The curtain has fallen and the dust has settled after another Bristol Sound & Vision Show

The 2014 Edition was a big year for Wilson Benesch; It was our 15th year in the conservatory or ‘Wilson Benesch Glass House’. Wilson Benesch was founded in 1989, so this years show would be the start of our 25th ‘Silver’ Anniversary celebrations. We had some big plans for marking the event and below is a little insight into what we did this time around.

The Square Five made is official UK Exhibition bow. Set against an all black, sound treated backdrop, the monolithic white gloss Square Fives imposed themselves on the bustling, busy glass house over the course of the weekend. Partnering the Square Fives was the all new Circle 25 Anniversary Turntable.

The Circle 25 Turntable proved to be hugely popular with both men and women alike, its striking white modern forms attracted a lot of camera lenses over the weekend. The vinyl cut of Jimi Hendrix – Band of Gypsys Live (pictured spinning below) was simply mesmerising and was a firm favorite over the three days.

Supporting the Square Five and Circle 25 was a full Audionet system, partnered with an all Clearer Audio Silver Line Optimus loom. The Audionet electronics amounted to the excellent AMP I V2 Power Amplifier, the Pre I G3, PAM G3 Phono Stage, EPS Power, VIP G2 CD and DNC Network Player and DAC. The system allowed for huge versatility within the setup catering for all format preferences. But the result was the same everytime; wide open and coherent soundstaging, the punchy dynamics associated with all WB loudspeakers and an ethereal midrange that sounded spookily life like and present.

In addition to the main presentation, on static display was the Geometry Series; including the Cardinal Flagship Loudspeaker which has informed so much about the Square Five design and the Vertex and Vector. We also wheeled out the A.C.T. Legacy Range, which featured every A.C.T. Loudspeaker Wilson Benesch has ever built, from A.C.T. One to the current A.C.T. C60.

We had some wonderful feedback over the weekend, about products past and present. The Bristol Show is always a real pleasure for all concerned at Wilson Benesch. Its an opportunity to give back a little to all of those out there who have invested in our designs and share our passion for high end audio reproduction.

We’d like to thank Tony Revelle, Jerry Lewin, Phil Patterson and all the team at Audio T who make the Bristol Sound & Vision possible. And finally to all of you who participated in the event and came to see us.

See you next time,

All the Team at Wilson Benesch!

Here’s our slideshow of images taken over the weekend, just click to open the window.

With the Bristol Sound & Vision Show just 1-week away we thought we’d give you the inside line on our plans for the UK’s Premier High End Audio Show.

As many of you have probably already noted, 2014 is a very special year for Wilson Benesch as we celebrate our 25th Anniversary. The celebrations will continue throughout the year. However focusing directly on the UK’s biggest show Wilson Benesch have prepared the new Circle 25 Turntable which will see it’s Global Premier. With the exception of the carbon suspension and the Carbon Fibre shaft of the A.C.T.0.5 Tonearm, the Circle 25 is finished all in White and looks really quite stunning.

Square Five UK Premier

The main event this year though, will be the UK Exhibition Premier of the all new Square Five Loudspeaker. The new flagship of the Square Series II comes into the show hot of the back of two outstanding reviews in HIFI+ and TheAudiobeat.com. The Square Five benefits from Trickle down technology taken from the brand flagship, the Cardinal which will be on display at this years Sound & Vision. As Alan Sircom puts it:

“Genuine seekers of musical truth will look at the Square Five as an honest way of extracting £20,000 or even £25,000 loudspeaker performance without the five-figure price tag… Put simply, it’s the Cardinal for us mortals.” – Alan Sircom, HIFI+, 2014.

Limited Edition Square One Competition
We’ll be showing off a Limited Edition pair of White Gloss Square One’s finished with a special 25th Anniversary Serial Plate. You can post your entry to win the Square One’s in the Wilson Benesch room or on the HIFI+ stand, who are officially sponsoring the give away – you can also post your entry on our 25th-Anniversary webpage.

Audionet
Driving the Wilson Benesch system this year, we have an all Audionet system. Complete with the highly rated new DNC (Digital Network Client) and the AMP I V2 which was used in both Square Five reviews to great effect.

Clearer Audio
All speaker cables will be provided by British cable manufacturer Clearer Audio. Who will be supplying their reference level cabling throughout the system.

Join us in the Conservatory for a special Silver Anniversary celebration.

Date: Friday 21st – Sunday 23rd February 2014
Location: Bristol Marriott City Centre Hotel, Lower Castle Street, Bristol

System Setup
Wilson Benesch Square Five Loudspeakers
Wilson Benesch Circle 25 Turntable

Audionet AMP I V2
Audionet PRE I G2
Audionet DNC
Audionet PAM G3
Audionet VIP

Clearer Audio Silver Line Optimus Interconnects
Clearer Audio Silver Line Optimus Speaker Cables
Clearer Audio Silver Line Optimus Power Cables

To continue the celebration of Wilson Benesch’s 25th Anniversary, this week we launched a competition for a pair of Limited Edition Square One Loudspeakers taken from the Square Series II.

The competition is being run in association with HIFI+ and features of pair of Square One Loudspeakers finished in luxurious White Gloss. The pair will be truely one of a kind as they feature a special Limited Edition 25th Anniversary Serial Plate, finished in brushed aluminium to include the HIFI+ logo.

The Square One is a 2-way, stand mounted loudspeaker. It represents outstanding value for money and is the entry point into the Wilson Benesch High End product range. Featuring the same Tactic Drive Unit technology found in the Square Series II Flagship, the Square Five – the performance of the Square One is nothing short of remarkable.

The Square One Loudspeakers will be displayed at the forthcoming Bristol Sound & Vision Show – February 21st -23rd, alongside the new Square Five’s finished in the same White Gloss and the new Circle 25 Turntable.

To enter the competition simply register your interest at our special 25th Anniversary webpage: www.25th-wilson-benesch.com.

Click the image below for a gallery of images of the Limited Edition Square One Loudspeakers.

In the ascendency in Asia
The groundbreaking Cardinal takes “Prestige Award for Best Floor Standing Loudspeaker” in Super AV Magazine China, 2013.

Marking what has been a vintage year in China and Asia, Wilson Benesch are thrilled to have been presented with this Award from Audio Visual Magazine. The ‘Prestige’ Award highlights the incredible amount of hard work and dedication in the persuit of the perfect sound that Wilson Benesch has embarked upon for its entire 25-year tenure in the High End Audio market. But further it underlines the excellent work and dedication to our brand and its products by our distribution partners, Forthwise. We would like to make a personal thanks to Robert Wan, Kim Siu and our good friends and colleagues in Hong Kong, China and Macau who have worked tirelessly to bring premium quality, British made products such as the Cardinal to the High End fraternity in these markets.

“In what is without doubt one of the most and if not the most important market in the world such an award comes as a wonderful end to an eventful and exciting year” – Christina Milnes, Managing Director.

The Cardinal is a remarkable and very worthy flagship that is setting the agenda in Asia in much the same way that it has in Europe. The first new product to see Cardinal technology is the Square Five which will make its UK debut at the Bristol Sound & Vision Show in the large prestigious venue of the Conservatory. We look forward to celebrating this award and the company’s 25th Anniversary Year with you.

A slideshow of the final show of 2013, the Guangzhou High End 2013 – featuring the Square Five and the Cardinal Loudspeakers.

Wilson Benesch: The Future is Carbon