LATEST ADDITIONS

Luxman D-N150/SQ-N150 CD Player/Amplifier

Review: Ken Kessler, | Jan 02, 2020

Luxman has re-introduced what just may be the dream desktop rig, comprising the new NeoClassico CD player and tube integrated amplifier – or is it much more?

Can we agree that it's possible to love more than one system, as you would savour more than one type of whisky or wine? Masseto and Tignanello are simply not mutually exclusive. Luxman's re-imagined NeoClassico series is appropriately costly but not saddled with a 'high-end' price, so at £2500 for the D-N150 CD/DAC and £3000 for the SQ-N150 integrated amp, it is not an alternative to, nor a substitute for a high-end, high-power system. It is not out to usurp the role of your D'Agostino.

Turntables, Arms & Cartridges

Ortofon MC Anna Diamond Cartridge

Review: David Price, | Dec 31, 2019

With its sintered titanium body, rare earth magnets, exquisite stylus and now a diamond cantilever, Ortofon's latest MC Anna is the very model of a high-tech flagship moving-coil

On the face of it, all that separates this new flagship pick-up from Ortofon's original MC Anna [HFN Oct '12] is the exchange of the latter's rigid boron cantilever for an even more rigid 'diamond' rod. The line-contact Replicant 100 diamond stylus, the 'wide-range armature damping' system (WRD), the sintered titanium body and rare earth alloy magnet are all, ostensibly, unchanged. Nevertheless, this 'Diamond' MC Anna is no mere blinged-up clone.

From the Vault Pre/Power Amplifiers

High-End Amps

Martin Colloms | Dec 30, 2019 | First Published: Oct 01, 1983

Martin Colloms takes a listen to four new designs costing £250 plus

Following last month's batch of integrated amplifiers costing under the £200 mark, more advanced models have been chosen for this project. The new Mission 778 (Mission Cambridge) represents the UK contribution (£240). The Harman Kardon PM650 combines Japanese and American design (£250), while the European contender is the Revox B251 (£900 plus £45 for the remote controller). All three models are integrated amps with MC and MM input facilities. I also look at another new UK model, the powerhouse P128 from Sugden, which is a dual 'monoblock' power amp (£395).

Meet the Producers

Pharrell Williams

Steve Sutherland | Dec 27, 2019

In 2003, this US-born producer had a hand in almost a fifth of the songs played on British radio. Then he really got started, applying his prodigious talent to pop in a way that would change it forever. Steve Sutherland on the phenomenal Pharrell Williams

It's June 2019 and Pharrell Williams is standing in front of 114 students about to graduate from the Harlem Children's Zone Promise Academies I and II. It's an inner-city school for underprivileged kids, and he's guaranteeing each and every one of them an internship at one of his many enterprises to give them work experience and get their careers up and running.

Turntables, Arms & Cartridges Vintage

Dual CS 606 turntable

Review: David Price, | Dec 26, 2019

With its ultra low mass arm and cartridge system, the CS 606 was one of a trio of decks that was finally able to claw back sales from the Japanese. How does it perform today?

The fact that Dual couldn't achieve serious success in the middle sector of the British turntable market back in the late '70s was testament to how fast the hi-fi world had changed. That part of the market was becoming the province of Japanese companies such as Pioneer, Sony and Technics, which were making complex, technologically advanced turntables packed with modern, user-friendly features that people wanted to buy.

Loudspeakers

KEF LSX Active Loudspeaker

Review: James Parker, | Dec 24, 2019

Clearly inspired by its LS50W, KEF's tiny 'wireless' system in a box is a big triumph

There are active speakers and active speakers. Some models claim to be 'active' but are really just powered, with a single amplifier within the speaker cabinet driving the tweeter and mid/bass unit via a conventional passive crossover, sometimes even with a stereo power amp in one speaker driving both it and a slave partner.

Outboard DACs

AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt USB DAC/Headphone Amp

Review: Andrew Everard, | Dec 24, 2019

The latest 'DAC in a USB stick' may look like AudioQuest's previous efforts, but it's a very different beast – and a conspicuous bargain for use in the home or on the hoof

If the sincerest form of flattery is imitation, then AudioQuest must be feeling very flattered indeed. Since it launched its original DragonFly DAC/headphone amp in 2012, housed in a USB stick and aimed at laptop users, it has seen a raft of similar designs hitting the market from rival manufacturers.

Audiophile Vinyl

Audiophile: Vinyl, October 2019

Ken Kessler | Dec 23, 2019