New Monitor Audio Studio Speakers Have Arrived

We've just taken delivery of the new Monitor Audio Studio speakers. These standmount speakers will make a stunning addition to any room. Featuring technologies derived from their range-topping Platinum II series, they offer a truly high-end listening experience.

Hand-crafted and available in a sleek satin black, white or grey finish, these are an elegant pair of speakers. An optional black or white dedicated floor stand is also available.

The new Monitor Audio Studio is billed as a high-end loudspeaker with a grilleless design with two metallic silver RDT II speaker cones that the company say, deliver an audiophile grade performance. The dual 4” drivers are those used in the flagship Platinum PL500 II speaker and they have been modified to produce bass, as well as mid-range detail. An MPD (Micro Pleated Diaphragm) tweeter has been designed to provide outstanding articulation due to the low mass diaphragm. MPD tweeters work like a super fast accordion by rapidly squeezing the pleats to produce a smooth, wide, naturally fast response.

Having heard the latest speaker from Monitor Audio at the Bristol Show (which we organise) we were keen to hear them in store. And we are pleased to report that these elegant and beautifully made loudspeakers, sound as good here as they did at the Show.

With a sensitivity of 86db and 4 Ohm nominal impedance, the Monitor Audio Studio are perhaps not the easiest of speakers to drive. Having said that, we got them to really boogie using the Naim Atom.

The sound is clean and open, with a lifelike treble and a fast, articulate, powerful bass and sound at their best at mid to higher volumes.

If you are looking for a high quality, revealing stand mounted loudspeaker, these really should be on your shortlist.

Come and have a listen! Jon, Chris and Dom - Audio T Oxford

Monitor Audio loudspeakers are available from the following branches of Audio T:
Brentwood, Cardiff, Enfield, Manchester, Online, Oxford, Portsmouth, Southampton, Swansea, 
Swindon

Dynaudio Music: Is Music To Our Ears.

Introducing the new Music wireless speaker and multi-room music system from our Danish cousins Dynaudio. This new range of wireless Hi-Fi speakers offers a fresh design and style which can be used in any room of the house including the garden.

The new range consists of 4 speakers. Intuitively named  the 1, 3, 5 and 7. 

Dynaudio has tried a new approach to the streaming market, introducing their new algorithm which adapts to the music you listen to, with intelligent suggestions and playlists so you only have to press play and listen to hear your favourite music. 

From installation of the app on Apple and Android, Dynaudio have a brilliant genre building process which is rather charming. First you select your favourite artist, which then proceeds to offer you similar artists. Quite therapeutic for discovering how many artists you actually like!

Just press play and let SkyNet take over. We have watched enough Sci-Fi to recognise when AI is just too intelligent. After 30 minutes of listening, the Dynaudio Music had become self aware and by then it was too late, John Connor had already been identified....

Pop culture aside, getting down to what the Dyanudio Music actually does is pretty impressive.
Learning your musical tastes and playing automatically generated playlists is very clever.

The Dynaudio Music 7 is the largest of the quartet and this is reflected in the sound quality, the extra room for the bass units and the positioning of the tweeters at far outer edges of the chassis helps the sound stage massively. Our shop floor isn't small yet the 7 fills that space easily. 
Worth £875? Absolutely, yes. 

The Music 5 is the second largest of the bunch and is equally adept at filling our shop floor with sound, albeit with a smaller sound stage but exciting nonetheless.

We then have the Dynaudio Music 3 in a red finish which also has a built in battery, making it portable enough to stick in a corner of a snug.

And the diminutive Music 1 which also has a battery, is great around the house and the caravan or when you're out and about.  

The Music 5 seen above, has a bass reflex port to help improve and control bass.

Chromey!! I wouldn't lie there, those ports can shift some air!

The Dynaudio Music speakers come in 4 distinct colours. Light Grey, Dark Grey, Red and Blue.

The,  Music 7 has a larger bass port which moves much more air in accordance with the size of the unit. No Chromey, I haven't seen the rest of your body, and I did warn you!

There you have it, the new Music from Dynaudio. They are all on demonstration at Audio T Manchester. 

Come along a take a look and listen at Audio T Manchester.

Thanks for stopping by.

Munir, Dave, Mike ,Simon and Haden. 

Dynaudio Hi-Fi products are available from the following branches of Audio T:
Brighton, Bristol, Cheltenham, Manchester, Online, Oxford, Portsmouth, Reading, Southampton, 
Swindon

Audio T Swansea Staff Systems - Bluesound Powernode 2 & Bowers & Wilkins 686

Something of a personal blog today. I'm going talk about the Bluesound Powernode 2 and B&W 686 system I use in my kitchen diner. Most of the cooking in our home is done by me and I have to share a lounge with my significant other and the home cinema system. Therefore, most of my home music listening is done whilst I'm slaving away in the galley, so it makes sense to have something enjoyable to use which lets me whistle while I work. I also work in the toy shop, so, ya know...

Bluesound Powernode 2 and B&W 686 System

I originally used a Sonos Connect (£349) and an old Rega Brio amplifier to drive my Bowers & Wilkins 686S2s (£349) - which sounded great – and lived happily on top of the fridge freezer. Then the packed up; boo!

We bought a shiny new fridge freezer which turned out to be somewhat taller than the old one. Sadly for my diminutive darling honeybun, we discovered she could no longer reach the amplifier controls – cue Grumpyface Emoji.

Something had to be done...

We've had the Bluesound brand for a little while now in a number of Audio T's, but we hadn't evaluated it here in Swansea, that's until young Kris from Anatech Distribution came down with a few toys for us to play with just before Christmas.

Appraised in our reference system, we immediately thought that the Bluesound Node 2 streamer (£499) was a winner and sonically superior to the Sonos Connect, even when by-passing the on-board DAC and using our favourite* one by Chord Electronics. With 16-bit (CD quality) files the Node 2 was quite a lot better, much less grain, a far more open and solid sound. Switching to 24-bit and MQA (Meridian Quality Assured) files via Tidal Masters and it ate the Connect for breakfast.

Historically a strong product for us has been the Sonos Connect Amp (£499). Essentially a Connect with on-board amplification, we've used it in a number of multi-room installations to good effect, the only caveat being it's inability to drive large rooms, or zones with outdoor speakers, (it just hasn't got the horsepower) so I was interested to see how the Bluesound Powernode 2 (£799) would perform.

We connected it up to a pair of B&W 684S2s (compact floorstanding speakers at £799) and let her rip. Wow! You can tell NAD designed the amplifier section – solid, clean, musical, exciting, tons of power and a lovely sense of scale, way more grip than the Sonos Connect Amp and loads more meat on the bone. We like it, we like it very much indeed.

The control interface is similar to Sonos is logical and is easy to use. Volume, Pause Play and Track Forward Back are placed on the top of the unit for convenience, plus analogue and digital inputs appear on the rear, which is very handy for those wishing to squirt the audio from a telly into it. Also you can if you want add a subwoofer. Fortunately m'darlinghoneybun doesn't read Hi-Fi blogs, so I can confirm that I'm planning to sneak a wireless-equipped REL T5i into the system soon. (There's space behind the cat basket, she'll never know...)

Six months later, Adrian's fridge breaks down...

"...so I don't have to stretch up to turn the amp on any more?"

"No dear."

Cue Smileyface Emoji.

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

The New Rega Planar 1 Plus Offers A Better And Tidier Entry Level Record Player

One could be forgiven in asking the question; does the market really need another budget turntable, indeed, another Rega? Well, as it happens absolutely!

With the amazing resurgence in all things vinyl, we are being continually asked for an affordable entry level record player. In particular for those who have a ‘now defunct’ turntable residing in the loft, or an antiquated that doesn't have a phono stage, we often get asked for a record deck that can be used with an all-in-one system or an amplified speaker.

The obvious answer would normally be the Rega Planar 1 with a Rega Mini Fono A2D phono stage - £249 + £90 plus an additional interconnect; a formidable combination indeed. However, in typical Rega style, they have both managed to surpass its performance and dispense with the separate phono stage which costs less.

Enter the new Rega Planar 1 Plus £329

The Planar 1 Plus is the exact same turntable as the venerable Planar 1 but with a higher quality phono stage built directly into the deck, which allows you to connect the deck to any line input (aux on many products) with the supplied phono to phono or phono to 3.5mm lead (upgrades are available).

Removing both the USB interface and the 1.5m armlead (replaced with a short connection to the phono amp) and using the funds to further refine the circuit, Rega has managed to extract even more performance from the Planar 1 design and make for an altogether cosmetically tidier solution and for less money to boot, nice one Rega!

The Rega Planar 1 Plus is available for demonstration at Audio T Reading and all other Audio T stores.

The All New Arcam HDA SA10 Integrated Amplifier Is Now Available At Audio T Preston

Just arrived here in Preston is the new Arcam SA10 integrated amplifier. This is the latest offering of an entry level amplifier from Arcam and replaces the very capable and successful A19.

As we unboxed the Arcam SA10 the first thing we noticed was a new look to the front facia giving it a fresh modern appearance. Also the addition of a new display panel that is larger and brighter than the earlier A19.

The SA10 has 5 analogue inputs in total, one of which is a moving magnet phono input and on the front you can find a 3.5mm stereo jack input. If that wasn't enough Arcam have also added three digital inputs, two coaxial and one optical, making it more versatile than it's predecessor.

At the rear of the amplifier new gold plated speaker terminals have been added along with a network input and an RS232 connection. 

The network input can be used for controling the amp via the Arcam Music Life app, which can be downloaded free of charge on any Apple or Andriod smart device, and the RS232 allows for remote connection to a third party home automation system or computer.

For the late night listener a 3.5m headphone socket can be found on the front facia.

The IR remote control supplied by Arcam is ready to use on many Arcam products but it is also a learning remote and can be programmed to control other products for your convenience

We set the SA10 up and partnered it up with the Rega Planar 3 inc Elys 2 cartridge along with the KEF R100 speakers and it didn't disappoint. The 50w of power was driving the speakers with ease, giving a presentation that was both engaging and revealing.

Priced at £699 we feel that this amplifier has a lot to offer and while there may be cheaper models available, however the SA10 is a great starting point for any music lover.

Why not come along and have a listen at Audio T Preston 

We look forward to seeing you. Ian, Gavin & Andy.

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

Take The Snap Crackle And Pop Out Of Your Vinyl For Good (Part 1)

Have you got beloved vinyl albums that are past their best, impossible to replace and hard to listen to because of snap crackle and pop? If so, then the Sugar Cube (SC-1) from Sweet Vinyl is something you really have to listen to. Seriously, you really really do. IT WORKS!

At Portsmouth we have recently taken delivery of the Sugar Cube SC-1 by Sweet Vinyl. In short it makes the unlistenable, listenable. It sounds too good to be true doesn't it. As an unremitting lover of all things vinyl and analogue I completely dismissed the idea of putting a digital box anywhere near my turntable. To be honest I dismissed it somewhat contemptuously and was adamant it was an utterly terrible idea. I am now eating very large helpings of humble pie. I do not mind admitting, I was quite wrong.

I know what you are thinking, what if my vinyl is in mint condition, does it kill what was a perfectly good sound? I thought that too. If we accept the fact that it does what it says on the tin and takes pops and clicks out of vinyl, what else is it doing? Well you would be surprised. The SC-1 has 10 levels of filtration and a bypass mode. What I have found in my two or so weeks of playing with it, using vinyl of many varying qualities and ages, is that the bypass mode really does work. However I did discover that using a very low level of filtration on what I classed as a pretty minty album, Eddie Reader, Songs of Robert Burns, it took out some noise I didn't even realise was there and it sounded better than bypass mode. Now, with some classical albums from the late 50s early 60s that were quite unpleasant to play, I found that the more filtration I added the more the sound became rounded but that was at the top end of the filtration level. To be expected I think, mainly due to the age of the recording which even when new, I doubt it sounded perfect. So you might find there is a bit of a pay off in some cases. However, it never sounded dull or lifeless, just a little smoother.

One of my favourite albums of all time Extravaganza by Stackridge has been on my deck loads over the past two weeks. It's hard to find and even harder to find one that hasn't been trashed. For me that one album alone is worth it. This brings me to one of the other functions the SC-1 has. The click button. It allows you to hear exclusively what it is removing, so you only hear pops and crackles. That is a real eye opener, or should I say ear?

System used Rega Planar 6, Rega Aria, Rega Elicit. Sc-1 second shelf. We played with various speakers.

For the sake of science I also committed a heinous crime. I bought a battered looking album by Bill Haley and the Comets from a charity shop. I hurled it on the floor and proceeded to dance on it. I then put it on our work bench and savagely scraped in circles, that seemed to do the job. To look at it you would throw it in the bin. IT PLAYS. Not all tracks to be fair but, but those that do... WOW!

It's looks worse in the flesh

The SC-1 does not come with a standard remote but as you may have spotted it does have an ethernet port. Yes. there is a wireless setup and control app. I know it does not sound very analoguey but if you want to use it, it is really easy to set up and and simple to use. I will talk more about that in the next blog as well as using the set 7'' set up disc.

I purposely left the price bit until the end to make sure you kept reading. It's £1550. If you think about it, it's not unreasonable as it means there is, (within reason), nothing you can't now play. Old, new or worn albums become enhanced. Let's say you had £1550 to put towards your system nothing will do what the SC-1 can. You could get a great cartridge, for your vinyl and it will still snap crackle and pop like a bowl of rice krispies. You could make some massive improvements to your cables and again your vinyl will still be crackle..... you get the idea. The SC-1 will be on our website shortly and another blog will be here next month.

We look forward you seeing you at Audio T Portsmouth soon. Until then happy listening.

James, Joe and Nick.

ROON Nucleus Plus Music Controller And Server

In our latest blog, we'd like to tell you more about the new Roon Nucleus Plus music server - it's like the brain of your digital music library, it knows where your digital music is stored on your home network and manages it for you.

Roon is software solution that organises and provides a control system to allow you to stream and play your music on any compatible Hi-Fi connected to you home network. It also provides a very intuitive and feature rich interface, so that you explore your music collection and discover even more music! In essence, Roon provides a single universal controller and user experience for all your music replay devices! 

There are two Roon Nucleus products, Roon Nucleus and Roon Nucleus Plus. Nucleus Plus extends the DSP capabilities in terms of up sampling, room correction and more. This is the one that we want to show you.

So what is Roon Nucleus?
Roon is the music management software and Nucleus is the optimised hardware that it runs on. I will explain what it means. I use Roon on my home computer (it also works with Mac's) and it's fantastic. The Roon software has to be downloaded and installed and the computer must be switched on in order to use Roon. It requires the end user to have basic understanding of computers and networks. With Roon Nucleus you get a music server and the software in a single package that doesn't require computer knowledge or networking skills and all you need is a Roon account and a Roon subscription.

What's in the box ?
Nucleus or Nucleus Plus, 4 screws for mounting an optional internal HDD or SSD, a quick start guide and the power supply.

Let's have a look at the compact Nucleus Plus device:

Nucleus Plus Front View

Nucleus Plus Rear View

It features 2x USB 3 sockets for either a DAC and/or an external USB-powered hard drive an HDMI socket for stereo or multi-channel output and an ethernet socket to connect to your network via ethernet cable to your router.

The Roon Nucleus Plus can be used as a standalone server to serve and control music network players (more brands are being added all of the time) or it can be connected to a USB DAC and an external hard drive (for music storage) with that used as music streamer. See below.

From the right: Roon Nucleus Plus Server - 500GB WD USB Drive - Chord Qutest USB DAC

Switch on Nucleus once all cables are connected and start your Roon control app on a Mac, Windows PC, or the Roon control app for iPad, iPhone or Android devices.

At the heart of every Roon Nucleus system is a Roon Core. This is the brain, it manages your music collection, streams to your audio devices and stores the Roon database of your music. My PC at home is my Roon Core, here in the shop it is the Roon Nucleus Plus server.

The first step is to tell Nucleus where the music library is, this is either music on a NAS drive, USB drive or/and your Tidal music subscription.

We then enabled all Roon-ready audio devices in our shop for music playback, including Apple AirPlay compatible devices, Sonos, KEF, Naim Audio, Bluesound, and there are many more (have a look on the Roon website).

Now we are ready to listen to some music!

It is incredibly fast, the way it handles our large music library. Skip to the next song or change to another song from another album while listening. There are no delays, not even when we fast forward or rewind!

Now we transfer the music playing in our main room to one of the Roon-ready devices in the shop front and again - It transfers the music seamlessly to another player. (You rename all of the your zones within the app).

The same when we group music players to the main listening room (multi-room). These are call end points, so you can even listen to music from your collection through headphone on an Ipad if you want to.

Roon provides you with a lot of information about the music you listen to such as view the artwork, album name, sampling rate, bit depth, the lyrics (if available) and so much more. You can tag categories, bookmark pages, browse by genre, sub genre etc etc. 

Another great feature about Roon is the data and information it provides about the artists. In some way it's a bit like Wikipedia. Click on the name of an artist you are interested in and you can read all about it with links to gigs, related artists, external websites and more. Roon will take you deep into the music and artists you love.

The Roon Nucleus Plus offers a simple and intuitive way to control and discover your digital music collection and the convenience of where you play it in your home. It is very fast and and works with a lot of manufacturers Hi-Fi systems.

We are extremely impressed with its capability and would be please to show you how it works and answer any questions you may have.

Stefan & Andy - Audio T Swindon

Cor Blimey Governor/ness. Do We Have A Cracking New PMC Amplifier For You!

We may have been quiet on the blog front for a while but only because we have been so incredibly busy in store, so busy in fact that there are now slightly more than two and a half of us with Wayne joining our team for three days a week!  Enormous thanks to all of our loyal customers, both new and old, who have contributed to our success. It's been our best year for a very long time and goes to prove that it needn't be all doom and gloom in retail!

We are delighted to announce that we will very soon be taking delivery of our PMC Cor integrated amplifier.  When Tom from PMC first brought his demo model in for us to hear we were totally amazed.  The Cor simply blew away any other integrated amplifier we had heard previously.  It just delivers the music effortlessly and never runs out of steam!

We took our first Cor order whilst we had the early demo model on loan and knew instantly that we just had to stock this magnificent amplifier.  It is the perfect partner to the PMC Twenty5 series range of speakers which we have stocked in full, and been massive fans of from day one, and is especially well-suited to the top model Twenty5 26, but equally at home driving any high quality speakers.

Interest in Cor is likely to be high because of the initial limited build, so please let us know if you would like us to contact you when we are in a position to book a demonstration, or arrange a home loan over a weekend.

We look forward to seeing you very soon.

Audio T Southampton - Alan, John and Wayne

A New Look For Audio T Brentwood And For Those Who Have Turntables We Now Sell Vinyl

We have recently been giving the the shop a fresh new look in readiness for some exciting new products which will be arriving in the not too distant future. All will be revealed in the coming months and there will be exclusive events, so stay tuned!

We have changed the wall colour and updated the product displays to give a brighter more appealing look.

Jason sorting out another fabulous AV system for a customer!

We have also brightened up our smaller dem room getting ready for some exciting new products (stay tuned!)

And we've given the front of the shop a facelift as well!

The eagle eyed among you will have noticed the SALE posters and there is still time to take advantage of some really good Hi-Fi bargains. But you'll have to hurry as the Sale ends on Saturday 16th June.

The other big news is that we now have LP RECORDS for sale! We have a selection of those big black shiny discs that we all love which are now available for you to purchase.

As a little teaser here are some album cover images for you to work out - no prizes I'm afraid other than the kudos of getting them right!

Come and have a look at the new look shop and a browse the records. We look forward to seeing you at Audio T Brentwood. Paul, Jason & Francis

Wired for Sound! Choosing The Right Cable Can Make All The Difference!

The interconnect cable is very often an afterthought when buying a Hi-Fi system. Sometimes taken for granted or even forgotten about altogether! A good interconnect can make a system sound fantastic, just as easily as a ropey one can ruin the sound completely!

This overlooked gem in the Rega range is quite possibly one of the world's best kept secrets along with the Hapsburg Napkin Fold, the Worcester Sauce recipe and the answer to Fermat's Last Theorem!! Well I think it's time that one of these secrets was revealed and the only one I know anything about is the Rega Couple phono to phone analogue interconnect, so here goes as we attempt to tell the whole world (well the Audio T Blog readers) what this cable can do.

Here at Audio T Cheltenham we have been trying, testing and listening to phono to phono leads for rather longer than it took for life to crawl up the beaches from the primordial oceans in the days before even the dinosaurs had ancestors. We have tried the good the bad and the ugly and have learned how to recognise a gem when we hear it and this one really is flawless.

Obviously it works wonderfully in a Rega system. Whether it is being used with a Rega Apollo CD player and Rega Brio integrated amplifier or going further up the range with the Rega Saturn CD Player + DAC or the Rega Elicit R integrated amplifier, it always sounds great. So a very flexible (in both senses) cable then!

We always keep coming back to the Rega  Couple as the phono lead of choice to use in our main demo systems in store and to those doubters who say that cables do not make any difference we say come and try this one and you will be converted.

Build quality is excellent and even has locking phono plugs for a better connection and to make it less likely that the plugs will be accidentally knocked out. Conductors are full of top notch copper of the high purity type and it also uses Rega's own design of gold plated plugs the signal pin and screening clamp of which are joint free which helps to keep the music signal pure.

Choose a well recorded album, (preferably on vinyl of course) such as Radiohead's latest wonderful thing, A Moon shaped Pool - this one happens to be a white vinyl copy.....pick a track....could be any of them because they are all great!

Kung Fu Hamster Highly Recommends The Rega Couple 2

When played using a lower prices cable (better not say which) and then comparing the same track using the Rega couple the immediate impression is that the sound stage now has much greater depth and width. Sounds now come from further left and right of the soundstage and the loudspeaker cabinets just disappear! Rhythms have a greater propulsion, bass is tighter and deeper and it is now much easier to follow all the music and the vocals at the same time. The vocals have also now become more distinct and all the tiny inflections in Thom Yorke's voice now come through....... spine tingling stuff!!

If you are of the Green persuasion you may be pleased to know that the packing is 100% recyclable.

Remember though ...... a phono cable will not improve the signal, it just makes certain that you do not lose information between components! Yes there are better phono to phono leads out there in the big wide wacky wonderful world but that next jump up takes you up to about £200 and that's a whole other blog!

The price of the Rega Couple is £126 for a one metre pair, but remember if you are buying a new system, not only will we make you a cup of tea or coffee, we will do you a bit of a deal on that price too!!

Now it's time to blog off!

Rega 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

Bowers & Wilkins PX Wireless Bluetooth Headphones Ooze Audiophile Style

It's been a while since our last blog, so we thought we would do something a little different this month. We asked Matt and Tom from our local bespoke tailors Doherty Evans & Stott to let us photo bomb their photo shoot with the B&W PX headphones.

We also made a little video showcasing the B&W PX headphones in all their glory, using DE & S as a back drop. So keep an eye out for Matt looking sharp in a pair of PX headphones.

Bowers & Wilkins have always been regarded as a powerhouse Hi-Fi speaker manufacturer, from mid to entry level loudspeakers to their Nautilus flagship, their products always reflect their drive as a company to deliver accurate sound to their customers. So in an ever expanding age of digital music being available to us, manufacturers have to work hard to keep up with tech in our world.

B&W launched their PX series wireless headphones, ticking all the right boxes with APTX Bluetooth, adaptive active noise cancellation, software which combines an application available for your mobile device for control and customisation. 

The PX's aren't the priciest headphone in the world yet they do feel reasuringly expensive, they simply ooze quality from the offset, the box to the carry case, everything has been crafted to reflect the price point of a £500+ headphone yet they only cost £330. From the leather/metal headband, the earcups, to the reassuring click of the buttons. Compared to the competition at the price point they are great value and punch way above their weight. Infusing metal with a soft touch leather has paid off to perfection, when you pause and actually look at the design of the headphones, they are truly unique. The way the metal is folded and curved to accomodate the braided cable, this in turn gives the ear cup a solid connection to the headband with little risk of breaking or bending, they look exceptional.

Oh, and kudos to B&W for making the high wear parts replaceable i.e. the ear cups and cable. 

How do they sound and work?
Soundstage, for a closed back set of cans the PX's are pleasantly surprising. Stereo imaging is accurate and encapsulating, they not only isolate you from the outside noise pollution but also deliver punchy and satisfying sound on your commute. 

The ease of wireless is not to be overlooked either, the range on the headphones in tests at our Manchester shop were up to 10 metres, meaning having your music source in your pocket or bag will be like the using a hot knife to cut through butter when connecting your mobile device to the headphones. Happy days.

Matt from Doherty Evans & Stott, purveor of fine clothing and beautifully fitted suits, noted how comfortable the B&W PX's were. 

Matt seen here looking very dapper wearing PX headphones by Bowers & Wilkins

Shirt by Eton

Jacket is Made to Measure by Doherty Evans & Stott.

Pocket Square by Doherty Evans & Stott

Right then, as you can see, a lovely set of PX headphones from Bowers & Wilkins.

If you want try them out, we have ours on demonstration at Audio T Manchester.

In the meantime you can see what the world wide web is saying about them here.

Audio T Customers

Trusted Reviews

What Hi-Fi?

Happy reading, see you at the store.

Words, pictures and video by Munir & Simon.

Bowers & Wilkins PX Headphones are available from the following branches of Audio T:
Brentwood, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Enfield, Manchester, Oxford, Portsmouth, Preston, Southampton, Swansea, Swindon

New Linn Lingo 4 Motor And Power Supply For Linn Sondek LP12 Turntable.

Linn recently introduced the Lingo 4 motor and power supply as an upgrade over the previous Lingo 3 for the Linn Sondek LP12 turntable. There are three power supply options for the LP12. Majik, Lingo and Radikal power supplies are modular and can be fitted as upgrades.

Follow the LP12 upgrade hierarchy of bearing, motor and power supply, sub chassis, tonearm, then cartridge for best performance.

The Lingo is the first improvement to make on a Majik LP12, providing a clear upgrade from the internal Majik power supply and previous Lingo models.

The Akurate LP12 is the middle of three standard LP12 configurations and comes complete with Lingo, Kore sub chassis, Akito tonearm and Krystal cartridge.

The new Lingo is a major upgrade to deliver even better sound from your vinyl, thanks to the addition of ground-breaking technology derived from the extraordinary Radikal power supply that is standard on the best LP12 Klimax configuration.

New Lingo incorporates a motor speed management system and uses digital processing technology to make the platter spin more accurately and more consistently. What’s more, it auto-calibrates the motor when the Sondek LP12 is powered on to ensure this accuracy and consistency every time. That’s crucial for music, of course: even the slightest speed variation affects the pitch, and a turntable that isn’t accurate is like a musical instrument that hasn’t been tuned properly.

Join Julian, Paul and John in the Brighton store to explore the Linn Lingo in detail. Please contact us to arrange a demonstration. 

Tel: 01273 609 431
Email: brighton@audio-t.co.uk

Linn Hi-Fi products are available at the following branches of Audio T:
Brighton, Bristol, Manchester

Record Store Day 2018 Was A Blast!

Record Store Day just gets bigger and better every year, and as is now the tradition, we team up with Derricks Music on Oxford Street for the day.

Derricks kindly give us some floor space to play some of our Rega turntables and let me play my music all day, and once again we were giving away one of the RSD Rega Turntables to one of the lucky RSD customers in a FREE prize draw.

On the day it was once again an early start for the staff at Derricks, in at the crack of dawn to get all the stock ready and prepare for the customers. But - the customers themselves were far keener to get to Derricks and be at the front of the queue with the first customer being outside at 1.30am!

I arrived a while before the store was due to open and the queue was already heading down the street

9am sharp and the doors opened, shortly after the day turned into a blur.... the atmosphere in the shop was fantastic, all sorts of people buying all sorts of records. I was doing my usual job of playing a variety of my own records and winding up Christos the boss by refusing to play any prog (like taking a dummy off a baby!) Time was just flying by but the queue just seemed to stay half way down Oxford Street well into late morning.

We also gave away a few of our Audio T record bags which went down very well..

Dome customers were lucky and managed to get a lot of what they wanted..

Still lots of rummaging going on until later on in the afternoon....

As close of play approached it was time to draw the winning ticket for our prize draw, I always enjoy making the phone call to the winner and this time it was even better as the reaction I got from the winner was hilarious. I can't repeat what he said when I told him, but let's just say he was very pleased!

One happy prize winner....

Nic Forbes on the left, our lucky winner David Mayes and Christos on the right.

Once again we have to say a huge thank you to all at Derricks for such a great day and already looking forward to 2019.

Derricks is celebrating its 50th year this year so no doubt we will get involved in whatever Christos has planned.

Thank you to all that took the time to stop and have a chat and enter our competition.

When you're looking for you next record player or Hi-Fi upgrade to enhance your music listening pleasure, then why not pop in and have a chat with us at Audio T Swansea.

Sublime Performance From Marantz AV8805 Dolby Atmos Processor

We have just had our ears opened up to the absolutely beautiful sound of the top of the line Marantz AV8805 processor. 

This generation of Marantz's line of Dolby Atmos processors go one step further in the sound quality stakes by adding Heos Multi-room capability and the ability to fully utilise the processing power of 13.2 channels including Auro 3D, alongside the Dolby Atmos and DTS X. 

We installed the Marantz AV8805 into our 5.1.4 Dolby Atmos cinema room and have been blown away - no surprise there as we have always been fans of the previous 8802A. 

What really caught our attention was the ability to run extra height speakers (a total of 6) AND Front Wide speakers in a Dolby Atmos configuration. So you can either run 7.1.6 or 9.1.4 in your Home Cinema. 

Naturally, most people would look for a smaller set up, however the Marantz 8805 is at home in standard 5.1 systems as well and will still sound fantastic. 

You can see from the above image that we have configured the Marantz for 7.2.6 Dolby Atmos.

The secret in the sound of the Marantz in our opinion is the inclusion of 32 bit DACS. Marantz take this one stage further by including the 32 DAC's for every single channel in the system. 

The above configuration works well with Auro 3D if you fancy a change! Just ensure you have a very understanding partner when you put all the speakers in the room......

Once you are happy with the speaker configuration, you can further customize the settings to accommodate Large or Small speakers for optimal performance.

If you do not want to use the TV/Projector to set up the unit, you can also do so by looking at the front panel and make changes.

Build quality is top notch and even though it includes no onboard amplifiers, it weighs as much as most AV Receivers which include amps.

The Marantz AV8805 is fully compliant with 4K with HDCP 2.2 copy protection. Dolby Vision and HDR 10 complaint for ultimate performance. 

Built like a tank folks!

Come along have a listen at Audio T Enfield.

Thanks for reading. John, Claire and Mahmoud

Exclusive Interview And Review Of The New Nytech CA352 Integrated Amplifier.

Modern day Hi-Fi is often jam packed with features, wireless streaming, integrated DACs and digital processing abound and that is truly fantastic. However none of these things come close to the importance of the quality of sound itself and if anything can prove this it’s the new Nytech CA352.

We’ve waxed lyrical in the past about Nytech’s fantastic Pre and Power combination the CP202 and CPA402, in fact over the last few years they have barely left our demonstration room, becoming our point of reference when reviewing new loudspeakers and other components. However there is certainly a trend recently of setups having fewer boxes and taking up less space, reducing those two boxes down to one in the form of an integrated amplifier was the next logical step.

The CA352 is not officially released until the 24th of May (more on the launch event later) however as it is developed and built right here in Cardiff we have been lucky enough to hear it a few times through its development and have had it in the demonstration room before its release.

Build quality is excellent with the CA252. It keeps the same brushed black aluminium front panel and simple nicely laid out controls including a motorised volume control. Buyers are treated to some customisation as well, as Nytech offer you a variety of choices when it comes to their signature wooden side checks, which gives a real sense of ownership and uniqueness to your amplifier.

We sat down with Phil Balaam, the designer and engineer behind all of the modern Nytech creations and asked him a few questions about his new product:

When did you first get interested in Hi-Fi and how did you get involved in the industry?

I was interested in Music from about the age of six and I built my first amplifier when I was 12, but it wasn't until I joined Nytech Audio in 1978 and met Richard Hay for the first time that I started to get interested into what makes electronic equipment sound the way it does. I learned an awful lot from Richard about why HiFi sounds the way it does and what factors can influence the sound in what way.

What is your philosophy when it comes to the sound and design of your products?

Music first! - No matter how good your equipment is on paper, it’s not until you start listening to music emotionally on it that you appreciate the difference between equipment. Music is a collection of mathematically related sounds designed to produce an emotional response in the listener. If the emotion disappears in the recording and reproduction of the music then its meaning is lost!

Value for money - Anyone who knows the HiFi business knows there are some very high priced items out there! Some justify their high price but many do not! One of the things I learned from Richard Hay was how to make music without spending a fortune and passing that onto the customer.

Nytech amplifiers are by no means "cheap" but they offer very high musical ability without the astronomically high price tag of some of the more "esoteric" alternatives. It’s up to the customer can decide if they are getting value for money.

Talk us through the new integrated, what was your reasoning behind releasing this product?

The first requirement of the integrated was that we deliver the emotion, detail and focus as would be expected of a modern amplifier but make sure that we kept the distinctive musical sound of the classic originals.

The second requirement was to concentrate every single penny of cost into musical performance.

The whole point about HiFi separates is that you choose the components you want to give you the most enjoyable musical performance

The Integrated amplifier has one job. To amplify and control analogue audio signals. Doing anything else in the box would either have compromised the sound, or made the integrated far more expensive adding features that the customer may not want.

That’s why there are no "add ons" like Phono stages, DACs, Bluetooth streaming or any other gadgets. To add these either the price had to be increased and customers may not want them or we sacrifice the quality of the amplifier to pay for the "extras." We also felt that putting a phono stage inside the box with all the interference and noise from the power electronics would reduce the quality of the music so we decided not to do it.

We set up a system in our demonstration room we felt was appropriate for the price point and function of the CA352. This consisted of a Cyrus Stream X signature into Chord Electronics new (and marvellous) Qutest DAC for our streaming alongside a Rega Planar 6 with Ania MC cartridge through Rega’s Fono MC phono stage as our sources. For our loudspeakers we employed Spendor’s brand new A7 floorstanders (more on those in the coming months) which the CA352 modestly rated 35 watts drove effortlessly.

We spent a lot of time and listened to a huge variety of music through this setup and could provide an essay on our findings but we thought we’d share a few of our highlights. One of the surprising moments came from the intro to Queen’s classic ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, the harmonies at the start of the song are of course instantly recognisable but we were blown away by the separation the SA352 provided. On a song we have between us heard hundreds of times before we could recognise each individual voice as if there were a choir stood right in front of us, it really was staggering detail.

Another standout was Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture, the realism with which the orchestra portrayed was incredible with all instruments presented in their proper positions and sounding as close to how they would in a concert hall, and of course when the cannons go off it makes you want to run for cover! The CA352 really showing how it can access that extra power that is needed instantaneously to give you that kind of impact. We know from previous experience that Nytech excel in providing the dynamics and soundstage needed to reproduce classical and jazz but what was surprising about this little amp is how well it well…rocks! Listening to ‘Take the Power Back’ by Rage Against the Machine provided all the muscle the song demands, the slap bass thundered, the drum kit hit you full on the chest and the vocals felt rhythmic and snappy just as they should but quite often don’t.

You don’t just have to believe our opinion though as on the 24th of May at 7pm there will be a great chance to hear the CA352 at our event at the Norwegian Church in Cardiff Bay. This fantastic building has hosted plenty of our events in the past and this time we will be showing off the CA352 playing through Spendor’s new A7 loudspeakers. There will be talks from both companies on their new products as well as a live performance from Cardiff based Jazz trio ‘Cool Soup’. This will be recorded and then played back through the system so we can compare between the live and recorded experience.

The bar will be open as we listen to a range of music to really show you what this amazing equipment can do. Entry is free and tickets can be reserved here . All are welcome and we hope to you there, if you can’t make it of course you are always welcome to have a demonstration in the shop any time after the day of the event.

Nytech products are currently only available at the Cardiff store

Refurbishment Sale at Audio T Brentwood Now On!

We are doing some refurbishment work on the Shop which has two benefits for you.

A) You will have a fresher brighter shop to visit

B) Bargains!!

Whether you are after speakers

Or electronics

We are sure to have something that will pique your interest.

We have some bargains in almost all categories of HiFi, so please pop in and look for the yellow price tickets like this:

We are sure we will see you soon and stay tuned for exciting new products in store soon!

Unboxing ProAc Response DT8 Floorstanding Speakers

When we first heard the ProAc Response DT8 speakers we all were blown away by the performance and all agreed that these floorstanding speakers were needed in our product line up...so here they are being unboxed in store.

Supplied with 2x black acoustically transparent crimplene speaker grills and 8 silver spikes. Our demo pair are in the natural oak finish and look fantastic.

The speakers themselves stand at 978mm (on spikes) 193mm wide and 229mm deep, so a nice neat option for a floorstanding speaker.

At 26 kg each they are not the lightest of speakers but when in position the soundstage has to be heard to be believed, with the downward firing bass reflex port they are a joy to position in any room.

The downward firing bass reflex port.

Using the silk dome tweeter the higher frequences have the smoothness you expect from the classic ProAc delivery, being that of a sound you can happily listen to all day long.

The 2x 165mm bass/mid drivers work in tandem together to deliver a bottom end that is tight and quick.

Available in black ash/mahogany/cherry/maple/oak..also available in ebony & rosenut at a slightly extra cost as these are premium finishes.

Coming in at £1950.00 the ProAc Response D8 will be a great addition to any system.

Available to hear now in store at Audio T Preston.

Ian, Gavin & Andy

ProAc loudspeakers are available at Audio T Brighton.

New Spendor A7 Floorstanding Speakers Paired With Naim's NAC -N272 and NAP250 DR Amplifiers

Over the past week we have been putting the new Spendor A7 speakers through their paces, and we are impressed.

Visually they are still in keeping with the traditional design Spendor are known for and come in a range of pleasing finishes such as Black Ash, Dark Walnut, Natural Oak and now for a little extra Satin white.

Classically beautiful A7

The new A7 is a major revision for the award winning A6R, a tough act to follow. With more dynamic range and resolution with elements of D7 technology and changes to the cross over making the A7s a real step up. For full specifications click here

The A2 looking up to its big brother the A7

One element of the new A range that is worth mentioning, is that none of the speakers come with grilles. They are now an optional extra at differing prices depending on the model. The A7 is the biggest in the A-line range but is by no means a particularly big speaker. There are two other floorstanders in the range, in decreasing order of size they are the A4 and A2, which is a very compact and competent floor stander indeed. Last but not least is the A1 stand mounted speaker (A-line range).

Spendor A7 rear

After 5 days of playing the A7s day and night we sat down for good listen. We paired them with a very popular Naim combination, The NAC-N272 streaming pre-amplifier and the NAP 250 DR power amplifier.

 A briliant combination

We started of with Nils Lofgren ''Keith Don't Go'' from the brilliant Acoustic Live album. The A7s really brought the performance to life. We were all tapping out feet and would have been singing along but we didn't want to ruin the experience. The bottom end was big, warm and controlled allowing the vocals to soar creating loads of space around Lofgren which brought all of the emotion out of the track. After a few more tracks we changed to ''The Sound of Silence'' by Disturbed from the Immortalised album. An amazing version of the well known Simon and Garfunkel song. The powerful, rich vocals were clean and well nuanced and again with beautifully controlled bass. After a few more snippets of various tracks we were all in agreement that these are a serious competitor at the price and are very much in our top selection of favourite speakers. In short, the A7s like the rest of the A-line range have managed to retain the familiar sound of Spendor, but added so much more giving them greater dynamics and intricacies, a much more spacious and involving performance able to to cope with all kinds of music comfortably.

We love them and we think you will too. Call Nick Joe and James at Audio T Portsmouth to arrange a demonstration or home loan

We look forward to seeing you soon,

Spendor Loudspeakers are available from the following branches of Audio T: 
Cardiff, Cheltenham, Portsmouth, Swindon

Huge Sonic Rewards Await With REL Acoustics Sub-bass Systems In Stereo And Home Cinema Systems

REL products are not traditional subwoofers, but true Sub-Bass Systems. A REL is designed to augment the performance of full range speaker systems in order to provide, in certain cases, linear response below 15Hz.

A REL will take advantage of the physical room acoustics to provide deep pressurization as no traditional subwoofer can. For optimum results REL's should be placed in one of the corners behind the speakers if possible. Low bass pressurization below 40Hz is best derived from corner placement, where the most linear and efficient bass can be produced because the subwoofer is able to take advantage of the tangential (corner to corner) axis which is typically the longest distance in a room.

REL subwoofers come in different sizes and most are available in a piano white or piano black.

It is not just about bass, as one might think when the word subwoofer pops up. REL's were originally designed for music based stereo Hi-Fi systems which could improve the overall sound quality improving the treble and mid range as well as offering more realistic bass performance. The way it works with either stereo or home cinema system is very clever. Supplied with every REL product is The High Level 'Neutrik' Cable, which is a very special cable and this makes all the difference!

REL High Level Cable

Here is how it works: Connect the red cable to the right-plus speaker terminal, the yellow cable to the left-plus speaker terminal and the black cable to either the left or right minus-speaker terminal on your amplifier.

Now connect the blue end to the REL subwoofer. Please have a look at the photos below

High Level Cable connected to Amplifier

High Level Cable connected to REL

Now the REL subwoofer receives exactly the same signal as the two front loudspeakers, connected to the same speaker terminals. Position the subwoofer in one of the front corners of the room and start setting it up.

There are numerous set-up guides and set-up videos on the REL website and they  are nicely done and easy to understand and of course we can give you a demonstration and show you how to do this first hand when you visit us or any Audio T store.

The first song I listened to was the song Boogie Man of AC/DC's studio album Ballbreaker and the difference is huge. The kick drum and bass guitar sound rich and real, connecting you to the music. I then disconnected the cable from the REL subwoofer and started the song again. This time there wasn't the same depth and richness that I heard before. It is not only about the bass as I mentioned before, a REL sub also improves the vocals and imaging and integrates so well with the main system.

The set-up process is the same for stereo and multi-channel home cinema systems. First complete the high-level set-up then connect the single phono cable from your subwoofer output on your AV receiver to the LOW .1/LFE input on the REL subwoofer.

With both cables connected, this set-up is called REL Theatre Reference. I personally prefer to set the .1/LFE level at around 10 o'clock position, play a scene of a movie with a good punch and then adjust the level to my liking. There are too many good movies to name but I always use the first chapter of a movie called 9. The first 10 minutes will give you everything you need to find the right LFE level. It is also great to help you adjust the level for your rear speakers. Try it and you will be impressed.

Visually impressive too.

There are also wireless options (zero compression) available just in case you don't want to run the cables across the floor. Arrow Wireless (compatible with Serie T/i , except T Zero) and Longbow Wireless (compatible with No.25 and Serie S).

Arrow Wireless Kit for a neat set-up

I recently replaced a 12'' subwoofer (massive cabinet) in my system with a physically smaller REL T9i and I have to say  that his has transformed my system into something that has left me speechless* (*Not possible - Ed). A movie like Bladerunner 2049 makes me want to watch it over and over again. Stunning!

We hope that you have enjoyed our blog and hopefully we will see you in store soon. Stefan and Andy - Audio T Swindon.

REL Sub Bass Systems are available at the following branches of Audio T: 
Brentwood, Brighton, Bristol, Cheltenham, Enfield, Manchester, Oxford, 
Portsmouth, Reading, Southampton, Swansea, Swindon

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

Visit us at Audio T Oxford on Friday 18th May (12 noon - 5:30pm) and Saturday 19th May (10am - 5:00pm) and hear for yourself the benefits of mains conditioning in conjunction with IsoTek.

The quality of the electricity we feed into our Hi-Fi and Home Cinema systems has a profound effect on how our music and films sound. As the electronic devices we use at home grow and the demand for electrical power increases, the quality of the electricity we feed our systems continues to degrade from RF interference and mains noise.

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.

Prize Draw
We will put the names of all attendees into a prize draw giving you the opportunity of winning an Isotek EVO3 Initium Mains Cable worth £80. 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.

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 Chris. If you would like to reserve your place then you can do so by clicking here or on the poster above. 

IsoTek mains conditioning products are available from the following branches of Audio T:
Cheltenham, Oxford, Southampton, Swindon