Awards 2011

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Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best Loudspeaker up to £1,000 Epos Epic 5 The Epic 5 manages to get an awful lot right even before you connect it up. For starters, it’s a very handsome and well-built speaker for the asking price and we love the clever interchangeable baffles. Once connected, the news just gets better. The Epic 5 combines excellent detail retrieval, accurate and appealing tonality, and a fast and tuneful low end.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Product of the Year Winner Classé CP-800 When Classé delivered the CP-800 to HFC’s offices, hopes were high. Classé boss Dave Nauber had already stated the unit was better with a mobile phone than any CD player and so the challenge was born. Two of our most experienced reviewers confirmed, independently of one another, that they preferred listening to music via the USB input over a variety of expensive, high-end CD players. This ground-breaking preamp will leave its mark in hi-fi history, of that we’re certain.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Product of the Year- Runners up Audiolab 8200A The Audiolab is a classic example of a product that delivers so much at the price point, it can be hard to make a convincing case to spend more money. For £730 the 8200A offers plentiful inputs and excellent build. More importantly, it offers a truly sparkling performance. The 8200A never fails to make listening enjoyable, with a fabulous, well-lit midband that gives superb insight into recordings.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best of the High End KEF Blade A great high-end product should combine breath-taking performance with technical innovation and ground-breaking design. Out of all the loudspeakers we have tested over the last year, the KEF Blade best embodies these attributes. Based around the earlier Concept Blade, the production model shares the striking lines and incredibly clever ‘Single Apparent Source’ technology that creates an astoundingly cohesive soundstage from the multiple drivers. Details PRICE: £20,000 TYPE: Loudspeaker TELEPHONE: 01622 672261 WEBSITE: kef.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best Turntable over £1,000 Michell Engineering Gyro SE The evergreen Gyrodec saw off all-comers in our Blind- Listening Group Test (HFC 345). Although the Michell has been around for decades, the soundness of the design and continuous small improvements mean this is still the turntable to beat. We love the sheer musicality of the Michell, the tuneful and textured bass and the sense of entertainment it brings to all forms of music. We also love the looks and rock-solid build quality.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best Turntable up to £1,000 Rega RP3 For many people, Rega is still synonymous with cost-effective turntables. So when the new RP3 turned up, our expectations were understandably sky high. No problem there though, as the RP3 is capable of bringing pretty much any recording to life, with a sense of openness and pinpoint timing that will embarrass considerably more expensive decks. As if this wasn’t enough, the superb build and handsome lines make this a must- audition product for anyone shopping for a sub-£1,000 turntable.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best Support Atacama Duo 6 The Duo is an all-new stand from Atacama and combines a smart aesthetic with some clever, real-world design touches. The smaller rear upright is fitted to allow for unobtrusive cable management, while the larger front upright can be mass-loaded. The Duo 6 sounds lively and involving and lends a vibrancy to loudspeakers that is hard not to like. All this, plus the solid build quality and a very reasonable asking price.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best Network Streamer Naim ND5 XS Naim gave us a clear demonstration of its streaming talent with the formidable NDX. What we didn’t expect is that it would take almost everything that makes the NDX great and squeeze it into a product that costs £1,000 less. The ND5 XS has a superlative performance with streamed media and is also a superb internet radio platform. And if that wasn’t enough, the digital inputs and iPod functionality make it a true digital hub.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best Speaker cable Kimber 4PR The basic design and components of the 4PR date back decades: polythene-insulated connectors joined together in a special weave to reduce interference. While it might not be very radical, the 4PR won us over with a performance that combines detail, bass extension, superior imagine and sweetness to impressive effect. For sheer musical enjoyment, no other cable tested this year is on a par with the 4PR and for that reason it is our 2011 award winner. Details PRICE: £67 (2.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best Loudspeaker over £1,000 Rega RS7 Winning a Blind-Listening Group Test (HFC 347) is always a considerable achievement. Winning against five dedicated speaker manufacturers (when your own product is part of a wider range of electronics) is remarkable, but this is what Rega has achieved with the RS7. Making use of a clever transmission-loaded side-firing bass driver, the RS7 demonstrates outstanding coherence and openness. As we noted at the time, it never fails to make listening fun and that’s surely the whole point.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best Accessory Shure M97XE Vinyl replay need not be an expensive business. The reasonably priced Shure took on three other cost-effective cartridges and won the day. It’s an impressive performer with exceptional detail, fine bass and a fantastically communicative midrange. The M97xE is also one of the highest-compliance cartridges we know of, and has an exceptional ability to track even well-worn records quietly and without causing further wear.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best Interconnect Peerless Sigma Peerless is one of the smaller brands in the UK market, but if the Sigma is anything to go by, that’s set to change. The cable is a no-nonsense design that combines good-quality materials and sound design practice. The result is a cable that produces finely detailed images with an even tonal balance. It also includes an open and clear treble and good control of the lower octaves.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Innovation Award 2011 Classé CP-800 The pace of technological change in the hi-fi industry at the moment is positively relentless, but even taking this into account the CP-800 is revolutionary. Here we have a fully equipped preamplifier with extensive analogue and digital connectivity. The reason why the CP-800 wins our innovation award, however, is the USB input. This circuitry manages the seemingly impossible feat of making a ripped copy of a CD (played via USB) sound better than the original.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best Headphones Q701 Quincy Jones Signature Edition Any person with a track record like Quincy Jones was never going to put his name to any old product and the Q701 doesn’t disappoint. The AKG is a perfect package of clever technology, excellent build and funky appearance. Sonically, the Q701 is a star and recordings are faithfully captured with incredible detail retrieval and a real sense of ambience. Quincy does it again! Details PRICE: £500 TYPE: Dynamic headphone TELEPHONE: 01707 278100 WEBSITE: akg.
Ed Selley  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Best Digital to analogue convertor Rega DAC Rega has never made a DAC until now, but you’d be hard-pressed to notice, given how accomplished its first offering is. The Rega combines a useful set of inputs with fine build and a handsome appearance. It also sounds fantastic and won us over with excellent timing and an accurate and engaging tonality. The result is a product that has all the detail retrieval and slam and impact you could ask for, but it’s presented in a fabulously calm and inviting way.

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