John
Handmade. Small batch production. Drop forged. CNC milled. These are the watchwords of Campfire Audio, Ken Ball’s IEM- and headphone-focussed spin-off of cable-n-amp company ALO Audio. If Campfire Audio were bakers, they’d be called artisanal. Were they in the beer business, they’d be called batch brewers.
Campfire Audio’s two newest IEMs look nothing like earlier models. The chamfered geometrical shapes of the Andromeda and Jupiter have given way to a more ergonomic, rounded aesthetic whose mirrored finish is a sight to behold.
The Atlas (US$1299) sees a highly-polished stainless steel shell wrap an in-house developed 10mm ADLC dynamic driver for a “full-range powerhouse”. ADLC refers to the driver’s diaphragm: ‘non-crystalline diamond-carbon’.
However, Campfire Audio isn’t only concentrated on old-world production methods. Atlas incorporates Campfire Audio’s Polarity Tuned Chamber™ — the cavity in which the driver sits has been 3D-modelled and tuned for optimal performance. Atlas’ all-new silver cable has been designed for “additional resolution and refinement to an already exceptional sound”.
Neither is the Portland company solely focussed on high-end pieces. Campfire Audio’s other new model, the Comet, puts a single “custom design vented full range balanced armature” driver inside a highly-polished stainless steel earpiece but adds an in-line mic and 3-way remote to its copper Litzwire cable for US$199.
Like the Atlas, the Comet’s internal cavity has also been 3D-modelled and tuned for optimal performance. The BA driver wears Campfire’s T.A.E.C (Tuned Acoustic Expansion Chamber) that, as we know from first-hand experience with the US$1099 Andromeda, brings righteous high-frequency extension to the listening experience. Comet’s price again: US$199.
Whatever their pricing, both models are hand-made and assembled in the Portland, Oregon. Comet is shipping now, Atlas on May 1st.
Further information: Campfire Audio
