know.

Levy leverages every ounce of that energy, extreme knowledge and passion into his loudspeaker design. 

Two Audiophilia writers, Martin Appel and Karl Sigman, both have Alta Audio FRM-2 Celestas as their references. At USD$ 15,000, they are worth every penny. Encased in the most gorgeous polyester piano black finish, these stand mount gems are among the best sounding speakers you can buy. Truly magnificent. 

The new bookshelf loudspeaker from Montreal's Totem Acoustic looks almost identical to the company's legendary Model 1 from twenty years ago. 

That speaker, like the new Sky, was housed in a small enclosure that packed a musical wallop. It was refined, too. So much so that my choice for my first reference came down to it and Stuart Tyler's ProAc Tablette Signature. I went with the signed Brit. And loved it. It was my reference for several years. All the while my friends with the Totem kept reminding me of the 1's superiority in many audiophile checks and balances. 

My first discovery of these fascinating speakers was at the Montreal Audio Show from a few years ago. A local dealer had them set up beautifully with well matched gear SET gear and nothing but some red Barcelona Chairs for company. It was a very musical and stylish presentation.

I have a long history with JM Labs/Focal. One of our most fervent supporters has been a long time dealer.  

The original JM Labs looked magnificent with their great covers of wood. For some reason, these beautifully engineered speakers were not my cup of tea.  

A good solid read of my detailed review of the powered version of this speaker may well be instructive. 

The new passive version from Audioengine maintains many of the qualities from that fabulous little gem of a speaker, with the new one allowing for your own favourite type of amplification.

The HDP6 is a retro version, stripped of all the powered guts and gizmos. 

It feels invigorating to get your long held audiophile pre conceived notions smashed to smithereens on occasion. This was such an occasion. Three weeks earlier, it felt as though I was knocking on the door of a very cool house party location. The host answered and looked at me with surprise. 'Actually, the party's just winding down'.

The HD6 is the latest powered speaker from Audioengine, the company founded by two young American audio entrepreneurial dynamos, Dave Evans and Brady Bargenquast. I've been impressed with Audioengine's digital products and speakers from its startup over ten year's ago. In the here and now, I'd call today's Audioengine a 'modern legacy' company.

Totem Acoustic loudspeakers debuted on the high audio scene in 1987 and first gained notoriety with the wonderful and diminutive Model 1 Loudspeaker. I was very taken with its detailed and very dynamic sound, and was one of the main reasons I began to write about high end audio. It's been a pleasure to observe Totem's growth over the years into one of the few long-term success stories of our industry. 

There was a time that I could not get enough of monitor speakers. I lived with ProAc’s very best for a few years, the Response One SC and the Tablette Signature. I truly loved both speakers and had a flirtation with Canada’s very good answer to them, the Totem Model 1s. About 15 years ago, as Audiophilia morphed into something new on the new internet, I had to make a 180 degree shift and, at the time, was none too happy about it.