Brett Gideon: The best HiFi I’ve heard in a long time

The best HiFi I’ve heard in a long time? No doubt about it. I know that audio memory is notoriously erratic but I’d be tempted to say that I may well have encountered the best HiFi system I’ve ever heard. A lofty claim indeed, especially since I’ve been fortunate to listen to a number of incredible systems in the last two years but this system is really special.

It’s definitely not the most expensive system around but it makes music like nothing I’ve ever heard this side of a band of musicians.

This is the third time I’ve been out to Jason Parmenter’s place in Muriwai to take in his handmade Fatboy speakers and the third time is the charm because the system is sounding better than ever. The 200Kg+ Fatboys are a genuine labour of love and of hard work. With 16″ TAD drivers replacing the 15″ JBLs that were previously installed and a new passive external crossover taking the place of the active electronic unit, the Fatboys are singing with a new lease on life.

The EMMLabs CDSA SACD player plus the full chain of LAMM amplification including the L2 Reference two box pre amp and M1.2 Reference power amps don’t hurt at all and it all comes together in a system that had me spellbound.

I’ve had a few occasions with small stand mount speakers where I’ve wondered how the designers get them to sound so big but this is the first time I’ve seriously wondered how a set of monster floorstanders can imitate the most delicate of mini monitors. I obviously expect massive bass and skull crushing dynamics from giant speakers like the Fatboys but the levels of detail and subtlety in that room are so improbable that it all seems quite surreal.

The combination of small speaker detail, electrostatic speed plus bass that wouldn’t be out of place at a live gig is a bit of a HiFi holy grail and Jason’s nailed it.

There’s not a single solitary aspect of the sound that I would like to improve or that I could even imagine could be improved. The music is absolutely effortless to the extent that I don’t really need to delve into a dictionary of audiophile terminology to describe it – it simply sounds right. More right and more natural than you could believe.

If I inherited a sizable sum of cash and had a room that could do justice to this type of system, I would have it installed and never think twice about it.

Of course being a HiFi nutcase, I’d have another room for tinkering, reviewing and auditioning other bits of kit but I reckon I know where I’d end up when I just wanted to listen to some music and enjoy myself rather than analyzing tonal balance or low frequency extension etc.