Best Of
Interview with The Edge Singapore and Mohan
Audio Exotics Singapore's Mohan Veloo discusses the business of sound
Full text on The Edge's website can be found here
If there’s one thing to be said about Mohan Veloo, it’s that he sure has an affinity for sound.
The owner and principal of audio company Audio Exotics’ first overseas outpost grew up in a family of musicians; his father was a classically trained Indian violinist, and his brother, Sanny, is a rock musician based in Singapore and Australia.
Veloo honed his ear working on music events in San Francisco, California. Sometime after returning to Singapore, he met Audio Exotics founder Chris Leung and decided to bring the Hong Kong-based brand to the little red dot.
That was before the Covid-19 pandemic hit. “I actually rented this place before Covid,” says Veloo of the showroom in Bukit Merah, adding that it remained closed for over two years. “Chris and I are kind of fussy,” he quips, and they wanted to ensure everything was exactly in order.
“Renovation was one aspect of it,” he says, “but getting all the equipment in was another.” He worked with an acoustic engineer to get everything designed and tuned just right. “Everything here has a purpose, even the artwork,” he says.
The official launch took place at last in October 2023, but all that time perfecting things has paid off. Despite its setting in an industrial building, the showroom is far from grungy or rough around the edges; it’s a tastefully done space with a warm, homey atmosphere.
Soon after stepping in, Veloo brings us through a concealed door into what we can best describe as a speakeasy of sound. In this hidden room, he invites us to sit and — just after we’ve had time to introduce ourselves in full — offers to play us a song.
We oblige, though we’re admittedly still taking in the dizzying array of amplifiers and speakers before us. (“For my clientele, it’s kind of normal,” he says with a chuckle.)
Veloo puts on a live recording of Trouble’s What You’re In by Fink, then invites us to close our eyes and listen. After this, he puts on Jacintha Abisheganaden’s 1999 cover of Moon River, the Grammy-winning track originally sung by Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
What takes us most by surprise is the range of sounds we’re faced with. From the soft parting of lips at the start of a phrase to powerfully plucked guitar chords in between verses, we hear it all. It feels like a Lucy moment, except we’re using the full potential of our ears instead of our brains.
“It’s the silence,” says Leung, who’s joining us at the showroom via a video call. Capturing the moments of silence in a soundscape, he continues, is like “stepping into a time machine” to join the musicians at the very place the recording was made.
Filling a gap, enriching the scene
Founded by Leung — a former chief China economist at DBS — in 2009, Audio Exotics creates high-end audio setups that are customised for each client.
“There are a lot of high-net-worth people in Singapore, and they’re spending a lot of money on houses, cars, watches,” Veloo observes. What many aren’t spending on, however, is their audio systems. “You are satisfying your sight, your taste, everything — but what about sound?”
Audio Exotics is seeking to fill that gap. “Some people may think this is a bit over the top,” says Veloo of the equipment in the showroom. But others may be looking for a centrepiece to anchor their homes without having to get a fancy sculpture or attention-grabbing painting.
In this sense, audio equipment can play a dual role in both form and function. “It’s not only pretty; it sounds amazing, too,” says Veloo of the cherry red Gabriel Mk3 turntable by DaVinciAudio, which sits in the centre of the “speakeasy” setup.
Veloo has also been exploring new ways to bring the music community in Singapore together. For instance, he holds listening parties with local musicians to test their new vinyl records. He also runs intimate sessions in the showroom with, among others, student performers from the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music at the National University of Singapore.
“The holy grail for audio is to sound like the actual instrument,” says Veloo. Having live performances in the space helps provide a better understanding of how equipment can be fine-tuned to replicate the natural sound.
More than the sum of its parts
Many of the brands that Audio Exotics works with are “artisanal kinds of folks who have a huge passion for the equipment and sound”, adds Veloo. “We work with a lot of these manufacturers … We’ve been working with a lot of them over the last 20 years or so.”
He points to a pair of Robert Koda amplifiers and briefly shares the story of Japan-based Robert Koch, the man behind the company. “He makes only five pairs a year, and there’s a waiting list of five years.” Other brands carried by Audio Exotics include Swedish label Engström and DaVinciAudio from Switzerland.
Though Audio Exotics has a broad catalogue, Veloo notes that the way in which everything is set up plays a much more critical role in a good audio system. Even with the best equipment, he says, having a poor setup can often lead to bad sound quality. “You need to know how to put it all together and make the right experience.”
Audio Exotics, therefore, takes a full-suite approach to helping each client create the acoustic environment they’re looking for. Veloo says this comes down to everything from the power supply to the positioning of individual pieces of furniture.
“We spend almost a day in the customer’s space just tuning,” he says. “We want that perfect sound … We want to make it a spiritual experience.”
Just as important, says Veloo, is the journey of helping each client create their perfect setup. “Once in a while, we’ll get [customers] who come in and say ‘yeah, I want everything’ … But if you buy everything, it’s not fun,” he says. “The fire is in the chase.”
Re: Wellfloat Delta for Pianos
Video before Installation
Video after installation
Improved clarity, dynamic range, resonance, notes can sustain longer! A more beautiful sound overall!! It felt like a new piano!
Wellfloat Delta for Pianos
1) Extenstions in the upper notes.
2) Speed of attack on the notes
3) All around air-iness of the sound
4) Richer and longer sustaining notes
We have only ever heard the Deltas installed audio equipment. It works amazing well on musical instruments too! This is testament to the craftmanship and engineering prowess from the Wellfloat team!
Congratulations!
Video before installation of Wellfloat Deltas
Video AFTER installation of Wellfloat Deltas
AESG - Tonality, Transparency and Superb Detail!
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Re: Audio Exotics presents The Delta Series
CLYNELISH 1990 OVER 30 165 Bottles
If the 25-year-old Clynelish aged in sherry casks from the 2022 creation catalog made many round trips between Brora and Andalusia, this version distilled in 1990 dazzlingly reflects the “coastal” style typical of single malts from North of Scotland. Both rural and maritime, she tells the story of a region she knows by heart. The only aged – lees version in bourbon barrels of this sherry-oriented Artist #12 range, it imposes itself with remarkable naturalness. Defying the onslaught of time, it restores with even more force the herbaceous, waxy, saline and medicinal character that has made the reputation of this mythical single malt.
TASTING NOTES
Colour: Deep gold.
Nose: Rich, heady. On the first nose, scents of rooty and empyreumatic peat (sleet, soot) rub shoulders with vanilla, lemony and medicinal notes (Velpeau band, poultice) of very pure expression. Allowed to breathe, the aromatic palette becomes increasingly mineral (schist, charcoal, basalt), saline and at the same time creamy (barley porridge, rice cake). Then, essential oils (savory, rosemary, sage) and spices (star anise, clove, nutmeg) intermingle with fresh fruit (Williams pear, Golden apple).
Palate: Clean, full of vitality. Finely liquoricey (stick) and oily (green olive), the attack on the palate develops into candied (lemon, pineapple, pear) and herbaceous (green barley, cut hay, alfalfa) flavors. On the mid-palate, notes of barley sugar and anise deeply permeate the taste buds. The finish is minty, very slightly earthy and rooty (gentian, genepi).
Finish: Long, dense. Anchored in a soil full of mineral salts, the start of the finish is supported by a remarkable chocolate and malty bitterness. In the aftertaste, the pungent flavors of a burning cigar float in an atmosphere increasingly saturated with intense smoke and eucalyptus notes. The retro-nasal olfaction is malty, peaty (dry peat), medicinal (balm), vanilla and lemony. The empty glass leads us right into the middle of a spray-swept peat field.
MUSIC PAIRING
This whiskey was matched with the following tracks
1) Good Morning School Girl - Muddy Waters > Davinci Gabriel / Miyabi Fuuga / Zanden 1200 Signature
2) Trouble's what you are (Live) - Fink > Wadax Reference Server and DAC
3) Keith Don't Go - Nils Lofgren > Vertere SG1 / Thales Voro / Engstrom Mphono
LEDAIG 2005 OVER 15 - 665 Bottles
The history of the Tobermory distillery, which was renamed Ledaig between 1972 and 1975, is interspersed with periods of closure and reopenings. Since 1993, it has produced two single malts, one unpeated, named Tobermory, and the other peated and named Ledaig (30-40 ppm). Alternately very peaty, heady, rancio, exotic, chocolatey, saline, empyreumatic and spicy, this
version brilliantly summarises the unique and enchanting style that is the trademark of the finest Ledaigs.
TASTING NOTES
Colour:
orangey copper.
Nose: rich, concentrated. The particularly intense and expressive first nose reveals a fairly dry, rooty and yet very elegant and compact peat. Next, notes of brandied cherries and apricot highlight the quality of the very well-integrated sherry cask maturation. Allowed to breathe, the aroma palette becomes increasingly heady (lily, freesia), exotic (mango, persimmon) and superbly chocolatey. The overall effect is one of radiant harmony.
Palate: lively, tempestuous. The striking attack is an accurate summary of the nose. Very quickly, however, an even more chocolatey and above all more saline peat takes over. On the mid-palate, it is dressed in medicinal (arnica), camphoric, animal (bacon) and empyreumatic (sandalwood, chimney fire) tones. The end of the palate allows a glimpse of a fruity (raspberry) and lemony spirit.
Finish: long, deep. Characterized by notes of slightly damp earth, the start of the finish is subtly floral (poppy, cornflower, violet). The peat has quietened down, becoming more liquorice and delicately peppery. With its flavours of curry and ylang ylang, the end of the finish is undeniably oriental. On the retro-nasal olfaction, once again very present peat takes over the centre of the palate, allowing the deliciously sweet juice of a ripe apricot to flow through. The empty glass is nobly spicy (cardamom, saffron, ginger)MUSIC
MUSIC PAIRING
This whiskey was
matched with the following tracks which were played on the WADAX Reference
Server / DAC
1) The Man Machine (live) - Kraftwerk
2) Something About Us - Daft Punk
3) Seven Days in Sunny June - Jamiroquai
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Re: Audio Exotics Singapore Grand Opening - Sat 21 and Sun 22 October 11am to 5pm
Re: Audio Exotics Singapore Grand Opening - Sat 21 and Sun 22 October 11am to 5pm
Grand Opening of AE Singapore
Mohan and his crew had been conquering challenges one after another in the past 12 months. First, a channel imbalance of 6db was identified in the mid range between left/right channel. Second, the measured output between the 2 x active 項羽 subwoofer despite the same volume reading was different. Third, the integration of Arya Air Blade (located at the back of the main speakers) was obstructed by impedance mismatch with the main speakers stressing the amplifier.
Numerous late nights were spared with respect to a demanding daytime job in the past twelve months. It was not until these anomalies were resolved before they could seriously move on to the next stage. These are structural problems no expensive cables and accessories could resolve. Given the titanic scale of the Cessaro Carmen Horn system, the challenges are tremendously physical involving change of new compression drivers alongside physical relocation of subwoofers many times.
What I admired Mohan the most is that he did not put the cart in front of the horse. He had chosen to rectify structural ills before meticulous selection of cables at the right place alongside instruments to annihilate various kinds of noises. They even resorted to the use of an external analog crossover to replace the digital crossover of the subwoofer due to circumstances repeatedly called for such a solution.
At AE, we don’t use Uber items for the sake of exemplifying the price tag. We focus on harnessing intrinsic value from the system as immensely as possible. Value in the form of musicality must far exceed price. That requires skills, knowledge, patience, education and communications. Think of us as a chef preparing an artisanal dish. We need good ingredients but not all have to be pricey. It is the integration that matters.
This system consists of two pairs of active subwoofers and a pair of 180 degree augmentation tweeter. Blending them together as if they don’t physically exist is next to impossible, notwithstanding numerous acoustic issues consequentially resolved by Acoustic Grove System. Mohan did it with flying colour. Even the analog part is fabulously presented with conviction.
Due to the intelligent application of external analog crossover bypassing digital crossover in the subwoofer, this is probably the most transparent system I have ever experienced confirmed (bass is particularly phenomenal) by acoustic measurements and listening.
I am proud of Mohan carrying the AE badge in South East Asia.
Chris Leung
Re: Audio Exotics Singapore Grand Opening - Sat 21 and Sun 22 October 11am to 5pm
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Re: Audio Exotics Singapore Grand Opening - Sat 21 and Sun 22 October 11am to 5pm
I'll be keeping a running commentary for the big day. Its been a YEAR since our soft opening and we have had quite a few folks stop by. And each time we learn and tweak. The sound from when I first put the system together to now is COMPLETELY different.
A point to note, on the complication of the task. We had to integrate:
1) The Cessaro Carmens - with its Active Bass
2) Cessaro Xiang Su Subwoofers
3) Arya Airblades
We tried many configurations and have settled on the one you see here.
1) The Subs were always outside and we felt the sound has more solidity when placed on the Inside
2) Arya Airblades are now pointing back towards to diffusors and they sound a lot better and gives the sound the atmosphere it needs
3) While we have both the Troy Elite and Troy NG connected along with the JMFs, the icing on the cake was the Subbase Vividus. That brought it all home and its introduction shocked every single audiophile that has visited us since. It is a MUST have for anyone who is serious about sound
4) Acoustic Groves focused the sound and
5) We also introduced an external crossover that helped with the balance.
6) Adrian Lo from Soundzipper has his measuring equipment now permanently at AE Singapore, and we measure every change we make and every tweak we introduce. All scientific and he is a magician with his acoustic science knowledge!
What you have now is something that is jaw dropping and spine tingling! I do hope that the Singapore crowd that comes here next weeked will feel the same!
We are all in for a treat!!
Mohan aka Katongkid
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