Page 3 - Hi-Fi World (January 2020)

welcome

EDITOR t’s time to look once again at the best products we’ve encountered over
Noel Keywood the last year. Our bumper Awards issue highlights the products we loved
e-mail: editorial@hi-fiworld.co.uk listening to during 2019 and also loved using, sometimes for almost-
DESIGN EDITOR peculiar reasons.
Faiza Chunara These days there are lots of good products around, as there should
tel: +44 (0) 20 8206 6018 Ibe since at heart hi-fi equipment falls into electrical and acoustical
e-mail: adproduction@hi-fiworld.co.uk engineering – subjects fairly well worked out nowadays. But of course hi-fi
invokes other less deterministic issues, like what does a
PRODUCTION EDITOR piece of wire sound like? Yes, there are dark arts locked up in the subject. Icon
David Noble Audio’s Stereo 40 MkIV has so much going on, with switchable feedback and
tel: +44 (0) 20 8206 6017 ultralinear/triode mode, it borders on mysterious, but underneath lies some
e-mail: classifieds@hi-fiworld.co.uk quite serious high voltage engineering – and the sound was superb. A lot of art
here.
SALES MANAGER Quadral’s Orkan 9 gave us the purity of thoroughly good German
Louise Palfrey engineering, directed toward achieving absolute accuracy. Quadral keep away
mob: +44 (0) 7917 047 548
e-mail: louise@hi-fiworld.co.uk from the obsession with raised treble that is a current fashion with rivals,
bringing a lovely smooth sound with pure ribbon tweeter treble to the Orkan
ADVERTISING EXECUTIVE 9.
Joanna Holmes At the other end of the scale comes Devialet’s amazing Phantom Reactor
mob: + 44 (0) 7958 602 347 900 that contains a complete hi-fi system, all within a small elegant cabinet. This
e-mail: joanna@hi-fiworld.co.uk
has to be heard to be believed.
PUBLISHER But there’s much to be said for Quad’s determinedly British approach
Noel Keywood in their Vena II amplifier where traditional engineering is pursued with belief
e-mail: publisher@hi-fiworld.co.uk and dedication, without ignoring digital in the form of a great ESS DAC and
Bluetooth connectivity. What a lovely sound it had and what a great price. I’ve
FREE READERS CLASSIFIEDS owned 22/II, 33/303, ESL-57 and ESL-63 – and Vena II is right up there.
tel: +44 (0) 20 8 206 6017 But I’ve never owned a million tap digital filter – and this was an experience. It is called M
e-mail: classifieds@hi-fiworld.co.uk Scaler, comes from Chord Electronics and is a filter dedicated to CD replay. It is a reflection of its
designer’s belief system – Rob Watts – that Chord Electronics decided to build and market. Almost
SUBSCRIPTIONS frightening. I don’t think there’s much like it anywhere else in the world. And other wordily it was
tel: + 44 (0) 1442 820 580
fax: + 44 (0) 1442 827 912 in transforming CD sound. It’s a radical product and an honorary award winner this year.
e-mail: hifiworld@webscribe.co.uk I hope you enjoy our 2019 Awards Issue, as much as we enjoyed listening to the awarded
products. Have a great Christmas!
PHOTOGRAPHY
David Noble Noel Keywood
tel: +44 (0) 20 8206 6017 Editor

WRITERS
Paul Rigby, Jon Myles, Martin Pipe,
David Tutt.

testing (see www.hi-fiworld.co.uk for full explanations of all our tests)
hi-fi world To ensure the upmost accuracy in our product reviews, analyser, using pulsed and gated sinewaves, in a large
Audio Web Publishing Hi-Fi World has extremely comprehensive in-house test room to eliminate the room’s influence. Pickup arm
Studio 204, facilities, and our test equipment - from big names like vibration is measured with a Bruel & Kjaer accelerometer.
Buspace Studio, Rohde & Schwarz and Hewlett Packard - is amongst the No other UK hi-fi magazine has in-house testing, and
Conlan Street,
London W10 5AP most advanced in the world. none has access to such advanced tests across all types
www.hi-fiworld.co.uk Loudspeakers are measured using a calibrated Bruel of equipment. That's why you can depend on Hi-Fi World
& Kjaer microphone feeding a Clio-based computer reviews.
verdicts
OUTSTANDING amongst the best
EXCELLENT extremely capable
GOOD worth auditioning
MEDIOCRE unremarkable
POOR flawed
£ VALUE keenly priced

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www.hi-fiworld.co.uk JANUARY 2020 HI-FI WORLD 3