Hi Fi News

Since its launch in June 1956 - two years before the commercial realisation of stereo - Hi-Fi News & Record Review has been delivering insightful reviews of the key products and technologies that lie behind our shared hobby... the passion of listening to music on the very best equipment available to the enthusiast. Every issue, Hi-Fi News delivers uniquely in-depth reviews of high-end audio equipment, including the best in vinyl replay and iconic vintage gear from the early days of audio. It is essential reading for all music enthusiasts.

FEB/24

NEWS • We reveal the latest products and upcoming events

Warsaw AV Show 2023

Happy returns • Reformed groups, rekindled rockers… Johnny Sharp brings you his ultimate playlist of albums from bands that broke up then bounced back sounding better than ever

The hi-fi news & Record Review Reader Pledge • Hi-Fi News’ readers can take full confidence in the fact that every product featured on our front cover, throughout the magazine and on our website has been comprehensively reviewed (auditioned, photographed and lab tested) at our facility

BAT REX 500 • Less is very much more in BAT’s flagship stereo power amp where its third-generation ‘SuperPak+’ PSU meets a fully balanced output stage featuring N-channel MOSFETs

VICTOR KHOMENKO

HOT STUFF!

Auralic Aries G2.2 • Incorporating Auralic’s latest Tesla G3 streaming platform, the Aries G2.2 digital server also features a beefed-up PSU, a solid-state storage option and the promise of Dirac Live

DIRAC INBOUND

Luxman PD-191A • Few brands can match Luxman when it comes to blending traditional engineering values with timeless elegance, and the new PD-191A flagship is an exemplar of the art

LUXMAN’S LIBERATION

Gershman Acoustics Grand Studio II • Unusual, if not unique – does this Canadian company’s idea of stacking two speakers for each channel pay sonic dividends?

FLIPPING FACTS

Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista Vinyl 2 • Previewed at the UK Hi-Fi Show Live ’23, Musical Fidelity’s much anticipated Nu-Vista front-end components – a DAC and phono preamp – see the latter leading the charge

NU-VISTA VINYL

dCS Lina Network DAC 2.0 • Nestled at the heart of dCS’s three-box Lina headphone amp solution is the Lina DAC, now refreshed with APEX-level firmware as a springboard into its mainstream range

MOSAIC MUSIC

B&W 805 D4 Signature • B&W’s premium 800 D4 range is bookended by Signature versions of the flagship 801 D4 floorstander and the 805 D4 standmount. But is the polish more than skin deep?

LABOUR OF LOVE

iFi Audio iDSD Diablo 2 • Launched a little after Halloween, iFi Audio’s devilish top-of-the-range portable aims to put a bat up the nightdress of the competition. Are you ready to sell your soul?

DANCING WITH THE DEVIL

Furutech NCF Clear Line • A cryogenic/demagnetisation process and proprietary piezoelectric crystals lie at the heart of Furutech’s ‘Clear Line’ plugs. We cut through the noise.

Olivier Messiaen Vingt regards sur l’enfant Jésus • The jazzical nature of this ostensibly religious piano cycle invites an array of approaches that range from reverential grandeur to gaudy showmanship, finds Peter Quantrill

Frank Zappa Over-Nite Sensation • Rock tempos and mind-melting guitar solos rub shoulders with down-and-dirty lyrics on a 50-year-old album now remastered on 180g vinyl, says Steve Sutherland

Scritti Politti Cupid & Psyche 85 • The politically infused post-punk of the band’s early singles morphed into meticulously crafted electronic pop for their major label debut album in 1985, although singer Green Gartside’s philosophical lyrics would remain as elusive as ever…

Blackbird Studio • From...