I just noticed the other day that you were on the list of exhibitors which was great as I'm really looking forward to checking out your designs.  Good luck with the show and set up!  I'll be sure to say "hello".

I will be there Randy, look forward to meeting you.

Lance

Hi Palomino,

Very good question .....

Since I'm primarily aiming for the "sincere but broke" music lover market, I'm going to try to get the best sound possible for the least amount of money.

Goodness knows that there will no shortage of $50,000.00 systems at this event .....

Instead of taking my $7000.00 digital front end, I will be using a very decent sounding Onkyo CD player that retails for under 200 bucks.

For amplification, I'm going back to my roots and taking an early vintage Decware Zen which sounds absolutely amazing with all of my speaker creations. I will also have a nice "Spud" pentode vacuum tube amp and a couple of custom built chip amps that punch way above their weight.

I will be taking five or six pairs of loudspeakers in various configurations based on either Eminence Alpha drivers or Wild Burro Audio Betsy drivers and tweeters that I have found that work well with these drivers.  At least one of the speaker pairs will be in the very cool solid hardwoods that I am now offering.









I am really looking forward to this event ..... not so much as a money making venture (which it probably will not be) but as an "adventure" that I have had in the back of my mind for a long time.

It should be interesting .....

Best wishes,

Randy

Hi Lonely Raven,

It should not be an issue ......

The speakers are 96 db efficient with absolute minimal crossover components. I attended this event last year and the vendor rooms are all "staggered" ..... with empty rooms in between and nothing directly across the hall from each vendor room.
Most of the rooms I visited last year also kept the door mostly closed and the ambient noise was not bad at all.

The "little" Zen lights up my 16' x 26' listening room at home with power to spare with these speakers .....

Appreciate the concern and words of wisdom .....

Best wishes,

Randy

Sounds like fun Randy.  Also, I like the room positioning.  Should help.  There were times at Axpona when we had to wait for the room next door to stop rocking out.

BTW, will you have any hot models luring people to your room like we have seen at Axpona in years past?  The Caintuck Girls?

P.S. This has been a fantasy of mine for a couple years- to put together a bare bones Decware system and rent a room out at one of these shows.

They look fantastic!

Randy's Room

Photos .....















A couple of larger photos here and here.

Enjoy,

Randy

Quote:



IMHO, that's praise right there!

Hello seikosha,
Thank you so much for the kind words ..... I must say that I was more than happy with the sound in the room.
I really didn't know what to expect in a hotel room with very little acoustic treatment ..... but the sound was nearly as good as what I hear in my own listening room at home.
The interesting thing is that I took a $200.00 Onkyo CD player to use as a front end instead of my $7000.00 digital rig ..... primarily because I wanted the attendees to hear the speakers with a "modest" front end.
I was not disappointed at all ..... the little Onkyo sang its heart out ...

Hi Lonely Raven,
For a fact, there were many visitors to the room who stated that they were sent there by folks who had been there and enjoyed the musicality of what they heard .....

Hello Core32,
Most of the visitors to the room took my business card with them as well as the two flyers I had prepared for the show.
One flyer contained information on the completed speakers (as well as links to recommended websites including Decware) and the other flyer was for the "flat pack" baffles that I have been selling.
Quite a few people like the baffles I am making (both barrel and tombstone shapes) but want to install their own drivers and crossover components. If they don't have any decent woodworking tools, I have provided the unfinished baffles and bases and all they need is a jigsaw to make the cutout(s) for their drivers.
If a person wants something more than the standard plywood baffles, I have been offering some very nice hardwood options as found here.
I'm not very secretive about what I'm doing and have provided information on drivers and the very simple crossover setup I am using in my speakers.
Truthfully, for a person with a taste in music similar to my own ..... a pair of Wild Burro Audio Betsy drivers in my baffles can be all the speaker that they ever need. If a Hawthorne Audio Augie and plate amp is added to the mix, it makes for an extremely musical system.
That is what I ran at the show and the setup received some very positive feedback.
It will be interesting to see how much response I get from potential customers over the next few weeks.

Best wishes,
Randy

Hello Steve,

Thanks for the good wishes .....

For a fact, the Zen amplifier was a big hit at the CAF.
There were quite a few visitors to my room who had always wanted to hear a Decware amplifier and were pleased to have the opportunity.

Many people were blown away to hear what two quality watts per channel sounded like with suitable loudspeakers.

On the last day of the show, a gentleman and his lady friend were seriously thinking about purchasing a pair of my speakers. I had the Zen amp in the system and they had brought their own music and we listened to a variety of things in their stash.
As a final test, he decided to pop in a full orchestral piece with pipe organ.  I thought .... uh oh .....

However, the Zen amp grabbed the music by the neck and sailed through it with amazing control and authority .....

The gentleman purchased the speakers .....

Looking forward to seeing the Decware family and all of the attendees in October .....

Best wishes,

Randy

Congrats as well Randy.

Instead of keeping my SE84CS from 2001-I sold it forward~=good Karma.

I will be buying a SE84CKCSelect/UFO, this winter. Of course, it will drive my modified Adagio's (now configured with a single cap). However, I have a nice REL Sub integrated nicely. I hope to buy and try a pair of your Speakers. I like them.

....and no, I won't be selling my ZDSD/PCM, CSP3 or ZMA.....I however, do need the SE84CKCSelect/UFO.....in rotation!

I remember this from Decfest 2005! Or, even before that, on the Forum I think?! Randy, is a demigod!

I went to the Capital Audiofest and all I got was this T shirt (all I could afford)