Skip to content

Premiere of Neodio Origine

I was flattered by PT's invitaition to attend the private premiere of Stephane Even's masterful creation. With wife wandering in Japan, I wrapped up the day much quicker than usual and left everything behind for my colleagues. How could I be late for this long-awaited home trip to PT's musical heaven.

Horowitz in Moscow, PT's favourite, was the curtain raiser.The sheer realism of the concert hall instantly grabbed my attention. I began to realise how technically proficient Horowitz was for his total command and artistry. His Liszt's repertoire was full of colour, intensity, and flair. Considered he was an 86 years old senior, he was superhuman in that memorable event. I was holding my breath, grasping the stylish Origine's remote control, sweating, wondering how Stephane spent the last 12 years to achieve this ambition.

Only one song, I requested a time out and leaned forward to the machine. Over the last 6 months,I kept finding the answer for the enigmatic choice of transport. PT never granted my wish until now, I witnessed the disc changing process on the spot. No more plastic DVD-ROM (my skeptical and persistent complaint)and I suspect it is an Esoteric VRDS transport. From a close distance, the overall workmanship is immaculate, coupled with the unmistaken French aesthetics of copper trim, it is unquestionably a contemporary art piece, bundled with ultra high-end music playback.

The audition resumed with the Bufferfly Lover Violin Concerto. The life-like presence of the recording venue accommodated the orchestration with an abundant level of spatial resolution. It reminded me of my audition of NVS tt at AE1. The violin playing was full of volume, texture, and human. The Origine cleared the customs and delivered to PT's place by 4pm. It was 9:30 at night and I was horrified by how big the improvement will be after breaking-in. There was no trace of harshness usually encountered during run-in.

PT urged me to try my own discs. We spinned PINA the soundtrack and the vocal was definitely out of the flesh. It surpassed the 3D imaging and the balance between musicality & audiophile impact was too good to be true. NR22 was already top-notched in vocal, but Origine is doing everything better, and refined by a wide margin! For Rock fans (seems not too many in AE), I tried Eyes wide open, a 2006 classic album by Snow Patrol, the sheer energy, rawness and complex mixing stole the show. Origine excels again!

The night concluded with a Spanish singing (I guess opera, recommended by Voy to PT). I was stunned by the realism of the female vocal. Now I understand why Neodio emphasizes on its capability in playing varied music genre with exclusive tone and manner. Again, NR22 has lived up to Neo's reputation. But Origine will be in the Hall of Fame of best ever CD players. In truth, Origine blurs the line between CD & Lp.

The 1-hr audition was an eye opener. The Origine is built like tank, idolized like Zidane (the legendary French footballer), and hailed heavenly voice!

Des

Comments

  • .....
  • .......
  • !!!!.......! !!!!!!......!!!!!!!
  • What does this mean? You guys are all speechless?
  • XX!!!00XX!!.........XXXXXXX..........!!!!!!!!!!
  • First time ever don't know how to write a review.
  • The power of "silence" is often understated. I finally understand the "wordless" description prevalent in this thread. Frankly speaking, I rather keep it this way. But in the interest of the wider public who is often blind-sighted by reviews of peers' opinions, I couldn't help and decided to break the ".....".

    As far as digital source is concerned, AE is never short of the ultimate choices. The birth of Zanden 2000p/5000s since 2003 in the realm of 16/44, in my humble opinion, continues to shine assuming they are in the hands of the experienced. Yes, technology leapfrogs every now and then. Resolution of the 16/44 cannot catch up with the up-sampling camp. Then, we were jaw-dropped by the resolution of Mike Stahl's Opus level of electronics. Portraits of symphonies are life-like as many had already experienced at AE. Then last year, the in the magician hands of Javier, the Wadax Pre One, renders an audio reproduction experiences of the "Les Miserable" soundtrack that is second to none at AE under the baton of Cessaro Lizst as the speaker.

    These are all great ingredients. But it depends on how the chef would like to make the best out of it. I can't say exactly which is better than which as this is a function of too many parameters. Occasionally, I auditioned other digital champions in the market such as the latest version of Weiss Medea/Jason and the 4-box dCS Vivaldi in Tokyo. I have to say they are excellent in many regards too but such judgments have to come from my imagination because by no means their reproduction standard is comparable to AE who pays so much more attention to room acoustics, AC noises, ground noises, mechanical noises and now even EMI noises. The essence of music only develops when all noises are stripped. After all, painters create their paintings on canvas. But music composers create their music on "silence".

    Here comes the Frenchman - Stephanie Evens - who designed the NR32 - ORIGINE - one box CD player. I emailed Jlam privately that we should grant him an award, as I finally understand what does all these "...." mean.

    To be continued....

    To be continued......
  • Hello dudes, I have tried hard to come out with a second report. But I do not have the right vocabulary for it. If there is an equivalent of an Oscsar Life time achievement award in audio, it should go to the Frenchman Stephanie Even. People who know me well in the industry in the past 3 decades only know I only critic
  • ....I only criticize to the extreme. I have a very harsh and asshole personality, never conforms to the norm and pick ignts intentionally all the time. My comments are not light. And those who posted with "....." are much earlier recognizers than me. But the actualization needs to be in broader scale. I tried to make sure where credit is due. And I don't want a piece of fine works are polluted by fucking magazine reviewers. Got me? Yes I know I am an asshole.
  • Brother Voy,

    Then you should commend my bravery...

    Even without PT's magical Thor powercord at home, it still stands out with exceptional poise.

    Long live CD!

    Des
  • Desmond

    Your relationship with PT must be "abnormal" because he has been keeping a tight lid on his mouth until VR develops this thread by deciphering the "...". As far as I know, he "selects" the owner of the Origine. This is perhaps the highest level sales model as this operates completely on the level of trust and respect. He is a great guy and extremely knowledgable almost in everything. Sometimes I would like to know his selection criteria. Anyway, VR got me extremely
  • VR, well said about Origine. And that lifetime achievement award analogy is something that I concur after 3 decades of hi end audio life.

    Personally, I like this placement model very much because it saves my time. PT must done thorough researches before picking the cherry. And his successful rate is 100% hitherto. I don't care his selection criteria. It doesn't bother me if I am not introduced to something else. But if he thinks anything that deserves my time, I am usually financially prepared.
  • It is such a regret that Peter Brem could not auditon the Origine before he passed away.
  • An immense work of art crafted by Stephanie Even.
Sign In or Register to comment.