The excerpt of the article below about this CES 1998 in Las Vegas was written by John Hellow and has been published in

''The Audiophile Voice''

Volume 4, Issue 3.

Published and edited by
Eugene Pitts III
Guts & Elbow Grease Publishing Ltd.
phone: +1 973 509-2009
fax: +1 973 509-2032
email: Epitts@ix.Netcom.com

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Room 916 of the Debbie Reynolds was one of my favourite rooms at the show. It displayed single-ended vacuum-tube amplifiers from Art Audio, Ltd., some mid-priced Alon speakers by Acarian systems, a really neat black box phono stage, the Black Cube, by a German company called Entec Audio and imported by Holography of North Dartmouth, MA. We listened to an integrated amplifier called the Diavolo that retails for about $5,700 and utilizes the Vaic Valve VV32B triode, which has an output of 13 watts of pure Class-A power with a 3-ampere current capability. The VV32Bs can provide about five times the current of a standard 300B. The Entec phono stage, which at the show retailed for $500, recently rising to $700, was connected to the diavolo integrated and played back through the mid-priced Alon speakers. The quality of this system, which would retail for well under $10,000, was revelatory. My notes indicate that it was the only system that I listened to during the entire show that got Margo Timmon's voice just right. This was amazing, especially through a $700 phono stage and a fairly inexpensive tuntable arm combination. I was so enamored with this little phono stage that I mentioned it to a friend who was getting back into analog. He purchased one, and is absolutely in love with it. He is of the firm opinion that it betters the Michael Yee phono stage and would not be embarrassed by other phono stages costin three times the price. You should definitely contact the Holography folks who import this gem (...)

(...) Hey , Editor Gene, if they do this alternate show next year, someone else is going to have to cover it. An entire show and only one find, the Audio Art room with the Entec phono stage.

(Hey yourself, Agent J.B. Hellow, you know those Nevada ''finds'' are, just like the ore veins in that state; when you come to the end of an outdated technology, it's time to cash it in and go back to Tinsel Town. Remember that old Treasure of Sierra Madré saying: ''LPs? We don't need no stinkin' LPs!'' Editor Gene)

My sattellite car phone rang. '' Agent 0033 1/3, did you find the golden ear listening device?

It was P and he was going to be upset.

''No, P, false alarm, nothing such as you expected. No revelations, no major scientific brakthroughs or threats to civilization as we know it. However I did discover an excellent small-scale speaker system, the return of a fine family of phono cartridges and a pip of an inexpensive phono stage.''

Mono Phoney and I could have a time with any or all of these.

'' Very well, 33 1/3, I hope the car is at least intact.''

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Side note by Lehmann audio:

As you may have recognized, I changed my name from Entec audio to Lehmann audio to avoid a trade mark conflict with Crosby audio works who are the owners of the name Entec in the U.S. and some other countries. Holography is also a name of the past. Leo Massi, who formerly owned Holography, founded a new company called Hy End Audio Imports and is now distributing the Lehmann audio products over the entire U.S. and in Canada.

Norbert Lehmann
Lehmann audio/owner