2015 yearbook v 16 1

the signals yearbook 2015

issue 16.1

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hen we kicked off Signals in summer 1993 we could never have imagined producing the 16th edition of a newsletter let alone one with a picture of a £135,000 amplifier on the cover. Talk about hi-fi for grown-ups!

In 2013 British audio stalwarts Linn, Naim and Rega celebrated their 40th anniversaries just as we hit our twentieth. We held our first pukka hi-fi show to celebrate, an event repeating itself in 2014 and 2015 in the shape of Audio Show East and all this has led to some reminiscing.

The brands that we stock may have changed significantly over the last 21 years, but some product types have either stayed with us or come full circle.

Back in 1993 DACs were becoming popular and audio cables were just becoming a commodity in their own right.

Turntables were trouncing CD players and valve amplifiers were going through a renaissance. Sounds a lot like 2014!

Working as an audio dealer involves picking your way through a minefield of options and, more than occasionally, making some terrible purchasing decisions. Mistakes, rather usefully, lead to knowledge and it was evident quite early on that an audio outlet can either be a stockist with a vast array of unedited choice or a specialist who works to put together successful system combinations.

A proper understanding of our products allows us to bring real value to the selection process. We aim to earn our way with helpful guidance that stops short (hopefully) of being combative or overly opinionated. These days, we look at some of our internet based opposition listing every brand under the sun and wonder how they can make sense of so many variables.

The following pages contain a smattering of the various products that we carry. It’s not a full product list but, hopefully, you will find it interesting and perhaps even illuminating.

The best aspect of our business is the interaction with the people we meet. The rapport usually generated during comparative listening sessions never ceases to surprise us. Blind ‘box shifting’ via the internet seems like a cheerless (for us), not to mention mistake-prone (for the buyer), alternative.

As ever, our sincere thanks to all who have kept us afloat, now for 21 years. Crumbs!

h t i w go w o l f e th

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treaming. Now this is a very current subject. It is any method by which musical or video data can be presented for replay remotely from the storage location via a wired or wireless network.

On-line services, such as BBC iPlayer, Spotify or Qobuz fit this category, as does music stored on a computer hard drive or network drive that is replayed by a device which, bafflingly, is usually called a streamer.

It is certainly big business.

As a principle, it has two advantages over good old CD. The first is convenience. CDs can be copied and stored away out of sight.

Control is usually via tablet computer. The iPad is the default choice but ‘apps’ for Android are becoming the norm too. You can search for music, construct playlists and access music that has been downloaded from the internet. Often, you can also play songs that someone has on their iPod or phone to a very respectable level of quality.

The next advantage is that you can access better than CD high resolution music, now available freely (not for free) at levels up to 24 bit 192 Khz. To put this in context, this represents over six times the amount of data on a standard CD and 50 times as much as on your average iPod MP3 rip.

Properly served on a clean network, the best streamers are roughly on a par with the best CD players. But the high resolution potential and convenience are definitely beginning to turn heads.

We have stand-alone streamers on demonstration from Naim, Linn, Chord and Arcam.

A modern trend has been towards all-in-one systems, where all you need is a pair of speakers. In the case of the Mu-so (overleaf) all you need is a mains feed and wi-fi.

The quality end of this market is handled magnificently by Naim (their highly covetable UnitiQute is pictured above) and Linn. Arcam will have products launching soon.

Access to ‘premium’ on-line servces and Android support came to Naim September 2014. For now this means that Spotify Connect is now available to all devices running the latest software and control is no longer limited to the supplied handsets or Apple devices.

Tidal has become the online music streaming service of the moment and Linn added integration with their service at the begining of 2015. Their implentation of this is particularly impressive.

Not only is Tidal full CD resolution (HD is a distinct possibility) but the music database is vast. If you want the lazy route to fresh and interesting music, the preassembled ‘mix tapes’ (playlists) can be quite a treat. Either way, the choices can be interwoven seamlessly with music selected from your local colection of rips or downloads.

noughts and ones

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aving talked in basic terms about streaming, the elephant in the room, so to speak, is the serving. You need to have a centralised store of music that can be accessed by the replay device. For most streamers, the required protocol is a thing called Universal Plug and Play (UPnP).

Any PC or Mac computer can offer this service quietly in the background and quite a lot of clever Network Attached Storage (NAS) devices can do it to varying levels of ability. This is a complex area, though, and it is worth delving a little before purchasing. Even Raspberry Pi offers an option for the technically savvy and a very cheap and effective server can be set up with their computer for the masses.

Stand alone units exist that can do the disc copying, titling and serving in one seamless package. We carry a few of them and are familiar with the relative merits.

The Naim Uniti Serve and HDX offer the best audio quality and, arguably, browsing experience, but they are quite costly.

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ith UPnP streaming, fresh thinking is required over what constitutes a cleaner signal path.

Old analogue logic keeps raising its head when potential buyers talk of keeping everything close together with nice short cables. In truth, the data storage devices generally have noisy power supplies (noisy hard drives too) and are best kept some distance from the listening room.

Wireless is great for controlling these systems but it’s not the best way to get the music to the playing device and a simple local wired ethernet network is inexpensive and reliable. The network data is transferred in what they call ‘packets’, which means that signals do not degrade in the same way as digital or analogue connections.

Still, Chord have some funky ethernet leads (left) to tempt! They seem to work too. . .

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f the data is on a computer, you may simply want to connect a Digital to Analogue Converter (DAC) to the Mac or PC and use something familiar like, say iTunes to control it.

It’s a popular way of working and has been the driving force behind the renaissance of what had been becoming one of audio’s footnotes: the DAC. The current crop of DACs including something baffling called Asynchronous USB do work very well indeed. Affordable offerings, such as the Arcam IR DAC give stupidly good results.

The DAC of the moment, though, is the Chord Hugo. It has redefined what should be expected of a small portable product (also a headphone amp) costing an admittedly ‘premium’ £1400 by outclassing devices that cost thousands more.

Ironically, for what is effectively a portable upgrade for the iPhone or laptop, it gives its most compelling performance fronted by a serious digital source via a coaxial or optical digital link.

Reports and discussion over the staggeringly good results obtained with Naim’s NDX streamer looked in danger of breaking the internet in June / July 2014!

Hugo is joined in 2015 by Hugo TT (Table Top) intended for mains powered use.

It could well be the device of 2015.

There is a gold from sand belief out there that clever DACs can rescue data and produce pristine sound from any digital source. This has never been true and the fundamental characteristics of digital sources never completely go away. Hugo is magnificent but always a whole lot more so when the source is every bit as good.

Computers can muddy the waters here, because simple changes of data handling within the device, swapping to J-River from iTunes, for example, or running Audirvana can bring big improvements.

terminal overstatement

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t would be reasonable to suppose, in the light of the preceding pages and the endless press reports of the terminal decline in CD sales, that the silver disk medium is already dearly departed.

This is not entirely true! Whatever the prognosis, now is a terrific time to be buying CDs with prices lower than ever before. It’s also very logical to invest, since most downloaded music is below CD standard and a reasonable amount of the ‘hi res’ reissues are of debatable worth. I should say that newer recordings, native to HD, are a different thing entirely. The biggest news, though is that CD players are still finding buyers.

Naim still make four different stand-alone players, three of them being upgradable with power supplies and two that can support external DAC upgrades. The newest one, CD5si, was released in the last year or so. Two of the Uniti products play discs directly.

Rega have three CD players in the range, with Apollo-R and Saturn-R both being relatively new arrivals. The Saturn-R is actually presented as a fully featured DAC with computer friendly Asynchronous USB and a CD transport thrown in!

Arcam have stand-alone disc players and their CD player / streamer entered production December 2014. Launched at our very own Audio Show East event, in fact.

Chord still make a couple of players, as do Roksan. Indeed, the Roksan Caspian M2 CD Player is one of our more interesting recent arrivals.

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he Naim DAC V-1 is one of an increasing number of ‘niche’ headphone amps that are also DACs. The V-1 is intended to be used with ‘phones, directly into a power amplifier or as a line level source.

The matching NAP100 power amp is pictured with it.

It has an in-built Audiophilleo A-USB input for the computer and very good it sounds too. It can form the basis of a stand-alone system good enough for primary use or as a super system for the study.

With a variety of digital inputs and remote control, it has proved to be something of a cult ‘hit’, and very suitable for the sitting room too.

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ow this product is getting something of a reaction! Super purist manufacturer, Naim, have already had a great deal of success with Uniti all-in-one (bar the speakers) systems.

This is being taken one step further with the mu-so, a system that includes even the speakers in the single chassis. And, my word, it both looks and sounds the part.

All digital amplification, masses of power and the familiar control interfaces for both IOS and Android devices. This is what the kitchen needs, stick it under the TV, have the best bedroom clock-radio. . . in the world. Ever.

In this (real) world, this is probably all the hi-fi that a lot of people will ever want, too. Available in the Apple Store, John Lewis . . . and Signals!

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t is hard to imagine our business had there not been the chance conversation with Doug Graham, Naim’s Sales Director, around twelve years ago.

Dealing with the team at Salisbury has been a remarkable experience. They have taught us much and our business has benefited hugely. So thanks go to them. I’d like to think that the symbiotic nature of our relationship (Doug will like this line) means that it has been almost as good for Naim as Signals.

Naim have become the dominant serious audio brand in the UK. If any single item defines them, it has to be the amplifier.

Not in the singular, mind you, the range is now enormous, stretching all the way to the astonishing Statement pre-power combo pictured below.

Over our decade and a bit of selling their electronics we’ve ended up with reason to stock almost everything they make. Our current demonstration portfolio ranges from the smallest phono stage to the 552 preamplifier and 500 Power amp, with all the bits in between.

2013 saw the introduction of revised versions of the entry point Nait5i amplifier, now si, the Nait XS-2 now the XS2 (too complicated to explain) and Supernait which got a ‘2’ suffix. Progress? Well, kind of!

It used to be so simple. Great Nait 5i amplifier, fantastic Nait XS, well worth the upgrade, and jack of all trades SuperNait with in-built DAC that left the purist trophy to the cheaper, nimbler XS. The story is now different with the SuperNait 2 all the better for losing the DAC and acquiring Discrete Regulator (DR) magic. It’s more powerful than before, as is the revised, more refined XS-2. The big Nait is now taking sales from its smaller brother.

The new integrated amps are all top performers at their respective levels. There is a downside, though, in that they seem to have diverted eyes from the more accomplished pre-powers further up the range.

Down-sizing is fine but segregation of boxes and power supplies was done for a good reason. Besides, the Supernait 2 is not, as some seem to believe, a NAC282 and NAP250 in a single chassis. The NAC202 / NAP200 which are next up the ladder will still show it a clean pair of heels in the clarity / dynamics / spirit department.

The paradox here is that adding a NAP200 or 250 to one of the Uniti series has become a point of interest. And it can be worthwhile too, by the way.

Naim’s big development a couple of years ago was the progression to DR and it effectively applied a substantial upgrade to most of the amplification range. If you have not had your HiCap2, Supercap, XPS, PS555 or 552PS upgraded, you really should consider it.

Referring back to that pesky Supernait 2 for a moment might illustrate the relevance: The DR within it is so significant that adding an older HiCap2 power supply is a downgrade whereas a DR HiCap improves it greatly.

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hord Electronics (makers of Hugo), are based in Maidstone, Kent. They are not to be confused with Chord Cables although their accounts departments are apparently well versed in swapping payments received in error.

Since 1989, under the leadership of proprietor John Franks, Chord Electronics has been pushing the boundaries of innovation, creating some of the planet's finest hi-fi, home cinema and professional audio equipment. Chord Electronics' philosophy of ongoing evolution and refinement continues to deliver landmark audio products with extraordinary performance and unrivalled design features.

Born from the highly demanding world of aircraft avionics, Chord Electronics maintains a commitment to exemplary engineering, cutting-edge technology and exceptional build quality. Designed for high performance over the long term, Chord products are renowned internationally for their advanced technology which is amongst the best in the world. Chord's collaboration since 1996 with Robert Watts, a digital design genius with 30 years' DAC technology development experience, has produced a number of advanced digital products that are, quite simply, without equal.

Chord's achievements have been recognised in the media, too, with magazines and websites from around the world awarding Chord products the highest accolades. Chord's passion for sound quality and exemplary engineering continue to produce audio equipment with exceptional insight into recorded music. Sparkling clarity, unrivalled transparency and huge reserves of high-quality power are trademarks that have become synonymous with the brand. Chord is trusted and admired internationally, and its global customer base includes: the BBC; EMI's Abbey Road Studios (London); Sony Music Studios (New York) and Skywalker Sound to name but a few.

They were a new arrival to us in 2013 but already we feel like old hands.

As mentioned above, DACs have come to be seen as Chord’s particular forte for the the past couple of decades and it was these, along with the new streamer products, that first piqued our interest. Not to mention the very agreeable approach of Colin Pratt, their sales manager.

Their DSX1000 streamer is capable of driving a power amp directly, so our first amplifier purchase was the SPM1200 MkII looming from the top of the page.

The combination is effortless, open and extremely powerful in a very understated way.

There is something of the character of passive controllers that we’ve used in years past and adding the CPA 3000 preamplifier brings increased authority, scale and vigour that we judged to be positive. Reassuringly, nothing seems to be lost in adding the extra layer.

The more expensive CPA5000 brings even greater resolution, dynamics and clarity, so we opted for that.

A particular Chord strength is in the portrayal of timbre and harmonics and it has the capacity to simply allow you to revel in the sound of a voice or instrument. Timing is very good, but it is not an aspect that is brought to your attention.

It feels dangerous to rave about something, particularly when we have a strong and justifiable following for A N other maker but there is room in world for choice and we do feel that Chord have their own particular and very musical strengths that go rather further than simply not being the all conquering brand!

One area where these products score unequivocably is in power and control. Need to drive some Magneplanar 3.7s? The SPM1200/II is will do it with guts, and to serious levels. To think it’s is only the second power amp up the range, too. . .

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rcam have had a rough old time in recent years. Their desire to focus on quality A/V, an area of the market abandoned by just about every other UK specialist manufacturer, coupled with some well documented reliability issues meant that there was not a lot to keep us engaged as a

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dealership. Other than in supporting the devices already sold, that is.

In late 2013, one of our longstanding customers, really must offer him a chair next time he comes, asked about the new IR DAC. A quick chat with Arcam and we were trying out the A19 amplifier (it’s great) and playing with IR DAC which is arguably even better in terms of value.

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hen presented with the opportunity to listen to the Roksan M2 series we were far from interested in stocking yet another mid-range integrated amplifier. After all, we have the Naim Nait XS2, Rega Elicit and, admittedly a little later, the Arcam A39.

Trouble was that when we had a listen, we really liked it a lot.

Sonic characteristics here are punchy, fairly warm but clean and open. I can truthfully reel off all the reassuring ‘woody’ words that make it sound friendly and appealing.

Worse, the CD player is every bit as good. You can specify black or silver for the fascias but the casework is in brushed stainless steel whatever the choice. Looks

So we were talking again.

The vibe out there seems to be that revised manufacturing arrangements and fresh designs have put the old issues to bed.

The next phase of the rehabilitation is to get some fresh blood into good old two channel.

The new A/V receivers are well regarded and the top end unit uses a technology called “class G” for the power amplification. This is now in the new A49 integrated amplifier, pictured left, as well as the matching P49 power amp. There is a C49 pre as well. These amps are very good. Special, even. Certainly good enough to cause a stir at our event late summer 2014.

We were touched when the idea was mooted of launching their brand new audiophile streamer / disc spinner at our August 2014 Audio Show East. This was really more a case of dates coinciding, but we are happy to revel in any glory we can get.

There is real cause for optimism.

The excellent D33 DAC came out in 2012 but it looked lost, needing partners.

Here they are.

great but it does fingerprint somewhat.

And while I’m slagging it off, this is Signals, after all, the handset is the work of Satan. Pale grey text on silver and too many buttons. In the end, in fairness, you do learn it and the sonic performance is recompense.

The amplifier is gutsy enough to drive most speakers and impressive partnerships with ATC, PMC and Kudos have been formed.

As for cable choice, they seem to have a liking for Nordost but excellent results also come at modest cost with the Linn speaker cables and interconnects.

With this, we have all the ‘big-guns’ in the sub £2000 market. The Roksan M2 products are even built in London and the new more affordable K3 is apparently assembled in Germany. Didn’t expect that!

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ondon based Trilogy rolled onto the Signals shelves in 2011. Nic Poulson is the principal designer of all Trilogy Audio Systems products. Reassuringly, they manufacture everything in the UK. Nic’s background was originally in broadcast engineering, training with the BBC in the eighties. The corporation's legendary high standards made a deep impression on him. He learned that the way to achieve true quality is to strive for excellence in every area and accept nothing less. He went on to found Trilogy in 1992 and quickly earned a reputation for producing designs that reflected his core values of performance, reliability, pride of ownership and value for money.

Nic’s designs can also be found in runway lighting systems, guiding aircraft safely to land at major airports across the UK. His success in the exacting industry of aviation is further confirmation of his breadth and versatility as a designer.

Our initial interest was in the stunning 907 phono stage and it remains our ‘high water’ reference point despite being cheaper than several of the alternatives against which it has been judged.

The 933 headphone amp is a stunning piece of kit too, able to drive just about any high end ‘phone you can think of.

We have the 909 pre-amplifier and 990 power amp on permanent demonstration. The preamplifier is all tube (albeit with masses of solid state control electronics) and the power amplifier a hybrid with solid state at the output end.

I mean this in the most positive way when I say that they are not especially tube-like. They simply perform like really good, open and honest components that don't allow their inherent refinement to 'slug' the musical performance. Proper 'hear through' components with a lively, spirited nature.

At 100 WPC, there are decent power reserves, but the 990 is not a muscle amp. It will drive some awkward speakers, though.

The Magneplanar MG3.7s spring to mind. On top of that, the PMC Facts and Audioplan Kantatas sound utterly joyful on the end of them.

There is now a more affordable pre-amp (908) and compact 992 monobloc power amps pictured above along with an integrated amplifier.

The new, borderline budget, 931 headphone amp launched in spring 2015 and it’s pictured right in optional mediterraneo blue.

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ega launched their RP8 turntable in 2011.

A radical design, using structural foam, it is essentially a skeletal deck designed to sit inside a framework that renders it utterly normal and, visually, unexeptional.

Combining the benefits of a purist stripped bare design with the convenience of a lid and domestically acceptable normality says much about Roy Gandy’s approach.

Add in the package deal with the impressively open and agile sounding Apheta cartridge (definately a synergistic match) and they have a sales success on their hands.

Running into our Naim 500 system with Trilogy 907 stage feeding Kudos Titans, the RP8 was judged by several listeners to be the best turntable we’d ever had.

A year or so later, the glass plattered, basic power supplied RP8 is joined by the ceramic plattered, supercomplex power supplied and better armed RP10 on a similar ‘chassis.

First of all let’s get one thing out of the way: the ceramic platter will not fit on the RP8, the power supply will not plug into it and we’ve not tried swapping tonearms just to see.

The RP10 (above) is a lot like an 8 but images bigger, is cleaner and is more resolving. By any measure it’s the better deck.

ven beyond turntables, Rega are on something of a roll at the moment, having updated their entire range of amplifiers in the last couple of years. Unusually, all of them, even the high end Osiris, are integrated units.

Electronics designer, Terry Bateman, may have been busy, but he still finds time to leave bizarre or just plain cryptic messages on the circuit boards. The lovely new Elex-R integrated amplifier was launched mid 2014. It comes between the Apollo-R and Elicit-R products. The message on the board extols the virtues of EL34 valves. Is it valve based? Nah. The Saturn DAC (with a CD player chucked in for free) matches both the Elicit and Elex visually whilst the half-width Apollo-R visually matches the Brio (above).

Perhaps unsurprisingly, from a company who also make turntables, the in-built moving magnet phono stages in all the amps are of extremely high quality.

Moving up a level, and adding access to MC cartridges, the new Aria phono stage is brilliant. A superb device, with adjustable loadings spanning MM and MC. The range refresh extends right down to the headphone amplifier (called Ear, naturally) and the sub £100 Fono Mini which has a USB output, potentially handy for those wishing to copy records to digital format.

The Apollo CD is terrific value and the new top-loading Saturn is definitely one of the best CD players around at the price.

Crumbs you even get a free A-USB DAC. Oops, sorry, it’ s the other way around.

Beyond the upper level turntables, the affordable tradition is maintained with the entry point RP1, which includes a Rega Carbon cartridge, offering impressive value for money. RP3 and RP6 come further up the range and again, high value products.

The speaker range is excellent and is always held on demonstration. They work well with other makes of electronics too.

With the revised Couple 2 interconnect and new Duet speaker cable, an all Rega system now sounds better than ever.

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or turntables, besides Rega, we have Nottingham Analogue and Linn. Great as the NA decks are, nothing new has happened, so no news to report.

Linn, on the other hand, have released the Kore subchassis which is manufactured from an aluminum boxsection and has a bonded alloy arm board. It looks a lot like the keel from outside, forms the basis of a very cost-effective upgrade for existing turntables and we are more than happy to bring joy to your life!

All new turntables have a version of this sub-chassis but with the standard, rather than bonded arm-board.

For the more adventurous, we have the full Radikal (DC motor / power supply) and Urika (in-built phono stage) that shares the same PSU. On demonstration with LP12 decks that can be specified to any point on the Linn ladder right up to Klimax level. Ooh err.

Tiger Paw and, now, Tangerine make some great top plate and arm weight upgrades. It’s a long story, so best discussed, but we can demonstrate and fit these too.

Latest versions of the Ekos SE arm have a slightly longer headshell, aiding fitment of non-Linn cartridges. Lyra, Kiseki and Transfigurations all fit and work very nicely indeed.

Transfiguration? Oh yes, this has been another new cartridge brand arrival. Having got ourselves into an acquisitive frame of mind, we found it hard to draw the line.

The baby of the range, Axia, is more of a direct Lyra alternative than the Kiseki. A little cleaner and more focused that the (cheaper) Lyra Delos, its particular strong suit is bass weight and control. We have this and the even lovelier Phoenix S. Turntable matching has, so far, revealed no issues and they certainly suit Linn. As always, we recommend that customers hear what they may be buying, so we are happy to establish the best product by way of demonstration.

We remain keen Lyra dealers but the upsurge in turntable interest coupled with some supply shortages has made it important for us to offer a greater level of choice. One of the biggest casualties on the shortages front was the Linn Kandid (pictured above). As relative newbie dealers, we were evidently not at the front of the supply queue. With Kandid now flowing freely we can report that it is chuffing brilliant.

Worth both the money and the wait.

Truth be told, our traffic in turntable sales in general, servicing and updates for Linn in particular has risen dramatically over the past year. Andy should be qualifying for ‘Guru’ status shortly. Doctorates possibly take a little longer.

Our cartridge demonstration portfolio is currently: Dynavector, Kiseki, Linn, Lyra, Ortofon, Rega, Sumiko and Transfiguration.

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iseki was a welcome new arrival in 2014 and it deserves a special mention. A well-established Japanese cartridge maker that suddenly released ‘New Old Stock” products followed by some differently designed New Stock (NS) ones. Andy fitted the Blue NS to our Nottingham Dais / Ace Anna combination (Trilogy 907 etc.) and we were utterly mesmerised by what we heard.

Genuinely breathtaking stuff with not just detail being dredged out of familiar recordings but real live people playing with spirit and commitment. And on instruments that themselves seemed to have more in the way of harmonics, textures and pure musicality than we could recall hearing before.

We sent it straight back.

Obviously :)

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inn will need no introduction.

Manufacturers of probably the world’s most famous turntable.

It even qualifies as a religion!

They also make digital streamers, amplification and loudspeakers. Currently, besides various flavour of Sondek LP12, we have the electronics at Majik and Akurate level. The next one up, Klimax, is beckoning.

DSM products were introduced a year or two ago and they allow complete integration of analogue and digital sources and allow control via Apple, PC or Android devices.

For the Majik this takes the form of a single box audio system (plus speakers). For Akurate and Klimax, the DSM unit is a streamer and analogue preamplifier to be used with a separate power amp.

We’ve had particularly good results using Audioplan, Kudos and PMC loudspeakers with them. In fact the combination of Majik DSM with Kudos C10s was a real discovery, sounding impressively well balanced and lucid.

The Akurate power amplifiers can be specified with up to four channels, allowing biamplification in stereo. Bi-amping the PMC fact 8 and 12s brings startling levels of proper musical improvement over the single option. In fact this is true with the Twenty series loudpeakers too.

The big arrival of 2014 has been Akurate Exakt. The Klimax version of Exakt came out in 2013.

This changes the replay process by sending the musical data via CAT5 cable to the speakers where all decoding, DSP and amplification is performed. With this system, the speaker is first set to a flat response (taking account of individual driver variances) and then adjustments made for room characteristics and speaker positioning. All this happens in the digital domain and it is both clever and effective. Late 2014 arrival here was the Akudorik Exakt loudspeakers. We are impressed!

The really exciting element here is that active operation of older or third party loudspeakers is easy to achieve by simply downloading the appropriate crossover information and using an Exakt Tunebox to drive a collection of power amplifiers.

Already, Kudos have had the new Super Titan ‘mapped’ and it was demonstrated at the Bristol HiFi show 2015. The Cardea series has also been measured and settings are already available.

Pictured top to bottom

Our own Akudorik Exakts in white (there are many options) Akurate DSM with Exakt links in silver.

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s mentioned overleaf, PMC products, particularly at ‘fact’ level, have proved very compatible with Linn electronics. The ultra clean ‘lifestyle’ looks of the fact series help their case too.

Last summer saw the arrival of the high end fact 12 loudspeakers. Big brother to the similarly styled fact 8 and more accomplished in every way, the 12 is a three way device with PMCs superb dome midrange unit and the two deceptively muscular bass drivers working in parallel.

When done well, the gains from a proper three way speaker outweigh the pitfalls of added complexity and the 12 is a very successful implementation of the design. As with all PMC products, the bass loading is Advanced Transmission Line (ATL).

Tall, skinny and fairly deep, they offer Scandinavian looks and superb finish. It’s easy to dismiss a product that looks so visually appealing as being lifestyle eye candy. These are the real deal as a very serious speaker.

As with all products, compatibility is the key and, whilst they suit the top end 500 series Naim electronics much better than the 8, there is still a sense, certainly in our room, that things are getting a little bit ‘dry’ at this level.

Interestingly, we’ve had staggeringly good results from 500 level kit in other places, so it goes to show the need to try.

Naim’s slightly looser electronics, such as NAP300, work very well indeed and our experience with Chord (SPM1200/II), Arcam A49 and Trilogy are entirely positive.

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he twenty series has been a particular success for PMC and, by extension, us. Sitting below the fact range, but sharing some of the design both technologically and visually, this range has proved easy to partner and to place. The crisp clean looks and choices of finish have made them easy to home, too.

There are two stand-mounts and three floor-standers, a centre speaker and, now, an active sub too.

The largest of the speakers is the twenty 26 pictured left. In producing it, PMC have created some serious competition for their own fact 8.

As a proper three way design and using their own dome mid-range unit, the 26 offers impressive clarity gains over the rest of the range. Bi-amping with the latest (and much improved) Exakt-ready Linn Akurate DSM into the 4200 four channel power amp had us scratching our heads on what would actually better this system at anything approaching the cost.

At our first Trinity Park show PMC played the 21 stand-mounts in their 10m x 10m (and very tall) room. They were being fed by the Rega Saturn R CD player and Brio R amplifier and it was stupidly good. Getting a big well resolved and musical sound from this range is, therefore, is more about quality than quantity.

For 2015 there is the new matching high-end active sub mentioned above. It was shown at the Bristol Show in February and should be freely available in the spring of 2015. At the time of writing ours is in production.

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udos have been a Signals favourite since Derek Gilligan branched out on his own in 2006.

Their T88 “Titan’ is the most expensive speaker that we sell and it is also, in our opinion, one of the very best.

Despite fairly controversial looks, it has been astonishingly successful for us, able to work in a wide range of rooms and systems. As with others in the range, the finish is top-notch and the potential to have exotic veneers has added to the appeal. The exciting and sad news in equal measure is that it is being replaced by the new T808 Super Titan.

Pictures of the new speaker are restricted to computer renderings and snapshots at the moment, but it would be rude not to give you an idea of what is coming. Preview below!

On the left is the new X3, a compact floor-standing speaker from the other end of the range.

X3 made its debut at our own Audio Show East in 2014 and has already proved to be a popular choice, effectively replacing the previous mainstay of the range, the Cardea C2.

The Super Ten stand-mount and Super Twenty floorstander remain popular too and, along with the forthcoming T808, there is now the provision to specify them for use with Linn Akurate Exakt active digital crossovers.

The Exakt arrangement was demonstrated on preproduction samples of the T808 at the February 2015 Bristol Audio Show and the reaction was deeply reassuring, with it being considered to be one of the stars of the show.

They have been played with a Naim NDS/552/300 system in passive configuration at the Acoustica Show in Cheshire where one pundit reported that they sounded “the best I've ever heard anything being produced by a Naim system”. But then, we would expect nothing less.

---ston Down based ATC have been on the Signals ‘books’ for over 20 years.

Beyond the honest and revealing sound quality, the engineering on their loudspeaker drivers has always been the big story. For the last few years, the extremely well priced SCM7, 11, 19 and 40 have come with the simple premise of offering a very limited range of veneers in acceptably finished cabinets but with excellent content and modest prices. Treble quality was an area of compromise, though.

The latest revisions have improved in this area with a brand-new ATC designed unit and, whilst limited finish options remain, you still get real wood veneer (now looking rather better) and the revised cabinetry and styling has moved up a notch too.

Prices remain very reasonable and the match with the ‘new blood’ Arcam G Class amplifiers (particularly the A49) has been rather gratifying. In fact running the A49 through the diminutive SCM 11 (one is pictured right) gave us one of the ‘how do they do that?‘ moments of the year.

Serious control, headroom, bass depth, punch and clarity from an improbably compact pair of stand-mount speakers.

The ATC range extends up to some pretty high end active models and we learned some years ago that Naim preamplifiers, including the NAC-N 172 or 272 streamer / pre-amps, drive them rather well.

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ocal loudspeakers have made a reappearance at Signals Towers.

We had a frustrating relationship with them in the past because, good as they are, they never seemed quite right with Naim. And we don’t half do a lot with them!

The great merger of 2012 was between these two brands and the upshot is that the new high quality, but affordable, Aria range most certainly does suit Salisbury’s finest. Not entirely surprising, since Naim was used in the development.

Range comprises 906 stand-mount and 926, 936 and 948 floor stander.

The future synergy between the brands looks distinctly promising and Focal Utopias are seen as the default choice for demonstrating the new Naim Statement amplification.

More new products are due in 2015.

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eat’s Motive range, now in revised "SX" form, really has stood the test of time.

All share the same 5.5" doped paper bass / mid driver and (revised) anodised inverted dome tweeter.

There has been significant development work and these new products are more grown-up and refined, although perhaps just a little less ‘fun’ than before. Certainly, these changes were felt to remove the need for the previous 'SE' version.

Their relative lack of placement sensitivity remains most welcome.

As before, all are clean, dynamic and musical with the sort of mid range resolution that affordable loudspeakers rarely manage to achieve.

Reviews of the SX range have been positively effusive, so buyers can be reassured. A matching centre speaker remains available but now only in the black oak finish.

The largest, the Motive 1 floorstander, previous runt of the litter in our view, is the most improved, although its fairly laidback delivery polarises opinion.

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eadphones are the fastest growing area in audio.

Suddenly it’s cool, apparently, to wander around outdoors with enormous ‘phones on your head.

Even ignoring the fashion market, serious personal listening has never been so popular and here we fococus on Sennheiser, one of the largest manufacturers of proper ‘serious’ headphones, and in the 800 series in particular.

The HD 800 phones pictured above are one of the reference phones that we keep on permanent demonstration. Light, comfortable, incredibly resolving and ‘open’ in character, they have proved to be easy to drive, making them compatible with many of the headphone amplifiers that people actually buy.

Mind you, their own HDVD800 DAC / amp below, is one

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of the very best out there. Add the optional CH800 balanced cable for the HD800 and you can take advantage of the increased clarity and dynamics that balanced operation brings to them.

Maintaining the ‘800’ theme to the end, are the fantastically fabulous IE 800 inears. These high end ‘phones are worthy of something commensurately pricey but they also bring an iPhone to life. They come with a range of silicone earbuds to fit most users. To be sure, we have a demo pair that can be tried. These possess astonishing bass weight, refinement and clarity. Musical too. Feeling the love?

As Club Orpheus dealers, we also have some more modestly priced Sennheiser (and other) alternatives too!

signals are dealers for: Acoustic Energy, Anthem, Arcam, Audioplan, Chord Company, Chord Electronics, Dynavector, Focal, Hutter, Isoblue, Kiseki, Kudos Audio, Lehmann Audio, Linn Products, Lyra, Naim Audio, Neat Acoustics, Ortofon, Nottingham Analogue, PMC, Primare, Rega, Roksan, Sennheiser, Something Solid, Sumiko, Transfiguration, Trilogy, Wireworld

Signals UK Ltd., 6 St Mary's Park, Bucklesham, Ipswich, IP10 0DY tel 01473 655171 + 655172 www.signals.uk.com enq@signals.uk.com We also lurk on facebook and twitter