Indholdsfortegnelse for Issue 541 - 2025 i Australian HiFi

Don’t be confused by the name: dCS’s Lina DAC X is a fully fledged music streamer. The British brand’s new $24,000 release arrives to round out its established Lina line, expanding on the versatility offered by the existing Lina DAC (also a music streamer, priced $22,000) by packaging more flexible features inside a revamped, full-width design. The Lina DAC X is built on the same technological foundation as the original half-width model but adds a rotary volume control, a new remote control and the option to connect CD/SACD transports. Like its stablemate, the Lina DAC X is capable of handling PCM files up to 24-bit/384kHz alongside DSD128. Sonically, dCS promises "exceptional clarity and detail retrieval" from its latest streamer, teasing "a natural and deeply musical sound" aided by its acclaimed…

Audio-Technica, meanwhile, unveiled a new premium turntable, the AT-LPA2, and it is quite the looker, with a fully transparent aesthetic that lays bare the inner workings of the fully manual, belt-drive design. The AT-LPA2 is based on the limited-edition AT-LP2022 that was developed to celebrate the Japanese brand’s 60th anniversary a couple of years ago, with the new full production model featuring a new arm, cartridge and price point. The deck features a 30mm high-density acrylic chassis and a 20mm acrylic platter. Apart from delivering a striking transparent look, the material also offers "exceptional" resonance control to prevent unwanted vibrations from affecting vinyl replay. An optical sensor is also included beneath the spindle, which constantly monitors the platter rotation so that it spins at the correct speed (33 1/3 or…

Gryphon Audio celebrates two anniversaries in 2025 — its 40th year and the 30th year of its Antileon Series power amplifier. So it’s pretty fitting that the Dutch company has now introduced its fifth-gen Antileon, the Antileon Revelation. Gryphon’s power amp ethos was first epitomised in the 1991-released DM-100, what with its dual-mono design, pure Class A circuit topology, high-current output and ability to drive virtually any speaker — and that DNA has run through the line ever since. The Antileon Revelation is supposedly “the finest amplifier ever to wear the Antileon nameplate”. The latest iteration of Gryphon’s bestselling power amp has quite the foundation from which to build on, then, and the heritage is visually evident with the continuation of the Evo’s metalwork, with a large Gryphon sculpture now…

• Fully balanced • Incredible flexibility • Superb sound • 40dB gain LED $7,200 If the features of Musical Fidelity’s latest phono preamplifier were listed on a restaurant menu, my wife would be horrified. “What do you mean there are no chips?” I can almost hear her saying. I can also imagine Musical Fidelity’s genial CEO, Heinz Lichtenegger, rushing over to reassure her that their absence is purely down to the fact that only the highest-quality dishes will do. In terms of amplification and specifically the M8x Vinyl, this translates to his use of discrete electronic components — individual resistors, transistors and capacitors — instead of chips. The chips to which I refer are, of course, integrated circuits (or ‘ICs’), tiny monolithic electronic components that can perform multiple functions because…

On the features, aesthetic and controls front, the Grand Horizon shares plenty in common with the smaller, more affordable Horizon, from its luxurious materials and illuminating ‘AuraControl’ volume ring to its wealth of physical and streaming connectivity and even its sonic character. But of course, there are points of differentiation that justify the price gap. While the bigger sibling is, well, bigger and heavier, the Horizon is hardly dinky, being 36cm in diameter and weighing 12.5kg. Naturally, the Horizon outputs less power than its sibling (310W), while other variances include the quoted maximum SPL of 104dB continuous and 114.5dB peak for the Horizon, versus a significantly higher 111dB/122dB (remembering that 3dB is a doubling of effective acoustic or electrical power), and also the low frequency response, quoted to 30Hz at…

There’s a common misconception that music streamers are simply about the qualities of their digital chipsets alone. That is, the computer-like streaming module that pulls digital music data from the cloud (from Tidal’s server, say) and packages it into a smooth constant data stream, and the digital-to-analogue converter (DAC) that then turns that data stream into an analogue waveform the rest of your hi-fi system can understand. It somewhat stems from the broader fallacy that digital audio’s inherent ‘ones and zeros’ makeup means that there can be limited differentiation in their delivery. But as eloquently illustrated by Cambridge Audio’s engineering team, such chips are comparable to how an orchestra performs: “If the conductor isn’t very good, the orchestra won’t perform as well as they can. However, if the conductor is…

While the lossless streaming of hi-res stereo music has been an accessible reality for some years now, thanks to services such as Tidal, Qobuz and Apple Music pushing the quality at competitive prices, the same hasn’t been possible for multi-channel audio. Some existing services support ‘three-dimensional’ listening experiences via their support of the Dolby Atmos format and spatial audio technology, of course, but such music is delivered compressed and lossily — it isn’t lossless; not even close. Pure Audio Streaming is an upcoming streaming service looking to change that, promising to deliver ‘lossless, uncompressed and uncompromised immersive audio to both mobile devices and home theatre systems’. It will offer two subscriptions — a ‘Stereo’ plan offering hi-res stereo (up to 192kHz PCM) and binaural audio (PCM 48kHz via Auro technology),…

Wharfedale’s Evo 4, one of the most acclaimed affordable speaker ranges in recent years, now has a successor: the suitably named Evo 5 series. Comprising the Evo 5.1 two-way standmount ($1,249), Evo 5.2 three-way standmounts ($1,749), two three-way floorstanders — the Evo 5.3 ($2,599) and Evo 5.4 ($3,299) — and an Evo 5.C centre channel ($1,249), the new mid-range family is hardly just a lick-of-paint update, boasting updated cabinets, drivers and crossovers as well as new damping technology. The Evo models have always benefited from premium tech, such as an AMT (Air Motion Transformer) tweeter and a domed midrange driver. For the Evo 5, that AMT unit is bigger (35x70mm compared to the Evo 4’s 35x60mm), while the 50mm midrange driver has been further developed to match the larger high-frequency…

• Solid, punchy and exciting sound • Good-quality phono stage and DAC • Meaty bass • Plasticky feel to controls • Volume adjustment with headphones • No USB input $1,699 Rega’s Brio has been one of the hi-fi industry’s most reliable, affordable stereo amplifier recommendations for longer than I care to remember. The original launched in 1991, and every generation since has been a frills-free analogue design, with priority given to high-value sound and a simple feature covering the basics. The new Brio Mk7 doesn’t deviate much from that well-established path, but acknowledges the changing times by adding digital inputs. Less welcome is a price increase that pushes this amplifier into the next class up from its traditional, more affordable home, putting it against some tough competition. DESIGN & BUILD…

Ortofon has released the replacement for its long-running Quintet series of moving-coil cartridges. The Danish cartridge specialist’s new MC X range consists of four models — the MC X10, MC X20, MC X30 and range-topping MC X40, which based on European pricing should range from roughly $575 to $1,850. Every model shares the same generator system and housing, with their differences coming down to the type of stylus tip. The MC X40 flagship uses a boron cantilever instead of the aluminium one found elsewhere in the series, too. First impressions were hugely positive, with each offering improved detail and finesse over the step below Ortofon’s engineers started with a fresh sheet of paper and have worked hard to push performance standards. The foundation of the MC X models is a…

“Oh great, another format war! That’s just what we want!” said no AV fan ever. Yet, on the surface at least, that’s precisely what it looks like we are about to get following the unveiling at the Consumer Electronics Show in January of Eclipsa Audio: a new surround sound format that is apparently designed to take on the audio dominance of Dolby and DTS. Eclipsa Audio is a new ‘3D audio technology’ capable of delivering up to 28 individual input channels in a single bitstream. Each of these channels can be rendered out to speakers or headphones and set to either be fixed in nature (like a mic in a recording studio) or dynamic (to track moving objects such as a speeding vehicle in a movie car chase). Creators can…

Billy Cobham Stratus (1973) Renowned drummer and notorious musical risk-taker Billy Cobham is, naturally, the engine room here — but the overall balance of Stratus is perfect for testing the way your system approaches a fiercely complicated recording. Drums, percussion, keyboards (acoustic and electric piano, plus Moog synthesizer), acoustic and electric bass, horns and wind instruments all take a turn — and when they’re all chipping in simultaneously (as they do from 5:15) your system will need to demonstrate all its powers of resolution to keep this virtuoso fist-fight in check. Thelonious Monk Body and Soul (1963) There’s no mistaking a Monk recording — his utterly unique improvisational style is without peer. His work is at its most questioning when tackling a classic like this, where the combination of stabbing…

The original Audiolab M-DAC, which launched back in 2011, remains fondly remembered by me and my colleagues, having been a staple on our office desks for years, passed around the team to whoever ’needed’ it most that day. The M-DAC+ that followed in 2016 also shared its predecessor’s success. Now, Audiolab has launched two new models that are direct descendants of the original M-DAC: meet the D7 and D9. The next generation of Audiolab’s standalone DACs build upon the same blueprint as the M-DAC, but have been honed over several years and iterations of technical development. The Audiolab D7 is the cheaper (and smaller) of the two models, at $1,100, and combines a DAC, preamplifier and headphone amplifier. It is built around the ES9038Q2M — the same 32-bit Sabre DAC…

There aren’t many hi-fi brands in the world that can celebrate 100 years in the business, but Japanese brand Luxman can now join the likes of Bang & Olufsen, Philips and (next year) Tannoy in achieving this milestone. It is kicking off the party by launching two new hi-fi products and a special edition package. First up is the P-100 Centennial ($17,999), the brand’s "finest-ever" headphone amplifier. It boasts fully balanced circuitry with four discrete amplifiers that can drive a variety of headphones, and is largely based on an evolved version of Luxman’s long-running ODNF (Only Distortion Negative Feedback) amplifier technology, called LIFES. It features a completely reimagined circuit design and new high-quality components — Luxman claims this allows for a higher signal-to-noise ratio and the distortion at the output…

You’re always guaranteed to see tasty new high-end hi-fi being exhibited by Mark Levinson at the High End Munich show, and this year was no different. Say hello to the company’s brand-new 600 Series of amplifiers, which sits above the established 500 Series. The range consists of three models: the No. 626 preamplifier, No. 632 stereo power amp and the No. 631 monoblock. Each is built on Mark Levinson’s Pure Path circuit philosophy and showcases the brand’s trademark Tectonic industrial design, which sees a machined, black-anodised aluminium chassis adorned with silver controls. Glass panels and signature red accents and lighting complete the striking aesthetic. The No. 626 uses fully balanced Pure Path architecture for the analogue section, with connectivity coming in the form of two balanced (XLR) and three single-ended…

Newport Test Labs measured the M8x Vinyl’s frequency response using an external inverse RIAA filter to correct for the effect of the M8x’s internal RIAA compensation. The result of this measurement is shown in Graph 1 overpage, and you can see that, once you allow for the graph’s exaggerated vertical scale (each horizontal division is only 1dB), the response is incredibly flat and linear, extending from 20Hz to 20kHz ±0.15dB. This is pretty much bang-on Musical Fidelity’s specification. Below 20Hz, you can see the response rolls off only very slightly, to be about 1.7dB down at 5Hz. There is virtually no high-frequency roll-off at all, with the phono preamp being only 0.03dB down at 40kHz. Channel separation was an astonishingly good 104dB (at 1kHz), proving the efficacy of the dual-mono…

• Vast connectivity • Weighty, room-filling sound • Luxury look and feel • Poke-don’t-drag volume ring operation • Expensive • Could be more dynamically expressive $9,500 As is quite clear from the images you see before me, Marantz’s Grand Horizon isn’t your average wireless speaker. Indeed, its ‘Grand’ moniker, which distinguishes it from its smaller, more affordable Horizon sibling, represents not only the company’s ambition here but also the size (50cm tall and wide), weight (21kg) and price ($9,500) of the speaker. There’s no getting around it; the Grand Horizon is a beast, albeit a beautiful one. And as the most expensive wireless speaker I have come across, carrying a figure that could buy you a whole system of modest hi-fi separates, it has its work cut out to prove…

Three days of Sydney sunshine complemented the sunny sounds emerging from four floors of the Australian Hi-Fi Show 2025 in April. Variety of delivery was one hallmark of this year’s event: you could hear half-million-dollar hi-fi systems next to set-ups under $10,000, and compare the sound of traditional valve amplifiers with that of new-age sculptured wireless speakers, home cinema and more. And whenever your ears needed a break, the show’s location in downtown Haymarket, next to Sydney Central Station and Chinatown, brought as many culinary choices out in the sunshine as there were sonic ones back in the hotel. In addition to the usual ’Best Sound of Show’ discussions, the results of which are in this report, I overheard many deciding on their vote for the best local momos and…

Premium Sound isn’t your average hi-fi store. Walk through the glass doors of the striking corner presence on St Kilda Road, having hopped off the tram opposite or parked your car in the store’s dedicated parking area outside, and you’re greeted by a light, modern, high-ceiling and spacious open-plan showroom that any interior designer would approve of. In place of the oft-spied floor-to-ceiling piles of boxes, racks of hi-fi equipment and concomitant trailing cable hazards are cream couches and stools and some of the most aesthetically pleasing and design ambitious audio gear you can get your hands on. You can probably paint a more vivid picture yourself if I tell you the brands Premium Sound stocks — Bang & Olufsen, Devialet, Naim, Focal, Sonos, Ruark and Marshall, among other lifestyle…

“It’s the sensory and emotional experience that matters in music and movies; it’s not just about the tech specs,” said Jeremy Bouris, founder and Managing Director of Audio Active Australia, at the launch of the distributor’s brand-new audiovisual demo-space-cum-experience-centre. However, when one of three (!) cinemas in that space has roughly $500,000 worth of equipment in it alone, it’s only natural to throw some specifics and specifications around — particularly when they include Sony’s reference VPL-GTZ380 laser projector beaming onto a 185-inch screen, a 9.4.6-channel Pro Audio Technology surround system with 19,000 watts of firepower behind it, and 12 luxury leather seats that have more buttons and boujiness than those in Village Cinema’s Gold Class. In front of a sea of eager guests, Bouris and his wife Melanie understandably bigged-up…