Audio Advice Live 2025 Show Report

I am here in Raleigh, NC, attending the Audio Advice Live show, which runs from August 1-3, 2025, at the Sheraton Raleigh hotel. The show is open to the public and offers a chance to experience some of the latest technology for high-performance home theater and audio, two-channel audio, headphones, turntables, projectors, and much more. The show offers an opportunity to see, hear, and experience these products in one venue and talk with manufacturer and brand experts in person. There are also educational sessions offered on a wide range of topics.

Thursday, July 31, 2025, was a setup day for the show and also a chance for the press to get a preview of some of the exciting and exclusive product announcements. The first room on the scheduled advance press tour was HARMAN Luxury Audio. They were showcasing products from JBL Synthesis, JBL, ARCAM, and Revel.

The JBL Synthesis Cinema was showing off the new SMA Series amplifiers, which are purpose-built for custom installation. Along with these amplifiers were a variety of SCL series in-wall compression-driver speakers. I look forward to listening to this demo later during the regular show schedule.

The Compact Theater with JBL Stage 2 loudspeakers and MA Series AV receivers are designed to be a smaller-scale solution with a more stylish look. The speakers use JBL’s proprietary waveguide, and JBL says the AVR features the latest in HDMI, surround decoding, and intuitive streaming. Its styling is also unique and a departure from what we usually see in AVRs.

The ARCAM SA45 integrated amplifier was on display, which features class G amplification, DIRAC Live room correction, and seamless streaming. It was paired with a beautiful pair of white Revel F328Be PerformaBe speakers.

Harman / Kardon was also showcasing the new Enchant series of wireless speakers.  The system offers expandability from stereo configurations up to a full home theater configuration.  It features a minimalist design that blends into the room and provides support for the latest in multi-channel audio formats.

At the next stop on the press event, Audio Advice was showcasing its new Revelation Luxury home theater seating. This chair retails for $1,349 and is not only fully adjustable but also features advanced amenities like USB-C, heat, shiatsu massage, and reclines in less space to provide more room in your theater, allowing for additional seating.

I had a chance to actually try out the chair later in the evening. It was very comfortable, and the vegan leather had a very nice feel. The heat and massage were nice features. Keep in mind this isn’t trying to be one of those crazy massage chairs that you might have seen that wraps around your body. The massage feature was much more gentle but very refreshing after a long day.

The third stop on the press tour was Focal Naim. The theater in their room was an impressive 7.4.4 theater configured with their new Utopia Cinema speakers, which launched in February 2025. The speakers are designed for custom integration into private cinema rooms of up to 2153 square feet or 200 square meters.

The very impressive demo was an immersive clip from the last Bond flick, “No Time to Die”. If you are considering a custom high-end home theater, put these on your audition list.

Here’s a look at the room components for this 7.4.4 Home Theater Room:

• NEW Focal Utopia Cinema (5x LCR + 4x Sub)
• Cinema LCR is $11,999 (x5 – $59,995)
• Cinema SUB is $5,999 (x4 – $23,996)
• Focal 1000 IWLCR Utopia ($8,499) (2x – $16,998)
• Focal 1000 IWSUB Utopia ($3,299) (2x – $6,598)
• Focal 1000 ICLCR5 ($2,699) (4x Atmos – $10,796)
• Naim CI-NAP 101 ($1,999) (4x – $7,996)
• Focal Astral 16 ($23,999)
• Vicoustic Room treatment (Multifuser DC3+Cinema Round Premium)
• Apple TV
• 200” Screen
• Sony VPL-GTZ380 projector
• Kaleidescape Movie Player
Total Focal Naim system equipment price: $150,378

Next up for the Focal demo were the Focal Diva Utopia 3-way active wireless speakers. These are active bass-reflex speakers, and they created an impressively nuanced soundstage without the need for any extra amplifiers or cables. They will also be customizable using different exterior skins to tailor the speakers for any room. They retail for $40,000/pair.

Focal is hoping to unveil the Diva Mezza Utopia at the show, but they are held up in customs at the moment. But they are still hopeful they will be here for the weekend.

The fourth stop on the press tour was Epson. Melvin Diaz and Robert Brennan showed off the new Pro Cinema LS9000. This is a 4K HDR 3LCD laser projector. It has a 2,500,00:1 contrast ratio and uses 3 individual LCD chips to display 100% of the RGB color for every frame. It boasts a 20,000-hour solid-state light source and retails for $3,999. The projector was paired with a sound system featuring speakers from Polk Audio. One of the demos was Top Gun: Maverick, and the picture and sound were stellar. The Epson rendered a gorgeous image that immediately pulled the viewer into the action. The entire room is priced right around $20K with all components and the screen.

The last stop on the tour was the ASCENDO/Trinnov demo. This was the first demo of Trinnov’s WaveForming technology at Audio Advice. A Trinnov Altitude32 processor and two Amplitude16 amplifiers were paired with 12 ASCENDO THE16 SUB ACTIVE SEALED subwoofers. The demo material featured a battle scene with a ton of action and explosions. The bass was off the charts terrific, and it was incredible how much you could actually feel the bass while watching the movie clip. I have experienced the WaveForming demo before in dedicated theater rooms constructed for past shows, but this was very impressive to have created such an experience in a hotel venue.

To round out the demo, some music from “Eric Clapton: The Lady In the Balcony Lockdown Sessions” showed how important the bass can be in enjoying music. If you are at the show, this demo is not to be missed.

That concludes the press event coverage for today. In closing, I always appreciate how much effort goes into these shows. From the planning and coordination to the hours of setup and dedication needed to showcase these amazing products and solutions, the teams that make this happen should be congratulated. I especially enjoy seeing a couple of crates in the morning turn into this gorgeous work of art (the Bowers & Wilkins Nautilus) in the evening.