December 2019 | Newsletter No. 8

New Products for 2020
Guangzhou High End Show

This is our last newsletter of 2019. Our thanks to all of you who have stuck with us and a warm welcome to new subscribers.

2019 has been a very busy year for us. The first models in our new Emperor high-end electronics range have started to ship in quantity. Most of these have gone to China where the market is very active, but a fair number have gone to other countries where have some significant back orders from customers with our larger loudspeakers, who are upgrading their systems.

We also have just returned from a successful visit to the Guangzhou High End Show in China, where our distributor, NC Audio, demonstrated our PQS-402 loudspeakers.

New Product News

Like Santa’s elves, our engineers have been working over-time in order to prepare a number of new products for 2020. Here is a very brief overview. We will supply more details in the next issue.

Gaudi Mk III
The latest version of our flagship loudspeaker is scheduled for the second half of next year.

Emperor DSP-X digital crossover 
An upgraded version will be released next year.

Emperor analogue crossover
A brand new design for next year

Emperor CD player
Driven by the strong demand for CD software in China, this will have some interesting features.

Emperor surprise product
We are working on one more product for the Emperor range which may raise more than a few eyebrows. This is still in its early stages of development, so we will wait a bit longer before we say more about it.

Power conditioners
Two new designs are planned for next year.

Pion loudspeaker and interconnect cables
We have already produced the bulk cables, but the release of the finished products has been delayed while we looked for suitable connectors. We should have these early next year.

Active loudspeaker
This is scheduled for the end of next year. Among other features, it will have streaming and room tuning functions and an active crossover. 

Mid-class electronics
Much of the electronic design for this range is now complete. We just have to finalise how the chassis will look.

Guangzhou High-End Show

Guangzhou was the ninth and final show this year where our Chinese distributor, NC Audio, showed German Physiks products. It was also one of the biggest. A quick count of the show guide showed a total of 306 rooms and stands. Many of these hosted more than one brand, so the total number of brands was probably close to 500. Most of these, including ourselves, were in the Dong Fang Hotel, with the remainder in the adjacent China Hotel. Going by the counters on the security arches in the Dong Fang Hotel, upwards of 30,000 people attended the show.

Our room was near the hotel entrance, ensuring that we were kept very busy.

Our main exhibit was our PQS-402 loudspeakers. These were driven by electronics from Accustik Arts. Whilst not as fast as our own Emperor electronics, the sound was still very good, with excellent detail and imaging and a well extended and clean bass.

Visit the PQS-402 web page

On display was a pair of our PQS-402 Custom loudspeakers. This is a special version of the PQS-402 that we make for the Chinese market. It uses two DDD drivers and two 10-inch woofers. It provides similar dynamics to the PQS-402, but in a smaller package more suited to the rooms used by the majority of customers in China. In between the loudspeakers is an Emperor stereo power amplifier.

Visit the Emperor stereo power amplifier web page

Also on display were the HRS-120 SE (left), another custom model for the Chinese market and the Borderland Mk IV - our best selling loudspeaker.

Visit the Borderland Mk IV web page

Elsewhere in the Show …

Here is a small selection of some of the other exhibits.

A Studer open reel tape machine in a system of tube electronics from the Chinese maker Line Magnetics.

The loudspeakers in the Line Magnetics system were equally impressive. Whilst not the last word in speed or resolution, this system was very enjoyable and attracted a lot of interest.

A beautifully crafted 845 based integrated amplifier from Line Magnetics.

More evidence of the revival in vinyl.

What, from a distance, looked like an acoustic gramophone turned out to be a clever reproduction, as you can see from the inset image. While not an audiophile product, this is an interesting and clever product.

The ABC Records room. One of three offering pre-recorded analogue tapes.

Loudspeakers from a company called HiVi, that bear more than a passing resemblance to a certain long established British, now Chinese, company’s offerings.

In conclusion
The level of interest and enthusiasm shown by both visitors and exhibitors was reminiscent of the CES show in Las Vegas 30 years ago. Also like Las Vegas, attractive young ladies tried to entice us into their rooms, but this time only an audio system was on offer.

If you get the chance, a visit to the Guangzhou High End Show is a fascinating way to spend 3 days. There is an amazing range of products to be seen and some good sounds to be heard. Guangzhou also offers some excellent dining.

Until next time…

All that remains, is to wish you all:

A Very Merry Christmas and a Peaceful New Year.

Thank you again for signing up to our newsletter and thank you for your continued interest in our products. Please don’t forget to visit our Facebook page.

If we can be of help with anything at all, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us here. You can find your national distributor here.

Holger Mueller | German Physiks