What Hi-Fi?

It seems an appropriate time to be celebrating all that British hi-fi has to offer. For a relatively small island, Britain has offered more than its fair share of musical artists to the world. And, to go hand in hand with them, it has also produced an astonishing number of world-beating pieces of hi-fi equipment. Of course, as with most industry these days, it is getting harder to nail down precisely what ‘British’ is. Many of the products we cover in this issue are manufactured in the UK; some now come from the far East. And some of the famous old brand names are now foreign-owned; such is the nature of world markets. But all of the ‘British’ equipment we have for you in this issue of What Hi-Fi? can…

■ EXPERIENCE. HERITAGE. We have been helping the world discover the best in hi-fi and home entertainment for more than 45 years, and have more than 100 years of reviewing experience under our collective belts – so you can count on our expert opinion. ■ DEDICATED TEST FACILITIES We test every product against its peers in our extensive, bespoke reviewing facilities in London, Reading and Bath. We conduct all our tests as a team – our opinions and conclusions are always the result of collaboration. HOW WE SCORE All review verdicts are agreed upon by the team as a whole – not an individual reviewer. Each product will be listened to and/or viewed by several members of the test team, who will then discuss the final verdict before it appears…

Home cinema amplifier | £999 | View offers whf.cm/TA_AN1000 Sony is finally back in the AV amplifier game with the TA-AN1000 home cinema amp. It has been more than five years since the Japanese tech giant graced us with its serial Award-winning STR-DN1080 AV receiver which took home Product of the Year in 2017 and 2018 (the year in which it also entered into our Hall of Fame), and it held a firm place on our Awards lists until 2020. So surely a new AV amp from Sony is a cause for celebration? While this certainly is the case with the company’s new TA-AN1000, we first find ourselves wondering why, despite the fact that it looks near identical to the DN1080, is it double the price? The TA-AN1000 is a…

Turntable | £420 | View offers whf.cm/AT-LPW50BTRW As Record Store Day celebrated its 15th year in 2023, it is gratifying to see vinyl still in healthy shape, with record-breaking vinyl sales (thanks, Taylor Swift and Harry Styles) and new record players regularly hitting the shelves. Audio Technica’s AT-LPW50BTRW is one such new deck, offering an appealing combination of features – a belt-drive turntable with built-in phono stage and Bluetooth streaming – to appeal to a wide audience, regardless of their experience with vinyl. There’s plenty of competition at this price from the likes of Rega, Pro-Ject, Dual and Sony, but Audio Technica has a knack for manufacturing modern turntables with hi-fi flourishes that look and sound great. Is it in evidence here? Quality look and feel This is a smart-looking…

Wired in-ear headphones | £130 | View offers whf.cm/IE_200 Do you consider yourself an audiophile? Regardless of your answer Sennheiser would like to interest you in its range of higher-end ‘audiophile headphones’. These products – almost all wired – now include a range of in-ear and over-ear pairs at a range of prices, from as little as the £130 asked for these IE 200s. The omens are good. More than one of the company’s IE earbud models has achieved acclaim – the IE800 from 2013, for example, were three-time What Hi-Fi? Award winners despite their then-£600 price tag. And, more recently, the IE 900 proved their sonic quality so completely that we couldn’t help but conclude that they justified their four-figure asking price. While fewer headphones manufacturers are bothering with…

Wireless headphones | £249 | View offers whf.cm/GradoGW100x If you are fortunate enough to get your hands on a pair of Grado’s open-back GW100x headphones, you will be greeted by a message on the box’s lid-interior informing you that the company has been “family run for six decades in Brooklyn, New York”. There is something about Grado’s products that reflects this proud heritage from the heart of America’s most famous city. The headphones’ design especially, with their no-frills presentation, chunky circular grilles and smooth, black-leather headband, reflects a kind of idiosyncratic confidence consistent with the Brooklyn character. There are no gimmicks here, just a commitment to delivering really great sound. These latest GW100x are the new improved version of the GW100 model, a five-star set of wireless headphones that, while…