Premiere Design

As I've written many times, the Ultimate Gear blog is intended to cover A/V products that embody extreme performance, design, and/or price. The 2010 ES line of A/V receivers from Sony—which were unveiled last week at a press event in Beverly Hills, California—might not fit any of these criteria, but they include so many unique and highly useful features that I decided I could legitimately cover them here.

Omnidirectional speakers are nothing new, though there are many variations. For example, Italian maker Bolzano Villetri has taken an interesting approach with its Campanile series, which includes floorstanders, a center-channel speaker, and a subwoofer to outfit a complete home theater.

It seems I spoke too soon. Last week, I profiled the <A href="http://blog.ultimateavmag.com/ultimate-gear/audio_note_gaku-on_monoblock... Note Gaku-On monoblock</A>, calling it the most expensive power amp I know of on a per-watt basis, which was a true statement at the time. But as soon as I posted that profile, Cornelia Davis of <A href="http://www.audiofederation.com">Audio Federation</A> informed me of another tube-based monoblock that, watt for watt, costs even more&#151;the ML3 Signature from Brooklyn-based <A href="http://www.lammindustries.com">Lamm Industries</A>.

I'm constantly amazed at the number and variety of super-high-end speakers out there. Among the many manufacturers I'd never heard of before is Marten, a Swedish maker whose flagship is the magnificent Coltrane Supreme.

I'm constantly amazed at the number and variety of super-high-end speakers out there. Among the many manufacturers I'd never heard of before is <A href="http://www.marten.se">Marten</A>, a Swedish maker whose flagship is the magnificent Coltrane Supreme.

Of all the various types of audio and video products, speakers seem to offer the most potential for design variation. Case in point&#151;the Magic Flute from Swedish maker <A href="http://www.swspeakers.com">SWSpeakers</A>.

Most CD players and transports are relatively featureless, boring rectangular boxes, but not the Kalista from French boutique maker <A href="http://www.metronome-technologie.com">Metronome Technologie</A>. Distributed in the US by <A href="http://tmhaudio.com">TMH Audio</A>, the Kalista looks more like a modern sculpture, though it offers plenty of substance in addition to some serious style.