Leema Acoustics has reworked its Pulse amplifier for 2017, adding new features, including a “high-quality” phono stage, aptX Bluetooth, plus a 32-bit/384kHz DSD-capable DAC. Recommended retail £2,295.
Leema Acoustics’ ex-BBC engineering team has added new features, improved performance and flexibility, and introduced all-new casework. Now in its fourth generation, the new Pulse IV will form part of the newly re-launched Spectrum range and will make its international debut in pre-production form at High End, Munich, in May 2017.
Pulse IV boasts a seven-input DAC that features a 32-bit/384kHz-DSD capable Sabre DAC with XMOS USB Type-B input, a further six digital inputs: three optical and three electrical S/PDIF, plus aptX Bluetooth complete the line up.
It also harbours an MM/MC phono stage taken from Leema’s standalone Essentials phono stage (£595). It joins five additional line-level inputs, making the Pulse IV highly flexible and easy to integrate into existing systems with multiple components. A powerful 80-watt class A/B design, the Pulse IV has “sufficient capacity to drive all speaker types, including those with difficult loads”. It also features a front-panel-mounted headphone amplifier, preamp outputs and a dedicated fixed-level record output.
The new model forms part of the re-introduced Spectrum range and like all Leema Acoustics’ electronics, the Pulse IV is hand-crafted in the Welshpool factory.