AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT… THE AUDIO NOTE (UK) COBRA!

Cast your memory back 20 months in to the past, to that beautiful time when we could congregate in large numbers and admire the latest innovations in Hi-Fi and Home Cinema. That’s right, I’m talking about The Bristol Hi-Fi Show 2019. It is here that we first heard the Audio Note (UK) Cobra. An incredible integrated valve amp that offers an outstanding level of performance.

JUST LIKE ITS NAMESAKE, IT’S Ready to pounce…..

THE TECHNICAL BIT

The Cobra is an integrated amplifier with a pure Class A valve design, comprising an input stage of 2 x 6AU6 and 2 x 5670, feeding the push-pull configured EL34 output valves, two of which are used per channel. The C-core output transformers are custom designed and manufactured by Audio Note (UK) and are of extremely high quality, offering outstanding, class leading performance.

The power supply is a multi-element design with choke smoothing, ensuring precise operation of each circuit stage, whilst a separate DC supply feeds the valve filaments.

As with all Audio Note products, it has been specifically engineered for sonic performance rather than technical specification and fulfils all Audio Note (UK) Level 1 criteria of pure Class A Push-Pull Pentode operation and materials and component quality.

A bit of operational detail.

Connections

At 28 watts per channel, the Cobra is capable of driving a wide variety of 'speakers thanks to its exceptional double C-core output transformers.

It is equipped with three analogue stereo inputs, and an additional three digital inputs, via the onboard DAC. The digital coax inputs can accept signals up to 24-bit/176.4kHz (native bit-depth for the Philips TDA1543 D/A converter chip is 16bit, so anything above this is truncated down). The Optical SPDIF input can accept signals up to 24-bit/96kHz (see above). The USB input can accept up to 16-bit/48kHz.

And a first for an Audio Note integrated amplifier, an internal D/A section and a remote volume control, with mute and input selection!

Great lines….

The Cobra looks great in the flesh bringing some of the design clues of the Jinro, Tomei and the legendary Onganku.

The Cobra is intended to bring the virtues of Audio Note, that is to get as close to the dynamics of live music as possible, but here at a more “introductory” level price.

From the top……..

HOW DOES IT SOUND?

“Ghosts” on Japan’s Tin Drum - here the eerie nature and laments of this track were strongly conveyed, David Sylvian’s voice was to the fore as it should be, and the ghostly gongs and synthesiser effects were, well, sinister and unearthly! This track was conveyed with all the emotion intended and some.

Following a strong cup of coffee, we put on Rage Against the Machine “Killing in the Name Of”. This is a strong test of dynamics, particularly drums. The Cobra rocks big time, realising this music with superb pace and timing, the drums locked in and strong and the anger of the vocals intact. What a result!

Finally, as a come down, we put on Peter Gabriel’s Us album, choosing the harmoniously complex and laid back “Blood of Eden”. This track also has a warm, deep bass. The emotions of Gabriel and the exquisitely textured music and harmonies flowed along. Quite beautiful.  

We can strongly recommend this integrated amp for all types of music. It is exciting, detailed, dynamic and tonally outstanding. A strong all-round package at the centre of any well curated music system. Just magical.

Come and hear it for yourself. Just remember that all Audio T stores are operating on an appointment only basis at the moment.

Audio Note (UK) products can be found at the Reading and Bristol Audio -T stores.

Gareth & Rob - Audio T Reading

Be sure to keep an eye on what’s happening in the Reading store by following us on Facebook.

THE KAROUSEL BEARING - A WEEK ON FROM OUR LINN KLINIK

It’s been a week since our Linn Klinik in-store Karousel event, and we thought we’d provide you with an update on how it went, as well as some comments from our customers who have already had the new bearing fitted. If you’re thinking about it but not 100% sure yet, maybe this will seal the deal for you?

The Karousel bearing, in all its glory!

Out of all the people we had come in for the Klinik, two-thirds of them put in their Karousel order before leaving. The others were impressed and will look to upgrading in the future, after a bit of saving. One of them is now looking into getting a whole Linn Majik system in the future, off the back of hearing it on the day. 

Using our Klimax system, the Karousel excelled [you can find details of this system here]. One customer brought in a very old record, let’s just say it was ’well used‘ and he said “struggles to play quietly wherever I’ve tried it” and it played superbly. He was shocked at how clean and clear it sounded in comparison to playing it on his own LP12 - a deck that is no slouch! The pops, crackles and scratches were very significantly reduced, and even the few that did get through sounded sweeter, and less noticeable.

So, what comes in the box?

Inside the Karousel box

Well, obviously the bearing, but as you can see here, there is a lot more in the box! You get a new inner platter, as well as; new suspension springs, grommets (large and small), an earth wire with tags, suspension lock nuts, a P-clip, and more than enough oil. A pretty impressive haul for not a huge amount of money!

*You will need a minimum of a Cirkus sub-chassis to upgrade, and it is not compatible with Valhalla or pre-Valhalla power supplies due to safety issues.

The inner platter from the Karousel bearing kit

One of the first Karousels we fitted was for a long time customer. After he received it back we got an update from him with his thoughts on the bearing. 

“Sat here on the couch slightly stunned at what I’m hearing from my turntable. There are bass and cymbal lines I’ve simply never heard before, and it’s only been playing for five minutes”

Understandably this initial response gave us confidence in the Karousel, but you’d better believe that it only got even better… One valued customer provided us with some very detailed email updates. One on the day after installation, another one a week after, and finally two weeks after.

Here are some of our favourite snippets from each of those emails!

The day after, he said “I’m quite cynical about post-upgrade over-enthusiasm, but I think your other customer’s ‘jaw-dropping’ assessment justified in this case.”

A week later; “Having now listened to a range of types of music and recordings/pressings of varying quality, I’m in no doubt at all about the scale of the improvement, with the Karousel. Instruments and vocals sound more natural, realistic and authentic. I think it’s a bigger step forward in my system than any recent upgrade.”

And after two weeks; “Two weeks post-installation and I’m out of superlatives to describe the improvement the Karousel has made to my LP12. Not surprisingly, great recordings are better now. The biggest change however is with material that didn’t sound quite right with the Cirkus, which now makes it over the line, often by a considerable margin.”

We would absolutely agree with all of these comments, and the countless snippets of praise we’ve had from everyone.  The noise floor drops away almost completely, leaving more space for each individual instrument. That’s not to say it gives an unnatural ‘3D’ sound, but you can certainly pick out more detail than with other bearings. Another benefit is that it’s less fatiguing on the ears, we can certainly attest to that having given our shop model a good run in for at least 5 full days.

As our customers have said, music that they know well is being heard in completely different ways and details that weren’t noticed before, are suddenly revealed in all their glory. We would agree with that fully, and it is a joy to listen to. 

This bearing is a real testament to the work that Linn do, and despite a global pandemic happening just as they released the bearing to the public… it has not affected the demand for these at all. We get enquiries about it daily!

We can honestly say that this upgrade is easily the best value upgrade you can do to your LP12, and it is without a doubt firmly in the top 5 upgrades of all time. 

If you’d like to discuss this, or any other LP12 upgrades, then please give us a call at the shop and we’ll be happy to talk through what we can do. Just remember that all of our stores are currently operating on an appointment only service.

John, Paul & Chris - Audio T Brighton

Linn Products are available at all of the following Audio T Stores -

• BRIGHTON

• BRISTOL

• MANCHESTER

• OXFORD

• PORTSMOUTH

• SWINDON

Be sure to keep an eye on what’s happening in the Brighton store by following us on Instagram and Facebook.

ROTEL TRIBUTE SERIES - THE LAST LEGACY FROM A LEGEND

Industry leaders, Rotel, have launched the A11 and CD11 Tribute series amplifier and CD player (respectively), redesigned in collaboration with the late audio legend Ken Ishiwata. Very sadly Ken passed away before seeing the final finished product.

Both the CD11 CD player and A11 amplifier feature significant changes to internal components as well as changes to the chassis design over the standard entry level versions of the cd and amp. Ken Ishiwata was famous for his work with Marantz, and as this proved to be his last manufacturer collaboration it was aptly named “Tribute” by Rotel. Ken’s knack was to take an already well performing component and take it to another level without a huge increase in price. i’m sure lots of you reading this will have owned or listened to many products that he had performed his magic on.

The Rotel A11 and CD11 Tribute fall into the same price bracket as the well established and award winning Marantz 6000 series, which we have been fans of for many years in its current and previous models. It is safe to say that these now have very stiff competition from these new Rotel models.

From setting them up from new out of the box it was clear to see that these are extremely well put together components for the price. Even perhaps a more reassuring build quality than its competition.

The first CD we played (Eric Clapton - Session for Robert J) was very impressive even from stone cold. Sounding very articulate with a tremendous sense of space and focus of the individual instruments in the laid bare live recording. Partnered with the Rotel were the Bowers and Wilkins 607 on the dedicated B&W STAV stands, and at an overall system cost of just over £1500 it really does rock along.

Curious to hear the comparison with our established go-to product it was time to set up the Marantz CD6007 and PM6007 amplifier alongside. My initial thoughts about the Rotel were reinforced in comparison to the Marantz. It would be fair to expect, as from previous Ken Ishiwata tuned products, things like the accuracy in tonality of separate instruments, and focused sound stage to be improvements, and this is certainly the case with the Rotel.

To question if the Marantz is now still top of the tree and the entry level would be a very fair discussion, certainly from what we have heard so far, the Rotel will appeal to a lot of people. So, if the Marantz is on your list to audition then you must add the Rotel Tribute to that list!

If you would like to audition these with us, please remember that during the current Covid restrictions we are still able to offer in store demonstrations by appointment. If you are unable to travel to Swansea due to local lockdown travel restrictions please get in touch with us to discuss a home demonstration.

Nic, Chris & Adrian - Audio T Swansea

Contact your local Audio T Store to listen to Rotel products

IS THIS THE NEW BRONZE AGE? MONITOR AUDIO BRONZE 6G SERIES

If you’ve ever found yourself in search of the elusive "good performance yet affordable speaker”, whether it be either for your first Hi-Fi system or perhaps even a home cinema set-up, like many of our customers you will of no doubt found yourself perusing the latest offerings from Monitor Audio. One of their most popular models being the Bronze Series, a rarity in that they are extremely well balanced between both price and performance.

Each of the six generations of the Bronze Series speakers have received rave reviews and awards a plenty over a twenty year period. They have also proven the test of time and become a perennial favourites with our customers and staff alike.

So, if it’s not broke, why fix it?

Monitor audio bronze 6G 200 in a very contemporary white finish

The new 6G series departs quite dramatically from its predecessors. The Bronze range has traditionally favoured a front ported design (with the exception of the smallest speaker in the range). This was considered by some to be a benefit to those with much smaller rooms, allowing them to place the speakers closer to the wall. This new range however has adopted much of its design from its bigger brother, The Silver Series. This would suggest that you are getting a far better speaker at the price point over its previous generations. One such design appropriation being the inclusion of the Hive2 port design, which has been integral to many of Monitor Audio's more exotically priced models. This system enables a smoother response as the cabinet moves the air, ensuring placement isn't compromised. Essentially, it doesn’t matter the size of your room, you will still be able to enjoy the Bronze Series.

As well as changes to the low end, Monitor Audio have modified their C-CAM tweeter with a "Uniform Dispersion" Waveguide. “But what does that mean Andrew?” I hear you cry – In short, this ensures a very clear delivery of higher frequencies for even more detail at the top end. In addition to this, Monitor Audio have also made improvements to their mid and bass drivers construction as well. The inclusion of Damped Concentric Mode (DCM technology) to the Bronze Series’ proprietary C-CAM driver allows for tighter low end and more clarity in the mid-range.

It is obvious to me that an enormous amount of time and effort has been invested in this new 6G series. But as with anything, the proof of Monitor Audio's extensive efforts can only be established by listening to them.

So, how do they sound?

As I’m writing this blog only to whet your appetite, I will let you make the final judgement when you call in for a critical listen. However, my humble impressions listening to both the Bronze 50 and 200 is that they both sound absolutely superb; and, most importantly, all the more impressive when you consider their very competitive price points.

Straight out of the box, both the 50s and the 200s offered a very polished performance, that ably competes with many alternative brands in and above a similar budget. The revised design really does pay dividends!

In conclusion, these new models deliver a more textured and nuanced bass output and a more refined mid-range, but the real surprise is the treble presentation, which is crisp but in no way bright and with a smoothness that is sure to surprise.

In conclusion, the new Bronze range offers a comprehensive selection of speakers that perform admirably for music and home cinema. including a new subwoofer, centre speaker, rear FX speakers and the newly introduced Atmos speakers. The range also has a very fetching new finish, Urban Grey. This contemporary finish is already proving very popular with our customers. But if this isn’t to your liking, you also have the option of the more traditional walnut, matte black or white meaning that they will match most decors.

So, there you have it. Why not book a demonstration to come and listen to these exceptional speakers in store or for home demo?

Andrew & Andy – Audio T Swindon

Monitor Audio can be found at the following Audio-T stores

• ENFIELD

• MANCHESTER

• ONLINE STORE

• OXFORD

• PORTSMOUTH

• SOUTHAMPTON

• SWANSEA

• SWINDON

Rega Aethos Update...

We have been selling this behemoth of an integrated amplifier for a few months now and in that time it has become our favourite amplifier at the price by quite some margin. It has been out performing all of the competition that have passed through our doors here in Cheltenham, some of which have cost almost twice as much. With that in mind we thought that it was about time to shout about this wonderful addition to the Rega range in one of our regular blogs. Can’t believe we haven’t done so already really. So here goes….

The Rega Aethos is an integrated amplifier that has been eagerly awaited for some time. In the last three years, Rega has released three turntables, Planar 6, Planar 8 and Planar 10, that can legitimately stake a claim to being close to or the benchmark at their respective price points. What Rega couldn’t do as easily was sell you an amp to go with them. The range has four relatively affordable amps (including the new Io and the very excellent Brio) and then a significant gap until you get to the flagship Osiris (which, by the way, is also rather excellent).

At one pound under three grand the Aethos is Rega’s exercise in making the ultimate sound they could for the price. They took out the phono stage. Their logic being that if you own an amp at this price you are more than likely going to run it with a turntable of at least the quality of the P6 if not a P8 or P10. So you will have a moving coil cartridge and will thus want to do it proper justice with an out board phono stage, such as the Mk3 version Aria or the Aura Reference.

The Aethos is a dual mono design that uses a custom wound toroidal transformer and regulated power supplies for the sensitive amplification and driver stages. The pre-amplifier stage uses class-A discrete circuitry throughout. It delivers a very impressive 125 Watts per channel into an 8 Ohm load, so it has the capability to go very loud, hence the chunky rows of heatsinks down either side. The Aethos’ build quality is impressive. The chunky styling of the new casework certainly feels rock solid and inspires confidence. The controls are simple enough with smooth-acting buttons for choosing the inputs for listening and recording.

Now of course its not all about volume (although that does help), the Aethos has control and dynamics, delivering an impressive performance that always makes the music sound vivid and alive. We have used the Aethos with many and various combinations of turntables, CD players, streamers and loudspeakers, and it always has an assured and solid sound staging ability. It possesses an amazing ability to get the sound of an instrument or a voice to appear to hang in the air in front of the listener, and to sound like it is way outside the left or right of the arc of the loudspeakers. There have been many instances where we have had one of these set up in our dem room for a customer to come in for a listen. And when the demo is over we have left it playing so that we can have a listen for ourselves, and the comments are always the same. “How does it do that for the price” or “ I want one!”

As can be seen from the picture above the Aethos is fitted with five RCA line inputs, a tape loop (that neatly features parallel outputs so you can drive a headphone amp and record at the same time), a power amp in and preamp out. This is partnered with a headphone amp running into a 6.35mm jack connection, and the performance on headphones is just as stunning as through the speakers. A nice chunky set of gold plated 4mm speaker sockets complete the line up on the rear.

The Rega Aethos has a very similar character to the Elex-R and Elicit-R but is more revealing and powerful, which opens up a wider range of loudspeaker options but does place higher demands on the source. Essentially it won’t gloss over anything coming from the front end, be that the hard- or software. But it is a very musical and compelling amplifier that makes you want to listen longer and, dare I say it, louder, which is one of life’s great pleasures after all. Add to this very high build quality, a good selection of analogue in- and outputs and you have a classic amplifier, built for sound quality first. What more do you really need?

During these difficult times we are operating on an appointment only basis, so if you’d like to listen call Audio T Cheltenham and book a demonstration.

Andy, Jon and Farid.

Rega products are available from all branches of Audio T

Introducing the Bowers & Wilkins 600 Series Anniversary.

A recent release in the wonderful world of speakers is the Bowers & Wilkins 600 Anniversary Series to commemorate the 25th Anniversary of the original 600 speakers.

With the quality of sound you have come to expect from Bowers & Wilkins, but with upgraded crossovers and decoupled double dome tweeters, for the most clear listening experience possible for the anniversary. Not to mention the cosmetic upgrades to them.

Before we talk about our verdict on how they sound let’s have an overview of the history. 

1966, Worthing, England. John Bowers started out building speakers systems in his electronics workshop. This grew into Bowers starting his own speaker company, after a hefty investment of £10,000 from a satisfied customer! This grew into the company experimenting with speaker designs to push forward the capabilities of audio from the domestic monitors in the 1970s to setting up the SRE (Steyning Research Establishment) in 1981. 

Bowers and wilkins: domestic monitors, the start of their venture into home audio! read more at :https://www.bowerswilkins.com/en-gb/our-story

The first 600 series came about in 1991, as a successor to the already established series of home monitors. It was a series that made quality audio even more accessible in a domestic environment, at an affordable price point, helping create what the HiFi industry is today. Designs like the original 600 series gave more of a focus on the the music lover’s home, instead of a professional studio environment. That is why we join Bowers & Wilkins in celebrating this milestone. 

“But what about the speakers?” you might ask, that’s why you clicked on this blog after all. 

The sound quality captured in the 600 series is outstanding- the clarity is comparable to speakers at a higher price point. This was surprising due to the seemingly minor changes for this anniversary edition - but those little changes make these a top competitor for their respective price points.

The 603s towering OVER THE 607s

Initially the bass that can be produced from the Floor Standing 603 speakers made me need to catch my breath. I assumed there was a subwoofer in the system with them. I was wrong, it was all the 603s work! 

From testing the 603s I went straight to warming up the 607s. I wanted to to dive into the comparison between the models. I went into testing the 607s with a pinch of salt as they are dwarfed by their big sisters, but I was wrong to do so. The 607s are the perfect speaker if you have a smaller room. They held their own in our larger demo room, which I think says a lot about the quality of the audio reproduced by them. Most speakers of this size will typically begin to suffer in this kind of environment, however, the 607s held up (albeit with a slight blur of clarity between the bass and mid-range in comparison with the more expensive models).

The 607s have a wide frequency response and great clarity, most noticeable in the crisp detail in the midrange and the high frequencies - making these small speakers an impressive thing to hear.

Introducing the 606s. If you find you have the room size for a bigger pair of speakers, but without the space for floor standing models then the 606s are for you. The slightly larger size of the 606s mean they don’t fail to fill up a room They are a favourite as our shop floor speakers to ‘warm them up’ (we just really like them to be honest).

Our first demonstration model of the 606s did kick up quite the riot in our store. The new Oak finish for the 600 series is flawless. Our 606s featured this finish, with an Oak styled veneer (a stunning shade) mixed with the white face. The contrast between the two creates a balance that I can only describe as full eye candy.  Although for the 603s we do prefer the finishes in black or white, as we think the black speaker cones don’t fully mix with the white panel - but of course that is a personal preference, how may feel otherwise.

That oaky goodness mmm

Overall we tested the speakers with a wide range of music, varying from The Cinematic Orchestra and Oh Wonder to Rollings Stones and Metallica to Jon Hopkins and the Bass Mekanik! We choose a range of different styles to reflect a range of different listening to see how they hold up. The speakers as a whole reflected a performance higher than their respected price points - in the worlds of the great Joe Reed. ‘A whole load of speaker for the price.’

It feels that Bowers and Wilkins didn’t just hit the nail on the head with this series - they may have made nails obsolete! They have offered a quality speaker that is available at a range of price points that ultimately benefits the Hi-Fi industry with a further sense of accessibility to crisp balanced plain old good sounding Hi-Fi.

We are operating an appointment only system during these difficult times. So why not book a demo to listen to these beautiful speakers today? Our demo rooms are waiting!

Jake, Nick and Joe - Audio T Portsmouth

Be sure to keep an eye on what’s happening in the Portsmouth store by following us on Instagram and Facebook.

Bowers & Wilkins 600 Anniversary Series are available in all Audio T Stores.

Bowers & Wilkins make their mark with the new Signature series.

The new Bowers and Wilkins Signature series have arrived at our Manchester store.

B&W have used technology from the ever popular 800 series to add a little extra pizzazz to the already impressive 700 series, with new design features exclusively for this range.

The brand new Carbon Dome tweeters are purpose-built for the 700 Series and deliver pinpoint imaging accuracy and detailed insight in to your music.

Milled from a solid block of aluminium, just like Chromey, the Solid Body Tweeter design creates an acoustically optimised housing that is inert and resistant to resonances.

The tweeter grill on the 700 signature is now in an elegant silver finish, very slick.

The 702 Signature is finished in Datuk Gloss, which reminds us of a tiger ebony finish. It looks very nice.

According to B&W “Voices and instruments are delivered with purity and precision, thanks to the smooth, accurate Continuum cone mid-bass driver.”

And we agree, the Signature series are more open and spacious than the equivalent standard 705.

There’s no denying the fit and finish of the signatures. Bowers and Wilkins have done a great job.

Ahem, Chromey, that’s a bass port not a space port.

We have both the 702 Signature and 705 Signature at our Manchester store.

Both are on display and ready for demonstration. If you are interested and would like a demo, just ring the store to book an appointment.

We are only allowing 2 to 3 customers in the store at the same time in the interest of safety during these difficult times, so please ring ahead to book an appointment.

Dave,James,Munir,Mike and Haden will be on hand to help.

Time For Evolution, The New Project Debut Carbon Evo Turntable

THE project debut carbon evo in satin steel blue

The Project Debut Carbon has been around for a few years now, yet is still one of our best selling turntables. Like many, I was interested when I heard that an ‘Evo’ version had been released. What would the difference be between the two? Well, looking at the two side by side I must say they look identical (apart from the finish of course!)

the proven 8,6‘‘ one piece Carbon tonearm design. The super stiff, but lightweight tonearm delivers an insane sound quality with a convincing sound stage.

The signature, high quality carbon arm, factory fitted with the excellent Ortofon 2M Red cartridge. The connecting cable included with both models is the well respected, semi-balanced Connect-it E. And whilst it would appear to be the same looking platter, the Evo boasts a newly designed platter which we will discuss a little later. As well as this, there are now nine elegant finishes available, including Satin Steel Blue - A touch of class indeed!

So what else are we getting for the £80 premium?

To find this out we must look a bit deeper. First of all, the “Evo” has an electronic speed change. The simple on/off switch on the original has been replaced with a three position switch, flick to the left for 33 and to the right for 45. No need to remove the platter to change speed.

Whilst we’re talking about speed; this deck is also capable of playing 78’s with a special belt that is supplied. Just simply place it on the larger pulley and away you go. Just make sure you change your stylus to play your old shellacs - Ortofon manufacture an easily replaceable stylus for this very purpose.

While looking underneath the deck I also noticed that the feet were different. It now sits on three height adjustable aluminium feet which are further dampened with TPE (Thermo-Plastic Elastomer). This will ensure an absolutely stable platform, with good isolation from the shelf it is placed on.

So what’s new under the bonnet so to speak? On removing the platter we can see two noticeable improvements. The first is the in house designed motor and the way it is mounted. It is now decoupled from the chassis using a new mounting plate. This is again dampened with TPE, which isolates the motor whilst keeping it perfectly level with the sub-platter drive system.

As mentioned before, the Evo’s platter also features all new TPE (thermoplastic elastomer) technology which helps to damp the resonance completely and also increases the weight to 1.7 kg. Also, because the TPE is mounted to the inside of the platter‘s rim, the extra mass there will also create a flywheel effect. The result is an even quieter and noiseless operation, with less wow and flutter.

So, all-in-all, some worthwhile improvements for a megre £80. However the proof is in the listening…

Let the shoot-out begin!

I set both turntables up with a system that they are likely to be partnered with, consisting of the excellent Rega Brio amp and Dali Oberon 5 loudspeakers. I set them both to play for a couple of hours to make sure the system was fully warmed up. I randomly selected some vinyl from my home collection, but ones that should show the difference between these two decks.

First for a spin was Karen Souza and her cover of Bruce Hornsby’s “The Way it Is.” Karen’s close mic’d vocals sounded good but with a very slight sibilance but this was not enough to spoil the performance. Imaging was good and the bass was slightly on the warm side.

So, over to the “Evo”

The first thing that was noticeable was the lower surface noise. The stereo image now was a lot wider, filling the space between the speakers nicely. Her voice was also slightly more forward in the mix, putting the band firmly behind her. In fact it was now a lot easier to individually follow the musicians. The bass was also tighter; no doubt a result of the extra damping. I didn’t seem to notice the slight sibilance.

Next, the Vivaldi. An early digital recording and not the best out there, however, with a performance amongst the top. This recording has a slightly shrill top end, and this was the case on the Debut Carbon. This was still the case with the “Evo”, however, the wider soundstage and greater bass weight made the performance much more enjoyable.

Again I had similar results with the Christine and the Queens LP. A wider soundstage with the heavy bass lines of the track “iT” much cleaner and more focused.

Last but not least was the John Mayer disc. This is a fine example of a well recorded and produced album, and both turntables shone here. The track “Gravity” is fairly narrowly mixed, and this was the case on both turntables. The biggest difference here was in the depth. The “Evo” bought Mayer’s vocals forward, and it was the same with the background vocals towards the end of the track. I imagine just as the engineer intended.

Funnily enough I was quite happy swapping from the Carbon to the EVO but not so much the other way. I just wanted to listen to the whole album. This for me would be well worth the extra £80 spend.

Project turntables are available from all Audio-T branches. Find you local store here.

Hefin, Nick & Kerrin - Audio T Cardiff

Be sure to keep an eye on what’s happening in the Cardiff store by following us on Instagram and Facebook.

Brighton's Linn Klinik featuring new Karousel bearing - 8th October 2020

We’re very excited for our upcoming Linn Klinik event showcasing their new LP12 bearing, the Karousel! John has been very busy the last couple of months fitting Karousels to many of our customer’s decks, and the orders are still flooding in. The great thing about the Linn Klinik is that it gives customers an opportunity to hear what the Karousel does with their own ears, instead of relying solely on reviews and recommendations. 

We thought we would take this opportunity to tell you what systems we will be playing on the day.

Our ‘Karouseled’ Majik LP12!

The first system we’ll be using will be a full Linn Majik system. Comprising of a Majik LP12 - with Karousel bearing - into either a new Majik DSM or a Selekt DSM (depending on availability), playing through Linn’s own Majik 140 floor-standing speakers. We’ve been running this one on and off for the last few weeks in preparation and it sounds excellent. It’s very sweet, detailed and clear, without being too aggressive. It’s very easy to listen to without fatiguing your ears. 

the klimax lp12, with radikal lurking in the background!

The next system we’ll be using is a higher end system. We built this system based on some of the most popular combinations our customers use with this level of LP12. This one is a Klimax LP12, it has a Karousel, an internal Urika phono stage and is being powered by the Linn Radikal (Klimax enclosure) which powers both the deck and the Urika - a ‘doubly impressive upgrade’ as Linn say! This then going through a Naim NAC552 & NAP300 combination and into a pair of ATC SCM50s. This is a very impressive sounding system and really makes the Karousel shine!

Linn are also running a promotional offer for the day, if you spend £3000 or more on any Linn product*, you get the Karousel bearing for free. So, if you’ve been thinking about finally going for that Radikal upgrade, now might be the time. 

*Excluding Kandid Cartridge

We do recommend that everyone who is coming to listen brings a selection of their own records, and advise that they be records you know well, so you can really hear the differences the Karousel makes. We do carry a selection of records for demo purposes, but as we all know, each pressing is different!

Each booked appointment will last around 45-60 minutes, and we will be able to answer any questions, as well as provide recommendations about upgrades to your own system. You can book your slot in Brighton by clicking here

Below is a list of the available dates for all other participating Audio-T stores. Contact your nearest branch to get more details about booking.

Bristol - Thursday 30th September 2020

Swindon - Wednesday 7th October 2020

Cheltenham - Saturday 10th October 2020

Manchester - Friday 16th October 2020

Portsmouth - Saturday 17th October 2020

Oxford - Saturday 23rd October 2020

We’ve enjoyed putting together these systems for people to hear, and we look forward to seeing a few of you on the day! 

John, Paul, and Chris - Audio-T Brighton

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What's new at Audio T Southampton?

We are delighted to say that we have been extremely busy since we reopened after lock down. A big thank you to all of our loyal customers for your continuing support.

Now that things have calmed down a bit we would like to update you with some of the new product arrivals in our store.

We are long term fans of B&W speakers here, with 700 series amongst our favourites, so we were very excited when 700 Signature arrived.

B&W 705 Signature

B&W 702 Signature

Both models look stunning in the exclusive Datuk Gloss finish and the crossover and drive unit improvements, derived from 800 series (also on demo here), have raised performance to even greater heights, with more detail but a much sweeter treble, better imagery and deeper and more articulate bass.

Listening to some of Acoustic Energy’s current models made us realise what we were missing so we now have a few AE speakers on demo.

Acoustic Energy AE109

The slimline AE109 floor stander is a remarkably refined speaker for a very reasonable £499 in walnut, £549 in satin black.

Acoustic Energy AE500 and Reference Stands

Moving up a bit in price, the AE500 is a very worthy successor to the iconic AE1. It’s a very articulate but relaxed performer, which is easy to drive and locate and the finish is very good on both the speakers (£1000) and the excellent matching Reference stands (£350). What’s not to like?!

Acoustic Energy AE509

For those with a larger room to fill with sound, the AE509 has the same refined open top end with a weightier, but very controlled, bottom end. The gloss black finish is every bit as good as the satin white or walnut options. It’s a lot of speaker for £2300.

Ruark R3

If your requirement is for a more compact solution, rather than a sizeable pair of floor standing speakers powered by hi-fi separates, the Ruark R3 ticks a lot of boxes. For £629 it provides DAB/DAB+/FM radio, CD playback, wi-fi streaming with support for Tidal amongst others, analogue and digital inputs, bluetooth, walnut (as above) or soft grey finish, and of course, it sounds great.

Rega IO

Staying small, the new baby amplifier from Rega is a stunner. It’s minimal in features, with just two line inputs plus MM for turntable, but we are yet to hear another amplifier to beat the Rega IO for sheer musical enjoyment at anything near the bargain asking price of £379 of this giant beater.

Chord Electronics Huei

Last but by no means least, our smallest newcomer is this wonderfully crafted piece of hi-fi jewellery. Polychromatic balls embellishing an ingot of aircraft grade aluminium leave no doubt that the manufacturer of the Huei MM/MC phono stage is Chord Electronics. The exquisite build quality is matched by exceptionally transparent audio and imperceptible noise floor, breathing new life into even the most familiar vinyl. £990 seems a very fair price to rejuvenate a record collection!

Please give us a call or email if you would like to demo or home trial one of these new products, or anything else we have in store. We are currently open to appointment for booked demonstrations 10am to 6pm Tuesday to Saturday.

We hope to see you soon,

Alan, John and Wayne

The Brand New Denon AVC-X 4700H - See What the latest AV Amplifier has to offer!

Here is the new Denon AVC-X 4700H, which offers a 9.2 200w per channel setup and gives you access to Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, IMAX Enhanced audio and 8K/60Hz 4K/120Hz visuals. HDMI 2.1 is also supported on one input. With a total of 7 hdmi inputs it is more than capable of supporting a larger setup of blu-ray players, games consoles and TV boxes. Dynamic HDR, HDR10+ and eArc mean you will get the excellent picture quality you want in order to enjoy the films you watch and the games you play. 

Accessibility from a phone or tablet is easy and vast, with the inbuilt HEOS allowing you to stream high quality audio from services like Tidal or Amazon Prime Music. Airplay2 is a welcome feature for any Apple user, plus the 4700H is Roon tested and is compatible with Bluetooth. For the analogue music lovers the Denon has a phono input, a tuner input and 5 other assignable analogue inputs. Audyssey, helpful if you have a room with a less than ideal arrangement, works well and can help improve the sound quality when used correctly. The 4700H is also voice assistant compatible with Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri, so no matter which one you use the Denon will have you covered.

The design of the front panel is sleek and minimalistic, with just the input selection, volume, power button and screen visible. There are some quick select options, including USB and a headphone jack, hidden behind a front panel for easy navigation, for those times when you can’t seem to find the remote. The unit itself is solid and feels well built, but is a little lighter compared to other AV amplifiers, making installation and any future rearrangement a bit easier on the lower back.    

Denon has a long history in Hi-fi dating back over a century, they pride themselves on the quality of their work, this shows in how their products improve year after year. They are usually among the first to implement new technology, as shown by the addition of 8k to their newest range of AV amplifiers, and having it work seamlessly straight out of the box. 

The setup step by step guide is very helpful and straight forward and walks you through every aspect, even including how to strip the speaker cable. This makes it accessible to newcomers starting their very first home cinema. Speaker configuration, distances and levels are quick and easy to set, so you can be sure you get the best sound from all your speakers. Pretty much everything is customisable, from how bright the front display is, the names of each of the inputs, to the EQ of the speakers. 

Listening to Tidal through the Heos app was not only simple but it also sounded really good. Without the need to drive a centre or surround speakers the 4700H becomes a very powerful stereo amp, capable of driving even some less than forgiving speakers. With a pair of Dynaudio Evoke 30’s attached, the price difference being a concern, I was expecting a sound that was lacking in cohesion and range, but I was delighted to hear that Solange’s ‘Don’t Touch My Hair’ had clear, melodic vocals and an impactful but controlled bass. The phono input is adequate, but add on an external phono-stage matched to your turntable and it will finish the package off beautifully. In terms of surround sound with movies, we set up a Monitor Audio Silver and Rel 5.1.4 system,and it sounded marvellous. Voices were clear, soundtracks weren’t overpowering and with the atmos speakers turned up slightly the overhead effects during action sequences were exciting and added so much to the overall experience. Finish it off with a good sub, or two, and you can have an excellent home cinema experience without breaking the bank or compromising on quality. 

The Denon AVC-X 4700h and the other’s in the range are available at all Audio-T branches. If you would like a demo of this or any other of our selected products make sure to drop us an email or give a ring to book your appointment.

Jon and Luke - Audio-T Oxford

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The Rega IO - Half A Brio

The Rega Brio has always upset the trend with it’s incredible price to performance, but they may have just stolen the market with the new Rega IO.

The Rega IO has a small footprint, punchy sound and plenty of volume for it’s size and while it may lack some of the trimmings of it’s larger sibling it makes up for it in sound quality and price, a trade I’m glad to make! With the vinyl resurgence still in full swing Rega have made a really compelling first buy for anyone wanting to join in.

The IO has a built in MM phono stage for a total of three phono inputs, remote with motorized volume control and 30w per channel of power.

Paired with a Planar 1 and a pair of Dali Oberon 1s we’ve put together a sub £1000 system that can complete with larger contenters but with a far smaller footprint in your home.

The results of this humble system are fantastic, with depth, warmth and character. This is a modern and minimalist approach to hifi without compromising sound quality.

If you’d like to have a listen to this or any other system please feel free to contact us at Cardiff Audio-T or your local Audio-T branch.

Need to replace your beloved Linn K9? Look no further!

If you've been in the turntable game for a long time, there can be no doubt that you have come across Linn and their K9 cartridge at some stage of the journey. Originally released in 1989 as Linn's base level moving-magnet cartridge, the K9 quickly became a firm favourite and certainly one of ours. But in 2020, what on earth can we use to replace the now discontinued K9?

A K9 cartridge. The earlier models sported this yellow, before changing to a mid-grey colour later on!

The K9 MM cartridge was widely used across many turntables and not just restriced to Linn's LP12s. It was one of those cartridges that just worked no matter what the set-up. Things sounded the way you expected them to. Sonically it was very natural, clean and detailed with a great bass response. This made it really easy to listen to and not at all too taxing for your ears. Cartridges like this make it easy to think “just one more record”... and five hours later, you realise you haven’t eaten dinner yet! While it was never really a ‘cheap’ cartridge at the time, it wasn't the high-end of the market either, so it made for a great mid-range cartridge - and for people who didn’t want to shell out for the real high-end stuff, they didn't have to ‘settle for a lower sound quality’. Of course, cartridges are a matter of taste and some weren't enamoured with the K9 and found themselves shopping elsewhere. 

For those loyal K9 fans out there, the news of its discontinuation in 2001 will have been a sad day indeed. I imagine the common thought was "well, what am I supposed to use now?". So we've been searching for another cartridge that fulfils the same expectations as the K9 yet remains in a similar price bracket...

Linn’s Adikt cartridge, fitted as standard to the base level Majik LP12 turntable.

Linn technically 'replaced' the K9 with the Adikt – which is now their base level cartridge and the only MM cartridge they offer. The only trouble is, it costs £400+. While the Adikt is a phenomenal MM cartridge, it no longer filled the space of the K9 because even taking inflation into account, it's just overall a more expensive cartridge. So, we turned to a familiar face… Audio-Technica.

There had always been a link between the K9 and the AT-95 cartridge, after all the K9 was manufactured for Linn by Audio-Technica. The AT-95 stylus was also regularly retro-fitted to the K9 cartridge; it fit, but it wasn't pretty! It is still a popular option today, and is still regularly suggested. Some people didn't approve of that replacement as the AT-95s had always been a cheaper cartridge than the K9, and some felt that even a brand-new AT-95 stylus was worse than a used K9 stylus, so why even bother? - One customer once commented “It’s like putting Volkswagen wheels on a Porsche”, and that always stuck with me.

When searching for K9 replacements, you will always see familiar cartridges such as the Ortofon 2M Red or Blue, various Audio-Technicas, the Dynavector 10x range at the higher end... the list goes on and on. But wait right there! We finally think we've found the perfect replacement…

AUDIO TECHNICA AT-VM95ML

As already mentioned, there has always been a strong affinity between the AT-95s and the K9, and this particular model fits the bill perfectly. The way the MicroLinear (ML) stylus is designed certainly has a part to play in why this particular model works so well. We recently replaced a customer’s beloved Linn K9 for the AT-VM95ML and we found the sound was very similar. Uncannily so, in fact. Much like the Linn K9, it has a very natural, detailed, open sound and is very very pleasant to listen to.

With the Audio-Technica priced at around £150, it is in the same price bracket as the K9 (at the time of release). In fact, using an inflation calculator, £60 in 1989 equates to almost exactly £150 in 2020, so theoretically it's exactly the same price!! It even has a familiar look – although we do miss the iconic bright yellow look of the earlier K9s.

We will certainly be recommending the AT-VM95ML in the future for K9 replacements, and we can confidently say it will perform equally as well as your K9.

Pop-in to any of our shops for cartridge advice at any time!

Chris, John & Paul – Audio-T Brighton

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Audio Technica products are available in all Audio T Stores.

Small Form Factor Gets a Big Boost from Arcam and Rega.

They say good things come in small packages, well, presented here are two new pieces of hifi amplification from Arcam and Rega that prove the point. The Rega is a pure analog beast with a cheeky little phono stage built into it, meanwhile the Arcam is a streaming amplifier and is purely in the digital domain, with Airplay and Chromecast being the priority connections. Read on for more info.

The Rega IO comes in at 18cm x 29cm and has a power rating of 30w per channel. It has the same sonic ablilities as it’s bigger bro…The Brio. So it’s open and punchy with depth to the soundstage, which is presented beautifully, albiet not quite as exciting as the Brio but really excellent for the price.

The Solo Uno comes in at an even smaller 14cm x 21cm. It has a power rating of 25w per channel. The Solo Uno is completely new in its design, and is an even “younger” brother of the original Solo Mini. It genuinely has a tiny foot print.

Around the back of the Solo Uno you have the wifi antenna for Airplay, Chromecast and an auxiliary input for any analogue devices you may have. The dedicated subwoofer output lets you add a little meat to smaller speakers you may have connected to the Solo Uno. The new T/Zero from REL would be a perfect choice.

Around the back of Rega IO we have two regular analogue inputs and a phono MM input and, with Rega’s penchant for making great phono stages, that’s a welcome bonus. There’s even a headphone jack on the front.

The build quality on both units is telling. The Solo Uno has great looking binding posts ready to accept a decent set of speaker cables. The Rega’s casework has quality all over it, even underneath, the fit and finish offered is exceptional.

Both units are available to demostrate at our Manchester store.

Come along to see us and we will be happy to help, but please remember it’s appointment only at the moment.

Quart* From a Pint Pot: The New Arcam Solo Uno.

Arcam Sales Manager: "We're bringing Solo back!"

Audio-T Swansea staff: “…?”

Arcam: "No, not *that* Solo - the little all-in-one stereo we used to do? We’re doing a new one."

Swansea: "Oh I seeeee.... OK.” “Tidy mun.” “Look forward to that."

*Cue our stores closing their doors and the staff placed on furlough.*

Three months later...

...we're no longer as furloughed as we once were** and we have our expectant palms on Arcam's new design of the Solo - the Solo Uno.

Not much bigger than a modern smartphone, it's a network audio player and stereo amplifier all in one curvy, dinky, shiny box, with a couple of pretty lights on the front (they tell you when it's powered up and connected to your network.) The two-tone, two texture metallic fascia is about as minimalist as I'd like it; just a solid power button, volume +/- and mute. Reassuringly weighty in the hand (the traditional indicator of quality gear) this is a remarkably small box.

Featured here with a Samsung S10 smartphone for scale. Small isn’t it?

It has one external input - a 3.5mm analogue socket (vinyl anyone?) Connection to the internet comes via Wi-Fi (hence the aerial) or ethernet cable. Speaker terminals are solid, quality units and you can connect a subwoofer via the RCA socket should you require it (and who doesn't?) it's that simple. Roon ready, but all you really need is an app to drive it (GoogleCast, AirPlay 2, UPnP Streamer) and broadband. And a pair of speakers.

It even decodes MQA files. Look.

We tried the charming and inexpensive Acoustic Energy AE100 loudspeakers (~£220) first and thought that it sounded just fine. We added the IsoAcoustic Aperta desktop stands (£199 - more about which in another blog) under the AE100s and thought that it sounded very credible indeed - quite lovely actually, with a “big” sound to it. About a grand for that level of performance? Yeah, we'll take that.

Nic suggested "What about KEF LS50s? People have got LS50s. People like LS50s".

With meaningful glances at each other and everyone else thinking "It'll never drive these", I hooked them up.

Good grief.

Norah Jones soared, Melody Gardot introspected, Alison Goldfrapp got up, got down and boogied. How on Earth is it doing that?

The Solo is never going to fill Madison Square Garden, but it'll fill a bijou lounge or your kitchen/diner with aural loveliness. Come on over and give it a try. Just give us a call first.

*a smidge over a litre for those of you under forty.

**at the time of publication we're in 4 days a week each. Happily, normal store opening hours still apply.

Stories from Lockdown - Five Wondrous Prog-Rock Albums that kept me sane!

It has been a bit of a while since my last blog, so for my first one back I thought I would try to entertain you with tales of the albums that kept me partially sane during the darkest days of the Covid Lockdown.

Now there were of course many varied albums spanning a myriad of weird and wonderful genres. Honourable mentions must go to (amongst others) The Grateful Dead, Ozric Tentacles, Led Zeppelin and Pere Ubu (I feel The Modern Dance is one of the most perfect things ever to be created by humanity and also happens to be a great recording to boot). But the top five groovy spiral slices of vinyl loveliness went to…

No. 5 - You by Gong

For the final instalment of the wonderfully named Radio Gnome Invisible trilogy, band leader Daevid Allen assembled an all star bunch of hippy virtuoso musicnauts, intent on crashing their spaceship in to the deepest inner space. With help from the main protagonist, Zero the Hero, along with assorted members of Pothead Pixies, Octave Doctors and Flying Teapots.

For me the standout track is the beautifully titled “A Sprinkling of Clouds”. The track starts off slowly with synthesiser and glissando guitar panning from speaker to speaker, taking on momentum and building to a breathtaking crescendo of guitar, saxophone, bass guitar and drums that really will put your hi-fi system to the test. Only the best will hold this together and keep the whole band tightly locked in their hash-haze freak out!

No. 4 - Brain Salad Surgery by Emerson, Lake and Palmer

The artwork of this album alone ascends it above most of its peers. The fact that the music happens to be one of Prog Rock’s highest watermarks pushes it even further into the realms of the stellar. Packed with Prog-Rock excess, this power trio took the cake and the serving platter: Keith Emerson's keyboard showroom; Carl Palmer's motorised, rotating behemoth drum kit; sports-arena gigs with full orchestra and choir, etc. But here, they masterfully balanced the bombast and brilliance. Opening in full-tilt, English-poetic-visionary style with a soaring arrangement of William Blake's Jerusalem. On to one of my all time favourite demonstration tracks Still…You Turn Me On, which is a real work out for your loudspeakers!. Next up is Emerson's virtuoso riff on a piano concerto Toccata by 20th Century Argentine composer, Alberto Ginastera. Finally we have the nearly 30 minute long and multi-part dystopian fantasy Karn Evil 9, in which intoxicating entertainments (a sideshow where a Gypsy queen/In a glaze of Vaseline/Will perform on a guillotine) distract us from evil computer intelligence and modern surveillance-era interweb. Prescient and pretty damn rocking. Totally essential listening.

No. 3 - The Snow Goose by Camel

This one is just so incredibly gorgeous that I almost don’t know have the words to describe it. Have you ever found yourself listening to a piece of music that you totally get lost in and float away with? That is what this is! Quite possibly some of the best keyboard playing you will ever hear. And if you ask me, definitely one of rock musics juiciest guitar solos can be found on Rhayader Goes to Town. It's like it takes a scoop of David Gilmour and adds a dash of Robin Trower for good measure. Not an overly long album but crammed full of inventive loveliness. It is also another great recording that on a great system will let you hear all around and even behind the instruments, almost like you've been transported right in to the recording studio.

No. 2 - Relayer by Yes

This one is a little more complicated. This is the sound of a band pulling out all the stops. Rick Wakeman has been replaced by Patrick Moraz which some feel gave them an extra jolt of power. This can really be laid bare on a system that has great separation and mid-range detail. The full on power moments are tempered by the more delicate songs such as Soon, which is served like some sort of sorbet palette cleanser after the wildness that is The Gates Of Delirium and To Be Over which does the same after Sound Chaser. With amazing Sci-Fi artwork courtesy of Roger Dean adding to the already powerful vibe. This one may not be their best high fidelity recording, but played on a nice system you will hear a band at the peak of their powers and some absolutely stunning lead guitar work by Steve Howe.

No. 1 - The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway by Genesis

This has to be my all favourite Prog-Rock album. It is one that reveals more and more every time I spin it. A surreal , beguiling, elaborate and strangely rewarding listening experience. It contains within its double vinyl grooves some of the most powerful Prog-Rock moments of all time ever. Fact! Just take in the moment on Fly on a Windshield, when the band all come in together just after Peter Gabriel has sung the line “And I’m hovering in the air waiting for the windshield on the freeway”. That is proper power and just about as dark, dirty and evil as genesis ever got. This stands alone in their canon of work head and shoulders above all the others. The lyrics are just poetry and at times the music is truly breathtaking. It's all killer and no filler. For proper full on power and bass slam just try the afore mentioned Fly on a Windshield. If you don’t get goosebumps, your Hi-Fi just ain’t up to the job I'm afraid, simple as that.

These were the albums that crept towards the front of my vinyl play pile during the strange days of the Covid Lockdown. I hope this little blog inspires you to try them out and if by some chance you would like to make them all sound even better perhaps we can help you with an upgrade of one sort or another to your Hi-Fi system. Feel free to bring in some of your own Lockdown favourites to play as well but please call us on 01242 583960 to make an appointment first.

Andy, Jon and Farid. Cheltenham.

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JERN SPEAKERS - WELCOME TO THE IRON AGE OF HI-FI!

In terms of brands and models available, speakers are arguably one of the most overly saturated fields in the world of Hi-Fi. So to come on to the scene as a relatively new name in the industry, you have to able to bring something revolutionary to the table... Are Jern the company to do just that?

Founded in 1975 by engineering graduate Holger Dissing, Dansk Skalform; the group behind Jern, is best known as a reputable casting company for the automobile and machinery industries, working with the likes of Rolls Royce, Porsche, McLaren, Audi and many more. So how did they find themselves in the Hi-Fi trade?

Today the company is run by Søren Dissing, son of founder Holger Dissing. One day he thought to himself, “What would happen if a loudspeaker was moulded out of one solid piece of iron?” From here, Søren and his team got to work to produce a loudspeaker prototype that comprised of the finest quality cast iron using skills laid out by his father decades before. And there you have it, Jern Speakers was born.

SO WHY GREY CAST IRON?

If we get in to the nitty-gritty of the physics behind speaker construction, it is a fact that all solid materials resonate when they are excited by vibrations. When a speaker cabinets resonates, it continues to “sing” each note long after the next note begins. Sonically it is very confusing to listen to and creates ghost frequencies that aren't actually on the original recording and are often out of tune with the source material. To counteract this, varying manufacturers adopt different methods. Some use elaborate internal bracing, even on those with inner aluminium shells; Others will use foam or inert filler within the cabinet to deaden the vibrations.

Did you know that “Jern” is Danish for “Iron”?

The truth of the matter is nothing will completely stop vibrations travelling through the cabinet, but grey cast iron can effortlessly and naturally do what the other materials strive towards. It has been proven to be ten times more effective than wooden cabinets and up to one hundred times better than aluminium in reducing vibrations. It is so effective as a dampening material that legendary grand piano manufacturers such as Bechstein, Steinway and Bösendorfer use grey cast iron for their piano frames as it doesn't add any resonant frequencies to the notes being played.

IT’S WHAT’S ON THE INSIDE THAT COUNTS

They look like something designed by H R Geiger for the film ' Aliens'.

Whilst the curved exterior of these cast iron speakers is smooth, some of the real magic happens internally. The inner walls of these loudspeakers are lined with hexagonal domes designed to break-up any internal standing waves that would otherwise compromise the performance of the drivers. This CDS (Cast Dome Structure) technology creates a completely neutral cabinet and is vital to the Jern Sound.

Now Some of you might be asking “Brad, what does a moulding company know about Hi-Fi?”... Well, let’s find out! Jern have sent me a pair of their Model 11 speakers to listen to and put through their paces...

On first inspection I didn't feel like I was just removing another pair of speaker from their boxes. Instead I felt like a curator removing a valuable piece of modern art for my galleries latest exhibition. These things look stylish and slick, but boy are they heavy! Although the Jern Model 11 have a flat base, the best option is to use the included ring to stand them on. This simplistic accessory not only creates isolation between the speaker cabinet and the surface it sits on, but it also allows it to be tilted backwards, forwards and side to side to truly manipulate the soundstage and pinpoint the sweet spot no matter where you are in the room. But there is no denying there is an artistic look to their shapely design.

Armed with my playlist of trusty “go-to” songs for such an occasion, I was able to really put the Model 11's through their paces. For a speaker of this size there is always the expectation that there will be a lack in bass response, but this was not the case. Every track I threw at them did not disappoint. Now I'm not saying they wouldn't benefit from a subwoofer in the long-run, but it certainly isn't an immediate requirement like some models out there. Equally, some speakers of this size can come across as being trebly or too pronounced in the mid-range, again this wasn't the case. The Jern Model 11's have impeccable separation and detail within the sound stage that it's almost like you're not listening to speakers at all, you're completely submerged in the music.

As a side note, if you want to really test the bass response of a pair of speakers, I would suggest Billie Eilish's “Bad Guy”. Although it's not everyone's cup of tea, it is undoubtably a well produced track with some truly unparalleled sub harmonic bass parts.

at one point a passing light meant that the SPEAKERS had this glow about them like a terrifying alien russian doll!

Whilst sat in our demo room listening away, the thing that really struck me is how effortlessly they make the whole listening experience have a more enjoyable feel about it. I find myself no longer analysing the response of the speaker, but instead I'm lost in the music and that is something I think is incredibly special about these particular loudspeakers. It's like they make you fall in love with music all over again. On several tracks I literally felt shivers down my spine!

There are so many factors that attribute to the outstanding performance of these speakers, so much so that I could probably write two or three blogs on the cabinets alone. But alas we must conclude. So heres a rundown of the Pros and Cons -

Pros -

• Compact size in relation to sound stage and bass response.

• No bass reflex ports mean you can place them pretty much anywhere.

• Grey cast iron cabinet means you hear only the sound waves from the loudspeaker driver

• Made from recycled materials.

• Compete far beyond their price point - Easily worth every penny.

• One of the best speakers I've ever heard!

• Dedicated, stylish tripod stands available in Oak or Walnut for an incredibly contemporary look. There is also a dedicated flood stand available.

Cons -

• At 12kg each, some might find them to be too heavy for wall mounting or putting them on shelves... And certainly don't drop them on your toes when setting up!

• Due to the materials used, the range is limited to four finishes – Polar White, Casting Grey, Nordic Black and Fine Red. (Personally, I'm a huge fan of 'Casting Grey', and as this is purely cosmetic, I'm not sure if it's fair to class it as a 'Con')

So, in summary, I absolutely love these speakers! The design, the sound, performance, Everything! I don't think I've ever heard a speaker perform with such conviction... So much so that I think I'll be ordering a pair for myself! But why take my word for it? Come in and have a listen for yourself!

Should you want to have a listen or want to discuss them further, be sure to drop us a line or pop in to your local Audio T store.

Brad, Nick and Joe - Audio T Portsmouth

Be sure to keep an eye on what’s happening in the Portsmouth store by following us on Instagram and Facebook.

JERN Loudspeakers can be found at the following Audio-T stores

• PORTSMOUTH

• ONLINE STORE

• SOUTHAMPTON

• OXFORD

• ENFIELD

• CHELTENHAM

• BRIGHTON

Chord Electronics HUEI - Lights, Turntable, Action.

Chord Huei Phono Stage - Front view with polychromatic controls spheres

Introducing the HUEI phono stage. Chords Electronics solution to a well priced, high performing moving magnet/moving coil phono stage that can integrate into a range of systems.

From first impressions it is very easy to tell this is a product designed by Rob Watts and his Engineering team in Kent, with its classic, well built housing and eye catching candy lights, that appear on many of their products. It was a no brainer that this was something we had to try, and we are glad we did.

Now looking at the specifications of the HUEI from the front panel, the first thing we notice is that you are easily able to switch between moving magnet and moving coil with the simple press of a button. This is very handy as this will allow all types of cartridges to be used with the Huei. The moving magnet is at 47,000Ω, whereas the moving coil has a 12 step user selectable impedance button, also located on the front of the unit. This ranges from 100Ω - 3700Ω, and can be set to match your cartridge easily from the top of the unit. 

As well as an impedance button, the HUEI also boasts a gain range selection button that is set at an 8 step user selection for both moving magnet and moving coil. Once again this will allow you to marry the phono stage to your cartridge, to get optimum sound quality and clarity in the music.

Chord Huei phono stage - Rear panel, 12v DC power, RCA inputs, RCA outputs and XLR Outputs

The unit has balanced XLR and unbalanced RCA stereo outputs, which is very useful, and one RCA input. With a phono stage at this price point, it is very creditable.

Listening to the HUEI, first impressions indicated that this unit will shine as the level of detail that came from the music once swapping it out for a phono stage at a similar price was phenomenal - which is what we have come to expect from any Chord Electronics product. We used this with the new REGA Planar 10, feeding into a line level input on the new highly regarded REGA integrated Aethos amplifier and finally ATC SCM19 speakers.

Chord Huei phono stage with sticker placed under unit - colour reference sticker with impedance, gain, MC & MM settings

What we did notice was that with music ranging from classical to progressive rock and even modern electronica, the HUEI phono stage didn’t trip up on itself at all and handled all genres very well. We find this throughout the Chord Electronics product range, the extraction of detail and clarity in music is very noticeable.

The surprising thing is that for the money, it sure packs a lot of detail as mentioned, as well as musicality (something we think that can be lost when a system is over clinical) therefore setting a nice well balanced sound.

We have tried the HUEI with a range of pre/power and integrated systems as well as other well known and loved turntables, such as Michell Gyro SE (Michell Tecnoarm A and Dynavector 20x2 cartridge) and a LINN Akurate LP12. The HUEI performed really well with all these highly regarded turntables. For us it is a serious contender for its price and performance. If you are looking to change your phono stage this is definitely one to consider. Get in contact with your local Audio T and we will be happy to show you!

Don’t forget you can book a demonstration to hear the comparisons for yourself.

Justin, James and Max - Audio T Bristol

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Chord Electronics products are available in all Audio T Stores.

Entering the ring, Rega Planar 1 vs Rega Planar 2 - Battle of Britain‘s Most Affordable Home Grown Turntables

If you’re just starting in the world of turntables, you might have done some research online or in-store and you’ll most likely come across the UK made Rega Planar 1 or Planar 2 turntables. These are both excellent entry-level turntables, but what are the real differences between these two models? We recently put them through their paces in-store with one of our customers and here’s what we found out.

For someone who is new to the world of Hi-Fi equipment, it may seem like a daunting mountain to start to climb. Rega, even at their entry-level, is a great starting point that easily sounds as though it should be double the price tag.

Rega as a company have always had great vision, and that is something they stick to across their entire range. From the humble Planar 1 at £249 all the way to the Planar 10 that goes beyond the £6k mark! As a result, Rega products have a unique signature sound and characteristic. Any time you upgrade to the next model up, you will hear that familiar sound, but noticeably improved - But who knows, maybe you prefer the sound of something like the Planar 2 over a Planar 3, and that’s definitely allowed.

The Rega Planar 1 (P1), pictured on THE DEDICATED Rega wall bracket.

Above you’ll see the Planar 1, a very respectable turntable. It adopts the timeless Rega design, dating back decades . While this is indeed a great sounding deck, especially for the modest price point, there is certainly a noticeable difference when you step up to the Planar 2.

The Planar 2 (P2), WE CHOSE THE WHITE VERSION FOR OUR DISPLAY MODEL, but IT is also available in BLACK AND RED.

Next, we have the Planar 2. Although our display model (pictured above) is the white version, it clearly has the same Rega design. You may spot one very obvious and crucial difference just from looking though… the platter! The P2 has a 10mm thick ‘Float Glass’ platter whereas the P1’s platter uses a ‘phenolic resin’ design. Whilst they have both been designed to minimise any vibrations that could interfere with the playback of a record, one does it better than the other… and how great does that glass platter look?! You always want to get the best possible sound from whatever record you’re spinning, and details like this certainly help in that department.

For the purpose of our test, the customer brought his own records. We always recommend that everyone does this because the music you know and love is going to really allow you to analyse any differences between whatever you’re comparing. Although it is still a good idea to listen to a wide variety of music whilst testing a system; if the sound of your favourite album captivates you through a new set-up, then you know you’re on to a winner!

We tried the P1 first, and it doesn’t disappoint at all. That classic Rega sound is very apparent, and the vinyl character shines straight through. We have the IO driving a pair of Rega RX1 speakers on floor stands; a great and affordable combination!

We Tried BOTH THE turntables through Rega’s newest power amp, the io. This is also an amazing sounding unit, THE MOST AFFORDABLE UK MADE AMPLIFIER ON THE MARKET, and we love it!

Rega rx1’s in cherry were used for the demonstration

When we move up to the P2, using the same amp and speakers, the difference is instantly noticeable! The sound is much more open and defined, the soundstage is bigger, individual instruments have more separation and are more defined in their ‘space’ within the recording. The frequency range is noticeably extended at both ends and overall there is more detail available from within the record compared with the P1.

As someone new to Hi-Fi like our customer, they didn’t immediately notice a difference. Their ears may not necessarily be tuned to what to listen out for. Often, the differences are much more apparent when you go back down to the lower model. Your ear quickly gets used to the extra detail you can hear and when those details are missing on the lower model, you’ll notice it straight away. We did this and almost instantly the customer noticed the quality of the sound was lower. It is important to jump between models whilst your ears are fresh and not fatigued, as the differences really stand out.

So what did the customer go for?

In this instance, the customer decided to purchase the Planar 2, even though prior to listening, they were pretty set on the Planar 1. They were also impressed with the IO amp and RX1 speakers and how everything worked together, so much so that they had to write down the models. We think they’ll be back for those soon as they were a significant improvement on their current system!

This has us thinking - If we’re hearing such a difference between the Planar 1 and a Planar 2, what would we start to hear if we compared to P3s, P6s, and beyond? Maybe that will be a blog for another day…

Don’t forget you can pop into any Audio T store to hear the comparisons for yourself.

Chris, Paul, and John - Audio T Brighton

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Rega products are available in all Audio T Stores.

The Rega IO, small but feisty.

When the IO came in I was excited, as a fan of pretty much every Rega product I’ve heard so far, I couldn't wait to hear what their newest toy could do. With a Planar 2, Apollo CD and a pair of Quad S1 speakers to complement it, I grabbed some of my favourite albums and made myself comfy. 

I thought that I should do a comparison with the Brio. I’ll be honest, this is where you can see why the Brio is more expensive, because just like Liam Hemsworth it just can’t quite compare with it’s older and bulkier brother.

The sound stage was smaller, bass notes were more muddy, harmonies blended together and the music overall just felt less alive. It had been a couple of hours by this point and after my fourth listen of Black Magic Woman by Fleetwood Mac I was ready to give up, was I just expecting too much? I left to have some food and after returning less hangry and fully hydrated, I had the bright idea to stop comparing it. 

This is when the IO truly came to life, now that I wasn’t swapping everything over every thirty seconds the minor grievances I was listening so hard for faded away. The pure joy that comes from listening to tracks, like Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon by Queen, as it’s allowed to flaunt it’s short but sweet bubbliness, had me tapping my feet and singing along. The IO may not sound technically perfect but it has plenty of character that shines through once you give it the opportunity, voices are clear and if you close your eyes you can pinpoint each individual aspect of most tracks. 

The explosion of colour and flavour that poured out of Michael Jackson’s P.Y.T caught me off guard, I couldn’t understand how such a small piece of hardware could produce such personality, reminds me of a joke relating to the importance of size, but it escapes me. With it being an analog amp there is no messing about with internet connections and apps. You simply put it down, plug it in and play until the cows come home, or at least until you get told to turn it down, it just works.

This diminutive, 3kg integrated amp has an output of 30 watts into 8 Ohms with 3 analogue inputs and a 3.5 mini jack for headphone users. The inputs include a MM phono, which is of great quality as per usual with other Rega amps, and two line level inputs. Build quality feels generally solid plus it’s small size and economical design means it will fit into any setup quite happily. Overall the IO will not disappoint and is well worth it’s £379 price point, if you are new to hi-fi and looking for an affordable entry point or looking for a smaller secondary system.