Held at the Tokyo International Forum building, the Tokyo International Audio Show (TIAS) is celebrating its 40th birthday in 2023 with more than 200 local and international brands showcasing their high-end audio offerings in rooms spread out over several levels and halls.

Despite the sub-optimal size of the rooms and temporary treatment panels set up to provide the best possible experience, it was an absolute blast trying to visit and listen to as many speakers as possible. The long, snaking queues at the lobby long before the exhibition officially opened were a good sign of just how many Japanese audiophiles there were, and I even caught sight of a little boy who couldn’t have been more than 10 years old looking through the rooms with his dad! 

With so many systems and gear, it’s impossible to talk about them all, but here are some of my top picks from the show.

D&M Holdings - Denon

I rushed to the D&M Holdings room right off the bat as there was a listening session slated for 10am when the doors started opening. What was being showcased, you ask? Well, it was none other than Denon’s new direct-drive DP-3000NE turntable announced earlier in September. Wrapped in wood veneer, it’s visually stunning, but even nicer to listen to during a quick demo. 

Outside of the listening area, there was a display set up to show the evolution of Denon’s turntables over 50 years, with an actual DN-308F, DP-3000 and more present! 

Linn Japan

Celebrating the brand’s 50th anniversary, Linn Japan’s room was set up with the brand’s new flagship 360 EXAKT speakers, claimed to have the lowest distortion levels in Linn’s history. 

Hooked up to the Linn Selekt DSM digital music player, the airiness and spaciousness of the soundstage out of the 360 EXAKT was incredible, even though the room wasn’t the most ideal for listening. One can only imagine how much better it would sound in a more optimal setup. 

Yamaha

One of the more widely known Japanese brands, Yamaha had a nice selection of network receivers on display, from the R-N600A all the way to the new R-N2000A that launched earlier this year. There was even a display unit of the RN-2000A with a clear top so attendees could peek in to see components like the toroidal transformer, the DAC chip and more.

In the listening area, the R-N2000A was paired with the NS-2000A speakers for a beautiful showcase of Adele’s Strangers By Nature, with the emotions in her voice coming across clearly. 

D&M Holdings - Bowers & Wilkins, DALI

This is D&M Holdings’ second room, focusing on the speakers from Bowers & Wilkins, Marantz and DALI, with Classe amplifiers.

I was lucky enough to catch the end of a listening session with the Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4 Signature paired with the Classe Delta Mono, as well as most of a listening session with the new DALI Epikore 11 that was announced at High End Munich 2023, coming in at an eye-watering US$60,000 | €39,998 price tag.

The Epikore 11 was certainly the highlight of the room, with people trickling in and squeezing to get a listen to it. With a DALI recording of a cover of Foreigner’s I Want To Know What Love Is, the speakers brought out the raspiness of the singer’s voice, with crisp guitar strums. We were informed beforehand that we might notice the sounds of a bird in the background, as someone had left the window open accidentally while the recording was underway, and to my surprise, there was indeed a very soft twittering that could be heard midway through the song. 

Time Lord - Chord Electronics, Node Audio, Pathos Acoustics, Chario Loudspeakers

This room is perhaps one of the most barebones rooms at TIAS, but it was the only chance to take a listen to Chord’s Ultima Integrated amp, and the folks at Time Road paired it with both the Node Audio Hylixa speakers as well as the Bowers & Wilkins 804 D4 speakers, using Time Lord’s own brand Architectura’s new K-Jumper cables.

Ark Joyer - Estelon

When I was browsing through the list of notable demos at TIAS, one listing caught my eye with the “First performance in Japan” phrase. How can one give up that chance? I made sure to clear my schedule for when the Estelon Aura would be demoed, making my way to the room 10 minutes in advance to make sure I could snag a seat. 

The room was, as I had come to expect, small and could only fit a maximum of around 13 seats. Good thing I went early. The Aura was gorgeous, with a white thermoformed cabinet housing a 26mm soft-dome tweeter sandwiched between two 130mm midrange drivers, and a 250mm down-firing woofer

Paired with Solution Audio’s 311 power amp and 325 pre-amp, the speakers sounded phenomenal, with exceptional clarity in the vocals and a deep, wide soundstage.

TAD Laboratories

TAD Laboratories recently added to their Evolution lineup with the new TAD Grand Evolution One (TAD-GE1) speaker and the TAD C-1000 preamplifier. Utilising a beryllium diaphragm tweeter and a magnesium alloy diaphragm midrange driver, the TAD-GE1 showcased its excellent clarity and accuracy.

The demo room was small as always, but had treatment panels on both sides of the room, and the GE1 speaker and C1000 preamplifier was hooked up to TAD’s M700S power amp and the TAD-D700 CD player for the demo session.

Noah - Sonus faber, Burmester

This room was definitely one of the bigger ones, with a large space for attendees to sit or stand while listening to the demos. I managed to snag a little time to hear the Sonus faber Amati G5 paired with the Burmester 007+PSU preamplifier and the Burmester 218 power amplifier and it sounded lovely. 

The Sonus faber Stradivari G2, announced earlier this year at High End Munich, was also present, along with a host of other Sonus faber speakers like the Omnia and more in a small area behind the listening section. 

Luxman - Focal

I’ve always been a big fan of Focal’s offerings, so when I saw that the new Vestia N°1 and N°2 were going to be showcased at Luxman’s room, I skipped right over to take a look. Unfortunately, only the Vestia N°2 had a listening session scheduled, and it clashed with my schedule so I could only look at it from close up. 

I did, however, manage to get in a listen to the Focal Sopra N°1 paired with Luxman’s new NT-07 network transport, D-07X digital player and L-507Z integrated amplifier, and it sounded excellent while catching everybody’s eye with that elegant Light Oak colourway.

Zephan / Stella Co Ltd - Marten Audio, Wilson Audio, TechDAS, Riviera Audio Labs

This room was probably the biggest one, or at least, it certainly felt that way. Packed with speakers, turntables, amplifiers and more, this room had the annual salaries of hundreds of people worth of gear all in one place. 

Japanese brand TechDAS’ offering of unique turntables with an air suspension system like the Air Force One Premium were available for viewing, alongside the final pre-production version of the Air Force 10 tonearm that was announced during High End Munich, albeit kept away in a cordoned off area.

The €122,000 Marten Mingus Septet Statement Edition also made an appearance here, and the large room was packed with people waiting to take a listen to these speakers. And the wait was well worth it, with a beautifully revealing, natural sound.

Another mind blowing product on showcase was the stunning Riviera Audio Labs AFM100 Special Edition amplifier, with the side panel removed and replaced with clear acrylic so attendees can see the components inside. 

Wilson Audio’s new Sasha V floorstanding speakers were also present, with what I would guess is the Silver Ice Pearl body colour and Le Mans Blue grille, while looking more elegant and subtle. 

The 2023 Tokyo International Audio Show was an absolute delight, and it’s nice to see events start to take place again after the pandemic. We’ll certainly be looking forward to seeing what new products will be showcased in next year’s show.