Auralic Vega S1 invades the stage
Auralic Vega S1 & Purer-Power S1 streamer & power supply Auralic’s range of streamers and related ancillaries has been growing in quantity and price over the dozen or so years since the brand launched with the original Aries streamer in its curvy plastic case. Today’s top Auralics inhabit machined aluminium casework and sit on sprung […]
Naim NSS 333, NAC 332 & NAP 350: the dream team
Naim NSS 333 streamer, NAC 332 preamplifier, NAP 350 power amplifiers Apparently the NAC 332 is the first Naim preamplifier to have an onboard power supply. In a day and age when finding any preamplifier without its own power supply is unlikely this is hardly shocking but it’s clearly a change of approach for Salisbury’s […]
Auralic Vega G2.2 goes the extra mile
Auralic Vega G2.2 DAC The Vega G2.2 is currently the only digital to analogue converter in Auralic’s seven strong range of streaming oriented electronics, the Vega G1 never made it to G1.1 status so at present there is a hole at that entry point for the brand. They do however make an Altair G1.1 which […]
Auralic Aries G2.2: spellbinding streaming
Auralic Aries G2.2 network streamer If the rate at which new products appear is any indication Auralic CEO Xuanqian Wang is a restless individual. The evolution of the Aries G2.2 started back in 2014 as a much smaller and lighter device which garnered a reputation for the fledgling brand that its founder has been persistently […]
Cyrus Stream-XR gets the BluOS advantage
Cyrus Stream-XR network streamer I reviewed the Cyrus PSU-XR, in combo with the company’s i9-XR amplifier back in April and was inspired to look at the Stream-XR, which for many Cyrus owners, could be the perfect streaming partner for their systems. The Cyrus Stream-XR retails for £2,495, like the entry level Classic Stream it uses […]
Innuos Pulsar: star quality
Innuos Pulsar streamer Having firmly established itself as a major player in the server market, last year Innuos finally announced its range of dedicated audio streamers with the Pulsar at its apex. Innuos Zen servers are now in their third generation and their flagship Statement is widely regarded as one of the best in the […]
Melco N5: music service with a smile
Melco N5-H50 music server When Melco launched the N5 in May I was excited to see a more affordable variation on the N1 flagship that appeared in March. But then it occurred to me that Melco’s product numbering system is like Canon cameras, the lower the number the better the product. As an N10 owner […]
Muon Pro for ultimate streaming
Network Acoustics Muon Pro Streaming System ethernet filter and data cable Long before anyone dreamt of a device like the Muon Pro it was assumed that the music data heading for our streamer was just that. To suggest that it might be accompanied by electronic pollution that was damaging to sonic performance was to invite […]
AVM CS 8.3 Black Edition one box high end
AVM Ovation CS 8.3 Black Edition AVM Ovation CS 8.3 Black Edition is a long name for any piece of kit but this particular piece is both multifunctional and sits at the top of the tree in AVM’s streaming amplifier tree, so it has earned the moniker. AVM make more streaming amplifiers than most, it […]
Naim New Classic and the rhythm divine
Naim NSC 222, NPX 300 & NAP 250 The Naim New Classic range marks the beginning of an era for the Salisbury based electronics brand, a company that celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. It is the first change to Naim’s core product line since the introduction of Naim Classic in 2002. The Mu-So and […]
Lumin P1: genuine high resolution
Lumin P1 streamer preamplifier A glance at the Lumin range of network players is initially confusing, why is the Lumin P1 bigger than the more expensive X1 range topper? A quick comparison of the two back panels reveals the reason, the P1 is a streamer, a DAC and an analogue and digital preamplifier whereas the […]
Best Hi-Fi of 2022
The best of the best that we have reviewed on the Ear over the last 12 months