In-Seine-ly Good! Audio T Reading Falls In Louvre with the Advance Paris MyConnect 60 All-in-One Hi-Fi System
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Bonjour, and welcome mes amis from Audio T Reading in Swallowfield. To be frivolous for a moment, we’ve got to love our far-out French neighbours. While we say “oh my gosh”, they say ‘ah la vache’ – ‘oh my cow’. When it’s “raining cats and dogs” here in Good Ol’ Britannia, over there it’s “pleut comme une vache qui pisse” – ‘raining like a cow pees’. (What is their beef with those poor cows?). Us Brits might retort that someone is exaggerating or “going a bit too far”; the French of course will exclaim ‘faut pas pousser mémé dans les orties’ – ‘don’t push grandma into the nettles’. (It would now appear no grandmother or cow is safe)…
However… while we puff out our chests and feel quite pleased for seeming “to know the score”, it so happens our French friends have a much nicer one up their (record) sleeve as they appear ‘connaître la musique’ – ‘to know the music’. On this fine note, please do keep reading as we have something new to share with you from an exciting brand just across ‘La Manche’ or ‘The Sleeve’ – aka “The English Channel”. Why do our friends à la française call it The Sleeve? Nevermind, en evant (onward)…
SECRETS TRAVEL FAST IN (ADVANCE) PARIS – THE MYCONNECT 60 ALL-IN-ONE AMPLIFIER
Once famously declared by the infamous Napolean Bonaparte, ‘Secrets travel fast in Paris’. And they are about to travel pretty fast here too because, as part of a big Audio T exposé, we are delighted to be one of the few exclusive retailers in the UK to bring to you the fabulous French audiophile brand – Advance Paris.
Here at Audio T Reading, it’s a pleasure to have on demonstration the exciting MyConnect 60 All-in-One Amplifier.
This little all-in-one is quite the tour-de-force, offering a host of audio treats such as external streaming from Tidal, Qobuz, Spotify (and many more music providers), CD playback, DAB+ and FM radio, internet radio, local audio streaming from USB and other network storage (NAS) devices, Wi-Fi, ethernet, Bluetooth and Airplay connectivity, an on-board phono stage for connecting a turntable with a moving magnet (MM) cartridge, a suite of analogue and digital inputs and outputs, plus a dedicated subwoofer output!
There is even a headphone output of the full-fat 6.3mm variety for sending your tunes to a set of good quality cans; As headphonistas here at Audio T Reading, we are thrilled to see a larger headphone jack on the MyConnect 60 – It’s really quite rare to find this on an all-in-one product that retails below £1,000.
THE APÉRO DÎNATOIRE OF HI-FI – MYCONNECT 60 LAYS ON QUITE A SPREAD
With more features on its plate than one might find at an apéro dînatoire evening buffet, what is it actually like to use the Advance Paris MyConnect 60 all-in-one? One of the biggest turn-offs when it comes to poorly executed all-in-one products is being met with a sea of buttons and knobs that feel more wobbly than blancmange to the touch while being annoyingly unresponsive in use.
Advance Paris have kept the fascia clean and chic on the MyConnect 60; adorning the frontage is a slick feeling on-off button, six small pin buttons providing just the essential playback functions, and the pièce de resistance – a single spun-metal rotary knob with a positively reinforcing turn-and-click operation. This knob performs volume adjustments and allows for access to source selection, tone controls, etc. Streaming control and management of connected devices are provided by the Advance Playstream app, available for Apple and Android devices.
Both the rotary selector wheel and the dedicated app are a joy to use – controls are tactile and are quick to respond, and latency was impressively low when cueing and playing tunes via Qobuz, Tidal and Apple Music via Airplay. It’s evident that the design and engineering team at Advance Paris have paid very close attention to the operational quality of the MyConnect 60; this really matters as a lack of operational foibles brings the connection between the listener and the music ever closer.
TROUVER LE TON JUSTE – MYCONNECT 60 SONIC IMPRESSIONS
On the subject of music listening, how does the Advance Paris MyConnect 60 fare with audio reproduction? Well, this is a just-add-speakers system and after trying out a selection in our Swallowfield listening chambre we arrived at our impressions of the MyConnect 60 by pairing it with the UK designed Acoustic Energy AE100² loudspeakers – few speakers come up better this side of £500.
The combination proved to be astounding, one of the best French-British connections since the Channel Tunnel or Dover to Calais! Music gushes from this system with freedom and flair – it somehow sounds at ease yet energetic at the same time. This match-up has a really interesting tonal balance; generally speaking, the sound of most systems can be described as warm (fuller sounding), cool (leaner sounding) or neutral (somewhere between the two) and typically the whole spectrum of sound, from the low notes to the high notes, will combine overall to slot itself into one of those categories. What’s interesting with the MyConnect 60 and the Acoustic Energy AE100² combination is that the bass notes are tilted towards a nice and full sound, while the mid-to-high notes are tilted more towards neutral and are comparatively a touch leaner.
This dual-tilt presentation proves to be trouver le ton juste – hitting just the right note. It makes listening to all genres of music a fun and engaging experience. Let’s not forget, the MyConnect 60 with that awesome headphone jack is also a just-add-headphones system. Pairing it with closed back Meze 99 Classic cans or open-back Sennheiser 660 S2 headphones is truly magnifique!
WHAT HAPPENS IN PARIS STAYS IN PARIS – MYCONNECT 60 FINALE THOUGHTS
What happens in Paris stays in Paris? Not quite anymore. Now available from Audio T and with a current asking price of £850*, the Advance Paris MyConnect 60 all-in-one music making machine is a clear step-up in quality from offerings in and around the £500 and above mark. With a carefully tuned class-AB amplifier at its heart, the MyConnect 60 more than holds its own in the company of all-in-one players at approaching twice the price.
The consistency of its excellent presentation deserves a mention – whether it be from CD, streaming, radio and via speakers or headphones, the MyConnect 60 demonstrates all of the attributes of carefully crafted engineering at a price point where it often isn’t found. When combined with the Acoustic Energy AE100² speakers, the MyConnect 60 serves as the conductor of a complete digital music system that rivals any competitor around this price point. And in time you could even consider adding a turntable such as the venerable Rega Planar 2. Et voilà!
Thank you for reading, Rishi and Gareth – Audio T Reading
If you have any questions about any of the equipment featured in this article, or any other Hi-Fi or home cinema enquiries, be sure to Contact Us.
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Please note: no cows, grannies or French people were harmed in the making of this blog. We love them all! 😉
The products featured here can be found or enquired about at the following Audio T stores:
A BIT ABOUT OUR NEW STORE
Our new Swallowfield store is accessible via the 600 bus route from Reading town centre and is very easy to reach by road with the A33, M3 and M4 all nearby. On arrival you’ll find ample free parking right on our doorstep, and our showroom and demo rooms are all on ground level.
The picturesque surroundings here provide many places to enjoy a countryside walk, a riverside stroll, or a picnic. There are local sites of interest to explore such as the Blackwater River, Wellington Country Park, Siren Craft Brewery and a host of cute village pubs with gardens.
Also during the Summer Bank Holiday weekend in August, nearby Swallowfield Park plays home to the vibrant Swallowfield Show. When you come to see us, why not make a fun day of it?
