Rega Apollo CD Player and Brio Amplifier Two Compact Hi-Fi Wonders

We've been playing with the latest versions of the Rega Apollo CD player and Brio Amplifier and are loving the music they make.

The new Rega Brio is an improved version of an old shop favourite. Not only has the casework been redesigned but the circuitry has been given a good going over and now includes a high quality headphone amp for all you can fans out there. Of course, being Rega, there is still the great moving magnet phono stage for your precious turntable!

The Rega Apollo CD player is another tried and trusted favourite of the shop. It has also been re-housed in the new sleek casework. With its manual lid and push on CD mechanism it gives a little bit of the turntable experience to CD users.

I could talk for ages about technical specs and improvement, but the thing about these little bricks is they just make great music sound great. Most of all they're fun to listen to. Partner them up with some good interconnects and speakers of your choice - we've been having fun using the new B&W 707, or the Dali Zensor 3, or of course Rega's own RX1 and they sing. Kraftwerk's wonderful "3D the Catalogue" is rich and full of texture whilst on the album "Haunted" by Poe her vocals come across with wonderful warmth and clarity. They'll handle any music that you throw at them with ease and aplomb. Another hit for British made Hi-Fi!

So to sum up, with their sleek new styling and improved features the Rega Brio and Apollo continue to make music with a great sense of fun.

Come and have a look and listen we know you'll enjoy what you hear.

Paul, Francis, Jason and of course Boswell at Audio T Brentwood.

Rega Hi-Fi products are also available from the following branches of Audio T:
Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Enfield, Manchester, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading,Southampton, Swansea, Swindon

Return Of The Black! We Take A Closer Look At The New Arcam irDAC II DAC And Headphone Amplifier

We take a closer look at the Arcam irDAC II digital to analogue converter and headphone amplifier. With the current revival of high quality headphone listening, it was with interest we learned that Arcam's replacement for their much admired irDAC would sport the headphone output stage from their £4000 FMJ A49 stereo amplifier.

Handily, the digital out socket has been replaced with variable output analogue RCA phonos. This enables the unit to be used with a power amp or a pair of active loudspeakers which are often the choice of the desk bound audiophile. We also lose the USB-a port but keep the asynchronous USB-b port and Bluetooth functionality. It's also worth noting that the Arcam irDAC-II is capable of DSD128 replay.

Arcam were the first company to launch an outboard DAC way back in 1987 (with the revolutionary Black Box) and they re-entered the DAC market with the rDAC a few years ago. The brief for this unit was to produce an enhanced design that would raise performance and improve ease of use by a significant margin over the existing rDAC. Arcam tell me that their engineers have worked hard to isolate the digital and analogue stages and develop ultra low noise power supplies to reduce digital jitter to vanishingly low levels.

All of the inputs can be controlled through an IR remote control that will also give you transport control of a PC or Mac USB source.

So how does it sound?
Well, very good indeed. We partnered it with KEF's revered LS50 stand mount speakers, Arcam's own very capable A39 integrated amplifier and rPlay music source. It was an immediate improvement over the DAC in the rPlay – itself no slouch. Spacial information was much more apparent, instruments were solid and punchy with a much fuller, fruitier soundstage. It didn't seem to favour any particular musical style, be it the finely etched Laura Marling “Soothing”, Fink's intimate live recording of “Trouble's What You're In” or the pounding beats of Gentleman's Dub Club.

It's on demonstration in our music salon as we speak. Why not pop over and give it a try? We'll make you a brew while you settle in and immerse yourself in the music.

Arcam Hi-Fi products are available from the following branches of Audio T:
Brentwood, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Enfield, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Southampton, Swansea, Swindon

Naim Uniti Nova Music Player Shines Brightly

The long awaited Naim Uniti Nova has finally arrived. Joining its little brothers the Uniti Atom and the soon to be released Uniti Star the flagship of the Uniti range has a stellar (sic!) performance and it is beautiful too.

This is effectively the replacement for the Superuniti, but it is a completely revamped streaming system. With an 80W Naim class A/B amplifier it sounds amazing. We've been playing it with PMC and Russell K speakers to great effect. It will stream music across your network, has Tidal and Spotify built in, plays internet radio and has a USB input that will allow playback from an external drive.

The build quality is superb borrowing the beautiful silky volume control we first saw on the Naim Mu-So devices and as for the display...

This high quality LCD screen, with its built in proximity sensor, is easily visible from a distance and displays album art with great flair. There is also a bi-directional remote whose styling mirrors the unit and its volume indicators. Of course the Naim App can be used to control the Uniti Nova as well. There will be a version with DAB/FM radio in the near future as well and we will be able to retro fit that for you if you wish to upgrade the unit in the future.

So if you want an elegant one box system with that wonderful Naim musicality, battleship construction, ease of use, and the ability to drive almost any speaker, you really don't need to look any further than the Naim Uniti Nova

Why not come in and have a look and listen or join us as one of our many Naim Uniti events over the next couple of months.

Naim Hi-Fi products are available from all branches of Audio T.
Brentwood, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Enfield, Manchester, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Southampton, Swansea, Swindon

Catch of The Day. Latest Products from Naim, Rega & Acoustic Energy .

Caught at last!:

They may well be seven months late but oh boy was it worth the wait; finally we have the fantastic Naim Uniti Atom & Uniti Nova on demo and (limited quantities) in stock!

Naim uniti atom

Naim uniti nova

Straight out the box these really impressed but fully run-in they are nothing short of astonishing; seemingly able to drive almost any of our speakers. Finally, all-in-one systems that don't mean one has to use with small or budget speakers. 

The latest haul from Rega:

Rega's fabulous new Ania MC cartridge and the Fono MC phono stage have also been 'landed' here as well as the much anticipated RP6 replacement, the all new Planar 6 turntable, now available for demonstration; 'another big step for'... Rega well done guys! Full details available here.

rega planar 6 inc. ania mc cartridge

details: twin layer glass platter and machined hub

ania mc cartridge available separately £495

rega fono mc £248 (also avalable, new version fono mm £198)

fono mc rear showing dip switches for load and gain adjustment

'Caught, landed and fully prepared': 

Acoustic Energy's brand new AE109 is now on demo. At last a sub £500 (£549 in black) floor-standing loudspeaker that really shines. Stupendous value we think.

all new acoustic energy ae109 also available in walnut £499.99

Rega Turntables Are Superb And We Couldn't Make It Any Planar

Here at Audio T Preston we are pleased and proud to say that we stock the entire British made Rega Planar turntable range, from the modest entry level Planar 1, all the way up to the range topping RP10.

Rega Planar 1
This is a great entry level record player for anyone starting out listening to vinyl. It's easy to set up, and you can buy with confidence knowing that you are buying British and getting the best performance you can buy at this price point. The RB110 tonearm with the Rega Carbon cartridge combination works really well together. It sounds great and is easy to use and easy on the pocket. The P1 is available in two different finishes black and white and costs just £248 and is excellent value for money.

Rega Planar 1 Rega's entry level turntable

Rega Planar 2.
The next step up the Rega record player ladder is the P2. Whilst this turntable shares the Rega Carbon cartridge with the Planar 1, this is where the similarities end. The Planar 2 has the RB220 tonearm, which requires minimal set up to get the best from your vinyl collection. It also introduces a heavier glass platter, which increases performance. Like the Planar 1 this turntable is available in black and white finishes and costs only £375.

Rega Planar 2 Turntable

Rega Planar 3.
This multi-award winning incarnation of an iconic turntable has managed to improve vinyl reproduction even further. With structural bracing top and bottom between the sub platter and the RB330 tonearm, this turntable has been the benchmark model for avid vinyl listeners for many years. The RB330 arm requires the standard set up, however for even better performance this can be purchased with a variety of Rega's own cartridges to improve sound quality. We're on hand to guide you with the set up and offer a cartridge fitting service so that your music sounds as good as this turntable can reproduce. The Planar 3 is available in black and white finishes.

The Rega P3 record player

Rega Planar 6.
The newest edition to the range features the Neo PSU electronic speed change, advanced anti-vibration control and user adjustable electronic fine speed adjustment which until now was only found on the RP10. With a two tone black finish, dark matt grey at the top and high gloss black around the edges, this player looks stunning. We have our Planar 6 fitted with the Ania moving coil cartridge and the performance is outstanding. The Planar 6 can also be purchased with Rega Exact moving magnet cartridge.

Rega P6 turntable

Rega RP8
The RP8 is a ground breaking turntable which takes Rega’s design further than ever before. With low mass, high rigidity plinths combined with an electronically controlled low vibration motor, it makes this player a true force to be reckoned with. The RP8 is the first of Rega's “skeletal” design turntables with a new plinth using custom materials and the RB808 tonearm. Our demonstration RP8 is complete with the Apheta 2 MC cartridge. You can also get it with the new Ania MC cartridge.

Rega RP8 turntable

Rega RP10.
As with the RP8, the RP10 utilises the skeletal design and space age materials, however the RP10 is fitted with the RB2000 tonearm, which is simply stunning both in appearance and in performance. The RB2000 tonearm requires the standard set up (we can fit this for you) and has a ceramic platter and a dedicated power supply, which is the same size as Rega's Brio amplifier. The combination of the changes from the RP8 to the RP10 make a huge difference in performance and make this turntable the one to aspire to own. The only way to truly appreciate just how good your music on vinyl can sound, is to bring it in and take any Rega record player for a spin in our comfortable demonstration rooms. 

The range topping Rega RP10 record player

Thanks for reading and we look forward to seeing you in store soon.

Ian, Gavin and Andy - Audio T Preston

Rega turntables and Hi-Fi products are available from the following branches of Audio T:
Brentwood, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Enfield, Manchester, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Southampton, Swansea, Swindon

All New Bowers And Wilkins 700 Series With 800 Diamond Tech Make A Beautiful Noise

Introducing the new 700 series from Bowers and Wilkins. Our eyes are usually first to draw an opinion and we like what we see. Bowers & Wilkins have always had a reputation for creating some of the most undeniably beautiful and great sounding speakers on the planet i.e. Nautilus. 

The brand new 700 series has not been neglected nor skipped in design or quality and should be enough to convert anyone who isn't a fan of  'big speakers'. B&W have ditched their distinctive yellow cone for a slicker silver and black one and they do look the business.

The 700 series cabinet is quality as always, shown here in gloss black but it is also available in satin white and rosewood finishes. The new range also utilises tech from the flagship 800 series, which is stocked at out our Cardiff branch. Most notable is the new carbon coated tweeter, similar to 800 series but at less cost. Aerofoil bass cones, were developed using a computer and which varies the thickness and gauge of the drive unit as the distance from the centre phase cone increases makes big improvements to bass response. Aerofoil tech is taken directly from the 800 series.

The B&W 703's are out on display and now in our demo room in Manchester.

B&W have developed a new mid drive unit using a patented technology called Continuum weave technique, which is very lightweight but also tough and it makes the mid driver very easy to manipulate when dealing with the break up of mid range frequencies.

Other notable changes, which again, stem from the 800 series include decoupling the mid range unit. Since mid range frequencies are what we are most receptive to, for example, vocals and talking, this is where we are going hear things that don't sound quite right, which is more commonly referred to in the Hi-Fi world as colouration. By decoupling the mid drive unit from the cabinet, which will be vibrating predominantly from lower frequencies, this isolates and drastically reduces any transient/ interfering harmonics generated by the other drive units, which results in a clearer sound quality.

Chromey is taking full advantage of the new floating drive unit in the 700 series. Chill out dude, chill out. 

Bowers and Wilkins have also added two centre speakers to the new range. The new HTM72 S2. and the larger HTM71 S2 which will be added to our range later.

Our new 700 series is out on display and ready to demonstrate. Pop over to Audio T Manchester and take a look and listen. 

Dave, Simon, Mike, Haden and Munir should be on hand to help.

Bowers & Wilkins loudspeakers and Hi-Fi are available from the following branches of Audio T.
Brentwood, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Enfield, Manchester, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Southampton, Swansea, Swindon

Michell Gyrodec Turntable Build And Set Up

In this month’s blog from Audio T Cardiff we thought we would take you step by step through a Michell Gyrodec turntable build and set up..

The system we have chosen consists of Michell Gyrodec including Techno arm, HR power supply and Ortofon 2m Black cartridge. Leema essentials phono stage, NYTECH CP202/CPA402 and Spendor A1.

Displayed below we have the packaging of the Gyrodec including all relevant parts for building. We have removed the top section here, which contains the clear acrylic plinth with a fitted, hinged lid.

Acylic plinth with hinged lid.

One of the first jobs in the build is to fit the adjustable threaded feet x3.

Now the feet are in place the plinth can be put in position over the separate motor housing. At this point we also level off the plinth by adjusting the threads on the three feet.

Plinth levelled correctly with motor in place.

Next, you can see above the labelled suspension springs ready to be fitted to their relevant points and below the initial collar is being gently placed over the first spindle.

All three collars in place ready to take the suspension springs.

Suspension springs threaded onto the collar ready for adjustment.

Gyro chassis ready for the Techno tonearm.

Above we have the last spacer/thread fitting to the Gyro chassis and below the Techno arm being placed before being screwed down.

Offering arm to Gyro chassis.

Tonearm cables can now be dressed correctly on the underside of the chassis. The tonearm is earthed to the chassis.

Chassis placed over springs with bearing with housing now in place

Above the cartridge has been fitted to the arm and the bearing housing has been attahced to the main chassis of the Gyrodec. The main chassis is then placed over the suspension springs ready for the platter and then levelling.

View from above before the platter is placed over the bearing and spindle.

Platter in place from the front of the turntable.

Platter in place - view from above.

Once the platter is in place and the belt fitted around motor pulley and turntable platter we can level the suspension using the threads on the top of the suspension springs. Once the platter is level and the drive belt sits nicely on platter and pulley, we can start making adjustments to the cartridge position, arm height and lastly the tracking force for the cartridge. Before we continue with the arm and cartridge adjustments we can now fit the finishing caps to the suspension springs.

Arm height adjusted using the three point mount collar and thread.

Adjusting tracking force for cartridge using the Pro-ject "measure it".

Michell Gyrodec complete with record clamp

Michell turntables are available to order from all Audio T shops. We currently have a Gyro SE on demonstration in Manchester, Enfield and Southampton so come and take it for a spin!

Film Night Featuring Home Cinema System From Arcam PMC And Chord Co Cables

Hot on the heels of our Naim Uniti roadshow we are delighted to announce that we will be hosting another exciting event at The White Horse Hotel, Romsey on Thursday 9th November.

We are very proud that our store is designated a Centre of Cinematic Excellence by Arcam. 

This will be a unique opportunity to experience a truly high end Cinema system featuring Arcam's awesome amplification.

powering a potent PMC theatre speaker package.

The system will be fully wired with The Chord Company cables...

with 4K HDR picture provided by the stunning new Sony VPL-VW760ES 4K SXRD projector...

We plan to make the most of the splendid, spacious venue of The Stables at The White Horse Hotel and run a full length feature film to showcase just how totally immersive the experience of a top notch Home Cinema system can be.  

We can't promise ice cream and popcorn but there will be an intermission for refreshments from the hotel bar and plenty of opportunity to chat to us or company representatives.

Special offers will be available exclusively at the film event as well as a prize draw to win an Arcam rPlay worth £399. (No purchase necessary).

Arcam rPlay worth £399 in our free to enter prize draw.

If you are planning a home cinema it's an ideal opportunity to get technical advice about screens, projectors, speaker and cable choice, set up and positioning plus Arcam's AV solutions and DIRAC room calibration, as experts from Arcam, PMC, Chord and Sony all plan to be there.

Doors open at 7.30pm on Thursday 9th November. 

A limited number of free tickets available, so to be sure to reserve your place click here.

We very much look forward to seeing you there,

Alan and John

Hear The Difference That Mains Conditioning Can Make To Your Hi-Fi System

The quality of the mains electricity we feed into our Hi-Fi and Home Cinema systems has a profound effect on sound quality. Moreover, as the electronic devices we use at home continue to grow and the demand for electrical power increases, the quality of the electricity we feed our systems continues to degrade from radio frequency (RF) interference and mains noise.

Visit us at Audio T Oxford on Friday 22nd September (1300 - 1730) and Saturday 23rd September (1000 - 1730) and come and hear for yourself the benefits of mains conditioning in conjunction with IsoTek. 

                                     Your chance to win an IsoTek Premier Mains Cable worth £115 .

IsoTek is a leading brand of power management products for Hi-Fi and Home Cinema use. Its product range includes high-performance mains cables and connectors, plus a range of performance enhancing power conditioners focused on the specific requirements of individual systems. IsoTek have earned numerous accolades from specialist audio and AV publications worldwide. The product ranges comprise of the following solutions:

Mains Cables and Blocks:

The standard black mains leads supplied with your Audio and AV components are designed to do a basic job, no more. They lack the quality of materials and construction needed to protect the integrity of the electricity they feed your system, thereby degrading performance. The first rung on the IsoTek ladder is to replace these leads with EVO3 Premier power cables.

Mains Conditioners:

These are designed to remove noise contamination from both Differential noise that is created by the power supplies in all electronic devices and Common Mode noise in introduced by RFI and the wireless communications.

Regenerators:

These are state of the art hybrid power cleaning systems. They effectively take the mains and regenerate it having taken out all the noise.

                

Click here to view the range of IsoTek Hi-Fi mains products.

Prize Draw

We will put the names of all attendees over the two days into a prize draw giving you the opportunity of winning an IsoTek EVO3 Premier mains cable worth £115. The draw will be made at the end of the event day on Saturday.

This is a great opportunity to hear how much you can improve the sound quality of your system and an affordable and worthwhile Hi-Fi upgrade. If you would like to book a personalised 1-2-1 demonstration please call us on 01865 765961.

Refreshments and snacks will be served over two days and of course we will be more than happy to answer any questions you have. 

We look forward to seeing you. Jon, Dom and Paddy.

The New Bowers & Wilkins 700 Series 2 Has Arrived

The S2 700 series replaces and improves upon the CM Series and benefits from technologies used in the studio-grade 800 Series. Bowers & Wilkins have gone to town on this new range that comprises three floor standers, three stand mounters, a speaker stand, along with two centre speakers and a subwoofer. Available in gloss black, satin white or rosenut.

702 S2

With a Carbon Dome tweeter in a solid body housing on top of the cabinet and a decoupled Continuum midrange and three Aerofoil Profile bass drivers the 702 S2 flagship floor stander is very capable.

704 S2

A slim and elegant floor stander in store that delivers. The 703 S2 sits between these and is available to demonstrate by arrangement. 

706 S2

The 706 is the middle of the three stand mount speakers. The same mid sized speaker as the 705 S2 that benefits from the top mounted tweeter.

707 S2

The smallest of the 707 S2 Series can be demonstrated with our range of equipment in store along with the others, but you are welcome to bring along an amplifier that you own.

Julian, Paul and John at Audio T Brighton 01273 609431

Bowers and Wilkins Speakers are available in the following Audio T stores: 
Brentwood, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Enfield, Manchester, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Southampton, Swansea, Swindon

Groovy New Wharfedale Diamond 11.0 and 11.1 Stand Mount Loudspeakers

We have just taken delivery of the very lovely little new Wharfedale Diamond 11.0 and 11.1 bookshelf speakers. They have a lot to live up to as the previous models had been our go to little budget designs of choice for a while. The new models have a full front sized grille which magnetically fixes to the gloss black front baffle so no unsightly locating holes will be visible when the grilles are removed for optimal listening! The bigger model also sports a stylish curvy sided cabinet designed to help cut down on internal cabinet vibrations.

Now don't dismiss these because they are inexpensive or small (or both) because these little speakers really deliver the goods. OK they will never deliver that really deep bassy stuff but positioned close to a rear wall or towards the corner of the room and preferably on a nice pair of speaker stands they will give you an amazingly clean and open sound without that tendency of many budget designs to sound bright and a little ragged at the top end!

We have been running them in on a combination of equipment from budget Marantz systems to expensive Naim Uniti Nova and in all instances they are capable of a sweet open and detailed sound that is engaging and easy to listen to for long periods. Our old standard test track "I Don't Care Any More" by Phil Collins sounded full and vibrant with wide left to right sound staging. The bigger model delivering substantially more bottom end welly to make the listening experience more fun! Never would you think in blind tests that you are listening to small or budget designs. Our go to designs for entry level speakers for the  foreseeable future we think.

Anyone interested into little stand mounted speakers needs to add these to their demo shortlist. Once again that bar has been raised in what is a very competitive area of the loudspeaker market! Click here read more about the spec and price of the Wharfedale Diamond 11.0 and here for the Wharfedale Diamond 11.1

Why not come and give them a good listening to!

Thanks for reading. Jon, Farid and Andy - Audio T Cheltenham

Bluesound Hi-Res Music Listening Event At Audio T Portsmouth

On Thursday the 5th of October we are holding a Bluesound Hi-Res listening event. Bluesound is a multi-room high resolution streaming system which allows you to add great sound to any room.

Bluesound also gives you the ability to add music streaming to an existing Hi-Fi system. And with the Vault 2 ripper and streamer you can rip and store your entire CD collection on to the 2TB (terabyte) hard drive, which equates to approximately 2600 CD's - freeing up space in your home if you have your CD stored in racks or towers.

Click on the poster to book your place.

Using the Bluesound app you can stream from a number of music services, such as Spotify, Qobuz, TIDAL and of course any music you have stored on computers or servers, from the comfort of your sofa. Now you have the convenience of millions of tracks at your fingertips.

On the day we'll be recreating the ear opening demonstration that was conducted the Bristol Hi-Fi show earlier this yearA representative from Bluesound will allow you to listen and hear the difference in sound quality between MP3, CD and MQA from the TIDAL Masters collection.

This will be a great opportunity to introduce yourself to the Bluesound range of streaming products, or if you are already acquainted, it will be an excellent chance to ask any questions you may have.

Meet the Bluesound family

Bluesound family

The Awesome Vault 2

In the meantime if you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact us or pop in.

Click here to reserve your place or drop in on the day between 12-7 pm.

We look forward to seeing on Thursday 5th October.

Nick, Joe and James

Bluesound Hi-Fi is available from the following branches of Audio T:
Manchester, Online, Portsmouth, Swindon

Good Things Come In Small Packages – Naim Uniti Atom All In One Music Player

With the introduction of the new Uniti series (Atom, Star and Nova) all in one music players and streamers, Naim have created a lifestyle product and a premium Hi-Fi in a single box.

Naim has gone to exceptional lengths to truly enhance the sound quality from such a tight, solid and compact all-in-one music system.

Naim Uniti Atom Front Panel

The Naim Uniti Atom boasts precise handmade engineered analogue and digital circuitry - built by and developed by music lovers - and contains a substantial transformer, which ensures that the power supply is continuous, significant and stable and means that it can drive a wide variety of loudspeakers with relative ease.

The full colour LCD display with proximity sensor, that wakes up on approach, is just one of the winning finishing touches Naim have come up with. The compact styling similar to that of the Mu-So range is sleek with a luxurious finish, making it perfect for different living areas or as a high-a stand alone main system which makes it very versatile. Adding to that you have the ability to upgrade by adding a Naim power amp.

This is not just an amplifier with a streamer bolted on, the Atom brings everlasting choice to your music, combining the popular wireless options with reliable premium Hi-Fi. You will only need to look at the list of supported sources and options for connectivity to truly understand its versatility and the new and improved Naim app for both iOS and Android simply brings this all together:

• Google Cast for Audio

• AirPlay

• TIDAL

• Spotify® Connect

• Bluetooth (aptX HD)

• Internet Radio™

• UPnP™ (Universal Plug ‘n’ Play)

• Digital Input (S/PDIF)

• Analogue Output

• Headphones

• Storage

• HDMI ARC (optional)

• Multiroom

• File Formats

• Wireless Updates

Uniti System
The Uniti range is the talk of the town and we couldn't have been more eager to get our hands on the Atom. So as audiophiles do, we have tried, and tried again, with a variety of speaker options to find what works best.

And with our listening test concluded, we challenge anyone to find a better sounding system with the same functionality for under £2500.

This system comprises of:

Naim Uniti Atom → Dynaudio Emit M10 → REL T-Zero

With the above set up, you get an extremely interesting, well balanced, stylish, dynamic and vibrant system that has a wide frequency range, perfect for a small to medium size room. Playing '2Pac – Do For Love' reveals a tuneful, tight bass that underpins the track and makes it really motor along. The snap of the snare, the punch of the kick and the rhythmical percussion are brought to life through this system.  We can not fault it for the money.

Why not come and have a listen and play a few of your favourite tunes and put the Atom through its paces... or come along to our Naim Unit Event on 10th October. You can reserve your place here.

Naim Unit Atom Rear Panel

The Technical Specifications

Dimensions:

• 95mm X 245mm X 265mm (H X W X D)

• 7KG

  Audio Inputs:

• 2 X Optical TOSLink (up to 24bit/96kHz)

• 1 X Coaxial RCA (up to 24bit/192kHz, DoP 64Fs)

• 1 X HDMI ARC (Optional)

• 1 X RCA

• 2 X USB Type A socket (front and rear)

Audio Outputs:

• 1 X Stereo power amplifier

• 1 X RCA sub/pre output

• 1 X 3.5mm headphone jack

Naim Hi-Fi products are available from the following branches of Audio T:
Brentwood, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Enfield, Manchester, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Southampton, Swansea, Swindon

Cyrus Audio British Hi-Fi Products From Vinyl Replay To Digital Streaming

I recently visited Cyrus Audio's headquarters in Huntingdon near Cambridge and it was quite an experience. The company is run by a very dedicated team and have been producing high quality Hi-Fi components for over 30 years.

Their range now emcompasses everything from integrated amplifiers like the One pictured above, through pre-power combinations, DAC's, CD players and transports, and streaming solutions, plus the fantastic PSX-R2 power supply, which can be added to many of the units to further improve sound quality.

During the visit I watched the technicians build a Cyrus One and a Cyrus Signature Phono Stage (below) with meticulous care. This was followed by extensive quality control testing with a dedicated suite of computer programs.

Everything about their operation showed the great amount of care taken by the people there and the pride they have in the Hi-Fi products they produce. Cyrus also offer extensive upgrade paths for existing owners, always offering attractive pricing to help you get to the latest level of equipment.

Having recently bought a Cyrus Phono Signature for myself I have to admit to being a fan!

So all in all a Cyrus is a great British brand with a lot of solutions for the music lover. Their Signature (sic) half width casework makes them easy to accommodate and they make some very very beguiling music.

Whether you are an existing owner looking to upgrade, or are completely new to Cyrus Audio brand, why not pop in and have a look, chat and a listen?

The New Rega P6 Turntable, It's Planar To See That It's Not Just A New Platter

Audio T Manchester recently held a Rega event showcasing the new Rega Planar 6 and the brand and ever popular Rega Apollo R CD player. 

Chromey took up directorial duties for the event, shooting a video in the process.  

The Rega Planar 6 upon first glance, is noticeably different from the rest of the very successful Planar series. A two tone smoked platter, giving an almost 'floating platter' effect is the first thing you notice. We all think it looks great here at Manchester. Secondly, aesthetics, Rega have opted to go with distinctive matte finishes to identify and differentiate the Planar 6 series.

Under the hood is where the Planar 6 really has come on in development Rega's signature foam filled plinth makes it the lightest deck in it's class and price point, similar to the Rega RP8 & Rega RP10, the foam plinth at this price point really is a feat of engineering.

Using a brand new bearing housing design unique to the Planar 6 has had us excited, a combination of a lightweight aluminium sub platter to a matched hardness with an ultra low friction central brass hub.

Using new upgraded feet with anti resonance rubber soles, it helps to keep vibration at bay.

Rega have used higher tolerance bearings within the RB330 tone arm, so improving an already fantastic arm.

The TTPSU has been completely re-engineered and running version 2.0, it shares similar traits to the RP10, using a hand tuned NEO power supply which matches the 24v engine that drives the platter.

Check out the video below of the days events. The new Rega Apollo CD R is shown along with the new Planar 6.

The new Planar 6 and the new Apollo CD R will be with us imminently, in the mean time we stock a range of Rega products here at Audio T Manchester. Why don't you pop along to the store and take a peep.

Thanks for reading.

Simon, Munir, Mike, Haden and Dave.

Rega Hi-Fi products are available from the following branches of Audio T: 
Brentwood, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Enfield, Manchester, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Southampton, Swansea, Swindon

Experience The New Naim Uniti Range At The White Horse Hotel, Romsey On October 10th

Summer is still with us, just about, but now is a good time to make a note in your diary for an Autumn evening audio extravaganza on October 10th.

We are delighted to announce that Audio T Southampton will be joining up with Naim Audio to host a roadshow launch event to showcase the new Uniti range of music streaming systems.

The venue is The White Horse Hotel,  Market Place, Romsey, SO51 8ZJ

The event is in The Stables at The White Horse and starts at 6.30 pm ending at 9.00 pm.

It's too early for full details of products to be showcased but rest assured you will get the opportunity to see and hear at least Atom and Core and have the opportunity to speak to Naim representatives.  Naim technical staff will be also be on hand to answer any network questions, etc.

A limited number of FREE tickets are available now here so why not book now to secure your chance to see and hear the stunning new Naim Uniti all-in-one music players.  Refreshments will be available and there might even be the chance to enter a prize raffle!

We look forward to seeing you on the 10th October.

Alan and John

The New Naim Uniti Atom Is Here And The Mighty Atom Packs A Punch

The first of the new Naim Uniti All-In-One Wireless Music Player range is in store and on demonstration, and very fine it is too.

We have had to be patient for this complete rework of the Uniti range, with a new streaming platform and much improved performance and functionality, and it has been worth the wait. The Uniti Atom is a seriously solid 7 kg lump that punches way above its weight. Very impressive in so many ways. Beautiful and clever and very technologically advanced. 

With control via the improved Naim iOS or Android app. or the 2 way remote using it is a joy. This modern high quality compact hi-fi system does so much more then ever before.

All you need to do is add speakers. With the quality of sound from Uniti Atom the choice of speakers opens up to a surprisingly wide degree. Come and have a listen and experience Naim Uniti Atom for yourself.

Julian, Paul and John at Audio T Brighton 01273 609431

Naim Products are available in the following branches of Audio T: 
Brentwood, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Enfield, 
Manchester, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, 
Southampton, Swansea, Swindon   

New - Neat Acoustics SX7i

In addition to our current line up of Neat Acoustics loudspeakers we have now added the top of the Momentum range called the SX7i.

The SX7i delivers the performance of a high end loudspeaker from a room friendly enclosure taking up no more space that a conventional stand mount loudspeaker. The SX7i utilises no less than five drive units. The upper section is effectively a two way infinite baffle loudspeaker housed in its own enclosure. High frequencies are handled via a SXT black anodised aluminium tweeter with a massive ferrite dual magnet assembly offering extremely detailed presentation with no hint of hardness allowing fatigue free listening. The tweeter is flanked by two of Neat's recently upgraded P1/R3 bas mid drivers.

These are then crossed over to the lower half of the cabinet utilising two further P1/R3 drive units utilising Iso-Baric configuration. The first bass driver is located at the bottom of the cabinet firing downwards. This is coupled with an identical drive unit above with a sealed chamber between the two drive units. Both drive units receive an identical signal and operate in phase. These are then housed in their own enclosure that is tuned via a rear firing reflex port.

The first benefit this configuration is that the bass extension achieved is equivalent to an enclosure twice its size, thus offering extremely deep bass from a relatively small enclosure. The second benefit is that as both drivers are driven by their drive assemblies (Magnets) via the effective area of a single cone, which offers extremely controlled extended bass performance.

The drive units are housed in an extensively braced and damped cabinet constructed of high grade 18mm MDF. The cabinet sits on a pair of tri-laminate feet with adjustable spikes offering extreme stability and an overall cleaner presentation of the music.

Listening:
Straight out of the box and with no run in time, we were truly impressed by the musical performance offered - and this will only improve significantly with a few hundred hours run in time! We played 'And the Druids turn to Stone' from the album Universal Migrator by Ayreon via a Naim streamer and amplifier. The level of bass performance was truly outstanding for the cabinet dimensions and at no time became uncontrolled. the level of detail was a good as we've heard and  we heard information that we have never heard before! The sound stage and separation were truly outstanding. We have yet to play any music that has not impressed so far and this can only get better once they are run in.

These are truly outstanding loudspeakers and an audition is highly recommended. We look forward to seeing you.

Farid Andy and Jon - Audio T Cheltenham

Neat Acoustic loudspeakers are also available from following branches of Audio T:
Brighton, Cheltenham, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading

Acoustic Energy Brings Back Some Old Friends

Many years ago there were two best selling speakers from Acoustic Energy the AE109 and the AE100.

Now the company has resurrected those model numbers and having heard them, for very good reason, these two new models promise to be every bit the giant killers that their ancestors were.

The AE100 is a very compact stand mount speaker with a big heart. Like its bigger brother the AE109 they employ trickle down technology from some of the manufacturers more upmarket speakers, most notably the wide dispersion tweeter and rear facing slot mounted port.

The cabinets come in two finishes a rich walnut, or for a small premium in satin black. Coupled with their curved edges, sleek lines and compact dimensions this makes the AE109 and AE100 very room friendly.

Now to the good bit, the sound quality! As the eagle eyed among you may have spotted we've just received our Uniti Atom the wonderful small single box streaming system from Naim. Well what better device to try out some small but perfectly formed speakers with, than a small but perfectly formed system?

The sound from both speakers is surprisingly large and spacious with a richness and scale which completely belies their size. This has been very apparent on our new fave recording Kraftwerk's 3D the catalogue. This recording has subterranean bass notes and crystal clear highs, a perfect test of any speaker/system combo and the little Acoustic Energy speakers acquit themselves masterfully.

Needless to say we're quite excited by both of these products, why not come in and see why?

Paul, Francis, Jason, and Boswell - Audio T Brentwood.

Acoustic Energy loudspeakers are also available from the following branches of Audio T:
Brentwood, Bristol, Cheltenham, Online, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Swindon

The Naim Uniti Atom Music Player - A Huge Hit In a Small Box!

Naim always had their work cut out following up the highly successful Uniti range. In this months blog we take a look at the all new Uniti Atom which is the replacement to the highly successful Unitiqute. So how have they done? In short…they’ve knocked it out of the park! Welcome to the reign of the new Naim Uniti Atom....

‘All in one’ box music systems are popular these days in the world of Hi-Fi with multiple manufacturers offering up their creations in a myriad of forms, generally throwing some form of streaming and possibly radio in with an amplifier so you only have to add speakers.  There are a lot of very good ones too, so it takes something quite special to stand out amongst them and the Uniti Atom does just that…and then some. With two even bigger and more powerful Uniti units the Star and Nova on the way soon as well, it’s a very exciting time! But before we get carried away let’s have a look at what the Atom is and what it does.

Let’s start off with the aesthetics, the word ‘beautiful’ is not a term that you would generally ascribe to amplifiers but Naim have certainly bucked the trend here, especially compared to their more conservative ‘classic’ range. The first thing that hits you is the large 5” LCD glass display which brightly shows off the album artwork of the music you are currently playing as well as the very cleanly laid out and very easily navigable menu system. The screen even wakes up to show you the metadata of the track you are listening to as you approach it due to proximity sensors. This sits in a stunning brushed aluminium case with finned aluminium heat sinks on either side. The Naim logo is proudly lit up on the base and four lit up buttons on the front allow for some basic control when you don’t have the remote or your mobile device on you. The design of the Atom is perfectly finished off with Naim’s signature volume control, which will be very familiar to anyone who has played with a Naim Mu-so or Mu-so QB and adds yet another touch of class to proceedings.

So, what does it do? The answer to that is…a lot!  There are many ways to play your music through the Atom. Firstly you can wirelessly play your own music collection from a NAS drive, Naim Uniti core, or other UPnP device, it has both Spotify and Tidal streaming services integrated as well as ways of playing other services such as Qobuz via the in-built Chromecast Audio. Internet radio and Bluetooth are included of course, as well as Airplay for Apple users. As far as physical inputs go you will find one analogue phono input, ready for an external CD player or turntable via a phono stage. Digital inputs consisting of two optical, one coax and a USB also feature. There is then of course an Ethernet input and owners have the option of having a HDMI input included to connect a TV too. Finally a pre-amplifier analogue output is also if you wish to upgrade the Atom with an external power amplifier.

The Atoms amplifier is a brand new 40 watt A/B class affair, with technology taken from the Naim’s Nait series of amplifiers. They have included the biggest power supply they possibly could to give the amplifier its best chance as well as top of the range circuitry and premium Burr Brown DAC's. The streaming and Wi-Fi hardware is also brand new to ensure the best possible connectivity and sound quality. You have three options on how to control the Atom; a few buttons on the front give you basic control while the included bi-directional smart remote is a lovely touch. Finally the most convenient way to control the system is by Naim’s newly updated app, which is one of the most user friendly and stable control apps around.

We’ve tried the Atom through all sorts of loudspeakers that we have here in the store, from entry level stand mounts like the Dali Zensor 1’s right up to big floorstanders. The results were surprising, especially when we as an experiment linked the Atom up to a pair of Bowers and Wilkins 804 D3 which by all rights should be out of its league, yet the Atom drove them beautifully even in a big room, defying its size and power!

One combination that we all love is with the Spendor A4 small floorstanders which we set up in our demonstration room. Over a few days we threw all sorts of music at it from electronic to rock to classical and we all struggled to leave the room! The Atom may look small but it certainly doesn’t sound it. It surprises with its incredible depth of sound, it has this ability to seemingly fill the room with music and gets you feeling involved with your favourite tracks in brand new ways. This combined with the warmth and musicality of the Spendor A4 makes for a gorgeous listening experience. This is we think the Atoms greatest asset, as well as being amazing in its looks and functionality its sound quality will give a lot of normal stereo amps a run for their money never mind other all in one boxes.

This really is one of the most cutting edge products around and it really needs to be experienced in person to see why we are so excited to have it in our store. Please get in touch to organise a demonstration, just be warned when you see and hear the Atom we guarantee you will love it!

Naim Products are available in the following stores: Brentwood, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Enfield, Manchester, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Southampton, Swansea, Swindon