Review: Andrew Everard

Network Audio Players/Servers Outboard DACs

Review: Andrew Everard, Lab: Paul Miller | May 18, 2023 | 0 comments

Debuted in the flagship Vivaldi, and now trickled down to the Bartók, dCS's APEX upgrade brings enhancements to the PSU, Ring DAC clocking and analogue output

Maybe it's a sign of the times, or the state of the specialist high-end audio market, but this latest version of dCS's Bartók streaming DAC, often referred to as the company's 'entry-level' model, is now almost twice the price of the original [HFN May '19]. Then, the Bartók was £9999, or £11,999 when fitted with the optional headphone amplifier; now the Bartók APEX, taking on board the company's latest package of enhancements, first seen in the Vivaldi APEX [HFN Jun '22], is £19,000, rising to £21,500 if you choose to take the headphone option.

Loudspeakers

PS Audio aspen FR20 Loudspeaker

Review: Andrew Everard, Review and Lab: Paul Miller | May 15, 2023 | 0 comments

Less than a year after PS Audio launched its inaugural loudspeaker, this flagship floorstander has already inspired a trickledown sibling. Will the FR20 unseat the FR30?

The advice given by Apple's Steve Jobs to 'Start small, think big' is pretty sensible, going hand in hand with that old saw about not trying to run before you can walk. That recommendation seems to have eluded Colorado-based company PS Audio, which launched its speaker line last year with the big aspen FR30 [HFN Jun '22], arriving in the UK with a price tag now running at £30,000, and clearly aiming high straight out of the box.

Network Audio Players/Servers

Aurender W20SE Network Audio Library

Review: Andrew Everard, Lab: Paul Miller | Apr 13, 2023 | 0 comments

Pitched as 'the music server against which others are judged' and featuring a battery supply, 4TB SSD storage, a 1TB cache and custom upsampling, this is no idle boast

You're on somewhat shaky ground when reviewing a big-ticket music server, especially one with no onboard digital-to-analogue conversion. The scythes and flaming torches of the 'digits is digits' brigade might appear at any moment on the path up the mountain on which such devices are perched, and there's always the nagging doubt that the choice of partnering DAC will have more impact on the final sound.

Pre/Power Amplifiers

Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista PRE/PAS & PSUs Pre/Power Amplifiers

Review: Andrew Everard, Lab: Paul Miller | Apr 10, 2023 | 0 comments

Look familiar? This new four-box pre/power stack from Musical Fidelity shares the styling of 2014's Nu-Vista 800 integrated, but is it a high-end contender? You bet it is!

Ever get the feeling we've been here before? Well, the arrival of the latest amplifier system from Musical Fidelity brings a new twist to the whole déjà vu thing as the Nu-Vista naming and macho aesthetics are familiar from the historically hefty Nu-Vista 800 integrated amplifier [HFN Nov '14]. In practice that classic nuvistor tube-equipped integrated amplifier, also rated at 300W/8ohm, has provided the inspiration for both the industrial and technical design of the PRE and PAS we see here, the hybrid nuvistor/transistor concept now evolved into a pre/power set-up, complete with separate PSUs for each. So one box is now four...

Network Audio Players/Servers Outboard DACs

HiFi Rose RS250A Network Attached DAC

Review: Andrew Everard, Lab: Paul Miller | Mar 28, 2023 | 0 comments

Korea's Citech group continues apace with yet another 'full colour widescreen' offering from its HiFi Rose brand – this time with an updated network-attached media hub

ARose by any other name? As has happened in the past, Korean manufacturer HiFi Rose has launched a new version of an existing model – in this case its RS250 network player – with worthy specification changes and a suffix to set the two apart. But there's a mild inconsistency here, for when the company upgraded the RS150 [HFN Jun '21] to the current version, due to a DAC chip change forced upon the company by the 2020 fire at AKM's semiconductor plant in Japan, it became the RS150(B), selling for £3899, but the revised RS250 is now the £2349 RS250A, available in either silver or black finishes.

Pre/Power Amplifiers

Constellation Centaur II Stereo Power Amplifier

Review: Andrew Everard, Lab: Paul Miller | Mar 09, 2023 | 0 comments

Available in both monoblock and stereo chassis, the Centaur II has been a mainstay of the Constellation range for over six years. It's clearly not broken, so why change it?

While some brands maintain a steady rotation – evolution – of their products, others, including Constellation Audio, hit on the jackpot early and feel little inclination to change a winning formula. So while we've already tested the £73,500 Centaur II 500 power amp [HFN Dec '19] we missed out on the £53,998 Constellation Centaur II Stereo. Until now...

Loudspeakers

Audiovector R 8 Arreté Loudspeaker

Review: Andrew Everard, Lab: Paul Miller | Mar 06, 2023 | 0 comments

For over 40 years and two generations, this family-run speaker specialist has epitomised the best of Danish design

Everything about the Audiovector R 8 Arreté is impressive, from the size and scale of the speaker – it stands 144cm tall and weighs over 72kg – to the seemingly fiendish complexity of the design, which appears to have drivers firing and venting in all directions. The piano-lacquered Italian Burl Walnut veneer, seen here, is gorgeous too, and offered alongside Italian Grey, black and white finish options.

Integrated Amplifiers Network Audio Players/Servers

HiFi Rose RS520 Streaming Amplifier

Review: Andrew Everard, Lab: Paul Miller | Feb 09, 2023 | 0 comments

Combining the network streaming capability of the RS150 flagship with the GAN-FET Class D amplification of the RS180, the RS520 aims to be the 'all-in-one' for everyone

Another smart move from the Korean tech specialist? That certainly seems to be the case with the latest arrival from Seoul-based HiFi Rose, which has rapidly established itself as a major player in the network audio/video market with a string of excellent streaming players. Having taken what looked like an abrupt turn with the launch of its bonkers-styled – but great-sounding – RA180 integrated amplifier [HFN Jul '22], it's now delivering on the promises made by the company's Sean Kim, interviewed for that review. We're yet to see the simpler, more affordable RA280 integrated amp, but here's the company's all-in-one streaming amp, the RS520.

Loudspeakers

YG Acoustics Cairn Loudspeaker

Review: Andrew Everard, Lab: Paul Miller | Jan 05, 2023 | 0 comments

The smallest of the five-strong standmount/floorstanding Peaks series from YG Acoustics promises to move mountains

Depending on your age, there's the potential for confusion in the naming of YG Acoustics' latest loudspeakers. The Peaks series is inspired by the Rocky Mountains looming over YG's base a few miles outside Denver, and most of our readers will be from generations with 'life experience', and upon hearing the title 'peak' will likely associate it with products of aspirational quality. In the argot of London teenagers, however, 'peak' is now taken to indicate unexpected bad luck. In truth, the recent collaboration between Cambridge Acoustic Sciences and YG's mid-US manufacturing base has been nothing but fortuitous.

Loudspeakers

DALI KORE Loudspeaker

Review: Andrew Everard, Lab: Paul Miller | Jan 02, 2023 | 0 comments

Years in the making, DALI's KORE flagship breaks cover and it's a triumph of engineering, style and superlative sound

There are many ways to express that emotion of delighted surprise when encountering something unexpected: everything from the archaic 'Gosh' or 'Goodness', through the more contemporary low whistle or 'Wow', or even the kind of expletive never found in these pages. Meanwhile, the Blessed Google suggests that the Danes might say 'hold da helt ferie', literally 'take a whole vacation', which I guess is somewhere close to the American 'get outta here'. But for those of us brought up on British films of the latter part of last century, perhaps the best reaction to these new DALI flagship speakers is just to mention their name, perhaps followed by 'blimey' for the full effect.

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Review: Andrew Everard

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