Loading cart contents...
KLH at the UK AUDIO SHOW 2021
Ian Ringstead attended the recent UK Audio Show 2021 and here gives his thoughts on the show along with photographs taken at the event.
Eighteen months of Covid-19 certainly tested us all and one of the major frustrations for me was missing HiFi shows. We could indulge in treating ourselves to new or second-hand kit to lift the blues and raise our spirits, but actually going to see and hear new audio equipment hasn’t been so easy. Shows can be the catalyst to inspire our imaginations and tempt us to regroup or rethink our systems.
The UK Audio show was held at De Vere Hotel, Staverton Estate in Northants and it certainly attracted a good attendance on the Saturday I was there. The rooms were on the compact side (small) for many of the exhibitors, but having an optimistic approach helped, as all shows have compromises and to the naysayers, I say realign your negativity. Many comments I saw after the show on social media just griped and if you are expecting perfection you’ll be disappointed every time. And let’s not forget that the exhibitors put in a lot of time and effort into putting their rooms together, not to mention carting it to the venue.
Nearly all the rooms at the show were full most of the day (with lulls of course) and because they were generally small and no standing was allowed due to Covid restrictions. I hoped it encouraged the exhibitors who had the courage to exhibit, as well as visitors, that the world can be a good place… and it gave a much-needed boost.
I saw a lot of new names (to me) and one was Emilen Audio who are a British company making a range of solid-state electronics, interconnects and an interesting active loudspeaker. Prices were in the thousands and the active speakers were £25,000, so not for the faint-hearted. The build quality was excellent and so if they do have their products reviewed one day take a close look.
The American Audio Company are as the name states dealers in US audio products. KLH are a blast from the past and a vintage brand alongside JBL etc. Still going strong as a speaker company (formed in 1957), the speakers I heard had the classic vintage look of the ’60s and ’70s. They were the model fives and come complete with matching stands for £2000. Like a few brands from that era, they have a three-position acoustic balancer control on the back panel so the user can adjust mid/upper output level to suit individual listening rooms acoustics. Some may regard this as an unnecessary gimmick, but I feel it could be useful to tame some rooms acoustics. There were several other selected products from well-known brands being distributed such as Anthem, Totem and Parasound.
