AFFORDABLE STREAMER

CAMBRIDGE AUDIO AXN 10

It wasn’t long ago that we were raving about this British company’s CXN v2 streamer, which offers cracking value for those wanting to upgrade their budget network music players. Now Cambridge Audio has come along with two new products to cater for entry-level buyers – the midi-sized MXN 10 and full width AXN 10. Both are basically a CXN v2 that’s shrunk in the wash. The latter’s fancy features like a colour display and volume knob have gone, but the internals remain almost the same. The result is a great sounding starter streamer with the company’s superb StreamMagic app.

MID-PRICE STREAMER

LUMIN D3

Despite being less than ten years old, Hong Kong-based LUMIN Music has carved a serious niche for itself in the mid-to-high end streamer market. The secret to its success has been offering high performance products that look as good as they sound. The company’s comprehensive range of digital designs has just been augmented by the D3. Although it’s the new entry-level model, you wouldn’t know by looking at it or indeed listening to it. Essentially a heavily revised D2, its multiple improvements make it near-impossible to beat at or near its price.

HIGH END STREAMER

LINN SELEKT DSM EDITION HUB

This Glaswegian company’s commitment to streamers cannot be overstated – it ceased making CD players years before its key rivals, to focus on designing the world’s finest network music players. Very early to market, Linn powered the streaming scene along with great sounding products, allied to superb build and a slick control App. Launched in 2018, the original Selekt DSM maintained this formula, and the latest DSM Edition Hub expands on it still further. Hugely configurable, it’s surely the most versatile such product on sale, and the company’s custom Organik DAC technology delivers superlative sound.

CD/SACD PLAYER

DCS ROSSINI APEX CD

One of the best value models in dCS’s stellar range of streaming DACs, Rossini gives a strong taste of the flagship Vivaldi’s performance for considerably less money. You can specify a built-in optical transport, making this a CD player and streaming DAC in one large, exquisitely built box. It sounded great straight from its launch five or so years ago, but the new APEX version notches its performance up even further. Aside from a select few of the most expensive, multi-box designs around, this is the best that digital audio can currently do.

DAC

SPL DIAMOND DAC

In a world of increasingly complex hi-fi DACs with ever more features – often including streaming functionality – some purist audiophiles find themselves looking more closely at the pro audio market for no-nonsense products such as this. SPL’s Diamond DAC offers a sprinkling of useful facilities but no bells and whistles, plus a top quality AKM digital conversion chip and analogue output stage. Its compact fascia is dominated by a volume knob and informative digital display. The result is a musically satisfying sound that’s more powerful and immersive than you’d expect from something selling at such an affordable price.

AFFORDABLE TURNTABLE

EDWARDS AUDIO TT4 CARBON

The budget turntable market just keeps on growing, as ageing audiophiles continue to develop a desire to reboot their record collections, and young newcomers splash their cash to join the exotic world of vinyl playback. At the very bottom end of the market, turntables are cheap and nasty, but spending a little more on a ‘premium budget’ deck such as this really elevates the experience. This neat looking British turntable is easy to set-up and use, surprisingly well made and sounds better than almost anything else at the price.

HIGH END TURNTABLE

ORIGIN LIVE SOVEREIGN S

Although this is an extremely expensive turntable, the high-end vinyl market is such that there are products selling for ten times the Origin Live’s price. What really impresses about the Sovereign is that it’s surprisingly close to these uber-decks in sound quality, build and overall engineering – it gives almost nothing away. What it does lack however is a fancy boutique name, and styling that’s more about form than function. That’s why this understated yet beautifully designed vinyl spinner is so impressive – its super neutral, ultra-stable sound speaks for itself.

PHONO CARTRIDGE

HANA UMAMI BLUE

Hana is the most famous cartridge brand you’ve never heard of – as its parent company, Excel Sound, has been going for nearly fifty-five years, making OEM pick-ups for a welter of Japanese manufacturers. It’s only in the past few years that the Hana name has surfaced on the analogue scene, as its range of classy moving coils has wowed vinylistas. The Umami Blue is a beautifully built, high end, low output design using technology trickled down from the flagship Umami Red. It sounds sublimely sweet and extremely musically engaging – celebrating the beauty of vinyl.

INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER

MUSICAL FIDELITY A1

The original Musical Fidelity A1 was a flawed gem. In theory it was a hugely capable product, designed by none other than high end valve guru Tim de Paraviccini. In practice, the execution of the circuit design was ‘sub-optimal’, with various build quality issues sullying what was otherwise a sublime sounding compact integrated amplifier. All such bugs are completely fixed on this new version – which offers a super clean 20W RMS per channel, and way better load driving ability than its predecessor. The result is a delicious sounding full Class A integrated amplifier that’s way more practical than before.

DESKTOP AMPLIFIER

SCHIIT REKKR

There’s something special about this diminutive stereo power amplifier. Its tiny size allied to understated styling doesn’t promise much, nor does the teensy 2W RMS power output into 8 ohms. Yet appearances can be deceptive, as it’s a great sounding bit of kit at an extremely affordable price. Most will have the funds to buy two, and monoblock them for a dizzying 4W RMS per side. USA-based Schiit Audio has fast become a cult desktop audio brand, and this shows why – judging from the value offered by this dinky design.

PREAMPLIFIER

NAD M66

There are two schools of preamplifier design – less is more, and more is more. The M66 falls into the latter, being filled to the brim with sophisticated functionality, connectivity, and features. Yet this doesn’t come at the expense of sound quality – which is something that NAD is of course famous for. It crowbars an audiophile preamp, a BluOS streaming DAC and a powerful room correction system into its admittedly large and heavy aluminium chassis. One of its flagship Masters Series products, it sounds excellent across all of its myriad sources.

POWER AMPLIFIER

CHORD ELECTRONICS BERTTI

There’s a vast range of power amplifiers on sale these days, many of which look big, brutal and butch. That’s not what the BerTTi is about. Rather, it’s a midi-sized, high end ‘desktop’ design purpose-made to match Chord’s superb TT2 DAC/preamp and M Scaler. Despite its relatively diminutive dimensions, it puts out a claimed 2x 75W RMS into 8 ohms, via a bespoke-designed Class AB MOSFET output stage – not Class D, as many would expect. It uses the company’s trick technology to eke out the best sound possible from this small package. The result is a great performer that takes up no more space than a large paperback book.

HIGH END POWER AMPLIFIER

KARAN ACOUSTICS POWERa

It’s hard to justify spending so much on this pair of monoblock power amplifiers – until you hear them in action. Suddenly this Serbian-made Karan Acoustics combo makes perfect sense, thanks to its sublime, glass-clear sound and wonderfully expansive soundstage. The personification of true high end hi-fi, whatever loudspeakers the POWERas are driving seem to melt into the listening room, leaving you at the epicenter of the musical event. You might think the 2.1kW of power per side is an extravagance, but it speaks for itself. One very good reason to get rich quick, if you can.

PRE/POWER AMPLIFIER COMBINATION

MOON 791/761

This Canadian brand’s dizzyingly wide range of electronics offers something for everyone – and in the case of the 791 preamp and 761 power amp you’ll need to be a well-healed audiophile wanting something close to the best. Set right in the middle of MOON’s six-strong North Collection, this dynamic duo combines a versatile DAC preamp and 200W Class AB stereo power amp. Build quality is superb and the styling is striking, but you’ll be listening not looking when you set ears upon this classy combination. Effortless power and tremendous detail make this a hugely enjoyable listen.

STANDMOUNT SPEAKER

BOWERS & WILKINS 607 S3

Surely the best affordable, super-small standmounter that B&W has ever made, this is the cheapest speaker in the company’s entry-level range. Although it’s a tad pricier than its direct predecessor, it’s more than a little better in terms of sound quality. Bowers & Wilkins has huge design and engineering resources, all of which have been harnessed to squeeze the proverbial quart out of the 607 S3’s pint pot. Clean, crisp, detailed and dynamic, this fun loving little box delivers a far more grown-up sound than you’d think.

FLOORSTANDING SPEAKER

ACOUSTIC ENERGY CORINIUM

Going up a size, to enter the ‘affordable high end’ loudspeaker market was without doubt a gamble for Acoustic Energy, which has of late focused on less expensive designs. On the face of it the new Corinium is basically an upscaled 520 floorstander, but look closer and you’ll see a host of improvements and refinements that ratchet up the performance dramatically. Artfully designed and beautifully constructed, the result is a very powerful but subtle performer that is highly musically enjoyable yet super-refined. A real class act, right now this is near-impossible to beat at the price.

SUBWOOFER

PARADIGM XR 13

This subwoofer’s immense 2,200W power output – 4,400W on peaks – doesn’t automatically make it the best thing we’ve heard. Instead, it’s the overall quality of engineering that counts, which is where the XR 13 excels. It may not have the largest footprint around, but clever use is made of its 325mm high-excursion driver, set into a seriously robust cabinet. The result is superlative bass control, allied to ultra-low distortion. Whether you’re playing music or movies, it delivers lightning-fast low frequencies that snap like a firecracker, allied to breathtaking dynamic power.

HEADPHONE AMP

TOPPING EHA5

This growing Chinese brand has recently been making waves, thanks to its wide range of capable products such as this purpose-designed amplifier for electrostatic ear speakers. This type of headphone – made by Stax and a few other specialist names – require dedicated power amps, or energisers as they’re also called, to drive them. The EHA5 is precisely this, but sells for considerably less than most other such products on sale. The Topping punches way above what its very modest price would suggest, with an alluring combination of transient speed, detail and overall musicality.

PORTABLE DAC/HEADPHONE AMP

IFI AUDIO GO LINK

Given how many people use their smartphones to listen to music whilst out and about every day, it’s amazing that affordable products like this aren’t more popular. The Go Link takes most people’s main music source – their mobile phone – and confers audiophile respectability upon it. A bargain-priced portable USB DAC and headphone amplifier, it significantly improves the direct headphone output from most mobile phones. There’s greater detail, and a smoother tonality with improved bass response – all from something small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. A very worthy mobile music maker.

PHONO STAGE

VIOLECTRIC PPA V790

There will always be minimalist, high-performance phono stages, but it’s unusual to find a design that offers a vast range of facilities, yet doesn’t compromise on the sonic end result. The rather exotic looking Violectric PPA V790 is precisely this – it’s built for vinyl addicts with a vast collection of music spanning many decades. It has no less than six turntable inputs – three balanced and three unbalanced – plus a bewildering array of gain, impedance and capacitance settings. This means you can play pretty much any LP from any era with relative accuracy, from a super-wide range of phono cartridges.

AUDIO ACCESSORY

CONNECTED-FIDELITY FLOAT PUCK

It has long been known that mechanical vibration degrades sound, and this has spawned countless isolation products over the years, which attempt to decouple hi-fi components from their surroundings. Most use some form of sorbothane rubber, but not Connected-Fidelity’s Floats. These pucks consist of 'floating' spheres held within two circular cup-shaped channels; the designer says that vibrational energy is 'spent' in the micro-movements of these spheres without losing the direct path between the component and the base on which it’s sitting. They are beautifully built, and highly effective at cleaning up the sound from bass to treble.

INTERCONNECT

TELLURIUM Q STATEMENT II XLR

It isn’t easy creating a globally successful cable brand from nothing, then building on that success over the years, but that’s what Tellurium Q’s Geoff Merrigan has done. Against all the odds, the company has taken on the market’s big names and prevailed. Its no-nonsense approach has surely helped – with precious little marketing hype and a focused attitude. The flagship Statement II XLR epitomises this – there’s little in the way of fancy packaging and no tall tales of magical ingredients. Yet the sound speaks for itself, being translucent and effortless with a wonderfully organic feel.

SOUNDBAR

KRIX LX-7 LINEAR LCR PASSIVE

When Krix does a soundbar, it’s not like all the others. This makes almost all other such speaker systems look like toys. Highly configurable, and offered in three standard lengths – 75-, 85- or 100-inch – the LX-7 Linear LCR Passive is a monster of a thing. Weighing 30kg in its biggest guise, this Australian super-speaker delivers an incredible, virtually distortion-free sound that goes up to wild volume levels – but you’ll need a suitably serious partnering amplifier though, as this is passive. Properly set-up, it’s an object lesson in what’s possible from a single, full range centre speaker.

POWERED SPEAKER

KLIPSCH THE NINES

Klipsch’s recent renaissance has coincided with the hi-fi world becoming more attuned to needs of customers, as it gets less snobbish and purist. These retro-styled, self-powered Bluetooth speakers look like the company’s full-size models, but which have shrunk in the wash. The Nines offer power and punch aplenty, despite taking up a smallish space. Music is never less than fun, with a live and direct character that’s hard not to love – thanks horn-loaded tweeters, real wood veneered cabinets and an impressive 480W of power. Ideal for smaller rooms or second systems, they’re real party starters.

SMART SPEAKER

APPLE HOMEPOD 2ND GEN

2023 saw Apple’s cute little HomePod return in its second-generation guise, after the original appeared in 2021. As you’d expect, this new one isn’t cheap, but it’s sufficiently well made, versatile and easy to use that it will have wide appeal. No-nonsense quality has always been the Apple mantra, and it’s clear that many people are willing to pay for it. For those in the Apple ecosystem, this perfect for controlling your smart home. Its clever design gives it surprisingly decent sound – and more importantly perhaps – its home hub functionality is superb.

IN EAR MONITORS

SENNHEISER IE 200

The entry-level IEM in this much-liked Sennheiser range, this diminutive design is built with know-how amassed from the company’s many decades of headphone expertise. Its subtly ‘V-shaped’ frequency response gives plenty of bass and treble for a bouncy, fun sound – yet there is real refinement here too. The sober styling might not impress your friends, but the IE 200's musicality will charm you in no uncertain terms. And as ever with this German specialist, you get functional design and robust build, plus enduring listening comfort thanks to its impressively low weight.

OVER EAR (WIRED) HEADPHONES

MEZE AUDIO EMPYREAN II

The high-end headphone market is a unique place where exotic audio engineering appears in very small packages. Into this brave new world of esoteric head-fi, which barely existed a decade or so ago, has stepped Meze Audio. It has recently launched some seriously special designs, such as the new Empyrean v2. This is an expensive, open-back planar magnetic ‘phone that uses super light 'isodynamic hybrid array’ drivers to give a startling frequency response of 8Hz to 110kHz. It sounds superb, being effortlessly transparent and breathtakingly fast. Exquisitely built, it fully justifies its hefty retail price.

MULTICHANNEL PREAMP/POWER AMPLIFIER

MARANTZ AV10/AMP10

This seventy-year-old company is in the process of reinventing itself for the brave new world of audio-visual. The classy new styling is a visual reminder of this, but inside Marantz products are getting refined and renewed with the latest technology, too. The AV10 15.4 channel processor/preamp and AMP10 16-channel power amp are prime examples of this – it’s a formidable, power-packed combination that’s claimed to be company’s finest ever cinephile combination. Needless to say, all the company’s audiophile best practice is employed, and the result is a startling powerful yet svelte sound.

AV PROCESSOR

ARCAM AV41

This British brand has a history of innovative and imaginative products stretching back to the nineteen seventies – from active loudspeakers to NICAM TV sound processors. These days of course, it does cutting-edge audiophile stereo and AV designs, such as the flagship AV41 processor you see here. It sports the latest HDMI 2.1 board to support ultra high-resolution video, and the highly regarded Dirac Live room correction technology, among a host of other features. Factor in superb connectivity and excellent build quality, and you have a class-winning home cinema product with excellent provenance.

TELEVISION

SAMSUNG S95

Samsung’s latest premium 4K Smart TV shows just what is now possible from a top-tier television. A true RGB OLED design, it offers a claimed 20% increase in brightness over its predecessor launched in 2022. It sports a welter of tech tricks to further improve the viewing experience, from the company’s proprietary Quantum Dot (QD) Technology to the Neo Quantum Processor found on even pricier models. The result is a stunning picture that’s lustrous, vivid and full of colour. Factor in its huge feature count, and it’s hard not to feel you’re seeing the future.

PROJECTOR

SONY VPL-XW70000ES

Inside its beautifully finished but understated case, this new cost-no-object 4K HDR projector is jam-packed with bleeding-edge technology and optics. At its heart is a new laser light source incorporating a cluster of blue laser diodes, with a superb 3,200 lumens brightness. This is fed by the company’s powerful X1 Ultimate Projector Picture Processor found in Sony’s flagship GTZ-380. The result is spectacular, with startling definition even on larger screens, allied to super-lative black levels and shadow detail. With such sublime performance, it’s hard to imagine home movie viewing being better.

INNOVATION AWARD

MONITOR AUDIO HYPHN LOUDSPEAKER

This British brand has been undergoing something of a renaissance over the past few years, and is now proudly reasserting itself on the world loudspeaker stage with this new, ultra-high end statement design. It boasts a radical cabinet profile allied to radical transducer technology in the form of the company’s so-called M Array. The result is a sound like nothing else around – it’s super-fast, ultra neutral, and highly detailed yet possessed of gargantuan power output. Indeed, given suitably esoteric amplification, the Hyphn drives huge rooms to crazy levels with consummate ease.

PRODUCT OF THE YEAR

CAMBRIDGE AUDIO AXN-10 STREAMER

Why give StereoNET’s coveted Product of Year award to a small, inexpensive, and bland looking streamer? The answer is simple – it brings previously unavailable levels of sonic performance and operational sophistication to a key hi-fi market sector. Music fans thinking of dipping their toes into the water of streaming, so to speak, will be emboldened by this product – it’s a gateway to the world of entry-level network playback without the hassle or poor performance that traditionally comes with it. Better still, you can opt for the AXN-10’s midi-sized MXN-10 cousin should you wish your streamer to be even more inconspicuous.