AXPONA 2026

In an elegantly appointed 16th floor suite, American Sound (a Canadian distributor located in Richmond Hill, Ontario) hosted a low-key celebration of AirTight’s 40th anniversary. Naturally, listening to music was the main event, and the big and beautiful Avantgarde Acoustic Trio G3 horn speakers held court in a system with tubed AirTight amplification, including an ATC-7 preamp ($34,975) and a pair of heavy-duty ATM-3211 monoblock amplifiers ($135,000) that powered the speakers’ horns. Bass output came from the speakers’ built-in Twin Subs ($75,000) with a hefty 1000W of power on tap, rather than the outsized old-school Trio bass horns seen in years past.

Ahead of those AirTight components, amplifying the low-output signal of the new Analog Relax EX700 phono cartridge ($8,600) was an AirTight ATH-3e step-up transformer ($4,575) connected to the tweaky AirTight ATE-3011 phono stage ($34,975) that featured a seldom-seen selection of five EQ curves, with options extending beyond the usual RIAA standard curve — RIAA, AES, NAB, FFRR, and flat — for records from Decca, Columbia, and so on. Selections were shown via colorful lights on the front panel that added some style to their designs. (For the digitally inclined amongst us, I will also note that digital sources were from Wadax.)

An SME 60 turntable, a heavy-hitter (in the best senses) in a striking royal blue finish with an SME tonearm, served as the topline analog source. Speaking of finishes, an assortment of various horn color options was on display in a small case.

On this system, I got to spin a couple of tracks from my copy of Delvon LaMarr Organ Trio’s 2021 I Told You So LP on Colemine. On “Aces” (Side 2, Track 1), for instance, full-throated strains of LaMarr’s Hammond B3 organ filled the room. The immediacy of the horns’ playback seemed to emphasize, or at least draw attention to, the nimbleness of LaMarr’s rapid-firing fingers on the keys. Ditto for Jimmy James dishing out a dirty-yet-clean-sounding guitar solo in between keeping the groove locked in funky rhythms with drummer Grant Schroff.

Unbridled leading-edge transient attacks were also striking on a very different track — New Order’s “Blue Monday” — the English synth-pop band’s standalone hit March 1983 single that was later added to their May 1983 Factory LP Power, Corruption & Lies — which was played a bit later. The synthesized kickdrum beats and syncopated percussion breaks pulsed in time, as a counterpoint to Peter Hook’s Spaghetti Western-inspired bass grooves. Percussion — real and sequenced — arrived with so much snap that I was tempted to start dancing.

In my time listening to this system, the speakers avoided any apparent hints of coloration akin to cupping one’s hands and vocalizing — a characteristic occasionally heard in certain types of old-school horns. (Thankfully, this is rare in modern horns.)

The main room’s system was positioned favoring the width of the room over depth, a configuration that wouldn’t work well for many other speakers. Their placement in relation to where listeners sat — on an oversized couch, for example — made for a more proximally intimate, homelike experience compared to many of the exhibit rooms.

I also spied a Loricraft PRC4i record cleaning machine (RCM) in an elegant wood-veneer finish displayed near that main system.

AirTight components are hand-built in greater Osaka, Japan, with individually selected, tested, and matched tubes, point-to-point wiring, and other old-school techniques. A framed casual photo — one I that took at a High End Munich show several years ago — of the late Atsushi Miura, founding patriarch of AirTight makers A&M Ltd. and the AirTight brand of amplification and phono cartridges, was also on display.

To further pay homage to the Japanese maker, a suite of additional AirTight components were passively displayed, along with other equipment shown on static display — plus a second active system — in the adjoining rooms. Angie Lisi and her American Sound team are always gracious hosts who love music, adding to these rooms’ seemingly endless high-end delights.

Go here for Julie Mullins’ audition of a system featuring a Well Tempered Lab Versalex turntable, Dynavector P75 Mk4.1 MM/MC phono stage, and Dynavector 20X-2A MC cartridge. This story first posted on April 30, 2026.

Go here for Julie Mullins’ report on SOTA’s many cool offerings at AXPONA 2026, including their flagship Onyx turntable; Quasar, Comet, Escape, and Moonbeam turntables; Pyxi phono stage; and more. This story first posted on April 28, 2026.

Go here for Ken Micallef’s video interview with Sierra Sound co-founder Michael Fajen and Aesthetix sales and marketing specialist Brent Hefley about the gear shown in the Sierra Sound room, which including the AMG Viella turntable with 12JT Turbo tonearm, Sorane SA-1.2 tonearm, and Aesthetix Rhea Signature phono stage — plus, we get an exclusive visit to “The Tonearm Garden”; this story first posted on April 27, 2026.

Go here for Julie Mullins’ report on a pair of American Audio & Video demo rooms at AXPONA 2026, with one of their systems featuring a Dual CS 529 turntable and Violectric PPA-V790 phono preamp, and the other featuring a Goldring GR3 turntable; this story first posted on April 23, 2026.

Go here for Julie Mullins’ report on a couple of Monarch Systems demo setups that included an SME Model 8 turntable and Loricraft Audio PRC6i professional record cleaning machine; this story first posted on April 20, 2026.

Go here for Julie Mullins’ report on the analog gear she encountered in some exhibit rooms that were put together in tandem by Technics and Nagaoka; this story first posted on April 15, 2026.

Go here for AP editor Mike Mettler’s report on an Acoustic Sounds listening session that deployed a Döhmann Helix One Mk III turntable, in addition to other high-end gear from Wilson Benesch, Supatrac, DS Audio, Audio Research, and Wilson Audio; this story first posted on April 14, 2026

Also go here for our sister site Stereophile‘s in-depth AXPONA 2026 coverage, which often includes video interviews with key manufacturer reps, product engineers, and equipment designers who were at the show.