Author Archives: David Bergmann

From 9th to 12th May, PSI Audio will exhibit at HIGH END 2024 in Munich. The main focus will be on the innovative AVAA C214 active bass trap, which will be presented in a dedicated listening room as well as in the form of a demo box at booth R09 in hall 3. 

Swiss precision audio in Munich

The HIGH END show in Munich has long been established as one of the most important shows for audiophile technology in the world. PSI Audio will be at the 2024 show, mainly to present the recently released AVAA C214 active bass trap. This modified version of the renowned AVAA C20, which has revolutionized room acoustics for years, is specifically tailored to the requirements of home audio enthusiasts. Making its debut at the show is the new white finish for the AVAA C214, allowing it to seamlessly fit into even more environments. In addition to the AVAA, PSI Audio also showcases the high-end speakers Héritage3 at HIGH END 2024.

Cleaning up the acoustics with AVAA C214

With the AVAA system, PSI Audio has tackled the most challenging part of acoustics: room modes. The Active Velocity Acoustic Absorber imposes a very low acoustic impedance, practically acting like a hole in the wall, equivalent to 45 times the size of the device. Resonant frequencies are not reflected back into the room, but instead are eliminated, creating a clearer, more precise sonic image not just at the listening position, but in the entire room, with tighter bass and a perfect sound stage. The AVAA C214 features a DSP chip that allows adjustments via smartphone app and future updates for maximum convenience at home. Working at a much higher efficiency compared to traditional porous absorbers, the PSI Audio AVAA C214 requires much less volume for a similar effect. For example, even a perfect porous absorber would need to be 2 metres thick to be effective at 40 Hz, and twice that for 20 Hz, while the AVAA goes down to 15 Hz at only 25 cm diameter. Add to that the fact that the AVAA C214 can easily be moved to a different room, or a different house altogether, and requires no tuning or calibration, and it becomes clear what a powerful, yet compact solution it is.

Exquisite listening pleasure with Héritage3

At HIGH END 2024, PSI Audio also features its first floor-standing speakers specifically designed for home audio users: Héritage3. The three-way system is based on the studio speakers that are popular around the world for their untouchable accuracy, reproducing sound just as it was committed to the recording. Professionals appreciate the pure honesty of the all-analogue PSI Audio speakers, as do audiophiles who want to hear only what the artists intended – the real thing. The Héritage3 delivers this hallmark Swiss precision sound and dresses it in a unique and classy ported enclosure.

Experience PSI Audio at HIGH END 2024

HIGH END 2024 takes place from 9th to 12th May 2024 at the MOC in Munich, Germany. PSI Audio, the AVAA C214 and the Héritage3 can be found in hall 3 at booth R09. The open booth will feature the AVAA in a cleverly designed demo box to showcase its potential, while the listening room right behind it will present the Héritage3 playing to a room optimized with five AVAA C214. On Friday 10th, PSI Audio will host a get-together right after the show at 6 pm at the booth, to which all visitors are cordially invited.

Ed Thorne is serious about sound, which his subscribers on YouTube appreciate. Not willing to compromise on his monitoring system, the London-based music producer tested a number of popular studio speakers and eventually picked his favourites: PSI Audio A23-M. 

Ed Thorne: drummer, producer, YouTuber

For Ed Thorne, music really was his first love – more specifically, the drums. Starting to play at 11 years old, he broke into the professional music scene in London in his early twenties, regularly playing five gigs per week. He soon found himself taking care of the tech the bands needed, and consequently started his own full-time sound company. Over time, he gravitated more towards studio work, and eventually focussed on recording and mixing music. “And that is where YouTube came in,” Ed Thorne explains. “I wanted to document the process of writing, recording and producing an album, just to give people an idea of exactly what is involved in production.” Success was not immediate, as Thorne remembers: “I did a couple of videos documenting the first song that I fully recorded, engineered and mixed myself. No one cared. So I pivoted and did some educational content, like how EQs worked. Things I knew from my live days. Again, no one cared.” Then came the pandemic, and things changed. “I made a video comparing audio interfaces, and just so happened to release them in April 2020 when everyone was looking for content like that. The video took off and somewhat defined the YouTube channel.” 

Extensive shoot-outs to find the perfect speakers

Like with his content, Ed Thorne also tried different monitoring systems. “It was an interesting journey because I really had to figure out what was going to work for me,” he says. His studio room in Western London is quite small, which always poses a challenge in terms of acoustics. So he tried very different speakers: the popular ones, the obvious ones, some more exotic ones. After time-consuming and elaborate listening tests, Ed Thorne had collected a lot more experience with speakers. And he had formed an opinion that governed his choice – the Swiss-precision three-way speakers A23-M by PSI Audio.

Analogue precision and natural depth

One major reason for Ed Thorne to pick PSI Audio over all other brands is the all-analogue approach. “I tried a lot of speakers,” he explains, “and some were really good, but they used DSPs and I felt like I could hear when the DSP was interfering and correcting. Almost as if they were trying to trick my ears. With PSI Audio, I immediately recognized that they are 100 percent analogue. They sound so natural. They’re the most neutral, transparent speakers I could find.” When asked to elaborate on the analogue sound, Thorne replies: “The most spacious top and the deepest depth. It’s like with preamps. Preamp modelling can sound quite good, but it is relatively flat, it lacks depth and richness. There is a three-dimensionality with analogue gear. That was something I heard with the PSI Audio speakers – others could come close, but something just doesn’t feel right with them. It does with PSI Audio.” 

PSI Audio takes the guesswork out of mixing

Professionals need to be able to rely on the sound image they are presented by their speaker systems, and Ed Thorne stresses this fact with an anecdote. “I like running my guitars through a Wes Audio Rhea for its THD circuit. It creates some tube harmonics and saturation with the THD on medium at one percent and on high at 2.5 percent. On my previous speakers, I would notice the 2.5 percent when I would switch it on and off. On the PSI Audio speakers, even at only one percent, I was like: Oh! We will have to be careful with that!” Before, Thorne needed to double-check his mixes on different systems, even on his phone. With his PSI Audio A23-M, he always gets an accurate representation of the audio he is working on. “Things like overcompression are glaringly obvious,” he says. “The PSI Audio speakers are a joy to work on.”

Products and more information

Ed Thorne uses PSI Audio A23-M all-analogue three-way studio monitors. He can be found online at www.edthorne.com. 

PSI Audio introduces the new white AVAA C214 at HIGH END 2024. The new version retains all the acoustic qualities of the C214, but can be easier to integrate visually, depending on the room design. The PSI Audio booth R09 in hall 3 of the MOC Munich will feature a listening room equipped with AVAA C214 and Héritage3 high-end speakers for visitors to experience the effect of the AVAA. There will also be a special demo box to illustrate its principle outside the listening room.

Acoustic black hole – now in white!

PSI Audio introduced the AVAA C214 last year, expanding the AVAA family with a device that takes the principle established by the original AVAA C20 and adapts it to cater specifically to home audio users. Initially, the C214 was only available in black. At HIGH END, however, PSI Audio introduces the new white version that can visually integrate even better into accordingly designed listening spaces. The functionality remains unaltered.

No more room modes: the AVAA principle

The PSI Audio AVAA C214 tackles the biggest challenge in acoustic room treatment: low-frequency room modes. These resonant frequencies are different for every room and require individual treatment in traditional acoustics. The AVAA system eliminates the problem by eliminating the resonances. Replacing massive porous absorbers up to 45 times its size, the AVAA C214 automatically detects low-frequency waves between 15 and 150 Hz and acts like a hole in the wall, effectively removing those waves from the room. The result is a clearer, more transparent and authentic low end in the entire room, as AVAA only affects the room modes without changing anything about the direct sound from the source.

Experience AVAA C214 at HIGH END 2024

Visitors of HIGH END 2024 can find PSI Audio at booth R09 in hall 3 and experience the incredible efficiency of the AVAA C214 for themselves. The booth will feature its own, AVAA optimized listening room, with the company’s Héritage3 high-end speakers acting as the source. Outside the listening room there will be a special box to demonstrate the active bass trap. There will also be a get-together on Friday 10th at 6 pm, right after the show ends.