Articles Archive - Page 159 of 268

Cyrus Audio One HD integrated amplifier

The Cyrus One (tested in Issue 144) was a bold new departure for Cyrus. In a redesigned, more cost-effective half-sized case (not the evergreen traditional cast Cyrus case of the company’s more long-standing range), the One was a bold move for the company because it was app controlled, sported an aptX Bluetooth receiver and used Cyrus’ own Class D amplifier circuits in everything except the headphone amp. Because it was designed for a new generation of buyers, the remote control was moved out of the box, typically meaning users would control the amp from their smartphones.

While the Cyrus One stays in the range, the Cyrus One HD has been developed to meet the demands of a more connected audience, in the process giving Cyrus the opportunity to revisit the original One and improve the circuit slightly. The headline differences are the use of Cyrus’ fourth-generation Class D circuits in place of the third-generation found in the original model, which beef up the power to 110W per channel, and a built-in DAC (with S/PDIF and USB connections). The only other big change is the remote; there is one with the One, whereas the One HD recognises that task is now taken up by the app and the remote handset is now a thing of the past. Otherwise, the two are on-paper identical; both have a great Class AB headphone amp stage, and a built-in MM phono stage, both feed the Class D stages via a linear power supply, and both use a Speaker Impedance Detection system to ensure the frequency response remains flat for different loads.

Cyrus Speaker Impedance Detection works by measuring the high frequency impedance of the connected loudspeaker using a microcontroller. By performing some maths, we then apply an appropriate correction curve to remove the frequency response deviations that would otherwise be present from the Class D reconstruction filter. Unlike other Class D amplifier systems (often off-the-peg modules), the custom-made designs in the One HD are perfectly comfy driving some traditionally off-limits loads for a Class D design.

We decided to keep this review shorter than usual because a lot of what applies to the One HD applied to the One. Relaid circuit and new power amplifier stages aside, much of the functionality and operational action of the original applies to the new (you lose a line input to gain a DAC and the rear panel has had a redesign to accommodate that DAC). Installation is simplicity itself and the accompanying ‘Get Started’ yellow-on-black cheat sheet shows you all you need to do without even the medium of words. There is also an accompanying and more comprehensive manual from Cyrus, and is supplied in tree-saving mode (online). And if you download the Cyrus ONE Remote app, everything is golden. Bluetooth is a click away and although you might find everyone in the family fighting for access, the amplifier behaves itself perfectly from an operational front. Cyrus deliberately went for the ‘KISS’ (Keep It Simple, Stupid) approach to next-generation amp design and – coming barely one step removed from the “press any key to continue… where’s the ‘any’ key?” school of IT smarts, I welcome this rudimentary yet robust approach. It means you can be up and running with the One HD about as quickly as you can be with a conventional analogue amplifier, just with the addition of a USB connection and Bluetooth as 21st Century concessions.

The Cyrus One HD is a very level-headed performer, more in the cut of classic Audiolab products than the zingy excitement of modern-day Naim Audio, or even what we have come to expect from Cyrus Audio’s own ‘singing shoeboxes’. It takes a more cerebral, more mannered approach to musical replay than often heard today. In the write-up of the original version, this is perhaps taken too far, leaving the sound somewhat lacking in rhythmic drive, but here that seems to be less of a concern. I’m not as guided by pace and timing as Jason Kennedy, but neither am I deaf to the notion of ‘keeping good time’: the Cyrus One HD can follow a tune better than its Cyrus One predecessor and, although this is never going to be a strong point with the design, it’s only going to strike a negative tone with those obsessed by this aspect of musical presentation.

One HD’s overall delivery is excellent. It delivers an accurate and honest-top-to-bottom performance, with no editorialising, such as thickening up the bass, or pushing the upper mids forward to add emphasis to the presence region. In fact, it has excellent bass for one so small – really deep powerful bass that helps tympani underpin the sound of an orchestra, and bass guitars underpin the sound of rock. There is some commonality of sound between the One and the One HD, here, and even if the One HD is the superior performer, the perceived gap is small.

In essence, you are paying a premium for an on-board DAC, and its here that the Cyrus plays a strong hand. The DAC is a perfect match for the Cyrus One, and the two harnessed together deliver an extremely detailed and agile sound with outstanding bass. My normal fare of obscure pieces of modern classical music has been set aside for a while, as I’ve been ploughing through old school reggae and especially dub (it’s funny how our tastes ebb and flow). Listening to ‘Banana and Yam Skank’ from Dangerous Dubby King Tubby [VP records on Tidal], the heavy dub vibe has some real force behind it especially on smaller loudspeakers (which sound like they have taken on bigger proportions, suggesting an amplifier with a bit of grip. While this track doesn’t really go anywhere, the cheesy organ intro, the shouty plate reverb, and the guitar parts all sound very enticing. The hi-hat beat is perhaps very slightly loose, but the same could be said for the entire track, and is not something to moan about!

Music here has surprising body and substance, and yet is even-handed, especially if you use the One HD with real-world loudspeakers commensurate with its price. Cyrus makes a matching loudspeaker, but I suspect many retailers will want to partner this with lower cost Monitor Audio, Bowers & Wilkins, and KEF models, and those will work extremely well with the One HD. It’s not a powerhouse, but it can go loud without changing its tonality, and this will win the One HD many friends.

Overall, I like the sound of the Cyrus Audio One HD. It may not be the last word in pace and timing, but it more than makes up for that in precision, accuracy, and bass depth. The Speaker Impedance Detection circuit is a great move, too. Partnered properly (not too difficult, the amp can deliver up to 78A peak current into a loudspeaker, it makes a closer link between amp and speaker, and gets rid of many of those grumblings directed at Class D. At no time did I reach for the remote handset, either. In short, this might be the amp of tomorrow, today.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Type: Solid-state, two-channel integrated amplifier
Analogue inputs: One MM phono input (via RCA jacks), three single-ended line-level inputs including AV bypass (via RCA jacks)
Digital inputs: Asynchronous USB 2.0 input – up to 32/192 signals, and DSD 64 and DSD 128
Optical Toslink digital input – up to 24/192 signals
Coaxial SPDIF digital input: up to 24/192 signals
aptX HD compatible Bluetooth audio
Analogue outputs: One pre-out pair (via RCA jacks)
Input impedance: 47kΩ
Output impedance (preamp): 47Ω
Headphone Loads: Recommended 32-330Ω)
Power Output: 100Wpc @ 6 Ohms
Bandwidth: -3dB 6Hz-50kHz
Distortion: 1kHz 3rd power 6R <0.01%
Signal to Noise Ratio: 96dBA
Dimensions (H×W×D): 85 ×220 ×390mm
Weight: 5.6kg
Price: £999

Manufacturer: Cyrus Audio

Tel: +44(0)1480 435577

URL: cyrusaudio.com

Back to reviews

Zanden Model 3000mk2 line preamplifier

I had a niggling doubt floating round when reviewing the Zanden Model 9600mk2 power amplifiers. There was something missing; the Zanden Model 3000 line preamplifier had been upgraded to Model 3000mk2 status, completing the full Classic line of phono stage, preamplifier, and mono power amplifiers. This was the older of the two changes, first seen at CES 2017, but in a way discussing one without the other is like talking about Butch without Sundance or tuning in to watch a ‘Hardy’ movie without the ‘Laurel and…’ part. It’s just not done!

The Zanden Model 3000mk2 preamplifier sports three RCA and three XLR line-level inputs and a single set of RCA and XLR outputs to the power amplifier. An all-valve design, the Model 3000mk2 uses a single 5687 double-triode in the input stage and a pair of 6CA4s as line drivers in the output. This gives an 8V output to the power amp, with a low 300Ω output impedance making it ideal for the high 7.5kΩ input impedance for the balanced-only Model 9600mk2 power amps, or long pre/power interconnect cables.

Zanden’s Model 3000mk2 replaces the previous model Model 3000 preamplifier in the Classic Series and includes a number of crucial improvements. The input and output transformers were replaced with amorphous cobalt models (the predecessor used µ-metal on the output transformer). The tube rectified power supply has been completely redesigned. Zanden has also retained the highest quality ALPS analogue potentiometer while successfully implementing a motor drive system to achieve remote volume control. The model Model 3000mk2 also includes a full function remote which controls power, volume, switching of sources, absolute or reverse polarity and a mute function.

The solid excellence of the power amplifiers is echoed in the preamp. The build quality is truly from another world; we sometimes talk about ‘Rolls-Royce’ quality in the best of audio, but this is so sublime Rolls-Royce should be talking about Zanden levels of fit and finish inside its cars. This makes it hellish to photograph; it’s a high key pale gold finish with brushed and shiny chrome, and inset LEDs, and a power supply unit made of the sort of shiny chrome that camera lenses and fingerprints are a continual problem. In use, of course, the preamplifier and power amplifier sit on separate shelves and – aside from the occasional dusting – just look outstanding. Of course the sound is a perfect match, but such is the look and the sound quality, realistically you won’t be using anything else but other amplifier products from the company’s Classic range.

I’m conscious of not going over old ground and effectively re-running the review published in issue 161. So, focussing on the Model 3000mk2, what strikes you is an almost complete absence of background noise. This is expected (but often not delivered) in a solid-state amplifier, but with valve designs there is an understsanding and acceptance that there will be a spot of ‘rushing’ noises from the valves. But there is nothing at all like that. The Zanden Model 3000mk2 is whisper quiet in operation, even with the volume turned up.

The Zanden Model 3000mk2 is perhaps the ultimate expression of audio refinement. Where the power amps brought the beauty and the dynamics, this is all about texture and subtlety. In every angle; from the understated ‘click’ as you change sources, to the styling, and the sound, you can’t help but listen and think of fine jewellery. Not in a ‘bling!’ way, more taking a fine stone and refining it until perfect.

Of course, refinement requires quality. The Zanden Model 3000mk2 does not suffer musical fools gladly. This is a product that demands the best, and delivers the best. Ask any jeweller of note (as in the person who actually works with gems, not just the guy who sold you a watch strap) and they’ll say you can polish any stone to the highest degree and cut facets into that stone that will make it sparkle, but if you have poor quality stones, those facets will never sparkle with the intensity they could deliver. Feed the Model 3000mk2 with extremely well-recorded music and you will be given an excellent response; play something mediocre, and you get highly-polished mediocrity.

In fairness, both preamp and power amplifier conspire to make demands on the musical content, but where the power amplifier reacts to less-than-excellent content by pulling back on the ‘beauteous’ aspect of the performance, the Model 3000mk2’s inherent refinement polishes the right and the wrong edges of music equally. This does not result in an ‘ugly’ sound (I don’t think the Zanden vocabulary includes the word ‘ugly’), but almost too much refinement for the performance.

This refinement aspect shouldn’t be overstated, but neither should it be underplayed. This preamplifier doesn’t omit anything in terms of detail, dynamic range, imaging, transparency, vocal articulation, solidity of image, coherence, micro-dynamics, timbral shading, or any other aspect common to the best of the best in audio, but it does so with an air of sophistication and refinement that is both beguiling and impossible to find elsewhere. This sophistication makes well-recorded music sound like you always wanted it to; shimmeringly beautiful sounds presented in front of you like a hologram, without emphasis or forward tilt, or any kind of excess. And when the music isn’t as perfectly recorded, the Zanden’s ability to sound sublime still shines through, but the limitations of the recording are not papered over in the process. I prefer this approach to the smoothed over interpretation of ‘refinement’ that many amplifiers strive for.

Of all the other attributes associated with audio electronics, I’d say that ‘coherence’ and ‘cohesiveness’ is the key aspect here. It’s not just that the Model 3000mk2 ties the disparate elements of a musical performance together, it’s that it also makes specific instruments within that musical performance sound cohesive.

The key point of the Zanden sound, expressed perfectly in the Model 3000mk2, is that element of unforced sound: not music filtered through the medium of hi-fi, but the sound acoustic music makes in its natural, unamplified, unreproduced raw state. For many, this will be a first-time experience, an antithesis of the hardpedge, forward-tilted, initially impressive sound many audio components produce, even in the top league.

Of course, it’s worth pointing all this out in context, because in context of the Model 9600mk2 power amplifiers, the products work so harmoniously there is little need to look elsewhere. Which means the preamp and power amp should be treated like a single item. Except that I think the Model 3000mk2 is the gateway into the full Zanden experience for those wanting to migrate, but not do so immediately. The character of ‘no character’ that applies to the Model 9600mk2 is built upon the disappearing quality of the Model 3000mk2, and if you applied the Zanden preamp to a regular power amplifier, it’s a more enjoyable intermediary than adding a pre to the Model 9600mk2s.

There is an oft-quoted statement in high-end audio, that good preamps are hard to find. It’s not cliché because it rings true. OK, there are a lot of good preamplifiers, but really great preamplifiers are extremely rare. And the Zanden Model 3000mk2 is one of those really rare, really great preamplifiers. It manages to dig out the refinement in almost any recording, but also plays music like it wasn’t in the system, and its overall tonality makes it exceptionally easy to just sit in front of. Putting it with its partners shows what the Model 3000mk2 is capable of with its wings fully unfurled, but with other amplifiers, the Model 3000mk2’s performance shines through.

Those who define their preamplification by the strong flavours it adds to the system won’t find much to like in the Zanden Model 3000mk2, but many others will listen to this preamplifier and rise to the challenge. Many will hear it, and initially think its fidelity to the source a beguiling, but somewhat academic, exercise. Those willing to go past the first toe of the learning curve, however, will quickly find that they are listening to a preamplifier of rare talent and elegance. It has quicksilver reactions and the kind of dynamic range that few solid-state preamps can match, and has the ability to just get out of the way of the music. That will improve the performance of almost any power amplifier, but when that power amplifier is Zanden’s Model 9600mk2, suddenly your audio system gets moved up into a new league.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Type: valve preamplifier

Tube complement: 1×5687, 2×6CA4s

Inputs: 3×XLR pair, 3×RCA pair

Outputs: 1×XLR pair, 1×RCA pair

Input impedance: 100Ω (XLR/RCA)

Maximum output: 9v

Frequency response: 10Hz–20KHz (-0.5dB)

Dimensions (W×H×D): 39.8 ×10.3 ×25.4cm (main); 17.5×16.5×35.7 (PSU)

Weight: 9.1kg (main), 5.5kg (power)

Price: £24,750

Manufactured by: Zanden Audio Systems Ltd.

URL: zandenaudio.com

Distributed by: Audiofreaks

URL: audiofreaks.co.uk

Tel: +44(0)208 948 4153

Back to reviews

McIntosh MA7200 integrated amplifier

In McIntosh world, there are things that remain forever unchanging. The planet could be on fire, aliens could be taking over and controlling our every action, but so long as McIntosh has that traditional glass with black livery, green logo, and bright blue VU meters, things will be OK. The McIntosh look is distinctive, slightly old fashioned to some eyes, matches precisely nothing apart from other McIntosh products… and any McIntosh fan would have it no other way.

Into this changeless realm of audio comes the MA7200. Irrespective of the look, this is, in fact, about as forward thinking and as flexible an amplifier you can buy, as it drips analogue, digital, and custom install connections. I kind of like the look of McIntosh equipment. Yes, it’s perhaps the most quintessentially American audio design you can think of, but it brings up dewy-eyed memories of classic audio devices of a bygone age, but with state-of-the-art internals.

Or at least, mostly state-of-the-art internals. The unique part to a McIntosh amp design like the MA7200 is that it has a transformer-coupled output stage. With very few early audio exceptions, every solid-state amplifier has more or less fed the output of the power transistors direct to the loudspeaker terminals (often with little more than a Zobel network as protection). Transformer-coupled output stages are the stuff of most valve amplifiers.

There are advantages to this design layout, most notably longevity (those output transistors are playing a less gruelling role) and consistency (you are hearing the sound of the transformers instead of the transistors). But it means that, like a good valve amplifier, you are dependent on the performance of the transformers and they have coil taps for different impedance loudspeakers. McIntosh is a major buyer of output transformers, so quality is a given.

The MA7200 has a bank of five RCA line inputs and a further XLR pair of balanced inputs. For vinyl replay it has separate inputs for MM and MC (in theory, you could have two turntables or two tonearms connected… in reality it’s an either/or thing). However, combine this with the range of digital options (two coax, two TOSlinks, a USB input and what is called MCT for direct connection from one McIntosh digital device to another) and you have an amplifier that simply will not run out of inputs any time soon. It also includes an extensive array of custom-install comms connections for link-ups with home automation systems around the house.

Build quality is… substantial. It’s little wonder that McIntosh ploughs the same furrow as brands like Harley Davidson and SubZero. It has that kind of cachet; American-made products that are built to outlive the original owner. That also makes it damn heavy, and the transformers make it an uneven lift. Fine if there are two of you. Repositioning can reposition bits of you if you try it alone.

Our sample arrived run in… probably. The thing about McIntosh products is this could have been bouncing round in the back of a Jeep for a year and it would still look brand new. The only reason I know it was run in is that I was informed it was run in before the review commenced. There’s a comprehensive manual supplied too, but if you need to refer to a manual, you should probably be stripped of your McIntosh badge. Installation is a breeze, so long as you remember those tapped loudspeaker terminals.

A feature that comes in very handy at the outset is two little red LEDs inset into the middle of the front panel. These indicate muting while the amplifier powers up (they are gone in a couple of seconds), and clipping if you decided to push the amplifier to the limits (with 200W on tap, you really have to push hard). Nevertheless, you’ll find that sometime in the first hour or so of listening, you’ll turn the amp up to ‘see what it can do’ Eventually, you’ll redline the amp, turn it down, only to hear a peculiar banging sound. This comes from your neighbours, who will read you the extract from the Riot Act that includes ‘noise pollution’.

This is a beast and a brute of an amplifier… in all the right ways. It’s the kind of amplifier that drips confidence and control. Not necessarily from a taut grip over the loudspeakers, although that also hits the spot, but from the sense of complete authority it conveys to the music. It’s not total control; in fact, the transformer-coupled output stage allows for some self-determination on the part of the bass cones, in a manner not too dissimilar to that of a good valve amplifier. But in terms of getting music’s house in order, it works extremely well.

The MA7200 has a great deal of finesse to its sound, but with a lot of power to back up that finesse, with a very wide and deep soundstage, but more importantly some of the most embodied and solid images within that soundstage. You get a feeling of real, visceral human beings playing music in a three-dimensional space, but you also get a very good idea of the musical intent behind those musicians.

The MA7200 lends itself toward rock music like the two were made for one another. ‘La Grange’ by ZZ Top [Tres Hombres, London] is the perfect example of this; Billy Gibbons’ swampy guitar licks and his drawl are so in the room that you feel like breaking out the beard oil. You hear all the little string squeaks and Frank Beard’s sophisticated stickwork, and when the whole band steps up a gear, the McIntosh is ready to take it. This is how it should be; loud, bold, and fun.

I’m aware that there could be a dismissal of this amp as ‘brute force and ignorance’ and that it makes a lot of noise and not a lot else. In fact, it’s a more nuanced performer than that. Yes, it has the muscle and sinew to play like a bruiser, but it also has the harmonic structure and refinement to play some more subtle works. Uchida playing Beethoven’s sonatas [Philips] is not perhaps the most nuanced of performances, and anything that played with brute force would make her clean delivery tip over into ‘sterile’, but the amplifier lets her controlled passion take over. Yes, she does sound a little more like she is playing a sewing machine than some of the best of the best, but it remains a great overall presentation.

What I didn’t get in playing the piano pieces was the audiophile richness that sometimes over-exaggerates the performance. Her playing is cool, but some amplifiers make that ‘cold’ while others make it too ‘warm.’ The MA7200 strikes an excellent balance.

Once you get past that initial hurdle of wanting to play the amplifier at full-on levels, what you are left with is a very elegant sounding amplifier with a lot of power in reserve. One of its strongest suits is its ability to play at relatively low listening levels, too. The big amp can sound surprisingly small and quiet when turned down for late night listening.

If I’m going to point to a weakness, it’s possibly in the DAC section. While more than capable, it’s not a match for separate standalone devices. In particular, These deliver greater degrees of resolution and inner detail than the on-board converter of the MA7200. The DAC is no mere add-on afterthought, but in absolute terms, there are better DACs to be had in the after market. It has the same broad tonal balance of the MA7200 proper, a sound that is naturalistic, especially across the midrange. However within that is a great strength, because the headphone amplifier section is a real killer, and the DAC and headphone amp make good sense.

A McIntosh review is almost academic. People know what they want from McIntosh, and the MA7200 is going to deliver on that. But, in a way, McIntosh needs to be reappraised in the light of modern audio. As a complete package, without recourse to any other device (so no visual mis-matches between amp and disc player) the amp stands up as a fine audio option. This is more than some blue VU meters (although familiarity has made me rethink of them as ‘cool’) and a beefy build quality. It is an amplifier that I might not have considered through sheer weight of my own snobbery, and yet I came back from listening feeling very impressed by the MA7200 as the complete package. A hefty amplifier that is capable of great things and a lot more than just brute force, the MA7200 doesn’t just look the part, it sounds the part!

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Type: Integrated amplifier
Analogue Inputs: 1×MM phono, 1×MC phono, 5× single-ended RCA, 1×XLR balanced
Digital inputs: 2×S/PDIF (RCA) 2×Toslink, 1×MCT DIN, 1× USB, 1×Service port
Outputs: 2×RCA variable outputs
Additional control inputs and outputs: 4×data ports, 2×external control, 4×power control (all minijack connectors)
Best digital precision: to 32-bit, 384kHz (PCM), DSD 256, DXD 384kHz (all via USB)
Power: 200 watts per channel
Frequency Response (+0/-3dB): 10Hz–100kHz
Total Harmonic Distortion: 0.005%
Sensitivity (balanced/unbalanced): 0.5V/0.25V
Signal to Noise Ratio (power amp): 113 dB
Damping factor: 45
Phase: speaker output is phase correct, sub-woofer output is phase correct
Dimensions (W×H×D): 44.5 ×19.4 ×55.9cm
Weight: 34.1kg
Price: £9,995

Manufacturered by: McIntosh Labs Inc

URL: mcintoshlabs.com

Distributed by: Jordan Acoustics

URL: jordanacoustics.co.uk

Tel: +44(0)1202 911886

Back to reviews

VPI HW-40 ANNIVERSARY EDITION

The HW-40 anniversary edition turntable has been lovingly engineered in New Jersey by the US masters of vinyl replay, VPI. Inspired by their rich history, the HW-40 pays tribute to forty years of audio development and engineering excellence.

Forty years ago, VPI’s founder, Harry Weisfeld, started creating accessory components for his audiophile hobby. With a background in electrical engineering, he was always fascinated with direct drive turntables and how he could make accessories to improve them. This led to the founding of VPI and the development and manufacture of a range of award-winning turntables sold across the globe.

The HW-40 features VPI’s original direct drive motor design enhanced by the best of 2018’s motion control circuitry, vibration and isolation technology. The HW-40 is a stunning record player reminiscent of the original VPI designs, and it builds upon its heritage to deliver a striking improvement musical performance when compared with the turntables of 1978.

HW-40 direct drive motor

The HW-40 motor coils are composed in a solid copper square cross-section wire embedded in a composite structure. This facilitates a high-precision high-efficiency motor. The motor has high torque, excellent cooling, and near optimal interaction with electromagnetic conductors within the magnetic rotor circuit. This gives an easy to drive, quietly powerful next-generation direct drive motor.

The HW-40’s motor has a unique iron-less coil assembly and avoids the use of magnetic materials. Combined with overlapping V-shaped coil construction, the HW-40 motor eliminates the cogging that accompanies traditional direct drive motors. The system achieves 93% efficiency and a torque of 2.68 Nm/sec and accelerates the 25lb platter assembly to full speed and then decelerates to stop in one second.

Key features

Solid machined .7500 thick 6061 aluminium chassis. Painted textured black and damped internally with an MDF plate.
Beautiful gloss-wood sides.
Control buttons – 33, 45 and Start.
Removable aluminium arm-board.
Internal power supply and control circuitry.
Removable hinged dust cover.
12″ gimbal 3D printed Fat-Boy tonearm
Robust gimbal bearing featuring Japanese ABEC 9 bearings for ultra-low friction.
Adjustable tonearm counterweight on a threaded shaft for fast and accurate VTF setting.
New Fat-Boy VTA design – finer adjustment and a more robust machined aluminium and steel knob.
Removable platter for easier shipping.

RRP: £15,000

For more information visit: www.renaissanceaudio.co.uk

Angela Brown: 07975 907899 Matthew Tasker: 07791 380267

[email protected] [email protected]

VPI Industries Inc. is a high-end audio manufacturer founded in 1978. All VPI products are designed and built in the United States in Cliffwood, New Jersey. VPI’s sonic philosophy is to reproduce the dynamics of live music in the home and that the illusion of reality cannot be duplicated without a convincing resolution of low-level detail, along with a natural sense of acoustic space. VPI products are sold in over 65 countries across the globe.

WIN! An AURALiC ARIES G1 streamer worth £1,899!

We have teamed up with the clever guys from AURALiC to bring an exciting competition to win an ARIES G1 streaming transport worth £1,899.

Our most recent AURALiC review was on the VEGA G2 streaming DAC with LEO GX clock in issue 164. HiFi+ stalwart Jason Kennedy wrote, “Used alone as a streamer and a DAC the VEGA G2 is a very nice piece of kit that is extremely revealing of the incoming source thanks in part to the way that the Sabre DAC chip has been engineered to work without PLL (Phase Lock Loop) in the traditional way but rather to operate independently of the source frequency”.

“It brings a presence and solidity to everything you play, making it more real and convincing than you have any right to expect with reproduced audio. It also seems to enhance dynamics, not in a loudness sense but with an increase in contrast between loud and quiet notes, so there’s a perceived increase in dynamic range”.

He concluded by saying, “Adding the LEO GX puts the ARIES G2 in another league, in particular when it comes to imaging. It creates a sense of presence that is very rare with reproduced audio of any kind which, coming as it does from a self-confessed, fully paid up member of the analogue nut club, is high praise indeed”

Competition Question

In the VEGA G2, the Sabre DAC chip has been engineered to work without PLL. What is PLL an acronym for?

A. Professional Loudness Level

B. Potential Light Loss

C. Phase Lock Loop

To answer, please visit AURALiC’s dedicated competition page at URL https://us.auralic.com/pages/2018-competition

Alternatively, send your answer on a postcard (including yourname, address, and contact details) to AURALiC Competition, c/o Absolute Multimedia (UK) Ltd, Unit 3, Sandleheath Industrial Estate, Sandeheath, Fordingbridge, Hampshire, SP6 1PA

Competition Rules

The competition will run from December 6th 2018 until January 31st 2019. The competition is open to everyone, but multiple, automated or bulk entries will be disqualified. The winner will be chosen at random from all valid entries, will be contacted via email (where possible) and their name will be published in the magazine. The Editor’s decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into. Absolute Multimedia (UK) Ltd. is compliant with the Data Protection Act and UK laws apply. Our policy is such that we will not pass on your details to any third party without your prior consent.

WIN! A pair of Neat Acoustics Momentum SX3i loudspeakers worth £2,635

We have teamed up with our friends from Neat Acoustics to bring you an exciting competition with a chance to win a pair of Momentum SX3i loudspeakers worth £2,635.

In our most recent Neat Acoustics review in Issue 165, HiFi+ editor Alan Sircom wrote of the Ultimatum XL6 loudspeaker, “Neat Acoustic’s Ultimatum range is a threestrong expression of Bob Surgeoner’s distinctive take on loudspeaker design. It comprises a stand-mount Ultimatum XLS, the flagship XL10 tower, and this, the XL6 floorstander.”

He went on to say “I’m concerned that this speaker got under my skin so much that I cannot be objective about it… the loudspeaker is one of the best I’ve heard going into realworld rooms owned by people who don’t have a six-figure disposable income and a listening room that could hold a medium-sized orchestra.

It’s a tidy, open, airy, and most of all musicallyentertaining sound, and one that is possessed of incredible levels of bass for a loudspeaker of its size. It feels like you have found the magic spell that lets you squeeze a quart into a pint pot in such real-world European rooms.”

Competition Question

How many loudspeakers are there in Neat Acoustic’s Ultimatum range?

A. 3

B. 5

C. 7

To answer, please visit Neat Acoustics’ dedicated competition page at neatacoustics.com/hifipluscompetition1819/.

Alternatively, send your answer on a postcard (including your name, address, and contact details) to Momentum SX3i Competition, Neast Acoustics, 29B Harmire Enterprise Park, Barnard Castle, Co. Durham, DL12 8XT, United Kingdom

Competition Rules

THE GOLD NOTE IS-1000 IS GROWING!

FLORENCE, Italy: Gold Note – the Italian High-End Audio manufacturer based in Florence – is introducing a new powerful firmwarefor its Super integrated amplifier IS-1000 which allows higher audio performance and greater user experience.

Gold Note’s IS-1000 super integrated amplifier is a complete High-End stereo system enclosed in a beautiful aluminum chassis carved in bold Italian style. A radical new audio amplifier concept, the first real All-In-One product designed to offer incomparableHigh-End audio performance featuring the highest level of connectivity to internet and analog source available.

IS-1000 is an advanced fully integrated amplifier that redefines the way music playback is experienced to achieve a new pinnacle in High-End audio, seamlessly merging a Preamplifier, a Power Amplifier, a Phono Preamp, a DAC and a Streamer in a unique complete source.

With the knowledge and the experience developed in over 20 years of research, in 2017 Gold Note was able to offer an all-in-one solution powered by the most advanced technologies and components to achieve true audiophile quality sound.

Gold Note now offers a firmware update to everyone who already owns an IS-1000 which pays respect to user friendliness and stateof-the-art technology for even better audio performance.The update – free of charge – will provide the following features:

1.To make everybody’s use easier the volume is now expressed in a 0-100 graphic.

2. The volume control now becomes bi-directional always working in analogue mode even when playing any streaming servicesuch as Roon, Tidal, Qobuz, Deezer, Airplay, etc… Adjusting the volume from the IS-1000 front panel knob the App will react byreplicating exactly the same volume setting of the amplifier, that means IS-1000 always guarantees the best performance by overjumping the entire digital control whatever play mode is used!

The new App, available for iPhone and iPad, allows controlling all the IS-1000 inputs and options.That means: hands free from your standard IR remote control.

The new efficient and clever solution lets you control the IS-1000 while the display is replicated on the phone and tablet assuringthe best user experience.Therefore you can control the unit fast and easy from everywhere only using your mobile devices.

How to Update

The App is available in the Apple Store by typing: Gold Note IS-1000 Control.

Link to the firmware update (free of charge): www.goldnote.it/is-1000/update

IMPORTANT: update required on IS-1000 with serial number lower than 59047.

About Gold Note

Gold Note (www.goldnote.it) has become one of the leading Italian manufacturers in the Hi-End audio, now with more than 20 years of experience in engineering and designing a complete line of analog equipment, electronics and loudspeakers. Founded in Firenze, Italy, where every product is still hand-built from scratch with high-quality materials, its creations are a statement of Italian craftsmanship and innovation appreciated in more than 25 countries worldwide.

Company Contact

Akamai s.r.l.

Address: Via della Gora, 6 Montespertoli (Firenze) Italy 50025

Phone number: +39 0571 675005

E-mail: [email protected]

www.goldnote.it

Cleer NEXT headphone

Cleer is an ambitious manufacturer of personal audio products that makes a point of keeping a finger on the pulse of contemporary mass-market trends. In practice, this means the firm presently offers two in-ear headphones (complete with various combinations of noise cancelling, wireless, and heart-rate monitoring features) and six full-size headphones (offering various combinations of wireless, noise cancelling, and DJ-orientated features). Cleer also has a new portable Bluetooth speaker called the Stage, plus a range of trend-conscious new products in the pipeline including an Alexa Voice Service-compatible earphone called the Ally and an also Alexa Voice Service-compatible Bluetooth speaker called the Space. Finally, Cleer has an all-in-one Virtual Reality headset called the Vista in the works. It’s quite the list, isn’t it?

Clearly (sorry, I just couldn’t help myself there) the scope of Cleer’s product range is impressive, but even so I suspect dyed-in-the-wool audiophiles will be apt to say, “These high-tech, features laden devices are all well and good, but does Cleer build a model specifically for us?” Happily, the answer to that question is a resounding “Yes” and it comes in the form of the firm’s long awaited and recently released NEXT headphone, which is explicitly targeted towards the audiophile community.

The NEXT signals the fact that it is a headphone to be taken seriously in several ways, perhaps the most obvious of which involves its extremely handsome, high-tech industrial design, which was created by Designworks (a BMW Group company). Cleer says the NEXT’s design motif is meant to “evoke the feelings of a favourite timepiece”, so that ideally it will “be considered delightfully exquisite, intimately personal, and intended for decades of enjoyment”.

With these objectives in mind the open-back and dynamic driver-equipped NEXT headphone sports a frame, swivelling ear cup yokes, and ear cup housings machined from 6061-T6 aluminium. The aluminium parts are all treated to a pleasing, satin-textured, bronze-coloured anodised finish. The rear sides of the ear cup housings feature black mesh grilles. Completing the picture are a thick leather headband pad, a set of thick leather-clad bevelled ear pads, and—on the underside of the left and right ear cup housings—there are recessed sockets for the headphone’s LEMO®-type signal cable connectors. Overall, the NEXT looks and feels more expensive than it actually is.

The NEXT’s high-tech appearance isn’t just a styling exercise as the headphone turns out to pack plenty of meaningful technology on the inside as well. Specifically, the NEXT uses a 40mm dynamic-type driver featuring a magnesium alloy diaphragm and a patented ironless motor design. In place of one large, ring-shaped, motor magnet based on ferrous materials, the NEXT instead uses what Cleer describes as a ring-shaped array of “20 strategically layered, rare earth magnets” with claimed benefits that include enhanced efficiency and lowered distortion. The magnesium driver diaphragm, in turn, is said to “benefit from low mass, high-rigidity, and high internal damping”, thus yielding a “vivid and nuanced, high resolution sound.”

In fact, a brochure that comes with the NEXT presents a graph that shows Cleer’s ironless magnetic driver consistently delivers lower distortion than would a comparable driver fitted with conventional magnets. For example, the graph shows that the NEXT driver’s distortion levels hover between about 0.1 – 0.3% all the way from 20Hz up to 20kHz and at 100dB playback levels. By comparison, a similar driver using conventional magnets shows much higher distortion: about 0.5 – 0.6% at many points between 20Hz and 20kHz with, in the worst case, distortion rising to over 2% in the critical upper midrange (around 7kHz). Evidently, Cleer is on to something good with its ironless driver design.

The NEXT comes in an attractive presentation-style box and ships with a 1.5 metre, four-conductor signal cable terminated with a gold-plated 3.5mm mini plug on the amplifier end and a left/right set of LEMO-type connectors on the headphone end. The headphones also come with a gold-plated 3.5m to 6.35mm headphone plug adapter, plus a two-chamber leatherette carry pouch (one chamber is for the signal cables and the other for the headphones).

Now that we’ve taken a quick tour of the NEXT’s basic features, let’s get down to the part that matters most: the sound. I listened to the NEXT headphones through a number of source components: an iPad Air tablet; three DAPs including an Astell&Kern KANN, a FiiO X7 Mk2, and a Lotoo PAW Gold; and a desktop headphone system consisting of a Windows/Lenovo/JRiver music server feeding a Chord Hugo 2 DAC, which in turn fed a superb Cayin HA-300 valve-powered headphone amplifier. For comparison purposes I had on hand headphones from HiFiMAN (the Sundara) and from MrSpeakers (both the open and closed-back versions of the ÆON Flow).

I discovered the NEXT was much easier to drive to satisfying volume levels than its specified 92dB sensitivity rating might suggest. For example, the NEXT performed quite satisfactorily when driven by my iPad Air—a device that, let’s face it, doesn’t have a surplus of power. Similarly, the NEXT sounded full-bodied and dynamically alive when powered by the three DAPs I had on hand and it did so without requiring any of the DAPs to have their ‘high gain’ settings switched on. My point is that the NEXT is truly versatile; it can give good results whether driven by a tablet, a DAP, or anything on up to a high-quality desktop headphone amp/DAC combo.

As it turns out, the sonic character of the NEXT is neatly summarized by its manufacturers’ name, meaning the headphone conveys an overarching sonic quality of clarity and detail. From a musical perspective, this means the NEXT is an extremely informative headphone. It reveals small textural and transient details in recordings in a vivid and explicit way while also offering impressive articulation and vocal intelligibility. If you listen to pop music recordings where intensely modulated vocals can overlap one another in momentarily confusing ways, for example ‘Poison and Wine’ from The Civil Wars’ Barton Hollow [Sensibility, 16/44.1], the NEXT helps clarify the picture, deftly teasing out the words and phrases being sung. Similarly, if you enjoy listening to ensemble pieces where multiple instrumental musical lines are intricately interwoven, the NEXT makes it easy to pick out individual musical threads and to follow them to your heart’s content. The same holds true for spatial cues in the music and for the upper harmonics that help define the timbres of instruments and voices; in both cases the NEXT’s consistently presents a harmonically rich and spacious sound that typically extends well beyond the confines of the listener’s head.

What gives the NEXT this quality of clarity? I suspect the answer goes straight back to the Cleer driver’s well-damped magnesium diaphragm and to its low distortion ironless motor magnets. The result is a dynamic driver-equipped headphone competitive with, and – in some instances – superior to, comparably priced planar magnetic headphones when it comes to transient speed, detail, and resolution.

Are there downsides to the NEXT’s clarity and definition? Perhaps. On the one hand the NEXT is so musically informative that you can’t help but admire it. On the other hand, on recordings with hard, sharp transient sounds (e.g., the closely mic’d sounds of picks raking across guitar strings), the NEXT sometimes renders those sounds with a bit more hardness and sharper edges than is appropriate. Similarly on compressed or overly bright-sounding albums, the NEXT can make already brash-sounding recordings sound even more rough-edged than they normally would. This may, however, be a simple case of musical trade offs where the very qualities that make the NEXT desirable also make it a little unforgiving.

The tonal balance of the NEXT is for the most part neutral, with beautifully controlled and deeply extended bass, open sounding mids, and revealing highs, but with a mild tendency toward upper midrange forwardness. For bass connoisseurs, the NEXT can be especially satisfying. Listen to the low percussion found on ‘Rites’, which is an excerpt from “Glimpses of Tibet” [10th Anniversary of Rhymoi: 2003–2013, Rhymoi Music, 16/44.1] and you’ll find the NEXT can play loud and low, while maintaining excellent pitch definition and control.

Ergonomically, the NEXT is easy to fit and comfortable to wear, though I would encourage Cleer to consider offering ear pads with fabric touch surfaces to help wick away perspiration. In day-to-day use, the well made NEXT is a joy to handle.

The NEXT is a fine first audiophile-grade headphone from Cleer. Stated simply, the headphone’s clarity, expressiveness, and control are music gifts that keep on giving.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Type: Open-back, dynamic driver-equipped headphone
Driver complement: 40mm Ironless^™dynamic driver with magnesium diaphragm and patented ironless motor magnet assembly
Frequency response: 10Hz–45kHz
Sensitivity: 92dB
Impedance: 16 Ohms
Weight: 395g
Price: $699

Manufacturer Information: Cleer, Inc.

Tel: +1 (888) 672-5337

URL: cleer.us

Back to reviews

Chord Electronics Blu Mk2 upsampling CD transport

The Chord Blu Mk2 is a recent addition to the Chord family, and a sister for DAVE – the ground-breaking DAC designed by Rob Watts. A conventional CD transport, together with the ability to upscale CD to 768kHz, makes this a natural upgrade for the DAVE, taking its ability to utilise its 164,000 taps in the Watts Time-Aligned Filter to over a million!

The Blu Mk2 comes in an aluminium case which is of similar dimensions to the DAVE. It has digital inputs for USB up to 768K, a BNC S/PDIF input, and outputs comprising a single AES/EBU, a Dual AES/EBU, and the similar configuration for S/PDIF outputs. Conventional CD buttons provide the usual functions, which can also be accessed by the supplied remote control.

There are two small switches on the back; ‘Dither,’ which only works with a 16 bit output, and a toggle which gives three levels of upscaling. The CD is inserted by flipping a metallic cover back, and dropping the CD into the playing space. Getting it out is more of a procedure. There is a modest insert in the CD surround below to insert your finger in order to remove the CD. Not the easiest procedure for someone with fat fingers, and difficult to do without coming into contact with the playing surface of the disk. It’s not the most gloriously beautiful way to load and unload a CD, but I suspect that not having a drawer may save trips to the repair shop in twenty years time! The internal mechanism is the Philips CD Pro 2 Mech favoured by many manufacturers, and known for its reliability.

Upsampling aside, it’s a CD transport, so its operation and installation are well known to all. The only real caveat to that is to get the full benefit of that upsamping between Blu Mk2 and DAVE, you need to connect using a dual BNC arrangement, and there’s an unofficial (though Rob Watts approved) idea of slipping ferrite beads over these cables at the Blu Mk 2 end for maximum performance.

Listening to an old favourite CD of mine, Haydn Symphony No 77, Christopher Hogwood and the Academy of Ancient Music, the difference between the three oversampling/upscaling options is not small. Starting with the minimum oversampling rate, which reads as 88.2 kHz on the DAVE, I get a pleasant presentation, fluid and coherent, but not the deepest of soundstages. Changing to the maximum oversampling immediately improves imaging and increases soundstage depth, while creating much greater space between the instruments in the orchestra. It’s almost as if you have pressed a button marked ‘3D’. There is also a sense of what happens when you move back five rows in a concert hall, a hint of the concentration of the intensity and colour of the sound being slightly diluted. On this period instrument recording, I miss a bit of weight in the bass; it is true that period cellos and basses make less grunt than the modern equivalents, but it is noticeable nonetheless. Contrasting the Blu with my Esoteric K-05 CD player, used as a transport only, playing through the DAVE via a Chord cable, the latter seems to have more grunt and there is more of a sense of the bass driving the harmony and the music than with the Blu Mk2. It doesn’t, however, have the effortless sense of space that the Blu Mk2 has, or indeed the litheness of its approach to making music.

Next I moved on to an astounding recording made in 1959 – Von Suppé Overtures, and in particular ‘Pique Dame’ by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra under Paul Parry [Living Presence]. This was recorded with just three microphones, and that shows up some really interesting things. On this most organically recorded of discs, upsampling seems to extract every last detail of the orchestral image beautifully. It is as close to a purist ideal as you can get (I suppose the engineer could have used only two mic’s!). Compared with my Esoteric feeding the DAVE directly, I can hear the amazing separation and phase information on the Blu Mk2 being extracted by the upsampling, and it is highly impressive. Interestingly, where the kettle drum sounds a bit loose and flabby with the direct version, the upsampled Blu Mk2version reduces its role, but makes it tighter and better controlled. The moment of impact of the stick to the drum skin is better defined. The Blu Mk2/DAVE combination really does make greater sense of this recording.

On to the Grieg Concerto, a vintage Philips recording, Stephen Bishop with Colin Davis. It is fascinating to see how this rather magical recording, which through the Esoteric and DAVE sounds good, but old! It’s on the tubby side, an old-fashioned with slightly congested sound. Through the Blu Mk2there is a radical transformation: the piano sounds less muffled, more incisive, more lyrical, and less lard-like; the orchestra (which doesn’t have a detailed presence) suddenly appears like it’s been snapped by a camera with a lens that has just been cleaned. Again a little less bass, but it sounds like a recording from several decades later. The piano sounds most different, because the start of each note has greater clarity, so that the tone sounds very different and much more lifelike. More Steinway, less Bösendorfer!

Turning to some rock music, I tried Madonna’s Ray of Light album [Warner], and the Frozensoundtrack [Disney]. As previously with the Blu Mk2 on maximum oversampling the components in this electronic and acoustic mix are blown backwards and expanded detail-wise, the top end is sweetened (that is, made less shrill), but some of the drama of the track is sacrificed for this cause. The bass is slightly less present, it seems as before not to be driving the music but playing with it. the Blu Mk2 makes real sense of the violin section, instead of a bland blancmange texture, heard raw through the DAVE, I’m aware of a mass of violins, and their weight. There is more of a sense of how the mix is stuck together: The drums have a different acoustic to the singer and the orchestra, and you can sense the booth in which the drums were recorded.

There seems to be a common thread. Upsampling carries with it certain positives, as well as the occasional less-than-positive. It really is almost like a complex DSP function, which alters the sound in a way that may be very useful, depending on the characteristics of your system. For music, or a system that has a tendency to be too forward, the upsampling tendency to push the performance back a few rows is a positive thing, as is of course the increase in space, and accuracy of the imagery yielded. The quality of the bass seems to improve, and there is a more accurate beginning to notes, which is particularly evident when pianos and drums are involved. The quantity of the bass is lightened in the process, which could help certain systems, but could also hinder in the case of rock music.

The Blu Mk2is a fine transport which opens many possibilities of sonic changes and developments in a system, and when partnered with the DAVE, shows the possibilities of upsampling done well.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Chord Blu Mk2

CD Resolution: 44.1kHz–705.6kHz (user configurable)
Connectivity (input): 1×USB input: 44.1kHz, 48kHz, 88.2kHz, 96kHz, 176.4kHz, 192kHz, 352.8kHz, 384kHz, 705.6kHz, & 768kHz
1×BNC S/PDIF: 44.1kHz–384kHz (upsampled)
Connectivity (output):
1×Single AES Option: 44.1kHz & 88.2kHz
1×Dual AES Option: 88.2kHz & 176.4kHz, 1×Single BNC S/PDIF Mode: 88.2kHz, 176kHz, & 352.8kHz, 1×Dual BNC S/PDIF Mode: 176.4kHz, 352.8kHz, & 705.6kHz
Selectable upsampling: 1×selectable switch providing three sample rates (44.1kHz, 176.4kHz, 705.6kHz)
Dither: On/Off (only operational with 16bit source)

Price: £7,995

Manufactured by: Chord Electronics

URL: chordelectronics.co.uk

Tel: +44(0)1622 721444

Back to reviews

CH Precision I1 integrated amplifier

Let’s talk terms, and their inappropriateness at times. The I1 by Swiss electronics superstar CH Precision is – by the standard definitions of our industry – an integrated amplifier. To define a product as flexible and as powerful (in several senses) as the I1 in this way is like defining a surface-to-air missile as a ‘firework’. The more accurate definition of the I1 would be something closer to ‘a modular audio platform utilising a wealth of different daughter boards for operational optimisation plugged into a custom motherboard that includes an on-board amplifier component for high-performance single-box audio use.’ OK, maybe ‘integrated amplifier’ rolls off the tongue a little easier.

CH Precision uses the same chassis and design for its source components, preamplifiers, power supplies, and the one-case-does-all integrated I1. They all have the dual-dial single control, the distinctive left-hand panel curve and the magnetised-to-the-side remote handset. In fact, you can only tell them apart from the rear panel configuration and the subtle logo on the front screen. Otherwise they are functionally identical to one another, and even weight is no useful indicator, as they all fall into the ‘substantial’ class. This makes for a very consistent equipment stand if you start stacking them atop one another: in fact, the CH Precision devices all have removable threaded rod-like feet running through the four corners of the device, which could allow for stacking… though at least one pundit thinks make the CH Precision amps sound better when they are removed.

The I1 platform (I still can’t bring myself to thinking of it as an integrated amp) is best described by its rear panel. The basic layout has a set of large Argento speaker terminals at the extreme left and right of the panel, a central panel with IEC power inlet, switch, and fuse, a digital input HD board with AES/EBU, S/PDIF, Toslink and CH-Link HD for connection to CD Precision’s D1 CD/SACD digital front-end, and an analogue line input with RCA and XLR inputs. The rest in this basic guise is all a series of blanking plates. Additional modules include a USB Class 1.0 and 2.0 streaming input board, an Ethernet streaming input, and a current-mode MC phono input, itself with a full spread of EQ curves and also a Sync I/O board that allows the I1 to be enslaved to an external clock such as CH Precision’s T1 Time Reference using a coaxial cable. All connected to a motherboard layout with 2x 100W power amp stage. We went with a model that included all the options.

Depending on input, the platform operates in the digital domain at 384kHz/352.8kHz from input to that Class A driver with Class B follower power amp stage, complete with CH’s own ExactBias biasing system. This is not like most integrated amplifiers, but more akin to a Vitus design – a power amplifier with benefits! The amplifier itself features a fully shielded 1kVA power transformer and has something in the region of 100,000µF of reservoir capacitance on tap. And yet, thanks to some extremely high-grade diodes in the bridge rectifier stage, it sounds deceptively fast like a small integrated design.

The modules are key to the story, though. It’s best to think of each one as a small version of some of CH Precision’s separate components (because actually that’s what they are). So, the digital input board works to 24bit, 192kHz/DSD64 precision on its standard inputs, or up to 32bit, 768kHz/DSD128 on the CH Link that you would use with a CH Precision D1 disc transport. The MC board allows up to two different turntable inputs (balanced or single-ended) and can cope with any load the right side of 100mΩ, with adjustable gain. And so on, all fed through a volume control that moves in precise 0.5dB steps from -100dB to +18dB.

The only real problem with all of this is describing it without making it sound bewildering. But it’s like a bespoke suit; it’s effectively made for you, and once complete fits you perfectly for longer than anything ‘off-the-peg’. Its flexibility is not a weakness or a sign of indecision on the part of the manufacturer; it’s a conscious programme to make sure you have an amplifier designed specifically for you.

An interesting aside is the connectivity of the streamer board. Unlike most on-board devices in this category, there is no provision for wireless connectivity as standard. Instead, the Ethernet connection is designed to attach to a wireless router (maybe via a network switch), with devices like a NAS drive also hanging off that external network. This is, I feel, a better way of isolating the potential ingress of radio frequency interference, especially if you use acordon sanitaireof some description between network and audio systems. Of course, this means less of an ad hoc approach to networking, which goes some way against the ‘Plug ‘n’ Play’ notions held by many companies, but if you are going to do a job, do it properly.

To this end, CH has also chosen to go down the Android route in its app design. There are good reasons for this, but I can’t help but feel this laudable one-sided approach will disenfranchise some who are seemingly wedded to Apple’s products. There are people who simply don’t ‘get’ Android, many of whom are in the target demographic for a very high-end device like the I1, and having that option denied them might make them skip over what is an excellent device at the short-list stage. I would hope that is not the case and those reading this review would rather explore the world beyond the iDevice in order to sample the many joys of the CH Precision I1, than simply turn the page, but human nature is what it is!

The app itself is extremely stable and robust. Like all such systems, there is a learning curve, but it’s more ‘gentle sweeping curve’ than ‘sheer cliff-face’ and you quickly come to a point where it is intuitive in use. Like Linn’s Kinsky app, it’s more about creating on-the-fly playlists than instant playing gratification, but I find myself preferring this option more and more. The CH app’s great advantage is it can control almost every aspect of the I1 in use, from input settings to naming: although this can be performed on the knob-within-a-knob front panel selector, things get a lot easier from the comfort of a chair. It’s other great advantage is it scans through music about as fast as the device to which it is connected: we used it with a Melco N1Z streaming storage server system (with built-in alliteration control!) which is itself one of the fastest moving digital devices around, and the CH Control app positively whipped through the back-catalogue.

It’s also worth mentioning the front panel interface. Or rather the excellent front panel display with the occasionally frustrating twin dial combined volume control, source selector, menu access and controller. This is excellent as it makes an extremely clear and large display or the I1’s status. This is frustrating because the two concentric dials take some time to master and in the early stages might result in some random swearing as you end up locked in a sub-menu. On balance, I’d prefer this to a panel festooned in tiny buttons that might get used once in a decade.

Because they have distribution links in many places, the CH Precision I1 is an obvious partner with Wilson Benesch loudspeakers, but it also got an airing with a number of loudspeakers and the character of the amplifier shines through throughout.

I want to look to this amplifier without calling upon CH Precision’s bigger hitters in the amp stakes; specifically the A1 power amplifier we tested in issue 120 and the L1 preamp and M1 mono amp combination we tested more recently in issue 159. But I can’t; much of what makes these outstanding amplifiers sound so good also applies to the I1; not so much ‘trickle down’ as ‘rushes down in a torrent’. So many of the properties of CH Precision’s separates amplifiers make it to the I1, it almost makes you question whether the bigger options are worth the extra. And like all top-notch audio brands, that voice is heard right up until you hear the big guns, and it then falls silent.

The same core sound of ‘impressive understatement’ remains uppermost. The amplifier is not the kind that draws attention to itself and doesn’t even draw attention to the sound it makes; there is just a gradual dawning that you are listening to something really natural and well-designed. It’s more a drawn-out ‘aha!’ than an ‘eureka!’ in listening: a slow and gradual seduction that becomes increasingly impossible to resist.

You also begin to discover (pretty soon into the listening, in fact) that the ‘Precision’ part of the name ‘CH Precision’ isn’t just there for show. It is an extremely precise and accurate performer. Music played here is tautly controlled, yet with more than enough dynamic punch and energy. Although this is the kind of presentation that lends itself to torch song singers and 1950s jazz, the CH Precision I1 is so good at portraying these well-recorded works that it makes it almost academic in discussing them at length. Far better to point to something with more textures and layers, like The Race for Spaceby Public Service Broadcasting [Test Card]. This clever slice of ambient music blends samples of speech from the 1960s with an almost Mogwai-like aesthetic. It can either sound like boring chill-out music or make you want to join Trump’s Space Force, and here that precision and dynamism made me reach for my space helmet! Flipping through the different sources from different card inputs also made clear another aspect of the ‘Precision’ part of the name: consistency. There was no functional tonal change as you moved through the inputs, whether analogue or digital. This is not something you normally notice, but once heard, you become aware of its absence in other devices. If accuracy is king, then consistency is the power behind the throne.

In a way, the CH Precision sound is inherently Swiss (hardly surprising; apparently the people from CH Precision, Nagra, and Soulution are all pretty tight with one another) and the CH Precision sits comfortably in the centre of that firmament. They seem to be on a continuum from the delightful and slightly lush-sounding Nagra to the detailed and almost surgical precision of the Soulution. CH Precision finds a middle way, one that keeps music as attractive as possible, yet also keeps it precise, detailed, and accurate. It’s a bit of a high-wire act, and the CH Precision walks it perfectly.

The criticisms of the I1 hold even after listening. It’s a necessarily complex device (in terms of selection criteria and installation) that is best used with an Android tablet. And, let’s not shy away from it… in its full specification the I1 is one of the most expensive integrated amplifiers on the market right now. While it more than justifies its place (and its price) in that highest of high-end firmaments, those with pre-gnashed teeth will play judge, jury, and executioner without ever having listened to it on the basis of price alone.

Those suitably well-heeled to consider the CH Precision I1 without the price tag being an issue are also well equipped to assess its performance in a more level-headed manner, and they will come away extremely taken by the I1. It’s an amplifier of rare grace and musical elegance, yet with a drive, dynamism, and force not normally associated with terms like ‘grace’. That makes for a beguiling combination of performance parameters, and ones that don’t get forgotten quickly.

The CH Precision I1 has a tough job to do. It needs to be awesome enough to justify its price and position both in the CH Precision line-up and against the rarified air of some of the best ever integrated amplifiers in the price-no-object class. But it also has to be good enough to showcase what the bigger fish in the CH Precision pond are capable of, but not so good as to outshine those bigger fish. Of these tasks, only the last is a realistic goal, because the separates CH Precision components are an order of magnitude better than both the I1 and any of its rivals. But the I1 does all the other tasks, too. This is one of the best integrated amplifiers (and I still hate that term for this design) you can buy.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Type: modular integrated amplifier
Inputs (as standard): 1×AES/EBU, 1×BNC S/PDIF, 1× Toslink, 1×CH link
Inputs (optional): XLR balanced and RCA single-ended inputs, MC phono input (analogue) RJ45 Ethernet, USB Audio Class 1.0 and 2.0 (digital)
Power output: 2×100W RMS (8Ω), 2×175 W RMS (4Ω), Adjustable feedback levels
Amplifier Class: Pure Class A driver with Class AB follower
Volume control: 118dB range in 0.5dB steps
Digital audio precision: up to 34-bit, 768kHz and native DSD to 5.6448MHz/1=bit
Display: 480 ×272pixel, 24bit RGB AMOLED
Dimensions (W×H×D): 44 ×13.3 ×44cm
Weight: 43kg
Price: £29,500 (as tested)

Manufactured by: CH Precision

URL: ch-precision.com

Distributed in the UK by: Wilson Benesch

URL: ch-precision-hifi.co.uk

Tel: +44(0)114 285 2656

Back to reviews

Sneak Peek: Hi-Fi+ Awards – Accessory of the Year

Although Critical Mass Systems is best known for its large and heavy rack systems, perhaps its most important product is the CenterStage², a range of three equipment support feet designed to correct physical impedance mismatching to greatly reduce vibration moving upward from the floor, the reduction of the noise inherent to the materials used to fabricate the foot, and a means to transfer entropy out of the component. To these ends, each CenterStage²footer represents an ideal combination of damping, elastic modulus, and thin rod speed. The three models are designed to accommodate different sizes and weights of components, although there is a good/better/best performance aspect, too.

The curious thing about the CenterStage²is that you know when its working because it makes the system sound a lot worse, at first. Until the footers harmonise and begin to correct those impedance mismatches and beyond, the sound of the system goes thin, light, bright, and the soundstage and dynamic range all but collapse. Then, as it begins to settle, the sound undergoes a quick and significant change for the better, and it keeps getting a lot better. We felt that “You notice this change by a shift in your internal dialogue. ‘I’d forgotten just how good that really is!’ (referring to both record and equipment) seems to be the first sign. About an hour later, you find yourself composing a thank-you email to the designers of the components in your system. Although it’s the bass that first comes back, it’s the midrange that seals the deal: the enhanced clarity, the walk-in detail to the soundstage, which seems to not change a thing, all the while being far more enveloping than before. This is no small change, and as the listening progresses, you begin to find this feeling of being immersed in the music.”

Reviewed in Issue 163

Gold Note PA -1175 Mk2: MORE IS MORE

FLORENCE,Italy: Gold Note – the Italian High-EndAudio manufacturer based in Florence – is introducing PA-1175 Mk2,the updated

Power Amplifier designed to enhance your stereo system even better.

Here is the revised version of Gold Note’s first stereo amplifier, which replaced the awarded Demidoff Anniversary amplifier in 2015. Our latest creation, again, features all the innovations that have always distinguished our designs: PA-1175 MkII merges the latest innovations with the knowledge of over 20 years in designing electronics to create an even more powerful, detailed and smooth Power Amplifier.

PA-1175 is a Stereo Power Amplifier which features 4 matched pairs of transistors per channel with a proprietary Gold Note BIAS constant current generator which enables high currents and high power rates with ultra low distortion.

The power amplifier features a BTLtechnology [Bridge-Tied-Load] so the unit can be easily bridged to work as a mono amp doubling its large power rate from now 200watt (previously 175watt in the Mk1) per channel @ 8ohm up to a considerable 520watt (previously 350watt) per channel.

The flexibility of the power amplifier can be largely extended with the mono application for all kind of speakers that really require high power and massive energy.The latter is provided by a 640VAcustom made toroidal audio transformer with original Ducati race bike silent blocks to guarantee a terrific effect and perfect insulation.

A small 6VA transformer powers all service functions outside the audio signal path to preserve the best performance exceeding 1000VA peak if the power demand of current requires it.

PA-1175 also features a Damping Factor switch conveniently selectable from the front panel. Set up to 250 DF or 25 DF it allows an ideal match with any kind of speakers. At 250 DF it guarantees greatest control necessary for large and difficult speakers while at 25 DF acts as a low power tube amplifier,ideal to drive high-sensitivity or mini monitor speakers which would not perform well with big amplifiers.

Top-level electronic components combined with real balanced design with RCA, XLR complete the PA-1175 premium quality design. PA-1175 is built around a high mass steel chassis and thick aluminum panels to avoid RFI and EMI interferences at the same time.

The design derives from the Gold Note 1000 series and uniforming the entire Gold Note premium line of Hi-Fi electronics. The aluminium panels are made of brushed aluminium available in black, silver or gold finish. The increase in power, the new wiring and the replacement of some key components such as the power devices have made this amplifier able to drive any type of speaker with maximum musicality and make the new PA-1175 MkII the best amplifier ever made by Gold Note.

From the beginning of December 2018,PA-1175 MkII will be available worldwide through Gold Note dealers at a MSRP of 5.500€.

Technical Specifications

Power Amplifier with optical BIAS

Dimensions: 430mm W | 135mm H | 370mm D

Weight: 22 kg

Power Output: 200W per channel @ 8Ω and 520W @ 8Ω in mono BTL

Frequency response: 1Hz-100kHz at +/-1dB

THD – Total Harmonic Distortion: <0.01%THD @ 20Hz-20kHz

Signal to Noise ratio: -110dB

Damping factor: Selectable 250 or 25

Slew rate: 20V/μs

Audio Inputs

Stereo RCA, stereo XLR balanced

Input sensitivity: 1000mV on RCA and 4000mV on XLR

Input impedance: 47 Kohm

Audio Outputs

Speakers: Gold Note BP-01 Rhodium Plated Binding Posts

Power Section

Main supply: 100 to 245V, 50/60Hz, depending on market destination not convertible

Power transformers: 640VA Toroidal Customized Audio Power Transformer and 6VA transformer for all service out of the audio

signal path

Power consumption: 1200W max – <1.2W idle

About Gold Note

Gold Note (www.goldnote.it) has become one of the leading Italian manufacturers in the Hi-End audio, now with more than 20

years of experience in engineering and designing a complete line of analog equipment, electronics and loudspeakers. Founded

in Firenze, Italy, where every product is still hand-built from scratch with high-quality materials, its creations are a statement of

Italian craftsmanship and innovation appreciated in more than 25 countries worldwide.

Company Contact

Akamai s.r.l.

Address: Via della Gora, 6 Montespertoli (Firenze) Italy 50025

Phone number: +39 0571 675005

E-mail: [email protected]

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Manufacturer: Cyrus Audio

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Manufacturered by: McIntosh Labs Inc

Distributed by: Jordan Acoustics

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Manufacturer Information: Cleer, Inc.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Manufactured by: Chord Electronics

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Manufactured by: CH Precision

Distributed in the UK by: Wilson Benesch

The sound of excellence delivered your way