So what's the deal with all this NuForce talk here on the 'Flare? If you're not one to follow the audio publications, you've been missing out on the Ultimate Fighting Championship that is the digital amp onslaught. "Digital" or switching amps exploded 20 years ago when Chord and Linn rocked the boat with their revolutionary juice boxes. Of course, those chaps aren't cheap and their most recent offerings fall into the "rap superstar only" category.

Usually priced around a couple grand, the new cheap digital kids include NuForce, CIAudio, Tripath, the gainclones, the ICEpower posse and a few other technologies to get press. If audio were automotive, the power/weight ratio of these amps would be off the hook. Heck, ICEpower bumps 1000 watts from a box as light as a Dan Brown novel. And the sound is almost universally described as "warmth of tubes with solid state bass." The Holy Grail, right? Now you know what all the talk is about.

NuForce is quite the controversial company, as seen from the comments elsewhere on SF. "Best Product of the Year" awards left and right combined with users complaining of bugs, hum and constant product updates make for lots of heated conversation. What's a company to do? Release a speaker, that's what.

The $3995 NuForce S-9 speaker began life as an SP Technology Continuum speaker. Come again? Bob Smith's SP Technology is a dedicated speaker manufacturer, championing the D'Appolito stack (tweet between two woofs) with a funnel waveguide tweeter (crossover at 750Hz) and Seas aluminum woofers. With prices between $4500 and $6000 for the SP twins, the S-9 is the bargain at $3995.

So what are the obvious differences? The S-9s use the P. Hilton thin ply construction first seen in the likes of the TAD Model 1 ($40,000+) and the Magico Minis ($22,000 with stands). SP Tech designer Bob Smith took a shot at Magico saying, "we use the exact same construction as that other speaker manufacturer's $22k speakers!" Gangland rivalry brewing? One can only hope.

The other big difference is the outboard crossover. In the pic at top, look closely and you'll see a black box chilling on the middle shelf. That's the speaker's guts, now isolated from the vibrations inside of the speaker. Seen in only a few manufacturers (most recently Wilson's Duettes), outboard crossovers haven't exactly taken over the industry yet. Then again, you already have 16 ugly black boxes in your room, what do another two matter?

And what's up with the bluelight price? Ply and outboard brains ain't cheap. The answer is, of course, China. Get the suckers made overseas and drop the price a good 50%. While I didn't hear mention of SP Tech disappearing, it's hard to imagine how they can compete against higher tech speakers that cost less. Chances are NuForce will take over the SP line if the S-9 is successful, ply-ifying the entire family.

The irony is, of course, SP Tech could never get the amount of press NuForce should theoretically be able to obtain. NuForce has been in most every mag, a feat SP -- and most everyone -- can only dream of. Bank off one successful product and build an empire is the game plan. Heck, worked for Linn and Naim.

(NuForce P-8 preamp, Ref 9 amp and IA-7 integrated along with the E.A.R. Acute CD player)

Personally, I love seeing companies combine like Voltron. Why are foreign companies growing while the American market flounders about? Because synergy exists. Linn found this out years ago, so did Naim, Rega and most brits as well as Euro companies like MBL, Burmester, Gamut, Goldmund and many others. And more than just synergy, it's far easier to buy a complete package that sound awesome than play the "preamp of the month" game for years and still be unsatisfied.

Following Linn, ATC and others up the success ladder, NuForce is planning on offering drop-in "activation" for the S-9s. Since the crossover is already outside of the speaker, adding amplification after the crossover is easy as pie. Active speakers are, many believe, the pinnacle of loudspeaker/amp interaction. Instead of building amps that work fine with every speaker, build the amps specifically for the drivers and dedicated frequency ranges. It makes sense but, alas, the audiophile world demands separates and sends widely acclaimed speakers like the Paradigm active Studio/40s to early retirement.

As for the LA OC audio society meeting, well, lots of people and lots of talking. I arrived early and had a chance to hear the speakers with alien music. I liked what I heard and would like to hear a lot more. The bass was very surprising given the size of the room -- mid 30s, I'm told. Off the cuff, the sound was similar to the Lapinskis, another D'Appolito speaker who chants the "measurements first" motto along with Bob Smith. Unlike the Lapinskis (which have great bass themselves), the S-9s are double ported in a quasi-transmition line configuration. Check out the SP site for all the tech info.

So will the S-9 be as popular as the other the NuForce products? If so, I hope all the "revolutionary!" and "god's gift to speakers!" comments are held back considering SP Tech has been making an almost identical speaker for years now. We shall see.

SP Tech designer Bob Smith above. LAOCAS Prez and PFO writer Bob Levi below.