Lab: Paul Miller

Headquartered in Kanagawa, Japan, Soulnote has created a trio of product ranges in just ten years. Its mid-range Series 2 comprises a phono stage, DAC and the A-2 integrated

Soulnote’s A-2, available for £6300 in silver or black, is an integrated amplifier with an air of the ‘old skool’ about it. No network or digital connectivity, just analogue all the way, and only line-level too, as the Japanese manufacturer prefers to keep its phono stages separate. There’s no form of system control (ie, 12V triggers), and the user experience is very much plug-in-and-play, aided by an elegant remote and even simpler front-panel display.

A compact MOSFET amplifier module, designed in Denmark, is tickled-up with tech from ex-members of the Vertex AQ crew. So is this Quiescent unit a boutique barnstormer?

One of the annoyances of modern life is noise. Outside, our ears might be assaulted by traffic roar, construction clamour or roadworks cacophony, plus buzzing leaf blowers and lawn mowers. Indoors, however, it’s rather more subtle. The prevalence of wireless communications around the house, plus the switched-mode power supplies that run pretty much everything, mean the noise is electrical in nature – and more insidious. Enter the £21,900 T100SPA power amplifier from the aptly-named Quiescent, which aims not only to delight your ears, but also ensure this ever-present noise doesn’t get in the way of the music.

One frustrating aspect of being a vintage audio enthusiast is encountering those companies who love to re-use model names and numbers. If you’re a B&O fan talking about a ‘Beogram 3000’, for example, are you referring to one of the two 1960s variants, the 1970s model or the 1980s version? It’s even becoming an issue all over again with updated recreations of famous designs, like the Mission 770 loudspeaker [HFN Jun ’22] and Quad’s 33/303 pre/power system [HFN Jan ’25].

Hi-fi’s style icons of the ’60s are reimagined here over a half century later combining a sympathetic industrial design with a performance beyond the reach of its ancestors

It’s taken long enough but Quad has finally revived one of the best-selling pre/power amp combinations of all time. Between 1967 and 1982, 120,000 Quad 33 ‘control units’ were sold, while the 303 power amplifier remained in production until 1985 to reach 94,000 sales. So these new Quad 33 and 303 models have big shoes to fill, but retaining the original model designations and dimensions are a start. And that’s pretty much where the resemblance stops. Welcome to the 21st century.