Innehållsförteckning för May 2025 från Hi-Fi Choice

PRICE: £1,400 AVAILABLE: NOW WEB: ROTEL.COM JAPANESE COMPANY ROTEL has unveiled its DX-3, a small, space saving component which combines a high-performance headphone amplifier, preamp and standalone DAC in a single chassis measuring 215 x 76 x 247mm (WxHxD). Described by the company as: “the ultimate desktop audio companion,” it supports an array of source inputs including PC-USB (32-bit/384kHz) with DSD256 support, coaxial and optical inputs (24-bit/192kHz), wireless aptX HD and AAC Bluetooth plus an RCA analogue out. It features an ESS Sabre ES9028PRO eight-channel DAC, an ultra-low noise, custom toroidal transformer with high current drivers and high-quality capacitors. Volume attenuation is controlled by a NJW1195A fully differential analogue controller, which the company says delivers precise steps as refined as 0.5dB. Analogue and digital power supplies have been engineered and…

PRICE: £530-£1,050 AVAILABLE: NOW WEB: ARENDALSOUND.COM NORWEGIAN SPEAKER SPECIALIST Arendal Sound has reintroduced its eight-model 1961 Series of speakers comprising the 1961 Tower, 1961 Monitor, 1961 Center, 1961 Bookshelf, 1961 Height, 1961 Surround, 1961 Subwoofer 1V and 1961 Subwoofer 1S. The series uses trickle-down technology from Arendal’s step-up 1723 range, including waveguide tweeters and custom drivers, and also comes in high-quality HDF cabinets and hand-painted matte Black and White finishes. Each speaker comes with a 60-day risk-free trial, 10-year warranty (five years for subwoofer electronics) and access to the brand’s range of support resources, including the community-run Arendal Sound Club. Priced at £1,600 per pair, the 1961 Tower is a 2.5-way floorstander with a 28mm soft dome waveguide tweeter, custom 140mm long-fibre pulp-cone drivers, sealable bass port, magnetic grilles and…

PRICE: £320 AVAILABLE: NOW WEB: WIIMHOME.COM HENLEYAUDIO.CO.UK FIRST SHOWN AT the recent Bristol Hi-Fi Show, WiiM has launched its Vibelink Amp, a 100W per-channel (8ohm), two-channel Class D integrated amplifier, which stands apart from previous WiiM products as it’s the first not to feature built-in wi-fi streaming. The idea is that it will complement WiiM’s Mini, Pro (HFC 511) and Ultra (HFC 522) streaming products, allowing users to combine their streaming technology with what the company is calling its most powerful and complete amplifier solution yet. Features of the Vibelink Amp include: an ESS ES9038Q2M DAC which supports 24-bit/192kHz digital audio and both analogue (RCA) and digital (optical and coaxial) inputs all built around a Texas Instruments TPA3255 amp chip. Specially designed with copper heat pipes, a large aluminium heatsink…

As relationships go, the one between Bluesound and sister brand NAD – under the umbrella of the Lenbrook group – is a complex one. The Node family of devices has generally been aimed at the more affordable end of the market and everything in the inventory makes use of the BluOS operating system, which is particularly good for multi-room use. NAD is then free to make more classically ‘hi-fi’-type devices that, thanks to the same BluOS operating system can still join the family. The newly arrived NODE ICON sees the boundaries of that relationship tested somewhat. This is the largest and most sophisticated Node yet and, while it’ll still play happily in all Bluesound systems, it’s clear that the company has wider ambitions for it and that it is a…

Preamplifiers are a dying breed. Given that so many people only use digital sources these days and that so many DACs have multiple inputs and output level controls built-in, it’s not unreasonable to ask why anyone would buy one. Yet many audiophiles reckon that a good active type confers many benefits, not least the gain to properly drive pretty much any power amplifier. And at the same time, the passive volume controls in DACs are often poorly implemented, in sonic terms. Products such as English Acoustics’ new Downton make a strong case for preamplifiers in general. It’s a bespoke ‘clean-sheet’ all-valve design that gives a claimed 6dB of gain to line sources and 44dB to movingmagnet phono sources. Apropos of the latter, the company says that its phono stage follows…

Clearly intended as a more affordable alternative to B&W’s Pi8 (£350), the Pi6 is available in a variety of colours and is smaller than previous models. Though they feel perfectly comfortable, I’m not sure they’re secure enough to cope with more energetic jogging. However, there are four sizes of ear-tips included to help you get a good fit, and the earbuds are rated IP54 for resistance to water and dust if you’re in the big outdoors. It evokes an eerie, ambient sense of space for the electronic effects The most obvious difference between the two is that the Pi6 lacks the ‘smart’ charging case that comes with the Pi8 and acts as a Bluetooth transmitter so you can use it with wired audio sources such as the entertainment system on…

I was suitably impressed by the ZEN Blue 3 that iFi released recently (HFC 522), which combined a high-quality DAC/amp with versatile Bluetooth. In contrast, the new ZEN DAC 3 is more conventional and simply focuses on providing a wired DAC/amp for headphones and speakers. This latest version of the Zen DAC isn’t a major upgrade either, although it does come with a higher price tag, now costing £230, compared with £200 for its predecessor (which is now discontinued). The design hasn’t changed much, sticking with the familiar low-profile metal case used right across iFi’s ZEN range. Like its predecessor, the ZEN DAC 3 provides both 4.4mm balanced and 6.3mm headphone outputs on the front panel, with an additional 4.4mm line-out and stereo RCA on the back for connecting to…

CD PLAYERS Cambridge Audio AXC35 PRICE: £300 REVIEWED: HFC 454 Something of a budget marvel, you’ll have to work extra hard to get the AXC35 to put a foot wrong. Bass is firm, detailed and blessed with excellent timing; the tonal palette is pleasingly broad and clean; and though the soundstage doesn’t extend much beyond the speakers, there’s great depth perspective. Marantz CD 50n PRICE: £1,600 REVIEWED: HFC 518 Equipped to not only get the most from your CD collection, but also for online streaming and dabbling in downloads, the CD 50n boasts a weighty, well-defined and technically accomplished performance that is enormous fun. Throw in a decent built-in headphone amplifier and you have a great silver disc pinner. Cyrus CDi-XR Phantom Black PRICE: £2,200 REVIEWED: HFC 499 Familiar Cyrus…

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PRICE: £1,100-£1,800 AVAILABLE: NOW WEB: PROJECT-AUDIO.COM HENLEYAUDIO.CO.UK PRO-JECT AUDIO SYSTEMS has introduced the Colourful Audio System 2 and Colourful Audio System E – two complete hi-fi setups, which include a turntable, amp and speakers. Designed for customers who want a system already assembled, Pro-Ject says the 2 and E arrive with everything – including a cartridge and the necessary cables – in one box for easy setup and the flexibility to upgrade over time. The Colourful Audio System 2 comprises a Debut EVO 2 (HFC 521) turntable featuring an 8.6in carbon fibre tonearm and heavy, damped aluminium platter. It comes fitted with a Pick it MM EVO cartridge. The amp is a MaiA S3 (HFC 492), the speakers a pair of Speaker Box 5 S2 bookshelves. The S3 amplifier delivers…

PRICE: £3,500 AVAILABLE: NOW WEB: MICHELLAUDIO.COM PMC-SPEAKERS.COM BRITISH COMPANY MICHELL Audio has introduced its Apollo phono stage and companion Muse power supply. Distributed by PMC Distribution UK, the two-box solution has been developed to keep unwanted RF noise to an absolute minimum, as the company says noise has the most detrimental effect of all external factors on the sensitive circuits of a phono stage, and hence the audio reproduction. Michell’s managing director explains: “Noise is the enemy of phono stages and so we’ve taken every step possible to eradicate noise, such as the separated power supply and preamplifier stages, the enclosures machined from solid aluminium and the specially developed linking cable.” The Muse power supply uses a high-quality low noise toroidal transformer, advanced capacitance multiplier technology and very high-quality voltage…

PRICE: £600-£800 AVAILABLE: NOW WEB: QACOUSTICS.CO.UK Q ACOUSTICS HAS launched a new trio of active subwoofers: the Q SUB series, comprising of the 8in Q SUB80, the 10in Q SUB100 and the 12in Q SUB120. The company explains that: “on board Digital Signal Processing (DSP) technology ensures easy but comprehensive system and room integration and setting optimisation for a class-leading, distortion-free performance, while the trio’s minimalist and clean design means they can blend discreetly into the room or be displayed to fit into any interior space.” Available in Satin Black with a black grille or Satin White with a grey grille, the new models join the slimline 3060S to complete Q Acoustics’ subwoofer family. Innovations to the series include dual phase and delay controls, which allow the fine-tuning of the…

PRICE: £2,500-£5,700 AVAILABLE: SOON WEB: PIEGA.CH/EN/ HENLEYAUDIO.CO.UK SWISS COMPANY PIEGA is about to launch its Premium Gen2 loudspeaker series in the UK via Henley Audio. The two models currently in the Premium Gen2 range – the bookshelf Premium 301 Gen2 and the floorstanding Premium 701 Gen2 – feature newly developed RM 01-24 ribbon tweeters, new bass and midrange drivers, bass reflex cabinet designs, and a seamless aluminium chassis shape, derived from the company’s Coax series. The Premium 301 Gen2 is priced at £2,500 for the Silver version and £2,750 for Black or White while the Premium 701 Gen2 is £5,600 for Silver or Black and £5,700 for the white version. Piega calls the new ribbon tweeters: “the Rolls Royce of tweeters”, while the design features a removable front grille gently…

PRICE: £1,000 AVAILABLE: NOW WEB: CHORD.CO.UK BRITISH SPECIALIST CHORD Company has just launched its PhonoARAY, a high-performance earthing system, designed to upgrade turntables and other sensitive audio devices. The PhonoARAY is an advanced standalone filtering solution, which allows turntable users to earth/ground their devices to the phono stage or phono input on amplifiers, providing maximum protection for the highly sensitive signal. The PhonoARAY benefits from a hand-wound, ultra-high-current series filter joining both terminals, plus a complex proprietary ARAY system, connected in parallel, creating a double ‘virtual earth system’ for both the turntable and phono stage. Chord Co. claims this combination: “shields the sensitive signals from external interference with great effectiveness, resulting in cleaner and more detailed sound reproduction”. The PhonoARAY connections are via two high-quality 4mm speaker-style terminals, accepting 4mm…

As the bigger of two new Klipsch soundbars, the Flexus Core 200 can be paired with additional rear surround speakers and/or a subwoofer. Even if you don’t add the Flexus 100 sub (£330) or Flexus 100 surround speakers (£280), the Core 200 has audio envelopment in mind. The channel count here is 3.1.2 Dolby Atmos, delivered by nine drivers. Left and right channels are handled by 60mm full-range units, while the centre channel gets an array of two 60mm bass/mid drivers and a 19mm horn-loaded tweeter. Rounding out the Core 200 are two full-range Dolby Atmos drivers and two 102mm woofers, mounted into its top surface. Build quality is superb, the Core 200 feeling hefty at 8.5kg, and wall-mount brackets come supplied. Connections are middling considering the price. There’s no…

Although the most affordable model in Monitor Audio’s three-strong range of Anthra subwoofers, the Anthra W10 hardly sits in ‘budget’ territory. So, what does £1,650 get you? A custom driver design, slick cabinetry, balanced connections and app-based control/setup – not to mention the promise of benefiting from its manufacturer’s well-established sonic know-how. With its 254mm driver, the Anthra W10 claims 425W from its Class D amp and is the most obvious fit for music-focused systems, particularly in small/mid-sized rooms. The driver type will be familiar to owners of Monitor Audio speakers, being a C-CAM (Ceramic-Coated Aluminium Magnesium) cone with Rigid Surface Technology II – a dimpled pattern used to boost rigidity. Here the driver is mounted into a 36mm-thick baffle, while the rest of the braced, sealed cabinet is made…

My first encounter with a Russell K loudspeaker was the RED 50 (HFC 422). Part of a six-strong standmount roundup, it didn’t so much out-perform as aim a flamethrower at its rivals, roasting the rest of group with a display of timing precision, tonal naturalness and sheer musical believability that the best of the rest simply had no answer to. It’s still a mainstay of my reference lineup and, along with Falcon’s LS3/5a Gold Badge (HFC 470) and the ATC SCM7, an all-time favourite standmount. So why the need for a Special Edition? It’s a question Russell Kaufman must have wrestled with because, after producing excellent SE versions of the RED 150 and RED 120 (HFC 503) floorstanders, tumbleweed had started to blow across an imagined stage awaiting the launch…

I was recently having a discussion with an old friend about the benefits of using good-quality interconnects in my hi-fi. We debated long and hard and agreed to differ on the perceived improvements offered by a particular cable. He lives in the US and has access to cables that are different from those here. He is an extremely clever designer, has a PhD in electronic engineering and is a fellow audiophile. Alas, he is firmly in the ‘if it can’t be measured, it isn’t happening’ camp. When I talk about a particular sonic improvement I hear with a particular device or cable, I do try and theorise about what may be causing the effect, but he argues that much of it is down to confirmation bias on my part. Confirmation…

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PRICE: £800 AVAILABLE: NOW WEB: REGA.CO.UK REGA HAS UNVEILED the Brio MK7, its latest hand-made high-performance stereo integrated amplifier, which the company describes as the most advanced and feature-packed Brio ever released. Housed in a compact, custom half-width aluminium case, the Brio MK7 delivers a claimed 50W per channel into 8ohm loads and 72W into 6ohm, which Rega says provides ample power to drive the most challenging speakers. The Brio MK7 also includes a Rega designed on-board DAC with two digital inputs. The Brio MK7 features standby, auto standby and thermal cut-out, all of which are new. Connections extend to three line inputs and phonos for a dedicated moving-magnet stage. There’s improved isolation between stages inside while high-spec op-amps provide gain for attached cartridges. Rega says that key improvements have…

PRICE: £4,000 AVAILABLE: NOW WEB: ORTOFON.COM HENLEYAUDIO.CO.UK ORTOFON HAS INTRODUCED the new MC 90X, a limited-edition cartridge featuring a stainless-steel Selective Laser Melting (SLM) body with a blue finish, Field Stabilising Element (FSE) technology, Wide Range Damping (WRD) technology, a Replicant 100 Diamond stylus and updated Ortofon Rubber Dampers. Based on the company’s classic MC A90 design, Ortofon says about the new model: “each cartridge is meticulously hand assembled and undergoes rigorous quality control to ensure an authentic and immersive vinyl experience. With a richly detailed midrange and extended frequency response, the MC 90X stays true to the original recording, offering refined listening that continues the legacy of the MC A90. “One of the MC 90X’s standout features is the Wide Range Damping system, which ensures outstanding linear frequency response…

PRICE: £1,150 AVAILABLE: NOW WEB: PROJECT-AUDIO.COM HENLEYAUDIO.CO.UK ROCK FANS REJOICE for Pro-Ject Audio Systems has released a new addition to its Artist Collection: the hand-made, limited–edition Pro-Ject AC/DC Turntable. Featuring a lightning-bolt design related to the awesome band’s logo, it comes with a red LED-lit subplatter, acrylic 8.6in tonearm with spring antiskating, heavy glass platter, MDF plinth, flat silicon belt which connects to the AC motor and a pre-fitted premium Ortofon 2M Red cartridge.…

Long story short, Essexbased Ruark – a family business founded in 1985 by father and son Brian and Alan O’Rourke – started off making some of the best-looking and sounding British speakers to grace a music lover’s lounge. With cabinets exquisitely crafted from real wood, model names to raise the blood like Sabre, Crusader and Excalibur, and a warm, scalable sound with an unerring ability to nail the sweet spot, few rivals could get close when it came to melding a gorgeous aesthetic with seriously good sonics. A trained cabinet maker, O’Rourke senior knew how to weigh the contribution of materials and construction in matters of sound quality, and it’s been a touchstone of the company’s ‘process’ ever since. Yet, as the millennium and retirement for Brian approached, Ruark’s centre…

This iconic moving-magnet cartridge has had a weird and wonderful history since it was launched in 1979, and its latest incarnation – the Concorde Music – is surely its best yet. It began life as a product for convenience-conscious audiophiles. With striking styling – reminiscent of the nose section of the supersonic passenger jet of the same name – it plugged directly into tonearms with SME-type bayonet headshell sockets. At this time, most decks were fitted with precisely this, so it made sense to combine headshell and cartridge in one body. Not only did it mean that the geometry would be correct, but its slimline profile made hand-cueing an absolute breeze. Then, as the fashion for SME-type S-shaped headshells passed into relative obscurity, the Concorde found a new life on…

There are points where the evolution of two-channel audio appears almost wilfully non-linear. At one level, we have a process by which integrated amplifiers are taking on ever more functionality to the point where defining an integrated amp and an all-in-one system really comes down to the disposition of the manufacturer. Against this, the two-box pre and power amp should be something we are seeing less of, but – for various reasons – this isn’t the case in reality. The latest to go down the pre/power route is Audiolab – a company with considerable pedigree in two-box amplification. The 9000Q preamp and 9000P power amp are an evolution of the existing 9000A integrated amplifier and, at first glance, there doesn’t appear to be much to show for the process other…

1 U2 AND YOU TOO Bono: Stories of Surrender is coming to Apple TV+ on 30 May. Described as: “a lyrical, bold visual exploration of Bono’s one-man show by the same name” it’s based on the U2 singer’s memoir, Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story. The promotional blurb says Bono: “pulls back the curtain on a remarkable life and the family, friends and faith that have challenged and sustained him, revealing personal stories about his journey as a son, father, husband, activist and rock star. Along with never-before-seen exclusive footage from the Beacon Theatre shows, the film features Bono performing many of the iconic U2 songs that have shaped his life and legacy.” Also set to premiere on 30 May on Apple Vision Pro, Bono: Stories of Surrender (Immersive) will be the…