I've known John Bevier for 20 years from back when he worked at Sennheiser. It's always a treat to spend a bit of time with him. He works for Audio Plus Services now, a company that distributes many fine high-end audio products from overseas makers.

John drew my attention to a couple of items in the room, first was a pair of products from French manufacturer Micromega: the MyZik headphone amplifier ($299) and the 24/192 USB capable MyDAC ($399). These two products have matching ABS plastic enclosures and are well suited for desktop applications. The "My Range" of matching enclosure products will, in future, also include an integrated power amp, a phono stage, and a wireless media streamer.

Also in the room was the new Aurium headphone amplifier ($1349) from Italian maker Pathos. This is a very sexy looking hybrid headphone amp has a tube input stage and a zero-feedback MOSFET output stage. While very minimalist and fashionable from the front, the rear panel is sure to bring a smile to any geeks face. Bristling with connectors and knobs it includes: one balanced and three unbalanced inputs; balanced and unbalanced tape outputs; a balance control (something headphone amps rarely have), and a continuously variable gain control. Very nice!