Lab: Paul Miller

If Kimber Kable could be said to have a core philosophy then the sage advice ‘if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it’ would come very near the top. Of course, Kimber does have its own longstanding USP in the form of its ‘VariStrand’ conductors, braided geometry and use of both PE and PTFE dielectrics, depending on a cable’s position in the range. Copper is still the material of choice in this Carbon interconnect, each conductor comprising seven strands of four different diameters. These strands are clamped within a ‘carbon-infused polymer’ that forms an electrostatic screen, while a Teflon sleeve provides a final insulating layer with superior dielectric properties. Four of these conductors, for left and right channels, are woven into Kimber’s familiar braid.

In high-end hi-fi, it’s common to see the phrase ‘two-man lift’ applied to heavyweight loudspeakers, amplifiers and subwoofers. Yet the top-of-the-line InPoL Legacy from Italian manufacturer Pathos goes one (well, two) better. This integrated amplifier, priced £51,995, arrives in a purpose-built wooden crate on wheels, along with two metal ‘pull-up’ bars that slide underneath the chassis once the crate has been disassembled. It’s then a four-person job to lift the bars and manoeuvre this 140kg beast into position.

To misquote those old M&S adverts, this isn’t just a network streamer, this is the HiFi Rose RS451 Master Fidelity Network Streamer. The latest addition to the Korean company’s ever-expanding digital audio offering, it features second-generation technology trickled down from the high-end RS151 [HFN Jul ’25] launched earlier this year. This makes it, in HiFi Rose’s terms, ‘a semi-reference level network streamer’.

It never hurts to have a sibling manufacturer making phono stages when you’re also offering cartridges. Better still is having a range of tonearms and turntables in the family, too. In this case, the oh-so-Britishly-named Kensington Audio can boast being part of the Talk Electronics group, along with Edwards Audio and Kestrel Audio, so its quintet of cartridges is in good company.