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.

Welcome

Ultimate integrated? • D’AGOSTINO ANNOUNCES FULLY-LOADED PROGRESSION SERIES INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER

AA goes digital • AADAC JOINS ANNIVERSARY AMPLIFIERS

HI-FI NEWS NUGGETS

TD 160 reprised • THORENS LAUNCHES TWO NEW DECKS

Wooden cans • AUDIO-TECHNICA ANNOUNCES KOKUTAN AND ASADA ZAKURA

World of cables • ELEMENT MEZZO AND EQUATOR BALANCED INTERCONNECTS

iFi Audio goes silent • TWO PLUG-IN DEVICES TO CUT USB AUDIO NOISE

HI-FI NEWS? JUST ASK…

Upcoming Events • IMPORTANT DATES FOR YOUR HI-FI DIARY

Bristol Hi-Fi Show 2020

Classical spectacular • Christopher Breunig recommends the best classical audiophile recordings

Rotel Michi P5/S5 • A sleek new look heralds the return of Rotel’s premier sub-brand, and its new control amplifier – or preamp – and stereo power amp have the wherewithal to succeed

MICHI MILESTONES

DAREN ORTH

Vertere DG-1 Dynamic Groove • Supplied with or without a partnering MM cartridge, this new ‘entry-level’ deck to the Vertere range comes equipped with a re-imagining of the archetypal flat tonearm

FLAT EARTH?

Balanced Audio Technologies REX 3 DAC • Launched to the audiophile world at CES in 1995, Balanced Audio Technologies may have lifted off like a rocket but has only had patchy distribution in Europe. Until now…

ACTING ON IMPULSE

Extraudio X250T • An artisan brand with its own take on Hypex’s tried-and-tested Class D amp module offers both tube and transistor variants to taste. Here’s the low-down on the latter

MOD’ING THE MODULE

Primare R35 • Primare’s ‘Prisma push’ may have focused resources into network-enabling its amplifiers and CD players, but its new flagship phono pre proves its love of vinyl has not waned

MARGINAL GAIN

SVS Prime Pinnacle • Better known for its high-value, high-performance subs, SVS is now turning its attention to audiophile speakers

BRING ON THE BASS

Quad Vena II Play • It’s all there in the suffix ‘Play’, which transforms Quad’s Vena II from a comprehensive all-in-one amp/DAC solution into something with wired and wireless future-proofing

DTS PLAY-FI

AKG K371 • There’s no point in doing research to establish the optimum headphone frequency response, as Harman has done in recent years, unless you sell a product that delivers it…

ON TARGET

Isabelle Faust Violinist • Outpacing her father when they both were learning the violin, she has become one of the most intrepid of today’s musicians. Christopher Breunig focuses on the highights

Gong Camembert Electrique • Steve Sutherland savours the thrillingly nutty flavours of this ripe 11-track offering from the multimonikered Aussie musician, as the album is reissued on 180g vinyl

Simon & Garfunkel Bridge Over… • It’s now 50 years since the duo released their fifth and final studio album, which went on to top the charts in ten countries and find a place in over 25 million record collections. So why did a work that was such a commercial success only end in acrimony for the pair?

PRODUCTION NOTES

Alternate Format Discography

Dennis Bovell • In the 1970s reggae joined forces with punk to...