LATEST ADDITIONS

Integrated Amplifiers
T+a Pa 3000 Hv (£9900)
Hi-Fi News Staff  |  Nov 18, 2014
Germany’s T+A has spent the last couple of years developing a completely new range of all-solid-state electronics: its ‘HV Series’. Built into an all-aluminium case, the PA 3000 HV amplifier’s individual sub-assemblies are screened in separate chambers. An upper compartment houses the preamplifier and voltage amplifier stages, while the electronic control processor and circuitry for driving the display screen – fed by a separate power supply arrangement – sits in a recess machined out of the 40mm-thick aluminium front panel. A 10mm-thick dividing wall shields the top section from the left/right current amplifier stages and the unit’s massive power supply is in a lower compartment.
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Integrated Amplifiers
Krell S 550i (£4998)
Hi-Fi News Staff  |  Nov 13, 2014
The Editor’s review briefing included the warnings: ‘It’s 29kg – you may need help in unpacking it’ and ‘The S-550i is a remarkably dense amplifier, probably the most self-effacing yet monstrously powerful integrated we’ve ever tested. ’ This new flagship integrated, replaces the FBI while the S-300i remains as Krell’s entry-level integrated at £2795. The S-550i is a true ‘big brother’: the sonic resemblance is uncanny save for a brutal power delivery. While the front panel suggests minimalism, that’s only because all minor settings are relegated to a menu system, eg, balance setting and input trim, which can also be accessed by the full-function remote.
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Integrated Amplifiers
Kronzilla Sxi (£16,190)
Hi-Fi News Staff  |  Nov 13, 2014
Yes, those valves – made in-house – really are a foot tall! And they radiate substantial heat once the SXI has been powered up for a few minutes, but KR Audio’s amplifiers are beautifully engineered. The company is based in Prague, founded by electronics engineer the late Dr Ricardo Kron in 1992. It’s a boutique firm of only a dozen or so people – skilled artisans who blow the glass and hand-craft the tubes. Such is the transparency of KR Audio’s Kronzilla amplifiers that at least of couple of German recording studios use them in mastering suites.
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Pre/Power Amplifiers
Mcintosh Mc275 Mkvi (£5500)
Hi-Fi News Staff  |  Nov 13, 2014
McIntosh’s original MC275 featured as an ‘Audio Milestone’ [HFN Dec ’10], but what’s reviewed here is the current production version of this most famous power amplifier. It’s the same as the 2011 Anniversary Edition but with stainless steel rather than a gold chassis. Its most spectacular outward feature, described in staid McIntosh tech-speak as ‘small tube illumination for amplifier status operation’, comprises LEDs indicating status or output tube failure. This is a part of a protection circuit system which will also shut the amp down if speaker wires are shorted or there is a gross impedance mismatch.
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Pre/Power Amplifiers
Musical Fidelity M8pre/ M8700m (m8pre, £3500; M8700m, £4000 Each)
Hi-Fi News Staff  |  Nov 13, 2014
Enter Musical Fidelity’s latest ultra-high-power creation, described as ‘a true heir to the [2008] Titan, delivering near-identical sound’. It’s a monoblock design that’s considerably more bank-balance friendly, rated at 700W/8ohm, although this transpired to be conservative. It is part of a new series of high-end components, also including the M8PRE preamplifier. The sturdy casework has a finely-textured black finish and thick aluminium fascias while the M8700m’s heatsinks are smoothly finished.
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Disc Players
Roksan Oxygene (£2500/£2800)
Hi-Fi News Staff  |  Nov 13, 2014
These are just the first two models in Roksan’s new Oxygene series. In the amplifier, the use of Class Dor switching-amplifier technology provides high power and excellent performance from a physically compact package. There’s very little heat dissipation, so the amplifier doesn’t require big heatsinks or a lot of ventilation. The designers have chosen one of the well-known range of Hypex UcD modules, which have a high reputation for sound quality.
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Pre/Power Amplifiers
Siltech Saga C1, V1 And P1 (£85,000)
Hi-Fi News Staff  |  Nov 13, 2014
On seeing Siltech’s pre/power combo you might think it incorporates a separate power supply. In fact, this unusual design splits the power amplifier into separate interstage (voltage gain) and current amplifier sections. The combo’s C1 tube preamplifier (pictured) features a rechargeable battery power supply as does the V1 voltage stage of the two-box power amplifier. Of course, running the complete V1/P1 amplifier from a battery would be wholly impractical, so the P1 is mains powered.
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Pre/Power Amplifiers
Simaudio Moon 380d & 330a (380d, £4600; 330a, £2800)
Hi-Fi News Staff  |  Nov 13, 2014
At the heart of Simaudio’s 380D DAC/preamp is its M-AJiC32 processing (Moon Asynchronous Jitter Control in 32-bit mode) and at the core of this is an eight-channel ES9016S Sabre DAC from ESS. Simaudio claims to have further improved jitter performance with its own ‘Alpha Clocking System’. The 380D has separate power supplies, each with a toroidal transformer and 11 stages of voltage regulation, for its digital and analogue sections. The analogue stage is a fully differential circuit and balanced XLR connections are strongly recommended, although RCAs are also provided.
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Pre/Power Amplifiers
Tad C600/m600 (c600, £27,000; M600, £26,000 Each)
Hi-Fi News Staff  |  Nov 13, 2014
This lavishly-built C600 preamplifier and unusual looking partnering M600 monoblocks [not shown] are TAD Labs’ ‘Reference’ amplifiers. The C600 preamp’s aluminium subchassis is 33mm thick and weighs 15kg alone, designed to resist acoustic vibration and provide a ‘low and stable ground potential’, says the company. Removing the preamp’s top plate reveals its dual mono construction and all-discrete signal path; it’s a fully balanced design. The power supply, with its massive transformer, is a separate ‘hideaway’ unit.
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Pre/Power Amplifiers
Nagra Jazz/msa ( Jazz, £8750; Msa, £6450)
Hi-Fi News Staff  |  Nov 13, 2014
Yes, they’re expensive – but Nagra’s electronic jewels are gloriously timeless and beautifully engineered. The new Jazz preamplifier maintains the compact form factor and familiar brushed aluminium casework synonymous with the marque – it’s a Nagra through-and-through. And Nagra says the preamp’s circuitry – which employs 2x12AX7/ECC83s and 1x12AT7/ECC81 dual-triode valves – has been completely rethought to improve stability and reduce noise to the point where its engineers no longer consider a battery power supply a necessity. The Jazz is powered by a hideaway PSU that delivers DC to the main unit via a cable terminated with a Lemo connector.
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