First came Axiom
Colquhoun Audio Laboratories Limited and Axiom Audio, its sole brand at first, were founded in 1980 by Ian Colquhoun. In 1983 the company moved from its place of birth, near Toronto, to Dwight, Ontario, about 150 miles north. This is where Colquhoun (pronounced co-hoon) grew up and where he and his company remain.
I can’t say for sure that the annual High End show in Munich, Germany, is the largest hi-fi show in the world, because I know that there are a couple of very big shows in Asia, but I’ve never been to them. I can confidently say High End is considered the most important hi-fi show in the world. What gives High End that status is that it attracts an enormous number of exhibitors and attendees from around the world.
This feature has been a longer-than-normal time coming. Montreal Audiofest 2023, which Jason Thorpe and I covered for SoundStage! Global, ran from March 24 to 26. We typically run an article highlighting the show’s best products on the first day of the month following the show. But two days after Audiofest, I flew to England to visit Monitor Audio and Vivid Audio. So there wasn’t enough time for me to write a best-of-show report in time for publication on April 1. My backup plan was to write it up in time for May 1. But almost as soon as I got home from the UK, I got sicker than hell. My doctor told me that it was only a bad cold, but the damn thing lasted almost three weeks, and I didn’t want to do much but lie in bed.
I’m not sure if my story is typical of younger audiophiles, but vinyl was my introduction to this hobby. The vinyl resurgence began around 15 years ago. I have a formative memory of getting introduced to the medium as a teenager via a pitiful Crosley suitcase record player and a copy of the Eagles’ Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975). Thankfully, I’ve since moved on to more capable equipment; but if I hadn’t been bitten by the vinyl bug, I might never have become an audiophile.
Vinyl is in fashion these days. Vinyl is what the cool kids listen to. Vinyl is what some people don’t actually listen to but do hang on their walls. Vinyl is what I used to listen to as a teenager—decades before it became fashionable, cool, or decorative. That’s because vinyl was how music was primarily distributed in those days. But when the Compact Disc came along, I happily turned to digital because of vinyl’s drawbacks, four of which I’m going to mention.
Florida International Audio Expo 2023 was held from February 17 to 19 in Tampa, at the Embassy Suites By Hilton Tampa Airport Westshore. That’s the same hotel it’s been held at since the first show, in 2019, when it was named Florida Audio Expo. Except for 2021, when it was canceled due to COVID-19, I’ve been to this event every year—and have been able to witness it improving with each successive year.
It’s natural to assume that a more expensive product is better than a cheaper one, which is why many people use the price tag to determine quality. If it sells for more, it must cost more to make, right? And that alone should make it superior. But with many products—hi-fi and otherwise—that’s simply not the case. Price can be a ruse.
In 2022, I traveled to more countries to visit more hi-fi companies and hi-fi shows than in any previous year. I went to the Netherlands and England twice, three times to Germany, once to Poland, all the way across Canada, and to several places in the United States. In doing so, my purported “standing” with a couple travel-related companies blossomed—I regained Silver Elite status on Air Canada, and achieved Gold Elite status at Marriott for the first time.
We’ve presented our awards for Products of the Year annually for more than 20 years. But new for 2022 is our Outstanding Achievement award, which we created to recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to the hi-fi industry. From now on, at least one Outstanding Achievement award will be presented every year, to coincide with the announcement of the Products of the Year.
About two years ago, I became quite critical of hi-fi shows. We were in the middle of the pandemic, there hadn’t been a hi-fi show in over a year, yet most companies were selling more products than they had sold in years.
