At some point during the 2023 Florida Audio Expo, Scot Hull asked me if I had visited the Fine Sounds Americas room. I’d noticed it during my wanderings, but I didn’t go in right away. Then Scot told me they’re the people who handle Rotel, Sumiko, Pro-Ject and Sonus faber in the US. I have a long history with each of those brands, and I’ve reviewed numerous components from each brand (except for Pro-Ject).
Words and Photos by Marc Phillips
That’s when I realized that I have been working with Fine Sounds Americas all along, but through a third party. I’ve consulted with Fine Sounds Americas, talked to their people, but when you’re dealing with a far-reaching yet nebulous corporate entity like The McIntosh Group you’re dealing with a lot of people in a lot of places. That said, I hope to re-connect with them so we can get back to reviewing some of our favorite brands. (Sonus faber, our affair was far too brief!)
In the Fine Sounds Americas room, I quickly caught up with the latest. The first thing I noticed was some of the Pro-Ject entry level systems, which can now be ordered in matching colors. That doesn’t sound like a revolutionary idea, but when I saw speakers and turntables in the same dark blue–one of my favorite shades of blue–I thought, “this is so simple and obvious, it’s kind of genius.” As high-end audio adopts more of these lifestyle strategies, the idea of a great-sounding hi-fi with matching cosmetics for all of the components seems like a push in the right direction.
The main system in the Fine Sounds Americas room was quite familiar to me–a rack of Rotel’s newer components, Pro-ject analog and a pair of Sonus faber Olympia Nova IIIs–and I was finally able to hear the new Wetleg album on LP, and I like it. The system had an awesome sense of punch while maintaining that dreamy and musical sound that is, for me, the reason to love Sonus faber.
Thanks, Fine Sounds Americas, for such an informative demo!
If you would like to hear even more coverage from FLAX 2023, check out our recap report and highlights from our audiophile-oriented show The Occasional Podcast. You can stream the episode direct from the embed below, or from your favorite podcast platform including iTunes, Android, Google, Deezer, Spotify, iHeartRadio and more.
1 Trackback / Pingback
Comments are closed.