This year, Lemay Audio takes its Dayton Wright Hommage Electrostatic Speaker to another level with an all-new CRYO BIPHASE power supply at the heart of a system even more musical than last year!
Since 2022, Lemay Audio has manufactured and sold half of the only twelve pairs that will be produced. The Dayton Wright Hommage speakers are packed with groundbreaking technologies: ultra-high voltage cells, a cryogenically treated 500-watt audio transformer, Biphase power supply, time alignment, custom listening distance, point-source design, ultra-wide asymmetric open baffle, and many other innovations.
Hearing for the first time the true harmonic structure of the signal is discovering that the gap between reproduction and the original is now minimal.
François Lemay founded and led Tenor Audio from 1999 to 2009 and has been obsessively exploring audio for 50 years. He offers three exceptional listening rooms where Hommage speakers are powered by only about thirty reference products from 10 manufacturers. Prices are both reasonable and unreasonable, as only musicality matters.
The Tenor Audio electronics ($550K to $720K), Kronos turntables ($80K), and the Grimm MU2 ($24K) bring the two Boucherville listening rooms to life. Mine requires little acoustic treatment, but the one my friend Martin Labrecque allows us to share is worthy of a major studio. With the Tenor-Hommage duo, subtle musical nuances become immediately apparent.
In Kingsbury, Jocelyn Jeanson assembles the Hommage speakers in the workshop and calibrates them in a carefully acoustically treated room/laboratory, with Plinius amplification, the MU2, and many other secrets.
Lemay Audio is also an informal and passionate audiophile association. Concert tickets, rare CD pressings and box sets, equipment, prints, and listening lists are freely exchanged. True auxiliary laboratories, my clients and friends, in their obsessive quest for absolute musicality, sometimes suggest I listen to new products. In blind tests, some occasionally manage to convince me.
As a seller and even an importer, a new product is never advertised but simply offered for home trial… a path of no return. Only listening matters, and this year has been particularly rich in discoveries.
Lemay Audio: R&D – Advice – Home Listening – Guaranteed Musicality
The greatest innovations often come from the hard work of dedicated inventors and passionate craftsmen. This year’s reference system is the result of close collaboration with some of the most renowned audio specialists.
Jocelyn Jeanson
lemayaudio.com
Jean-François Michaud
modulumaudio.com
David Desrochers
atelierarbor.ca
Oleh Lizohub
camerton-audio.com
Marcin Ostapowicz
xact.audio
Jeffrey Smith
silversmithaudio.com
With the introduction of the Grimm Audio MU2 and the XACT Phantom this year, I have significantly improved musical quality while eliminating more than 22 components from my chain—on the digital side alone. This may come as a surprise, as one would typically expect specialized, well-powered devices to deliver better performance. However, the Grimm MU2 has replaced all servers, upsamplers, DACs, and often even preamplifiers, along with all associated power cables in our systems. Meanwhile, the XACT Phantom LAN cable has performed a similar role between the router and the server.
For weeks, I compared more than 60 combinations: 5 RJ45 cables, 2 digital clocks, 4 converters and 3 optical cables, 3 switches, 6 SFP modules, 2 BNC clock cables, 4 AC power supplies, and 3 DC power supplies. A total of $130,000 in equipment gathered and dedicated solely to this test. Thanks to my clients for lending me their precious devices… for the sake of science.
The surprise was total: the Phantom filters out parasitic noise so effectively that it does all the work alone—except when the router is located dozens of meters from the server, in which case optical isolation may be necessary. After numerous blind tests, a single $4,500 Phantom placed between the router and the Grimm MU2 server consistently outperformed a $45,000 setup in my system.
Moral of the story: simplify your system as much as possible by carefully selecting each component. A system is only as good as its weakest link, and price is not always a reliable indicator.
David Desrochers and Kathleen Gariépy from Atelier Arbor collaborated with me to select two magnificent 20 cm-thick Claro walnut slabs to adorn the Hommage. A perfect fusion of aesthetics and musicality— a unique and unforgettable work of art.
Since 2018, Jocelyn has been assembling and calibrating the Hommage speakers with exemplary patience and precision. With 25 years of expertise in electrostatic panels, he continuously refines every detail. In 2022, we introduced an electrostatic power supply (AE) that was far more powerful, faster, and quieter than the original Dayton Wright model. We thought we had reached the pinnacle, but this year, we dared to make two major advancements: cryogenic transformer and circuits, and the BIPHASE concept. The resulting musical gain exceeded all our expectations, convincing us to offer this technology as an option for all Hommage speakers. Two separate enclosures now allow for the isolation of high voltage from the audio, optimizing the installation.
The new high-voltage circuit alone would deserve a patent. After six months of development based on a theoretical concept never before used for electrostatics, the best industrial components were soldered point to point and then encapsulated with the utmost care. Perfectly suited to our AE, this circuit delivers an impressive gain in power and, above all, in silence, pushing the limits of the Hommage even further. It is now housed in a separate enclosure from the audio, making it more versatile and more efficient.
Gene Evely (Take Five Audio) is a master in applying cryogenics to audio. The slow cooling process at -320°F realigns the crystalline structure of materials, thereby optimizing the performance of cables, printed circuits, and transformers.
The 22 kg Hammond transformer required special attention, and Gene successfully met the challenge with excellence.
With 750 watts per channel at 2 ohms, the Tenor High Power effortlessly controls the Hommage. The Hommage’s extreme speed allows the Tenor to express itself like never before.
One of my passionate clients dared to modify his Grimm MU2 by replacing the internal 30 cm Cat6 cable and its connector with the XACT Phantom LAN cable. Additionally, the original fuse was swapped for the Synergistic Master. Thank you for lending us your unit for Audifest. If all those who praise the MU2 knew… what they’re missing.
Marcin Ostapowicz, a Polish innovator known for the famous JCAT software and his advancements in digital audio, designed the XACT Phantom LAN cable, which transforms internet signal transmission. After weeks of comparative testing, a single $4,500 Phantom placed between the router and the Grimm MU2 server outperformed a $45,000 setup of equipment. A radical simplification for an impressive musical gain.
Jeffrey Smith of Silversmith Audio has developed a new alloy for his Fidelium speaker cables and interconnects. It pushes the boundaries of signal transmission, delivering unmatched musicality. This year, nearly all my clients have adopted them, replacing many far more expensive cables.
Jean-François Michaud has designed ultra-efficient isolation bases and supports. His Arkitek and Classic shelves, along with Modpods, have become essential for eliminating parasitic vibrations.
To develop a reference speaker like the Hommage, you need a headphone as high-performance to fully understand the intricacies of the signal without the inevitable interference of the room. Developed in Ukraine and now in Germany by Oleh Lizohub, who handcrafts the Binom ER. This headphone is as capable as the best, without requiring a powerful amplifier. It allows high-fidelity listening directly from a cellphone or portable player. A true revelation for audiophiles who seek mobility without compromise.
My first piece of advice for improving a system is always to start with the foundation: the 120V power supply. All devices will benefit from it. That’s why I always use the AC-4500 line filter and the AC4005 power cords from Inakustik. Otherwise, it’s pointless to judge the potential of any component.
The only budget-friendly devices I recommend form a combination that, for the price, offers a true musical bargain. The small BAetis Audio Prodigy Limited Edition Canada server ($2,500) paired with the iFi Neo 2 DAC-preamp ($1,400), powered by the iFi iPower Elite ($450), and optimized with an external clock like the LHY Audio ($900), can compete with systems three to four times more expensive. Otherwise, the Grimm Audio MU2 reigns supreme.
For systems incorporating video processing, Baetis multimedia servers remain our favorites.
This 2025 edition highlights the true innovations that redefine the musical experience. Thank you to the passionate artisans and inventors who make this possible.
Check our price list for the products on display at the Montreal Audio Show 2025.
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