Leema Neutron & Graviton entry level amp stars
Leema Neutron & Graviton pre & power amplifiers Leema Acoustics launched its Quantum range of entry level electronics late last year, the first to come our way are the Neutron, an analogue and digital preamplifier bristling with input options and boasting onboard DAC and MM/MC phono stage, and the matching Graviton is a 150 Watt […]
Benchmark DAC3 HGC & AHB2 no frills fun
Benchmark DAC3 HGC DAC/pre and AHB2 stereo power amp I suppose it’s having grown-up with it, as it were, in my early BBC days but I just love the look, feel and operation of professional audio equipment. When the chance presented itself to try some Benchmark electronics from the US, I just could not resist. […]
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 […]
Hi-fi deluxe: Bricasti M19, M1S2, M20 and M25
Bricasti Design M19 SACD/CD transport, M1 Series II DAC, M20 preamplifier and M25 power amplifier Bricasti products reveal their heritage in the casework design, a style that comes from company founders Brian Zolner and Casey Dowdell whose backgrounds were with Lexicon and who work closely with former Madrigal Labs engineers. The latter manufactured Mark Levinson […]
Best hi-fi of 2023
The Ear picks the best hi-fi of 2023 2023 has been a tough year for the hi-fi industry but that has done nothing to stem the flow of first class products coming to market. In fact there are even more extraordinary audio components to choose from than there were last year, with advances made in […]
Moon North 791/761 deliver the goods and then some
Moon 791 preamplifier/streamer/DAC and 761 power amp As the owner of a Moon integrated amplifier and streaming DAC, I have been looking forward to trying this combination since news of its launch surfaced earlier this year. Even for those new to this most prominent Canadian audio brand, we at The Ear feel that the launch […]
Quiescent T100MPA: a unique approach
Quiescent T100MPA monoblock amplifiers Jason Kennedy reviewed Quiescent’s T100SPA stereo power amplifier in February this year. A second review sample was doing the rounds at the same time and I was able to add a short note on my own thoughts at the end of that review. Both Jason and I felt the T100SPA to […]
SCA Power Amplifier keeps the flame alive
Zinamp SCA Power Amplifier My first forays into the world of current dumping were rather underwhelming. Having ‘upgraded’ from a Quad 303 to a 405 the clarity and openness of the 303 seemed to have deserted my much-loved ESL57s. Things weren’t much better with the KEF Calindas which were my second speakers at the time. […]
Moon 760A: a balanced approach
Moon 760A stereo power amplifier Pity the audiophile with an amplifier to buy and the asking price of a Moon 760A burning a hole in their pocket. It’s a first-world problem sure enough, and no doubt one that many of us wish we had too. But it’s a tough one because round about that price […]
Linear A does exactly what it says on the tin
Tom Evans Audio Design Linear A Mk3 The Linear A been a long time coming. Tom Evans has been making the Linear A and B power amplifiers for 16 years now and as a long-time fan of his work, his CD player clock upgrades of the ‘90s made that format musical for the first time, […]
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 […]
Quiescent T100SPA: the power of silence
Quiescent T100SPA stereo power amplifier Kevin Fiske reviewed a balanced mains supply from Quiescent recently and that piqued our interest in a relatively new British brand that’s turning out some extremely well made products. It turns out that the name is a lot newer than the company behind it which started out as VertexAQ in […]