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Sennheiser HDVD 800 Headphone Amp
We have the brand new headphone amplifier from Sennheiser on demonstation now.
The HDVD 800 is £1499.00 and looks absolutely fantastic (in our opinion!).
Offering both analogue and digital inputs (including USB) this is a stunning product and a ideal match for anyone with the Sennheiser HD700 or HD800 (or any high end headphone for that matter!).
This really does take your headphones to another level, incredibly revealing and informative, yet musical with it.
There is also the HDVA 600 which is the analogue version of the HDVD 800, this is £1200.00, anyone with a good standalone DAC or source can save themselves £300.00.
We've now had the opportunity to listen to the HD800 connected to the HDVD 800 using the new Sennheiser balanced cables. We had 2 pairs of HD800's on hand for the demo, one pair using the standard 1/4 inch connection, the other using the new balanced cable so we could go between the 2 on the fly.
The improvement the balanced cable offers is massive, the standard HD800 is one of the most open and transparent headphones we ever had the pleasure of using, but changing to the balanced cable just elevated them to another level altogether.
A not so subtle upgrade. The cables are going to be available from June, we have them on order for our demo HD800's.
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New Creek Evolution 50a Integrated Amplifier
We have have the new Creek Integrated Amplifier on demonstration.
It's called the Evolution 50a, costs £700.00 and sounds incredible for the money.
It has a brilliant OLED display with a suprsing number of set up options (setting display brightness, activating the headphone socket), and options for a FM/AM tuner module and MM or MC Phono Stages.
Anyone thinking getting of amplifier in the sub £1000.00 price bracket should seriously give this a listen. It won "Editor's Choice" in this month's Hi-Fi Choice magazine.
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Denon Piccolo Mini System
We now have the new Denon Piccolo Mini System on demonstration and in stock.
Priced at £299.00 it offers 65 watts per channel, Apple Airplay, Spotify & Last FM (Subscription are required for these), Network Streaming from NAS drives & PC's, built in Wi-Fi (although wired ethernet is preferable though).
The Denon Remote App is available as well to complete the package.
It's a cracking little unit, coupled with a pair of Monitor Audio BX2's or B&W 686's it sounds really good.
Available in black and white |
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Epic Loudspeakers!
At some point over the next week or so we will be taking delivery of the Dali Epicon range of speakers.
There are 3 models in the range and we are initially going to be carrying 2 of them in store for demonstration purposes. The Epicon 2 Standmount at £3750.00 a pair (plus £550.00 for the dedicated stands) and the Epicon 6 Floorstander at £7800.00 a pair.
If you are looking for some new speakers that are musical, informative (without being overly harsh), articulate with oodles of resolution the Epicon's should be right up your street.
The fit and finish is arguably as good as we've ever seen for this sort of money.
The Epicon 2 has some serious competition at that sort of price point and based on we have experienced so far, the competition should be worried.......absolutely brilliant speakers, we simply wanted to keep playing music thorugh them. The floorstanders are also rather good too!
We'll report back once our demo stock has arrived and we've put them through their paces.
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Musical Fidelity M6 DAC - putting the 0's and 1's in the right order!
Musical Fidelity have just launched a new addition to their excellent M6 range, the M6 DAC.
Priced at £2000.00 it offers coaxial, optical and balanced inputs, as well as an Asynchronous USB input for PC's and Mac's.
It also features, quite unusually, a bluetooth input, enabling you to stream music off your smartphone, providing your music isn't heavily compressed it's suprisingly good.
This of course is a bit of a sideshow to what the M6 DAC is really about. Feed it with a good transport or MAC and the results are devastatingly good. Anyone looking for a new DAC at this sort of price point needs to have a listen.
It's very musical, slightly laid back in presentation but with bags of dynamics and details.
On demonstration now
Musical Fidelity M6 DAC |
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B&W A5 & A7 - AirPlay Speakers
The B&W A5 and A7 Wireless AirPlay Speakers are both on demonstration now, priced at £399.00 and £699.00 respectively.
You simply wirelessly stream music from iTunes on your Mac or PC to them and use your iPad, iPad Mini, iPod Touch or iPhone as a remote control.
Any music you have stored on any of the above iOS devices can be streamed also. They both have an auxilliary input should you want to physically connect another piece of equipment to it (A Sonos Connect for Spotify/Internet Radio perhaps?)
Performance is excellent, the A5 in our opinion is about on par with a Zeppelin, the A7 is a good step up.
Really easy to use and set up, great performance and rather stylish to boot!
B&W A5 AirPlay Speaker System
B&W A7 Airplay Speaker System |
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Arcam A19 Amplifier - In Stock Now
The new Arcam A19 arrived with us earlier in the week.
First impressions....it looks the same as the A18.
We unpacked our demo unit and the first thing we noticed was how much heavier it feels compared to the outgoing A18. We plugged it in and left it to warm up for a couple of hours before we listened to it.
For the money (£650.00) this is a cracking little amplifier, a significant step up in performance the A18.
It's dynamic and punchy, with plenty of power of tap and above all else, it's musical.
In stock now |
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Musical Fidelity EB50 In Ear Headphones now in stock!
Musical Fidelity have just launched their very first headphone, the in-ear EB50. Priced at £149.00 they are a fantastic piece of kit and ideal for anyone wanting high performance earphones that are nice and discreet, ideal for the commute or for use in the gym!
Rather than being an off the shelf OEM design these have been designed by Musical Fidelity from the ground up, this really shows when you listen to the EB50's, easy to listen to, musical, a doddle to drive.
In stock now....... |
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Bryston BDP-1 is now a Streamer!
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The Bryston BDP-1 has had a major software update and we are pleased to say it can now be used as a conventional streamer, streaming content from a NAS drive, as opposed to original specification which could only play music off USB drives/sticks hung off the USB sockets.
For people with large music collections on a server this is a update is a big deal, it opens up the BDP-1 to a whole new market of customers.
Of course the whole USB drive configuration still works the way it always did, so you can now get the best of both worlds. |
Bryston BHA-1 Headphone Amplifier is here.......at last!
It feels like we've been waiting an eternity for the Bryston BHA-1 Headphone Amplifier to arrive. We're pleased to say however that has been worth the wait.
Priced at £1425.00 it is isn't the cheapest headphone amplifier on the market, but if you've a serious pair of headphones and you want to get the very best out of them, the BHA-1 should fit the bill.
It offers both single ended and XLR inputs and outputs so you can run your headphone rig fully balanced if your source and headphones support it.
Performance is sublime. On demo now! |
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Naim UnitiQute Price Reduction
The Naim UnitiQute has had a price reduction.
The 24/192 Qute has dropped from £1650.00 to £1395.00).
This sort of money represents amazing value for money and at its pricepoint it leaves all of the other integrated streamers standing in its wake. |
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Denon DM39 DAB Mini System - Now in stock.......
The new Denon DM39 is now in stock.
It's had a cosmetic update over its predecessor, it offers 30 watts per channel and has the additional of a digital input.
It's a cracking little unit and one which we're sure will be very popular. Coupled up with a pair of Mission M30i or M31i speakers (which are on fantastic offers at the moment) you can get a great little system for not a huge sum of money.
Denon DM39 DAB Mini System
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New MusicWorks Entry Level Mains Cable.....
MusicWorks have just launched an entry level IEC mains cable, called ReEntry. It is priced at £125.00 as comes as standard in a 1.8m length.
Since we got this in the shop 2 or 3 weeks ago it has proved to be incredibly popular.
It works really well with Naim components (as well as lots of others of course!). It certains gives you a big taste of MusicWorks products can do to your music.
Available to order now - MusicWorks ReEntry IEC Mains Cable |
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Musical Fidelity have lauched the App for their M1 CLiC Music Controller
The M1 CLiC is fantastic product, incredibly flexible, great sounding and could easily be the heart of a good system. The one thing it was missing though, was a good app to allow you to control it effectively.
You can't beat having an iPad in front of you to control your music library and thankfully MF have just launched theirs and it's brilliant.....
It's really easy to configure and operate, some of our CLiC customers absolutely love it.
If you were thinking of buying a CLiC, but the lack of an App was putting you off you got no excuse now!!!
Uncompressed music on a network drive, served to a streamer, controlled off an iPad really does change the way you listen to music.......in a good way of course!
Musical Fidelity M1 CLiC
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PMC Open Day - Saturday 28th April
On Saturday, April 28th, we held our very own PMC open day.
We'd just like to offer our thanks to everyone who attended on the day, we hope you all found it worthwhile and enjoyed both the sounds we made and also some of the music we were playing.
We had the brand new Bryston SP3 processor on demonstration, sublime and visceral are 2 of the best words we can come up with to describe what the SP3 can do, it's a really special product.
Big thanks also to Craig from PMC who spent the entire day chatting to people and enthusiastically demonstrating a whole raft of PMC and Bryston product. |
We've expanded our range of Cartridges and Styli!!
Over the past few months we have seen a massive increase in the volume of turntables we are selling (at all price points), as such we have increased the range of cartridges and styli that we are keeping in stock.
More Ortofon, Goldring, Denon, Audio Technica cartridges/styli in stock now. This range will be growing further in time with new additions being added as soon as we get them.
We've also given all cartridges a dedicated category on the front page of the site as opposed to being hidden away in the background.
Long live vinyl!
Cartridges & Styli |
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Arcam rPac USB DAC/Headphone Amplifier Now in Stock.........
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Arcam have just launched the rPac, which is a USB Dac/Headphone Amp. Priced at a very competitive £150.00 it's a brilliant little box of tricks. It takes its power off the USB connection meaning it can be used as a portable device (on a plane/train) if so desired.
A great way to improve the performance of the audio on your PC/Mac for not a huge outlay.
In stock and shipping now with Free UK P&P
Arcam rPac |
Arcam drDock - Now in Stock.........
The new Arcam drDock is now in stock.
Priced at £199.00 the drDock is a very flexible iPod dock.
First and foremost it offers the ability to dock an iPad as well as an iPhone or an iPod.
Alongside the conventional analogue audio outputs the drDock has a digital output meaning you can connect it to an external DAC, improving the performance of the music on your Apple device (providing it is not heavily compressed - Apple Lossless at a minimum ideally).
It also has an HDMI output, so you can connect the drDock to a TV or AV receiver to route content stored on your iPad or iPod to a large screen TV.
Arcam drDock - Shipping Now |
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Arcam FMJ D33 Digital to Analogue Converter....
The new Arcam FMJ D33 Dac is now on demonstration.
With 7 digital inputs (2 Coaxial, 2 Optical, 1 AES/EBU, 1 USB type A and USB type B inputs) this is an incredibly well specified bit of kit.
There are actually 2 USB type B inputs (you can only use 1 at a time), one input is galvanically isolated and supports sample rates up to (and including) 24/96. This is input is recommended for anyone using an older computer (which is more likely to introduce mains interference into the delicate audio signal). The other USB type B input is not isolated, supports up to 24/192 and is the one we'd recommend using if you've a newer PC or Mac.
We did a demo yesterday where we used the CD37 as both a CD player and a transport into the DAC using Ryan Adams Gold.
The result?
The CD37 is great in its own right but after comparing it to the DAC it sounded rather lacklustre. We got out a couple of other CD players and made the same comparison, some of which sounded broken in comparison to the D33.
We also had a laptop connected streaming 16/44.1, 24/96 and 24/192 files, with each step the DAC simply breathed more life and detail into the system. It is important to stress with all PC's or Mac's it is critical to get the computer set up correctly to avoid any unnecessary upsampling by the computer.
The D33 is a brilliant piece of kit. This should ruffle some feathers amongst the competition.
Arcam FMJ D33 Digital to Analogue Converter |
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New Rega RP6 Turntable is here!
The Rega new product bandwagon is in overdrive this month!
The new RP6 Turntable is now with us.
Priced at £798.00 excluding a cartridge or £998.00 with a Rega Exact (a saving of £55.00 on buying them separately) the RP6 certainly looks the part, available in 8 striking gloss finishes (white, black, orange, red, yellow, green, pink and blue).
It comes supplied as standard with the TT-PSU as well.
Beautiful looks, even better performance!
Rega RP6 (without cartridge)
Rega RP6 (with a Rega Exact) |
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New Rega Apollo R CD Player Now in Stock!
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The new Rega Apollo R CD Player is now with us. Priced at £548.00, the new Apollo is a cosmetic match for the brilliant Brio R and the Dac.
Sublime performance for the money. This can seriously play a tune.
It is a top loader (of course!) and the appearance of the lid is more akin to the Rega Isis than previous CD players.
Rega Apollo R CD Player - On demo now |
Musical Fidelity ViNL Phono Stage
The new Musical Fidelity M1 ViNL phono stage is now in stock.
Priced at £699.00 the ViNL is an incredibly flexible phono stage with adjustable input capacitance, input resistance and RIAA/IEC equalisation curves with both RCA and balanced outputs.
The M1 series is really coming alive with some of the products they have released lately and the ViNL is certainly no exception.
Musical Fidelity ViNL Phono Stage |
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New Rega Fono Mini A2D MM Phono Stage in stock...
Just arrived!
The new Rega Fono Mini A2D MM phono stage with built in analogue to digital conversion via USB.
Priced at £85.00 the new Fono Mini A2D is a conventional MM phono stage which connects to your amplifier (or pre-amplifier) using normal interconnects.
However, it also has a USB connection which allows your to connect your turntable to your PC and simply transfer your vinyl to your hard drive (you need software to do this such as Audacity which does not come included, but is a free download).
Based on the phono stage that is fitted to the Mira amplifier this is a more cost effective version of the standard Rega Fono Stage which is £170.00.
Click here to order |
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Musical Fidelity V-Link II now in stock....
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The Musical Fidelity V-Link II is now in stock.
If you've a good DAC with no USB input (or one with USB but no asynchronous interface) and you want to connect your PC or Mac to your hi-fi to sream music this is a brilliant little box of tricks.
The Musical Fidelity V-Dac II is also in stock now.
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Arcam rCube - Now only £350.00!
The Arcam rCube iPod Speaker System has had a bit of a price reduction.
Previously priced at £499.00 it has just been reduced to a rather competitive £350.00.
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Musical Fidelity V-Dac II - Now in stock
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Priced at £199.00 we now have the Musical Fidelity V-Dac II in stock.
The new V-Dac comes as standard in a nice new all aluminium case and the USB input is asynchronous as standard (the original V-Dac wasn't).
For the money it's a bit of a bargain!
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B&W Prestige Monitor 1 - Now on Demonstration
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The new, compact B&W PM1 loudspeaker is now with us, it feels like we have been waiting forever for them to arrive but as they say "good things comes to those who wait".
Priced at £2000.00 per pair plus stands (the dedicated B&W stands are £400.00) these little speakers could quite possibly rewrite the rulebook at this price point.
Unmistakenly B&W in both their appearance and sonic ability these are very impressive little monitors. If you are after a pair of high performance, yet compact speakers these could be just the thing.
The fit and finish is stunning and really sets the speakers apart from lots of other more traditional designs. |
dCS Debussy now on demonstration
We now have the dCS Debussy DAC on demonstration.
It's a Dac, it's a pre-amp, it has a computer interface. You can simply connect this to a power amp and away you go.
There's never been a more affordable way to get into dCS and without sacrificing performance.
Take a modest/sensible transport connected to the Debussy and you will amazed at what it does (and what it can beat).
Hook up a Mac Mini via asynchronous USB running iTunes and Pure Music with an iPad as a remote and you've arguably THE BEST streaming solution in existence.
Uncompressed files fed this way are beating CD players cost upwards of 9K from other players.
The price......£7929.00
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B&W DB1 Active Subwoofer
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Why have one 12 inch drive unit when you can have two!!
The new B&W DB1 (from part of the 800 Diamond Series) active subwoofer has arrived with us at last.
Priced at £3250.00 it's not for the faint hearted.
One of the most flexible subwoofers available on the market, it has the ability to connect to a PC for set-up, has built in EQ and comes with a calibration microphone. A flat response never sounded (or felt!) so good! |
PMC Offer 20 year warranty.....
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To celebrate their 20th anniversary this year PMC are offering a 20 year warranty on all of their passive loudspeakers. This new warranty will be backdated to the 1st of January 2011 - all speakers must be registered with PMC to be applicable for the this warranty.
Nice to see a manufacturer with serious confidence in their product!
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Rega RP1 Performance Pack.....
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The Rega RP1 turntable has been incredibly successful since its launch in September 2010.
Rega have launched a "Performance Pack" upgrade kit for the RP1.
The Performance Pack includes a Rega Bias MM cartridge, the new upgraded white drive belt and a 100% wool mat.
Existing RP1 owners can buy the kit for £85.00, or you can buy the RP1 with the pack pre-fitted for £298.00
Rega RP1 with Performance Pack fitted
Rega Performance Pack on its own
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Hi-Fi Repairs
We have our own in house service engineer (with 39 years experience) and offer servicing on all of the brands we sell and have sold over the years.
If you've any hi-fi which needs some TLC why not give us a try?
If you are local to us you can drop an item off in-store or if you are at distance Parcel Force and the like offer competitive rates.
We charge £30.00 plus VAT for an estimate, which is deductable off the final repair bill, or we can offer it as a credit against a purchase of a replacement item if the repair is not viable or parts are not available.
Turnaround time to generate an estimate is usually 5-7 days, a repair can sometimes take a little longer depending on whether parts are in stock or need to be ordered in. |
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