Well Meet Again High Quality Audio

FINEST HI-END AUDIO EXPERIENCE IN TORONTO SINCE 1991

Latest at AE

Open House and Meet and Greets for May and June

We are having a series of open houses hosted at our store! Come swing by for food, drinks, and great speakers!

May 28th 1-5 PM EST: Acora Acoustics with Valerio Cora

June 4th 1-5 PM EST: Sonus faber and McIntosh with Scott Newbrough, Canadian and South American Sales Manager

June 11th 1-5 PM EST: Hegel and Innuos with Richard Kohlruss; iFi, Lumin and Hi Fi Man with Lily Luo and Lawrence Mittler

Acora Acoustics SRB Speakers

Check out our latest blog post of our experience of a Wilson Audio Alexx V delivery!

Wilson Audio Alexx V® Speakers finished in GT Silver

Montreal AudioFest

Dear valued clients, we are excited to announce that we will be attending the upcoming Montreal AudioFest in support of Acora Acoustics! That being said our regular hours will not apply this week, but instead be modified to:

March 22: 10AM - 5:30PM

March 23: 10AM - 5:30PM

March 24-28: CLOSED

Regular hours will resume from March 29 onward. We hope to see you at the show!

One of the world's Analog experts, Michael Fremer, raves about the Hegel V10 MM/MC phono stage

New Year's Hours Update

Dear Valued Clients, we at Audio Excellence would like to thank all of you who have supported us throughout the past year despite the hardships that we have faced as a result of the pandemic. In order to prepare for the new year the store will be closed from December 31st to January 4th. Once again, thank you for all the support and we hope to serve you all again in the new year!

Audio Excellence Holiday Hours

• December 24: 12PM - 4PM

• December 25: Closed

• December 26: 12PM - 5PM

• December 27: 10PM - 5PM

• December 28-30: Regular Hours

• December 31: Closed

• January 1-3: Closed

Announcing the McIntosh C12000 Tube Preamplifier

The Magnepan LRS are back in stock!

Audio Excellence's 30th Anniversary!

Announcing the MB20 Bluetooth Transceiver

Naim Mu-so - Wood Edition

NEW from Innuos! Following up their highly regarded PhoenixUSB reclocker, Innuos has just announced their next product: the PhoenixNET audiophile-grade network switch!

New McIntosh - MHA200 Tube Headphone Amplifier!

Magnepan LRS's are back in stock! Now available for local pickup, or shipping to Ontario, Newfoundland, and PEI!

BOXING DAY PRE-OWNED CLEAROUT!

Please contact the store for additional Boxing Day Deals!

(905) 881-7109

Dear valued clients, friends, and family,

as of Monday December 14th 2020, Markham will be entering into the lockdown grey zone, thus we will be open for curb-side pickup only. All orders will be through our online store and via telephone and/or email.

In-store demos will be halted until further notice.

We wish all of you a safe and happy holidays.

Holiday Hours:

Dec 24: 12PM - 3:30PM

Dec 25: Closed

Dec 26: 10AM - 5:30PM

Dec 29: 10AM - 5:30PM

Dec 30: 10AM - 5:30PM

Dec 31: 12PM - 3:30PM

Finally! We have a new DAC at the $1000 price range. The iFi NEO iDSD.

Celestion SL6S Auction.

Proceeds donated to the Salvation Army!

Celestion SL6S for sale to the highest offer. We will match the selling price up to $1,000 and donate the total to the Salvation Army.

I recently bought the speakers I first fell in love with in 1997-98. I could not afford them then, and when a pair came in for sale, I immediately jumped on the opportunity to finally own them.

Watch the video we did about these speakers, and Vilip's latest purchase here: https://youtu.be/q1CdOfQtQ5k

I've reached a point in my life, however, where I want to do much more for society than continually feed my collecting passion, so I've decided to put these superb speakers up for auction, and match the winning bid up to $1,000. The total will be donated to the Salvation Army. They do amazing work daily to help those who are much less fortunate.

The winner will be announced on November 15th, 2020.

Please email your serious bid to adrian@audioexcellence.ca. Be as generous as you can afford to. And thank you, very much!

Home theatre lovers take notice! McIntosh just released two new home theatre products: the MX100 A/V Processor, and the MI347 7 Channel Digital Amplifier. Read more about them here.

Brand New From McIntosh! - Top of the Line MA12000 Hybrid Integrated Amplifier.

Ever wondered why Lumin streamers sound so great?

Magnepan LRS . . . out of this world!

Shop Now

Wilson Audio will be debuting the SabrinaX September 1, 2020.

Wilson Audio will be debuting the SabrinaX September 1, 2020. The original Sabrina was a huge worldwide success, combining the sonic traits of the larger siblings in a small enclosure. This made the speakers easy to place in smaller rooms without sacrificing quality.

We will have the SabrinaX for auditioning Sept 1

We are pleased to announce that we will be open again on Tuesday May 19th. We will do our best to keep our store as hygienic as possible for everyone's health.

Our operating hours are:

Tues: 10 - 5:30

Wed: 10 - 5:30

Thurs: 12 - 7:30

Fri: 12 - 7:30

Sat: 12 - 7:30

Closed: Sun and Mon

Per the Ontario government's guidelines, please let us know if you have any symptoms of COVID 19, or have traveled abroad within 14 days.

We are excited to see you, our dear friends again!

We're very excited to share with you that McIntosh has just announced two new vacuum tube products: the MC1502 vacuum tube amplifier and the C22 Mk V Vacuum Tube Preamplifier. We've already ordered them and they should be here late Aug/early Sept. Below is the release article from McIntosh:

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Announcing Two New Vacuum Tube Products

MC1502 Vacuum Tube Amplifier and C22 Vacuum Tube Preamplifier Mk V

Today we are very excited to announce 2 new home audio products: the MC1502 Vacuum Tube Amplifier and the C22 Vacuum Tube Preamplifier Mk V. Both can be ordered now from your authorized dealer with shipping expected to begin this month.

 MC1502 Vacuum Tube Amplifier

A Classic. Supersized.

Our new McIntosh MC1502 Vacuum Tube Amplifier is a stereo amplifier designed for home audio and home music systems that produces 150 Watts per channel. It is the direct replacement to McIntosh's award winning MC2152 Limited Edition 70th Anniversary Vacuum Tube Amplifier, which was released in celebration of our 70th Anniversary that occurred in 2019. The new MC1502 has identical audio specifications and sound reproduction performance of the heralded MC2152 but in a more customary McIntosh design.

MC1502 (left) with MC275 (right).

The MC1502 shares the timeless styling of our classic MC275 Vacuum Tube Amplifier. As the MC1502 has twice the stereo power rating of the MC275 (150 Watts vs. 75 Watts) and is physically larger, in many ways it can be considered the MC275's big brother. And while a pair of MC275s can be run in mono to achieve the 150 Watts per channel output of the MC1502, the MC1502 boasts a better signal-to-noise ratio of 112dB vs. 105dB for the MC275 pairing – producing an even quieter performance than the already quiet MC275.

The MC1502 is powered by eight KT88 output vacuum tubes, with four assigned to each stereo channel. It also has eight small signal tubes, consisting of four 12AX7A and four 12AT7 vacuum tubes; two of each of these vacuum tubes are dedicated to each audio channel... more

The Newest Take on a Classic.

This newest version of the McIntosh C22 Vacuum Tube Preamplifier – the Mk V – is the direct replacement to our highly regarded C70 Limited Edition 70th Anniversary Vacuum Tube Preamplifier, which commemorated our 70th Anniversary that took place in 2019. The new C22 Mk V is the latest McIntosh vacuum tube preamplifier to carry the cherished C22 model number. It has all the performance of the acclaimed C70 but with the hallowed C22 moniker and its signature glass and aluminum front panel design.

  The C22 Mk V uses one 12AT7 and five 12AX7A vacuum tubes which can be seen through a glass panel located on the top of the preamp. Knobs and rocker switches operate all control functions while modern LED lights indicate input selection and volume level. The C22 Mk V has two balanced inputs, three unbalanced inputs, one Moving Coil and one Moving Magnet phono inputs, for a total of seven inputs. There are two pairs each of balanced and unbalanced output connections; the two outputs allow sending signals to two separate power amplifiers... more

Visit the McIntosh website or contact your dealer to learn more about the new MC1502 and C22 Mk V.

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Just received a haul of pre-owned equipment. Checkout the video overview on our Youtube channel, or visit the Pre-Owned section of our website to view the listings.

*Note some items in the video may already be sold. Contact us or refer to the listing in the Pre-Owned section.

>>>>https://www.audioexcellence.ca/pre-owned

My friend once told me – it's all about horns – and about amplifiers – and… actually… he never stopped telling me. Even after he closed his iconic Queen St. E. store "Audio Oasis" in May of 2017, he would continue to send to me a myriad of images, mostly of, wait for it… horn speakers… daily. The internet must really be infinite.

George Tordai would have been 75. He loved Music and Audio and he loved his wife and his children and his grandchildren. And he was loved by all in return.

George was my mentor. I will miss his guidance, his wisdom, his positivity, and his boundless friendship.

Rest in peace, my friend – you will not be forgotten.

Vilip

Our deepest condolences - Jay & Adrian

Sonus Faber B-Stock Sale !

Nordost is running a special trade-up program for those of you who own the old Norse or Flatline series of cables.

Trade up to the new Norse 2 cables and receive up to 80% of original retail price.

 Please contact us for details.

We are a high end audio/video store in Markham, Ontario, Canada, a suburb of Toronto. We've been in business since 1991. This is our first group conversation. The intent is to share our individual experiences about products, music and memories regarding all things audio and video. Hopefully these videos entertain and inform you.

We are a high end audio/video store in Markham, Ontario, Canada, a suburb of Toronto. We've been in business since 1991. This is our first group conversation. The intent is to share our individual experiences about products, music and memories regarding all things audio and video. Hopefully these videos entertain and inform you.

Here is the playlist of the Daryl Wilson Interview.

Adrian Low chats with Daryl Wilson of Wilson Audio at the 2019 Rocky Mountain Audio Fest.

While doing inventory, we came across the following components, and are blowing them out.

Naim Mu-so Qb NEW Reg. $799 Sale $699

Target HR60 2 post 24" NEW Reg $380 Sale $299

Target HS60 1 post 24" NEW Reg $319 Sale $250

Target HR70 2 post 28" NEW Reg $329 Sale $250

Elac FS U5 White NEW Reg $2,260 Sale $1,199

Wadia a315 stereo amp NEW Reg. $4,725. Sale $2,835

KEF R 800ds Rear Dipole Speakers Rosewood NEW Reg $2,200 Sale $1,399

Integra DTM 40.7 Stereo Receiver NEW Reg $780 Sale $450

Integra DRX-2 Atmos 5.1.2 AV Receiver Reg $1,000 Sale $499

Devialet Phantom Tree Pod NEW Reg $495 Sale $350

Sonos Sub NEW Reg $899 Sale $750

PMC twenty.21 Bookshelf Speakers NEW Reg $3,599 Sale $2199

Our Annual Meet the Manufacturers will be held each Saturday in Nov. Join us for some food, music and fun. Meet other fellow audiophiles and share the joy we have in this crazy pastime of ours!

12pm – 5pm

Audio Excellence

70 Esna Park Drive. #7

Markham, Ont

L3R 6E7

Saturday Nov 2

Hegel Music Systems – Superb line of electronics from Norway

Innuos – Some of the best Music Servers, with built-in streamers and Roon Core

Lumin – One of the best Music Streamers

iFi – Affordable line of DACs, Headphone Amps and Power Conditioners

Personal Audio – Audeze, Mr Speaker, Meze, HiFiMan, Astell & Kern

Saturday Nov 9th

Sonus Faber – the New Olympica Nova speakers

McIntosh – new amplifiers, preamplifiers and Home Theater

JVC – the Finest Projectors

David Susilo – Renowned A/V expert, writer and trainer

Saturday Nov 16th

MSB Technology – The Best DACs in the World

JL Audio – Best Subwoofers

Parasound – Superb electronics at reasonable prices

                    Astell & Kern – the Best Portable Players in the world                  

Yes, you can play music through your phone, laptop, tablet … so why do you need a dedicated, expensive portable player? The same reason why you own a high end audio system. Because it SOUNDS BETTER. Astell & Kern is credited for creating the dedicated portable music player market. While there are other options, none is as well built, or as good as A&K.

                    Magnepan LRS/Hegel H90 system – Spectacular Sound for $3,000!                  

The Magnepan LRS is the best speaker for the money today. For only $880, the performance is truly staggering. It sounds like a slightly smaller version of the much-larger 1.7i, which means to say it has amazing openness, very low coloration, speed and naturalness. Soundstage is wide, with tremendous depth when the speakers are set up properly.

                    New Product - Sonus Faber Olympica Nova Speakers                  

The other reason I visited the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest was to see the launch of the new Sonus faber Olympica Nova speakers, which replaces the company's most successful line in its history, the original Olympica. While sharing the name, the Nova series is all new.

                    Wilson Audio XVX Chronosonic Speakers                  

I flew down to the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest this year for 2 main reasons. One was to see the debut of the Wilson Audio XVX Chronosonic speakers, Daryl Wilson's latest masterpiece.

This Norwegian company is redefining performance and value, especially in the Integrated Amplifier market. Founded in 1988, I first heard of the company when I read the reviews in Soundstage magazine.

                    McIntosh New products - C2700, MA352, MX123, MX170                  

We've just returned from the 2019 Toronto Audio Fest held at the Westin Toronto Airport Hotel. This year we occupied the Sutton A ballroom, a huge 30' W x 60' L x 30' H room.

Sonus faber Launches the New Olympica Nova Collection of Speakers

Very Special Deals - Sonus faber Olympica

We managed to get a very limited quantity of the Olympica speakers at a crazy discount. However there's no more available, so if you've been thinking about upgrading your speakers, this is the perfect opportunity! Imagine the stunning Italian hand-made artistry combined with unparalleled sonic beauty, at a price never seen before.

(note: prices are for new and displays. All with full warranty, All Sales Final)

Sonus faber Minima Amator II

As part of the company's Heritage Collection, the Minima Amator II joins the Electa Amator III, celebrating their 36th year of business.

The original Minima was first introduced in 1992. Franco Serblin, founder and designer of Sonus faber speakers, insisted that his creations had to reproduce music as he heard it, and they had to be beautiful works of art. The original Minima was made with Walnut wood, leather, and high quality drivers voiced to his uncompromising standard. The result was a spectacular success worldwide, similar to the big brother, the Electa Amator.

New Products

McIntosh

Preamplifiers

McIntosh has announced 2 new preamplifiers, the C53 and C49 to replace the C52 and C47 respectively.

MTI-100 Turntable/Preamp/Amp

Perhaps my favourite new McIntosh product is the MTI-100. It is a turntable, tonearm, cartridge, tube preamp with analog and digital inputs, Bluetooth capable, Headphone output, Subwoofer output and a 50 watt/ch amplifier!

Audioquest Dragonfly Cobalt

When Audioquest introduced the Dragonfly Black and Red portable DACs, they took the world by storm. These DACs offered superb performance in a very small form factor, at a price that even students could afford.

Personal Audio – Headphones, Amps and Portable Audio Players

With the renewed interest in headphones and In Ear Monitors, this category has grown dramatically for the last few years. We listened to most of the highly regarded options, and as always, chose what we believe to be the best. To qualify, the products have to offer the best sound, be comfortable, reliable and easy to drive. If damaged, parts have to be easily available and easy to repair. Price has to be fair in comparison to the competition and to its performance. We can't obviously carry everything that we like, but we are proud of the effort we put into curating our selection. Following are some of the lines and headphones we now have on display.

MSB Technology

MSB Technology is an overnight success…only took the company 25 years to get the respect they deserve! Well, better late than never. MSB designs their own ladder DACs, transports and now amplifiers. I heard their first CD player back in the late 80s. It was one of the few players that could play music. The last generation of DACs and Transport sold me on how good they are. The famed Analog DAC sold really well. Many owners are diehard analog fans, and are very pleased with the Analog DAC.

Innuos

Innuos is based in Portugal, and has been making waves worldwide with their superb servers. Reviewers consistently give the company awards for Best Sound, Best Performance, Best Value etc. I finally heard the Statement, their top of the line, at the recent Montreal Show. Sharing the room with PMC and Hegel, the system made music. Effortlessly. I stayed for a long time, just listening. Of course I knew that the great sound did not belong just to the Innuos Statement. It's always the weakest link that determines the end result. I was so impressed that we immediately became dealers.

Dan D'Agostino Progression

I've been lusting after these bad boys for a while, and finally placed the order for a pair of the D'Agostino Progression monoblock amplifiers. Rated at 500 watts into 8 ohms, 1000 watts into 4 and 2000 watts into 2 ohms, these are the most powerful amps that Dan D'Agostino made until he released the Relentless Monoblocks (1500 watts at 8 ohms!)

JVC Projectors

We've been selling and installing JVC projectors for many years. The company offers some of the best projectors you can buy, especially for accurate color, high resolution, deep blacks and overall picture quality. The new Reference series takes everything up to an even higher level.

Lumin M1 Integrated Amp 60w/ch/DAC/Streamer with Triangle Elara LN01 bookshelf speakers bundle special. Reg. $2,700. Sale $1,999!

The Lumin M1 is the perfect hub for your system. It has a 60w/ch amplifier (100w/ch @ 4 ohms), can decode up to 32bit/384 kHz, DSD128, MQA, streams Spotify, Tidal, qobuz, AirPlay, and is Roon ready. It even has a free App! Regular price is $2,199.

Video Interview with Paolo Tezzon, Chief Designer of Acoustics for Sonus faber

Paolo Tezzon studied Work Psychology in University. His passion for music led him to become an audiophile as a teenager. Initially building his own speakers out of necessity, he bought a pair of Sonus faber Concertino and fell in love with the company. Paolo joined Sonus faber in 2004, apprenticing under the legendary founder and designer Franco Serblin. After Franco sold the company in 2006, Paolo took over the design responsibilities, and has been responsible for the company's sonic attributes.

The full video is long, but well worth watching. We discuss his early challenges when he took over the acoustics division, the design process, why flat frequency response is not desirable, the various technologies he patented, why he thinks speakers should not be spiked and more. Click here to watch, and please share this video with fellow audiophiles. I think it's really important that we learn from the actual designers instead of just reading marketing material.

Video Interview with Livio Cucuzza, Chief Industrial Designer for the McIntosh Group

Livio was hired in 2010 to head the Industrial Design team for the McIntosh Group, which owns McIntosh, Sonus faber, Audio Research, Wadia, Pryma and Sumiko. Livio and his team have been responsible for the aesthetics, which many feel to be the best in our industry. I visited the Sonus faber factory on Oct 23, and had the opportunity to interview Livio, Paolo Tezzon (Chief Designer of Acoustics for Sonus faber) and Marta Reane (Marketing Manager for Sonus faber). This is the interview I did with Livio. We talk about his educational background, his love for the industry as a kid because his father had a Hi Fi shop, and his process of design.

Toronto Audiofest was a success for us

Image by Stereophile edited by Jay Lee

10 Things You Get When You Shop with Audio Excellence - The VIP Program

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Testimonials

"I have dealt with Audio Excellence Inc for the last 20 years, including purchasing and installing a home theater and music system for our new home when we returned to the Toronto area from Texas

We have enjoyed our relationship with Adrian and his crew, and have found them to be very knowledgeable in all areas

Highly recommend them!
"

— P.G Griffiths

"Over the past 14 years, Audio Excellence has installed 3 High End Audio and 2 Home Theater Systems for me. I am most pleased.

Highly Recommended
"

— Dr. Nolan Kane

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We also have a Youtube channel! Check us out for weekly reviews and discussions about all things Hi-Fi! Click the button below!

Review of the Week:

• Yien C. - "I was hoping to upgrade my old Arcam hifi setup and Jerry answered all of my questions and paid special attention to my needs.

  I highly recommend this shop and its team who were very prompt and professional.  The Hegel H95 that I bought and the AudioQuest cables make me rediscover music.  Thank you!"

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Source: https://www.audioexcellence.ca/

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