Innholdsfortegnelse for July 2020 i What Hi-Fi?

View offers Streaming service £5.99/month whf.cm/DisneyPlus Once upon a time, a man called Walt Disney founded Walt Disney Studios with his brother and became one of the best-known motion-picture animators in the world. Fast forward nearly 100 years, more than 400 movies and more than 60 Academy Award wins and, thanks to Disney Plus, nearly every Disney title ever committed to celluloid is now available to stream in one place. Disney Plus (Disney+) is a natural rival to the likes of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+, and is now available in the US, Canada, the UK and several European countries. It offers a rich catalogue of films and TV shows from Disney and its subsidiaries – Lucasfilm, Marvel, Pixar and National Geographic, as well as a slate of…

View offers 50in 4K television £349 whf.cm/R50B7120UK The Hisense R50B7120UK is the first Roku TV to land in the UK. The Roku platform has been available to UK users through the stick and box HDMI add-ons, but has never been built into a TV before. Here, though, it features in a 50in, direct LED-backlit TV with a 4K resolution, HDR support and all the apps you could possibly need. And all at a staggeringly low price. There’s something reassuring about the no-frills look of this Hisense. The frame and rear are both dark grey plastic and there’s no hiding the fact with any kind of chrome-look finish. The stand is a pair of no-nonsense V-shaped feet and there’s a fairly even slim bezel running around the screen. Optical and USB…

Chord’s 2go is a brilliant way to add streaming capability to the company’s Awardwinning Hugo 2 DAC (£1799). Together, they are one of the most capable premium music streamers on the market, yet take up less space than a typical paperback book. This pairing is portable, and can run up to 12 hours on its internal batteries. It’s too large for most pockets, but small enough to fit into a bag or rucksack. The 2go is more than just a DLNA streamer. Its two microSD card slots can handle up to 4TB of stored music files, meaning the Chord can work as a server, with any other device on the same network playing songs stored on it. Add Tidal and Qobuz capability alongside Internet radio, Bluetooth and Airplay, and you…

Naim is proud of its ND 555 music streamer. It’s the first of the company’s streaming products to gain 500 series status: in Naim-speak that means it’s the very best it makes. The ND 555 is claimed to be a new design, but focuses on evolutionary thinking. Considering the success the company has had with its approach over the decades, that’s no bad thing. If you spend £13.5k on a streamer, you’d expect it to work straight from the box. But that’s not the case here, as the ND 555 doesn’t have a built-in power supply. You’ll need to add one of the company’s 555 PS DR outboard power units for another £7.5k – so what we have here is a £21k music streamer. At the forefront of streaming Naim…

If you’re after the best phono stage money can buy, this Burmester is a good place to start. There are plenty of choices at ‘money no object’ levels, but few that can match the 100 Phono’s modular nature, feature list and sumptuous build. The base version of this unit comes in at the price we’ve quoted. This can support a single turntable (with either a moving-magnet or moving-coil module) and pass the amplified signal through single-ended or balanced XLR outputs. If you’re lucky enough to run two turntables, the 100 can be equipped with a second phono module – available both for MM and MC cartridges. A digital option There is also the option to add an analogue-to-digital converter into the mix. Why would you want to add that? It…

We reviewed the Spendor’s original D7s back in 2013. At the time we loved the slim floorstanders’ combination of cut-glass clarity and natural dynamics, while also appreciating their classy appearance. Seven years on, it seems the company has played it rather safe with the updated D7.2s. But is it too safe? The big changes are under the skin and, in truth, not particularly headlinegrabbing. But it’s clear that Spendor’s engineers haven’t spent the past few years twiddling their fingers – they have improved an already excellent product. The company has done a lot of work in that slender, 95cm tall cabinet. It’s always been a solid and well-damped enclosure but the engineers have revised the bracing and further refined the use of the small, low-mass constrained polymer dampers between the…

Italian hi-fi brand Sonus Faber is known as a purveyor of luxurious yet sonically gifted high-end speakers, often featuring curvaceous solid wood panels with classy leather-wrapped fronts. The first generation Electa Amator was one of the speakers to establish that template, and this 38cm-tall third generation model displays plenty of the same DNA. The 28mm soft-dome tweeter is the best high-frequency unit the company makes, while the 18cm mid/bass has been designed specifically for the new Amator. It uses an exotic cone made of a blend of natural fibres and is mounted in a cast aluminium chassis. Sturdy structure The cabinet is made of solid walnut rather than the usual veneered MDF, and once the 30mm thick Carrera marble base and thin brass plate are added, the result is an…

Ever heard of the Rega Naiad? Don’t worry, not many people have. It’s the best record player Rega can make and was designed with little regard for cost or ease of manufacture. As a result it costs some £30,000. What’s all this got to do with the Planar 10? Well, the Naiad is a production deck, but Rega will make only 50 and it can’t be made on a standard production line. The Planar 10 is the closest the company has got to a proper massproduction version which can be made relatively easily. It should offer a good slice of the Naiad’s performance at a more approachable, if still premium, price. Visual impact As we unpack the deck, our attention is grabbed by that minimalist and dramatically styled plinth. It’s…

SME doesn’t follow fashion. Its focus has always been on high-quality engineering delivered in a nocompromise way. Take a look at any of the company’s turntables or arms and that obsession for quality is impossible to miss, and goes a long way towards explaining their hefty price tags. The Synergy package is made up of the 12 turntable with a dedicated arm that’s essentially the highly regarded SME IV (but internally rewired with leads from Crystal Cables) and an Ortofon MC Windfeld Ti cartridge. Perhaps the biggest surprise is the inclusion of a built-in phono stage from Swiss high-end hi-fi royalty Nagra. Considering many of Nagra’s products tend to cost way more than the complete Synergy package that’s quite some coup. A true heavyweight Just lifting the packaging makes it…

The Technics SL-G700 straddles generations of digital formats by playing discs – CD and SACD – as well as streaming music from across a network or via Bluetooth. AirPlay, MQA and Chromecast are on the menu too. At first glance, the SL-G700 looks like a premium-priced product and certainly feels hefty, weighing in at more than 12kg. That substance is backed-up with rigid, nicely damped casework and a standard of finish few rivals can better. The controls work with well-oiled precision, though the buttons seem crowded on the right side, with an oddly proportioned display for company. Much of the front panel is bare apart from the headphone and USB sockets and a power button on the other side of that silky smooth CD drawer. At the back are balanced…

Want to know the best CD player we’ve heard? The answer is depressingly expensive. It’s Chord’s Blu Mk II transport combined with its range topping digital-to-analogue converter, the DAVE. Quality costs, and in this case the price is a hefty £16,000 for the pair. But regardless of price, we haven’t heard a more insightful or transparent CDplaying alternative. The Blu MkII transport doesn’t have to be partnered with the DAVE though, Chord’s Hugo 2 (£1800) will work well too. Clever processing While the transport is capable of working with all DACs, you really need one that will accept sampling rates of 768kHz to make full use of it, because Chord has built a high-powered upscaler capable of lots of clever processing to extract CD’s 16-bits of data as accurately as…

When it comes to high-end amplification, few brands are as prestigious as Mark Levinson. The company helped establish the idea of high-end hi-fi in the 1970s and, despite going through a few fallow periods, remains one of its leading lights. The No 5805 has quite some legacy to live up to. It may not be obvious from that hefty price tag, but this integrated is pretty much the entry point into the company’s amplifier range. Its sister model, the No 5802 (£6999), is built into the same chassis but offers only digital inputs. So, if you require analogue line ins or a phono stage, you’ll need to buy the one we’ve got on test here. It’s a pretty well equipped unit, with three analogue line-level inputs, including a balanced XLR,…

German brand Burmester deserves to be considered as hi-fi royalty. It has been building premium amplification since the late ’70s and has grown into one of the stalwarts of the high-end industry, making every part of the audio chain from record players and music steamers to speakers. Yes, this pairing costs more than £36,000, but it still sits only around halfway up the brand’s range. Choose Burmester’s top stereo pre/power pairing, the 077 and 159 monoblocs, and you’re looking at the best part of £200,000. Features The 088 borrows heavily from that range-topping 077 preamplifier – it too is a dual-mono design. Take a look inside and you’ll find the circuits are beautifully laid out, and it’s obvious that the company takes a great deal of care in the quality…

If we had to name the best sounding in-ear headphones we’ve heard, Shure’s KSE1500s would top the list. We reviewed these electrostatic buds in 2016, and their combination of clever engineering and brilliant sound bagged five stars – and our deep affection. The KSE1500s are eye-wateringly expensive though, costing around £2550 in most retailers. That’s where the KSE1200s come in. These are the KSE1500s with a simplified, analogueonly amplifier. Better value, we think – but still a pricey proposition. Why does Shure supply an amplifier in the first place? Electrostatic headphones have particular electrical requirements that mean they can’t simply be plugged into any old headphone output. Such headphones work by having a highly charged, light diaphragm between two metal grids. The music signal is fed to those grids and…

What is 8K? 8K refers to resolution – the number of horizontal and vertical pixels in an image. Pixels equals information, so more pixels should, in theory, make for a better quality image. 8K, has a horizontal resolution of 7680 pixels and a vertical resolution of 4320 pixels. 4K has half the number of horizontal and vertical lines (3840 x 2160) and Full HD is 1920 x 1080. Count the pixels up and 8K has four times as many as 4K and 16 times more than Full HD. Who is making 8K content? Filmmakers use cameras with sensors that range from 4K to 8K, though films will be finished at either 2K or 4K. The Japanese Broadcasting Corporation, NHK, ran a series of 8K trials in 2015 and in 2016…

EXPERIENCE. HERITAGE. We’ve been helping the world discover the best in hi-fi and home entertainment for more than 40 years, and have more than 100 years of reviewing experience under our collective belts – so you can count on our expert opinion. DEDICATED TEST FACILITIES We test every product against its peers in our brand-new, bespoke reviewing facilities in London and Bath. We conduct all our tests as a team – our opinions and conclusions are always the result of collaboration. HOW WE SCORE All review verdicts are agreed upon by the team as a whole – not an individual reviewer. Each product will be listened to and/or viewed by several members of the test team, who will then discuss the final verdict before it appears in the magazine or…

View offers Powered speakers £499 whf.cm/a26 The Audio Pro A26 powered speakers are the first standmounters in the Swedish company’s popular multi-room range. Alongside the A36 floorstanders released at the same time, they break new ground as part of the first dedicated stereo range in the series. Armed with an impressive array of connectivity, including an HDMI ARC input to turn them into speakers for TV sound, the A26s are positioned as an all-round living-room sound system. They are fitted with the latest low-latency Bluetooth codec, Spotify Connect, the Audio Pro app featuring all the major music services and networked streaming abilities. On paper, at least, the A26s have more or less everything you could wish for. Our black review sample looks rather plain on the eye, though the alternative,…

The Cambridge Audio Edge NQ is a pre-amplifier and network streamer that can play music from your home network. It also features Spotify Connect, Google Chromecast, Apple AirPlay, Bluetooth aptX HD, internet radio and Universal Plug and Play playback. Cambridge says the Edge series is its best hi-fi electronics to date, and the company has designed as short a signal path as possible to reduce the chance of colour or distortion being added to the sound. Capacitors were removed from the signal path and a DC coupled topology was introduced to the circuit board. Cambridge says this gives an ‘incredibly clean and concise’ signal. The Edge NQ also has a solid-state volume control to ensure channels are kept balanced, regardless of the volume. High performance Cambridge is also conscious of…

Vertere Acoustics’ Phono-1 MkII may not look particularly special, but if you’re after a phono stage at anywhere near the £1000 mark, it simply has to be heard. This plain-looking box turns out to be a carefully considered product with a wide range of settings that ensures compatibility with most price-compatible cartridges. Look underneath… That clean front with its solo power switch isn’t the panel to focus on. With its initially dizzying collection of dipswitches, the underside of the case is far more interesting. Take a careful look and it all starts to make sense with adjustments for gain – from 45.4 to 61.4dB in 12 steps – as well as a multitude of settings for capacitance and resistance. Get these adjustments right (check your cartridge’s technical specifications for the…

The ProAc Response D2Rs are intended to complement rather than replace the original and still current Response D2s (L2165). The big news is the inclusion of a ribbon tweeter, the first time buyers of ProAc’s standmounters have had such a choice. There’s no curved cabinet or particularly fancy cone materials here, instead it’s a mid-sized standmounter that stands 43cm high. The cabinet is made of 15mm thick marine ply lined with heavy bituminous damping. The idea is to move cabinet resonances away from the midrange – where our hearing is at its most acute – and into the bass where it’s less sensitive. The ribbon tweeter is the same 60 x 10mm unit as used on the company’s dearer Response models. There’s a damped rear chamber behind the diaphragm to…

Entry-level is a relative term. In Wilson Benesch’s world, it refers to the Precision range. The P1.0s are the babies, both in terms of size and price. They’re about as big as a couple of stacked shoeboxes and have an internal volume of around 14 litres. They are also deceptive in that the stands are an integral part of the structure. In fact, you could even describe them as floorstanding standmounters. While the P1.0s come in at the bottom of the company’s range, there’s no sense of compromise in the engineering and technology. The hand-built 17cm Tactic II mid/bass driver used here is identical to that used in the company’s rangetopping L140,000 Eminence. This mid/bass driver is an innovative in-house design that uses an Isotactic Polypropylene cone claimed to deliver…

We have used ATC’s SCM50 as our reference speakers for more than a decade. In that time they’ve been connected to just about every piece of electronics that has passed through our test rooms, and have never once let us down. Our reference speakers need to be a transparent window to the sources and amplification we test, and these ATCs fit the bill superbly. They are even-handed speakers that don’t put a significant twist on the signal they’re fed. Rated at just 85dB/W/m, they aren’t sensitive, nor are they are they particularly demanding to drive, meaning even budget amplifiers can work well with them. Compare the SCM50s with most rivals and, on paper, there seems to be little to shout about. They are large three-way standmounters, built in a pretty…

Vertere Acoustics is a hard company to define. It was founded around a decade ago and focused on some quite extravagantly designed high-end cables. That range has since expanded to cover most price points, but in 2013 the company took a left turn by producing a statement record player. The MG-1 MkII is just the second step-up in Vertere’s four-strong turntable family, though once arm and cartridge are included it still sits firmly in the high-end sector of the market. And a very polished product it is too. At the heart of the turntable’s structure is a triple-layered acrylic construction that uses precisely tuned rubber isolation mounts to control and filter the flow of vibrations within the deck. Design innovation There are so many interesting details here, from a motor…

Chord Electronics’ domination of the premium digital-to-analogue converter market has been spectacular. From the portable Mojo to the high end DAVE, it has swept aside all-comers, winning loads of five-star ratings and Awards in the process. But, while the likes of the Mojo, Qutest, Hugo and DAVE were allconquering superstars at their respective price points, the original TT was, relatively speaking, merely very good. The Mk 2 version seeks to move the TT out of the shadows cast by the rest of its talented family. Physically, it sticks to the squarish template set by its predecessor. The Mojo’s stylistic influence is felt strongly here, with a refinement of the porthole windows and cosmetic flourishes the company has become known for. Build quality is excellent, with the unit feeling suitably solid…

The CDA2 Mk2 packs a CD player, fully featured digital-to-analogue converter and a high quality analogue preamplifier. It’s not a common combination of abilities, and while the obvious path is to compare this ATC with separates components that add up to the similar overall price, that doesn’t seem wholly fair. Going the separates route triples the box count and adds the cost (and mess) of additional cabling, but potentially at least, delivers a better quality of sound. Or so we thought. While ATC is best known for its speakers, the company has made electronics for years. The power modules in its active speakers and its range of stand-alone amplification have gained praise, but never quite held the limelight. Premium chip The CDA2 uses a premium 32-bit AKM DAC chip, chosen…

Put Classé’s CDP-202 next to pretty much any current high-end CD player and, in most cases, the 2006 product will look the more modern of the two. That’s some testament to the unit’s stylish looks and Classé’s ambitious engineering. Calling this unit just a CD player is under-selling it somewhat though. Thanks to the use of a TEAC slot-loading DVD-ROM drive it can play CD-Rs, Video CDs, DVD-Video and high-resolution DVD-Audio discs as well. What about SACD? While the format was still alive and well at the time this player was introduced, Classé chose not to include it as that would limit the company’s choice of transport mechanism. Back then, it seemed as though DVD-Audio and SACD would be the future of high-quality music formats, and so the omission of…

Krell is one of the founder members of the market sector we now know as the high-end. Back in the 80s, alongside Mark Levinson and a handful of others, it raised performance standards (and price tags) to deliver some of the finest hi-fi ever made. The K-300i integrated is intended to bring Krell bang up-to-date in terms of connectivity without sacrificing the performance levels with which the company has become synonymous. Available in either black or silver, this substantial amplifier (44 x 46cm) lives up to our expectations in the metal. It’s an imposing-looking unit with a clean but brutal appearance that couldn’t be anything other than a product made by Krell. And it’s superby made. We have a complaint though. That simple control layout isn’t particularly intuitive in use,…

What is the best amplifier in the world? Indeed, does such a thing even exist? Tough questions, but if sonic honesty and engineering integrity are anywhere near the top of your priorities – and the hefty price doesn’t make you baulk – we think this Ayre pre/power pairing is in with a strong shout. It’s certainly the most insightful amplifier we’ve reviewed in years. One-piece construction That distinctive casework is machined from a solid billet of aluminium rather than a bent-steel chassis with separate aluminium panels, as most rivals are. It gives this range-topping preamp a deeply impressive feeling of structural solidity. The quality of fit and finish is excellent, just as the price point demands. Both of the control dials work with pleasing precision and have a robust feel.…

Music is made by artists so it must be art, right? Indeed, but in physical terms it can also be art beyond the music. And no other format highlights that quite like vinyl. The history of vinyl is strewn with artistic endeavour, just as it is with gimmickry and perceptibly aimless experimentation. Whatever you make of it all is (probably) up to you. Size and speed Let’s start small. Limited to 300 copies, Pea Brain zine’s ADHD EP is a mere two inches wide. It’s the smallest dedicated vinyl record we have found and contains ten-second songs from six Southampton and Portsmouth punk bands. On the face of it that could sound senseless beyond the merit of its absurdity, but plenty of bands come to mind whose songs would benefit…

Termination The price we list is for a cable from a reel. However, the chances are you’ll want it terminated - which means having a connection plug fitted - and that will add to the final cost. It does make set-up much easier though. Direction Many cables come with arrows showing which way they should be connected – out of the amp, into the speaker. If there are no obvious markings or arrows on your cable, look for writing and make sure it reads in the same direction of the music flow, ie from amp to speakers. It’s a controversial subject, but it can make a difference. Length When you’re measuring up for a new speaker cable, ideally you should use the same length for both left and right speakers,…

View offers 4K television £3499 whf.cm/OLED65gx In our world, few things are more exciting than the arrival of the year’s first LG OLED TV. An LG OLED has taken the top TV prize in our Awards for the past three years, so there’s a good chance that the first new model of the year could be a future Award-winner. What’s more, with almost every model in LG’s OLED range having the same picture performance, the first one gives a good indication of what to expect from the brand for the year ahead. On top of that, because LG sells its OLED panels to almost every other TV manufacturer, we also get a good look at the broad state of the TV landscape. We would usually like to start the year…

View offers Bluetooth receiver £129 whf.cm/ZenBlue Want an easy way to add Bluetooth connectivity to your traditional stereo system? Just buy iFi’s new Zen Blue. While there are a number of cheaper Bluetooth receivers already on the market, this is one of a handful that puts a priority on good sound. Compact quality It’s a really nicely built unit that takes up less shelf space than a typical paperback. We were expecting a moulded plastic box, but what we get is a quality aluminium casing that’s finished to a far higher standard than the price suggests. That impression of substance is reinforced when we take a look inside. The Zen Blue uses a premium Qualcomm QCC5100 ‘system on a chip’ Bluetooth solution. But, rather than using the Qualcomm’s internal digital-to-analogue…

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Putting a true value on an item can be a tricky thing. It’s undeniable that individual pieces of hi-fi equipment can be eye-wateringly expensive and quite out of the reach of most people. But, then, if you break down the amount of use you get out of something into a cost per day, and assess the amount of pleasure it gives you, sometimes things can start to look somewhat more reasonable. Clearly, this needs to be put into perspective and, in these difficult times, it’s not easy to justify spending a lot of money on a hobby; but one thing the coronavirus lockdown and isolation has highlighted recently is the great psychological and spiritual value that listening to music can have on an individual and a community. Sometimes, too, it’s…

Moon’s 390 is a terrific example of the new breed of products where streamer functionality is included, along with a range of facilities that move quality hi-fi firmly into the realm of multi-room and convenience. Alongside network streaming, it has Tidal, Qobuz, Deezer and TuneIn radio, as well as useful features such as a switchable MM/MC phono stage and headphone output; it’s Roon-ready too. Added to all that is a terrific range of physical connectivity. Digitally it has USB, optical, coaxial and AES/EBU. Unusually, there’s also HDMI with four ins and a single output, so the 390 will integrate comfortably in an AV set-up. Analogue hasn’t been ignored. There are balanced XLR and single-ended line-level options for both input and output. That phono stage is a configurable module, able to…

Phono stages aren’t the most glamorous item in a hi-fi chain. But if you want to hear your cherished record player at its best, a good one is essential. We’ve heard few better than Luxman’s EQ-500, regardless of price. Usually phono stages are nondescript little boxes; not this one. Luxman has built the EQ-500 into a full-sized casework and packed it full of toggle switches, dials and meters. It’s hard to imagine more features, and the majority are very useful too. There are switches to govern whether the unit sends out the signal balanced or single-ended, and for its phase. Further toggles govern impedance (for movingmagnet cartridges only), high- and low-pass filtering, type (moving-magnet, high- and low-output moving-coil), stereo/mono and inputs. Everything to gain There’s a two-stage gain adjustment for…

Retro is in, and that’s a fact not lost on JBL. Its original L100 speakers remain the most iconic product the company has ever made, entering into pop culture as the speaker in the famous 1980s Maxell advert. The Classics emulate their predecessor’s appearance, clearly, but it’s a new design using the best technology and engineering the company can deliver at this price. JBL still refers to these three-way standmounters as ‘bookshelf’ models, despite being 64cm tall and having the frontal area of a small fridge. To help with positioning, the company makes a pair of low, welded-metal frame stands for the Classics, called the JS-120 (L325). The overall build is good, though not overly luxurious. The front and back of the L100s is painted black, but other panels are…

Audiovector’s R3 range of floorstanders is available in three performance levels, where the models differ in drive units, crossover and structural details in the cabinets. The Arreté level we have on test here is the range topper If you buy into the lower levels, you can upgrade to the premium models for the retail price difference, plus a little extra, opening up an upgrade path few rivals can emulate. But does the Arreté spec challenge the best at the price? The speakers look lovely. Those curved, strategically braced HDF cabinets are claimed to be 25 per cent stronger than the previous generation and are available in four finish options – Italian walnut, black ash, white silk or African rosewood. The finish is as good as the price demands and the…

We recently reviewed ProAc’s Response D2R standmounters and were blown away by their musical excellence and immensely likeable nature. On the surface, they are relatively unassuming boxes, with only the use of a ribbon tweeter to separate them from the hoard of other premium two-way standmounters out there. But start listening and you’ll find that they’re in another class to most of the competition as far as sound quality goes. ProAc has a long history of turning out musically captivating speakers that look ordinary on paper. Don’t forget, this is a small company that simply doesn’t have the resources of the biggest players in order to push the boundaries of technology. What it does have, though, is an engineering team that is expert in mixing conventional (but high-quality) ingredients with…

Few hi-fi brands enjoy the kind of high-street recognition as Technics – and that’s pretty much down to the legendary status of its SL1210 turntables in DJ circles. The company’s turntable range currently includes three domestic models, ranging from just over £1000 to the high-end beast we have on test here. The SL-1000R sits at the top in Technics’s hierarchy, and to say it’s a beast is no understatement. It weighs in at more than 40kg – so it’s a two-person lift – and, at more than 50cm wide, it’s a stretch for most turntable supports. A direct approach The heart of this turntable is its direct-drive motor. That’s the main point of differentiation from most other high-end alternatives on the market, which invariably tend to be belt-driven. On paper,…

Cambridge-based dCS has an enviable digital audio heritage – from developing digital products for military agencies to making digital converters for pro use – and that experience shines through in the Rossini DAC (£17,090) and Master Clock (£5520). To call the Rossini a DAC is understating its capabilities; dCS labels it an Upsampling Network DAC. It is more of a digital hub for a system rather than a mere digital-to-analogue converter. It packs a UPnP music streamer, supports Tidal, Spotify Connect, Deezer and Apple Airplay, and works as a digital preamplifier. Just add a power amp or active speakers to get sound. File support for streaming is excellent. All the major digital formats are covered, making the Rossini about as accommodating as we would hope for. In-house technology Look inside…

Marantz doesn’t often produce top-end disc players, but when it does they are usually done right. So it proves again with the SA-10. The SA-10 also reads SACDs and music stored on DVD-ROMs. File compatibility from disc is impressive, ranging from 24-bit/192kHz FLACs and DSD128 all the way to ALAC, AIFF and MP3s. Marantz has developed its own high-end transport, the all-new SACD-M3, which is designed to read the music data off the disc as accurately as possible the first time around. Marantz has also taken the opportunity to revise the entire signal path and come up with a new digital-to-analogue section too. The company calls its system Marantz Music Mastering, and it incorporates elements of the single-bit conversion that it has used in the past, but with new filtering…

Specialist Danish manufacturer Copland sells this integrated amplifier alongside a cheaper integrated, a pre/power combination and a DAC – all of which make use of valve circuitry in some way. The CTA408 is a chunky unit, standing taller than our reference Gamut D3i/D200i pre/power combination when stacked. It’s hardly a compact solution, so there’s not much in the way of actual space saving with this integrated, even if it does away with multiple boxes and a mess of interconnects. It’s heavy too, weighing in at a substantial 25kg, and it generates a fair bit of heat thanks to its valve-based design, so as well as a sturdy support it needs a fair bit of ventilation. Quality look and feel Overall build is as good as we’ve come to expect from…

Swiss high-end brand Nagra originally built its reputation on exceptionally engineered portable recording equipment for the broadcast, movie and security industries. Its first domestic component, the legendary PL-P preamp, still sets the aesthetic template that the company follows today. The Classic’s front-panel display shows the input chosen and helps in the overall set-up, although it leaves little room for information, and off-axis contrast levels aren’t great. Delve into the menus and you can change the input names, set the balance, switch from mono to stereo and check on valve life. Beautifully built Few products we come across feel as well made as these two. Both are made with obsessive attention to detail, from the way the aluminium panels are machined and assembled to the neatness of the circuit layout and…

The Grado GS3000es need a listening room. That sounds like an odd thing to say about a pair of headphones, but get a pair and that’s exactly what you’ll wish for. They have an open-backed design. They not only leak out lots of sound but they let in everything too. Voices, traffic noises, kettles boiling, you name it – all will intrude on your listening experience. During testing, it isn’t long before we see the look of disapproval from anyone sitting near us, once the high-frequency ‘tiss-tiss’ emanating from these cans starts getting on their nerves. The solution? Go to a quiet space, away from anyone likely to disturb or be disturbed. A dedicated listening room, for instance. A bold statement Grado claims these are the finest wooden-cased headphones it…

What do you need? The basic building blocks are: a turntable, a phono stage, an analogue-to- digital converter with USB output, and a computer with suitable recording software. There are turntables that come with a phono stage, analogue-to-digital converter and USB output built in. However, most are at the budget end and focus on getting the job done rather than doing it particularly well. Your recordings won’t necessarily reflect the quality of sound possible from your records, though Audio Technica’s AT-LP5 and Sony PS-HX500 vinyl-ripping decks do their best to buck that trend. If you already have a turntable, the best option is to buy a decent USB phono stage. We like the £90 Rega Fono Mini A2D and Pro-Ject also produce decent affordable alternatives. Recording software Channel D’s Pure…

Setting up a ‘Household’ account Amazon Prime Video will recommend content based on your viewing history - but what if you’re really into crime thrillers, your other half loves romantic comedies and the kids love cartoons? The answer is by linking together two Amazon accounts that will both have access to Prime Video. Go to Your Account > Shopping Programmes > Amazon Household. There you can add another adult or profiles for children, and then click ‘Create Household’. Parental Controls You can set up a four-digit PIN on the web by going into the ‘Settings’ of the Prime Video section and also in the mobile app’s settings. Streaming Ultra HD video On Amazon’s TV app there’s a category populated with Ultra HD content. You can also search for ‘4K’ or…