Hi Fi News October 2022

Chaos may come to be the defining motif of summer 2022 – whether applied to travel, supply chains, politics or climate – but rather than dwell on what’s beyond our control, at least each new edition of your favourite hi-fi magazine still arrives on time – and this month, bigger too! Your October issue of Hi-Fi News has expanded into a bumper 172-page offering where, as the exclusive UK member of EISA’s Hi-Fi Expert Group, we can reveal the cream of the crop, as tested, judged and voted for by the most respected quarters of the international audio press. I am honoured to be the (second term) President of this great Association as we mark our 40th anniversary by celebrating the best consumer electronics of the season. Of course, EISA’s…

Last hosted at the prestigious Ascot Grandstand in 2019, the UK’s dedicated high-end audio show returns in 2022 with the ‘who’s who’ of world-class hi-fi Rotel’s Michi range of integrated and pre/power amplifiers has gone down a storm in Hi-Fi News [HFN May ’20, Oct ’20, Apr ’21 and Jul ’21] and the Hi-Fi Show Live represents a great chance to hear them in action with a pair of Bowers & Wilkins D4 series loudspeakers. The Sound United team will also be available to answer your questions about the Michi range and Rotel’s 60th anniversary products. We are delighted to welcome Manley Audio back to the Hi-Fi Show Live, courtesy of its new UK distributor SCV. Manley’s wide range of pre, power and headphone tube amplifiers will be shown in…

The North West Audio Show 2022 took place at The Cranage De Vere Estate in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, over the weekend of the 18th and 19th of June and was the first large-scale hi-fi show in the UK this side of the pandemic. The free event was attended by well over 2000 visitors from across the country, with extra car parking and a shuttle bus laid on to cope with demand. De Vere Cranage Estate is a superb venue, with great amenities for exhibitors and visitors alike. It also enjoys a magnificent setting, which only adds to the easy-going atmosphere of the show. Next year’s event will take place over the weekend of the 17th and 18th of June, again at the Cranage De Vere Estate. For more details and…

You hold in your hands the world’s oldest and most respected hi-fi magazine – Hi-Fi News – where heavyweight audio engineering is our stock in trade. All our review products are typically subject to a one-month test process from shipping, unpacking, installation, photography, lab work, extended listening, disassembly/packing and collection. This practice was maintained right through the pandemic period, with full Covid biosecurity adding to the logistical complexity of our four-week issue schedule. But we did it… never missing one issue of the magazine or compromising the ‘Hi-Fi News Pledge’: 1. Our hardware reviews are never brief ‘hands on’ experiences of a product from a press conference, brand-led demo or distributor’s back room spun up into a four or five page article. 2. Products reviewed in Hi-Fi News already have…

Few companies have been as resistant to styling changes as Audio Research. Even after a decade-plus under the ownership of fashion-conscious Italians, ARC products still suggest they belong in studios or government laboratories. Can you imagine the shock, then, when news releases arrived showing a swoopy integrated amplifier available in six colourways? With a price of £5198, the 50W-rated I/50 means the return of an entry-level model. Colour options or not, an I/50 can be purchased in all-black or all-silver for those who prefer a semblance of the old ARC. These may even prove to be the most popular, as people tend to err on the conservative when buying hi-fi. Alternatives to the black version’s black top plate include white, red, yellow or blue slabs – but this section is…

Bunting must surely be in short supply. Along with the Royal Jubilee, we had SME officially celebrating its 60th birthday while Nagra rolled out the cake for its 70th – and now Clearaudio has released a product to celebrate its ‘40 years of excellence’ (an anniversary that actually fell in 2018, but product delays are nothing new). The good news is that the result is the £17,500 Clearaudio Reference Jubilee turntable; the bad news is that production is limited to 250 units worldwide. With its distinctive V-shaped plinth, this celebratory model doffs its cap to the company’s first Reference turntable, released in 1993 [see boxout, p47]. However, the original acrylic is replaced in the Reference Jubilee’s plinth with Panzerholz – the ‘armour-plated’ wood. This laminate material is sandwiched between layers…