HiEnd Asia 2025 - Audio Exotics' First Public Showcase in Singapore
This year’s HiEnd Asia Audio Show marked a special milestone for Audio Exotics, our first-ever public showcase in Singapore.
For the last few years, our Singapore listening experience have been private, intimate, and deeply personal, shared only with clients who seek truth in sound. Bringing that world into a public space for the first time was both a challenge and a revelation.
We presented two distinct systems, each reflecting a different philosophy of musical reproduction.
The Aether System, the pursuit of precision through state-of-the-art solid-state electronics, and
The Masterpiece System, the art of purity through the timeless beauty of tubes.
Together, they represented two paths toward the same destination : the unfiltered essence of music.
Given that our team had just one day to move in, set up, and tune, the results exceeded all expectations. Through meticulous listening, careful grounding, and micro-adjustments honed over years of experience, both systems came alive with the unmistakable flow, coherence, and emotional depth that define the Audio Exotics standard.
For this show, we made a deliberate choice to mix and match components across different price ranges, pairing the modest with the extraordinary. Our goal was to demonstrate that great sound does not depend on cost or prestige, but on harmony, synergy, and tuning. When every element complements the next, even an “entry-level” component can sing with breathtaking musicality.
We wanted listeners to experience what we have always known: that true high-end performance is not about how much you spend, but how deeply you listen.
Throughout the show, we received widespread recognition, with many visitors and reviewers calling ours the best sound of the show. But accolades were never our intent. We simply followed what we’ve always believed; doing what feels right, the Audio Exotics way.
The Aether System - The Pursuit of Precision
A celebration of control, silence, and architectural purity.
Philosophy
The Aether System embodies the art of control, clarity, and composure. Every element is tuned to serve one purpose - to reproduce music with absolute precision, nothing added and nothing taken away.
It is solid-state design pushed to its artistic limit, where precision becomes poetry.
Sound
The sound is fast, clean, and effortlessly detailed. Music emerges from a jet-black background with pinpoint focus and vast space between notes.
Every transient feels intentional, every silence meaningful.
It’s a system that reveals the full architecture of the recording — precise, powerful, and profoundly musical.
System Overview
Digital Front End
- Pink Faun Ultra 2.16 Streamer (Ikigai KANGAI feet underneath) from the Netherlands, handcrafted for digital purity, delivering fluid, analog-like playback.
- Synästec Origo II SACD Player from Germany, a reference-grade player and DAC that reveals microdetail and tonal refinement.
- APL WR-DAC from Bulgaria, an entry-level APL DAC used on Days 2 and 3, offering lifelike timbre and natural flow.
Analogue Front End
- Vertere SG1 Turntable with Ruby One Cartridge from the UK, designed by Touraj Moghaddam, combining mechanical precision with musical flow.
- Vertere Calon Phono Preamplifier from the UK, a reference phono stage offering exceptional phase accuracy and inner detail.
Amplification
JMF PRS 1.5 and HQS 6002 from France, known for tonal neutrality and composure.
- Stellavox IDEM Mono Amplifiers from Switzerland, minimalist monoblocks delivering speed, scale, and effortless dynamics.
Speakers
- Göbel Divin Marquis and Sovereign Subwoofers from Germany, loudspeakers combining vast soundstage projection with precise imaging.
- Arya Audio AirBlade Signature 180 degree dispersion Tweeters from England, wide-dispersion transducers creating openness and dimensionality.
Acoustics and Noise Mitigation
- Acoustic Grove System from Japan, handcrafted diffusors for warmth and realism.
- Reiki Audio Optical Bridge and Jundo Ethernet Cables from UK, isolating digital noise for complete network silence.
- Wellfloat Babel Genesis/Double Platforms and Arya Audio Revopods from Japan and England, controlling vibration and stabilizing timing.
- Tripoint Troy Signature NG Ground Filtration and Emperor Signal Filter from the USA, removing electrical ground noises for deeper harmonic structure.
- Pranawire Interceptors from the USA, dissipating EMI interference and enhancing tonal richness.
- Falkenohr 516SL from Austria, a resonance-controlled rack ensuring mechanical neutrality.
- JMF PCD 302 Mains Filter from France, filtering AC noises without restricting dynamics.
- Subbase Audio Vividus Zwo to eliminate RF noises
Cabling
Every signal path is entrusted to Esprit Audio from France, Ikigai from the Netherlands, Dalby Audio from the UK, Sternklang from Japan, Schelt from Hungary and Vertere from the UK, curated for harmony, coherence, and silence.
Sound
The sound is warm, fluid, and organic. Voices bloom with presence, instruments resonate with natural tone, and silence feels alive with energy.
It’s an experience that transcends measurement, a pure connection between artist and listener.
System Overview
Digital Front End
- APL NSP-GR Streamer from Bulgaria delivers digital playback with natural timing and emotional realism.
- APL GR DAC (Tube DAC) combines tube output stages with digital precision for lifelike texture.
- Engström MPhono from Sweden, a tube phono preamp known for tonal weight and coherence.
Amplification - Engström Monica and Lars Amplifiers from Sweden form the system’s beating heart.
- The Monica preamp delivers liquidity and natural flow, while the Lars monoblocks, regarded among the most beautiful tube amplifiers in the world, marry visual elegance with musical depth.
- Riviera Labs APL-1 Preamplifier from Italy, used on Days 2 and 3, a Class A tube preamp that adds Italian warmth and expressive intimacy.
Speakers
- Cessaro Horn Acoustics Wagner and Opus One from Germany, horn speakers that combine immediacy with refinement, projecting music with scale and intimacy.
- Arya Audio AirBlade Tweeters from England, a wide-dispersion design adding air, openness, and holographic realism.
Acoustics and Control- Tripoint NG and Emperor Grounding from the USA eliminate electrical noise, revealing hidden harmonic detail.
- Pranawire Interceptors from the USA reduce high-frequency interference, deepening tonal structure.
- Ediscreation FiberBox and Silent Switch from Hong Kong clean and reclock digital data paths for purity.
- Wellfloat Platforms and Arya Revopods from Japan and England isolate vibration for focus and coherence.
- Falkenohr 516S from Austria provides aerospace-grade stability and tonal neutrality.
- JMF PCD 302 Mains Filter from France stabilizes and purifies the electrical foundation.
Cabling
Every signal path is entrusted to Esprit Audio from France, Ikigai from the Netherlands, Dalby Audio from the UK, Sternklang from Japan, Schelt from Hungary and Vertere from the UK, curated for harmony, coherence, and silence.
The Masterpiece Experience
Masterpiece is the sound of music as emotion, where tone, texture, and humanity converge.
It reminds us that the greatest systems are not built for demonstration; they are built for connection.
The HiEnd Asia 2025 Show was never about competition. It was about expression.
Each system told a different story.
Aether represented precision rendered with control and grace.
Masterpiece embodied emotion brought to life with warmth and humanity.
By deliberately mixing components across price points, pairing the humble with the exceptional, we wanted to make a simple but powerful point: that true high-end sound is not defined by cost, but by synergy, intent, and understanding.Both systems proved that great sound is born from conviction, not extravagance.
For those who stepped into our rooms, we hope they experienced what we have always stood for; that rare moment when the system disappears, and only the music remains.
Mohan Veloo - Audio Exotics Singapore