Leia aqui em português o relato do 15º aniversário da Ultimate Audio
A Saturday When Sound Became a Celebration
Two weeks ago, I was at Ultimate Audio Porto, near Serralves, celebrating the store’s 7th anniversary with the local team and the ever-passionate Porto audiophile community.
Same calendar date, but this time, Lisbon was the stage, marking the brand’s 15th anniversary.
The Ultimate Sessions brought together an enthusiastic audience, spread across four rooms, each with its own distinct character and flavor.
Audio Group Denmark Room
This system was already familiar to me: Børresen C3 loudspeakers, U-288 integrated and P-288 power amplifier (both 300W), Ansuz cabling, power conditioning and network switch, all from the same group.
I had first heard it in Porto during the opening Sessions of this season. I won’t go into detail here, those curious can check the full description in the link above.
Let’s just say it’s a win/win situation, you get insight I get a click.
The baton alternated between Dionísio Mesquita and Frank Spanner, representing the Danish manufacturer.
What we heard:
“Mama This One’s for You” – Chantal Chamberland: raw emotion and pure sonic intimacy, each note coming from the heart.
“Invocation (A Prophecy)” – Richard Bona: rhythmic and melodic spirituality fused in a single pulse.
“Luisa Miller: Oh! fede negar potessi” – Michael Fabiano: a storm of tenor power; the Børresen system turns Verdi into a sacred experience.
“The Raiders March” – Danish National Symphony Orchestra: Indiana Jones, striding proudly through his homeland.
The sonic signature remained true to what I’d heard in Porto, though that northern room offered slightly more breathing space.
Audiovector, Gryphon, X-Act & Marantz Room
The Audiovector R10 made their debut under the guidance of Jorge Gaspar, with his usual eclectic musical curation.
Driving them were the Gryphon Commander preamp and Antileon EVO monoblocks, the X-Act S1 streamer feeding the internal DAC of the Marantz SACD Series 10.
Matrix SS-1 Switch, Audiotricity power treatment, Turnbull cabling.
An unlikely pairing, but a strikingly successful one. The combination of Audiovector and Gryphon proved electric, especially given the home cinema room treatment of this room, where the R10s shook both floor and body.
What we heard:
“Dacoit Duel” – A.R. Rahman: a cinematic storm of rhythm and tension.
In contrast, “Adío Querida” – Noa: sweetness and melancholy distilled into pure beauty.
“Wish You Were Here” – Seguridad Social: a bold reinterpretation trading British mist for Florida sun.
Sara Bareilles’ “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road”: a mature, luminous, vulnerable farewell. Excellent synergy between the R10s and Gryphon.
“This Is the Thing (Live)” – Fink: hypnotic balance between silence and introspection.
“Rosa Enjeitada” – Aldina Duarte & António Zambujo: fado wounded yet tender, despair contained.
“Det Tänds Ett Ljus” – Christian Jormin 3: jazz serenity, softly illuminating the room.
Result: detail, nuance, muscle, and soul.
The “Grand” Room
The main auditorium at Ultimate Audio Lisboa is generous in scale, ideal for systems with grandeur and dynamics.
This time, it hosted the Avantgarde Trio G3 with Twin Subs, a living wall of sound capable of filling every cubic inch of air in the room.
System control was entrusted to the Orpheus Lab H Two 33BD Opus II, with Taiko Extreme server, Master Fidelity Nadac DAC D + Clock C, Clearaudio Master Jubilee turntable, DS Audio Grand Master optical cartridge and TB-100 tube phono stage from the same Japanese brand, Esprit cabling, and Isotek power.
Transparency, speed, dynamic range, and the palpable presence of musicians in the room.
In the morning: Miguel Carvalho; in the afternoon: Francisco Monteiro, Proud and rightly so, of his northern accent.
Morning (digital):
“The Swingers Get the Blues, Too” – Duke Ellington: melancholy and understated sophistication.
“Shatranji” – Haz’art Trio: East meets West; jazz meets the desert.
“When I Fall in Love” – Keith Jarrett: liquid delicacy and pure emotion.
“Tuxedo Junction” – Kenichi Tsunoda Big Band: pure swing energy and precision — full-scale big-band impact, possible only this way.
Afternoon (vinyl):
“St. James Infirmary” – Louis Armstrong: sorrow turned into sonic poetry.
“Voodoo” – Sonny Clark Quartet: rhythmic tension and controlled chaos shaped into urban groove.
“Mediterranean Sundance” – McLaughlin, de Lucía, Di Meola: a whirlwind of flamenco and jazz — Mediterranean energy incarnate.
“Once Upon a Time in the West” – Dire Straits: cinematic soundscaping, Knopfler’s filigree guitar gliding across a sonic desert.
“Alabama Song (Whisky Bar)” – The Doors: Brecht’s words reborn through Morrison’s decadent cabaret, equal parts theater and delirium.
The “New” Room
I heard this room for the first time while the varnish still smelled fresh. A bold move this one!, not for spectacle, but for honest sound.
That Saturday, the system was: Kroma Atelier Macbeth, Pilium Leonidas integrated amp + Elektra DAC, HZ Streamer, Matrix SS-1 switch, Siltech cabling, Isotek power.
The Leonidas, a 100-kg block of aluminum, evokes a block of Greek marble, paired here with blue-velvet artificial stone cabinets from Kroma. Greek strength meets Spanish elegance.
Conductors at this session: Francisco Monteiro (morning) and Miguel Carvalho (afternoon).
What we heard:
“Hallelujah I Love Her So” – Harry Belafonte: radiant celebration.
“Bright Horses” – Nick Cave: loss transformed into beauty.
“Speak Low” – Brian Bromberg: an intimate dialogue between groove and lyricism.
“Jazz Variants” – O-Zone Percussion Group: rhythmic virtuosity, textures in motion.
“Ozone Pt. 2” – Billy Cobham: precision and energy in perfect control.
“Adelson e Salvini” – Joyce DiDonato: voice as light, poised between delicacy and restrained drama.
My Manifesto
The real surprise came from this room.
Not because it was the best, but because of its honesty. Natural, physical, organic.
If I could, I’d merge the scale of the Avantgarde/Orpheus, the muscle of the Audiovector/Gryphon, and the truth of the Kroma/Pilium. They sounded grand, human, tangible.
And as always during these Sessions, one can’t help but wonder: what if this was in my room?
I’ll admit it — this could well be my system.
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