I had a second chance to hear the new Noble One Loudspeaker ($17,995) at an event this weekend. The location of the listening room in the Marina Del Rey Hotel butted up right against the water of the and made for a fairly pleasant way to spend a Sunday afternoon in Southern California. One attendee even paddled his way over to the show via kayak from across the bay.
The newest high end product from the IEM manufacturer is slightly bigger than your average off-the-bookshelf loudspeaker and pumps some serious volume, especially when powered by the Burmester 036 power amp ($15k) and 082 integrated ($20k).
The Noble One had no problem reaching the sonic depths of a good high end bookshelf and made the best of a somewhat difficult room. The analog signal from the Pear Audio Blue Kid Howard Turntable ($2,995), Cornet 2 tonearm ($2,295) and Phono Stage ($4,495) did an excellent job of rendering the eclectic playlist from multiple hosts.
The entire setup was connected together with WyWires new Diamond Series cables.
I’m sure this won’t be the last we see of the expanding line of products from Noble. With the warm reception from their flagship K10 IEM (now in both universal and custom fit models) the company is sitting with an advantageous position for the next product cycle. I think the personal audio populous is excited to see what co-owner Brannan and his team have coming up next and it may not take long to find out. With Rocky Mountain Audiofest just around the corner, expect big news and all manner of product releases from companies across the hobby. Stay tuned to the site for more information and coverage from the event throughout November.