Connected 29 issuu

CONNECTED TO MUSIC & MOVIES

Issue No.29 Winter 2014/15

New Balanced Mains 3000 ™ Our flagship balanced mains unit, page 8

Classic System Feature

Nytech receivers and integrated amplifiers

PAGE 16

WIN a SuperFuse!™ Enter our competition

PAGE 27

NEW Meridian Explorer2 USB DAC PAGE 10

Stop listening to your Hi-Fi and start listening to the performance

We design our products to allow you to listen to your music, not your system.

Buy online at Exclusive UK distributor

www.russandrews.com 01539 797300

Call UK Orderline

Tel +44of (0)1539 797300 Russ Andrews is theInternational sole UK retailer Kimber Kable

Mail Order Direct • 60 Day Cable Home Trial • Cable Upgrade Scheme • Free Delivery (orders over £100 within UK Mainland)

Welcome

Readers of this column will know that over the last eighteen months I have been discovering recordings from the ‘Golden Age of stereo’ dating back to the 1950s and 1960s.

Whilst I’m still collecting and listening to CDs, most recently (probably to do with the longer nights) I’ve been turning my attention to my Home Cinema system and watching movies.

The system I listen to my music on is a surround-sound system that doubles as a Home Cinema, connecting to a plasma display. As well as enjoying Hollywood blockbusters as much as the next person, I have a particular penchant for classic films from the 1920s to the 1950s. One question I get asked by non Hi-Fi friends is why I’ve put together a high definition system with Blu-ray player and HD screen when all I watch is ‘old films’. The usual question is “surely they weren’t filmed in HD?” Yes, it’s true that old films weren’t filmed in HD video, but many people fail to realise that the 35mm film that movies were shot on from their inception in the 1890s to just a couple of years ago has always been high definition.

Quite simply, there’s more detail and more information in a frame of film than there is in a frame of 1080p HD video. Only with the introduction of the new 4K HD format, which has four times the resolution of 1080p HD video, are we approximating the resolution of 35mm film.

So what does this mean for watching films at home? Assuming that they have been properly manufactured, exposed, developed and printed, 35mm film stocks have

EDITORIAL

always had more resolution capability than the current 1080p HD video images. And assuming either the original film negatives or prints made directly from the negatives are used in creating the discs, well mastered Blu-rays of classic films have the potential to look stunning on a well set-up system. Of course the down side of this is that damage in seventy-year old prints can be highlighted in a high definition transfer, but some of this can be mitigated with careful (and not over-zealous) digital cleanup. Rather than dismissing older films, it’s worth seeking out some good examples on Blu-ray and seeing just how good they can look.

I mentioned above the importance of having a well set-up system; a couple of months ago I had an engineer out to properly calibrate my TV. It’s something I’d been thinking about for a while, having got my infrastructure pretty well sorted. Professional calibrators have access to hidden TV menus to allow very detailed image adjustment, and most of the adjustments are made with a type of camera positioned close to the screen which measures colour, contrast and brightness via professional calibration software.

The upshot of the three hours calibration was a very big step up in picture quality; images were clearer, with plenty of ‘pop’ and lots of detail in the darkest portions of the picture. In my experience, professional calibration is well worthwhile – just make sure you’ve got your cabling sorted out first! ■

In this issue Regulars Editorial First Words News Dalton‘s Deliberations Letters Competition

3 4 5 15 20 27

Features R & D Past & Present

12

Classic Hi-Fi - Nytech Receivers and Integrated Amplifiers 16 From Inside the Industry - The Law of Accelerating Returns 22 Staff Focus

23

Products New Products Product Highlight Kimber Select Interconnects

7 14

Recent Reviews

24

Mains Zapperator

28

Russ Andrews Accessories Ltd, 2b Moreland Court, Westmorland Business Park, Shap Road, Kendal LA9 6NS, UK. © Russ Andrews Accessories Ltd, 2014. E & OE. Any views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company.

John Armer, Editor john.armer@russandrews.com

Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE 3

FIRST WORDS

Listening to the Performance This year’s National Audio Show (at Whittlebury Hall) proved to be a turning point in my long journey explaining what quality I am looking for in a Hi-Fi system or any part of it. My talk of ‘musicality’ and ‘rhythm and timing’ has been heard and understood by many but also remained a mystery to many.

It finally came to me that what I was listening for in any system, cable or component comparison was an improvement in the musicians’ performance. The change I am talking about is the one you hear at a live concert. The change that comes about as the musician(s) relax and start to deliver real feeling in the music they are playing, to communicate their love of the music they are playing to the audience, and their response to the audience reaction.

This kind of change has happened to some extent in most of the concerts I have been to. In many it happens in a thrilling and memorable way. We have all experienced it and we don’t have to listen in a special way or even concentrate hard. It just happens 4 CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

Russ during a dem at this year’s Whittlebury Show

and we feel it without having to think about it. That is how I listen to a Hi-Fi system as well.

When I explained this to any of my audiences at the Hi-Fi show and then did a quick system A-B, the reaction was amazing. They got it, they heard it, and they reacted to it. I have never heard so many in an audience react so strongly and

If you just listen for a change in the musicians’ performance, the difference is blindingly obvious in comparison with concentrating on trying to hear a change in the system’s sound. positively to my demonstration. I was thrilled by their reaction because, like the musician at a concert, I was communicating my feelings directly to them – they got it!

The demo itself was very simple, using the same set-up we have used before: an Arcam CD player and integrated amp with a pair of Focal 706 speakers. I first played it

using the free cables that the manufacturers provided – mains, interconnect and speaker cables plus a cheap white four-way mains extension. I then re-wired it with a set of our entry-level cables and block (PowerKord-100s plugged into our PowerBar mains extension, Timbre interconnects and 4PR speaker cable). If you just listen for a change in the musicians’ performance, the difference is blindingly obvious in comparison with concentrating on trying to hear a change in the system’s sound.

I suppose it is the difference between hearing and listening.

You can do this easily for yourself when comparing any change in your system: listening to a new piece of hardware, a cable, a support, cone or treatment. It is so easy it might make you laugh in surprise. When you think about it, listening to the musicians’ performance is what it’s all about.

It’s what your system is there for.

It’s the thrill that makes all the time, trouble and effort worthwhile. ■

NEWS

News

Russ Andrews in the United States!

On 1st November, be made available to in the USA for many years, we opened our first US based audio fans shipping our products direct office in the US. The from one location from the UK inevitably means culmination of two for the first time. that US-based customers pay years planning and more for shipping and have to Just as in the UK, US organisation, Russ wait longer for their goods. By customers will be Andrews USA – opening up our first stateside able to try the under the able office we are at last able to products in their stewardship of Russ’s provide the same levels of own home for 60 daughter Rohan service to our US customers as Rohan Andrews days (far longer than Andrews (right) – is we do here in the UK. Our the 30 days offered by some shipping our products direct to commitment to long term other companies). If, at the end customers’ doors all over the relationship building is key to of the trial, the customer isn’t USA. This will enable US-based our success and we feel 100% satisfied with the music lovers to benefit from confident that our US based improvements the product much lower shipping charges customers will feel the benefit brings, it can be returned for a than those incurred when of our ‘local store to everyone’ full refund. And we’re offering importing from the UK - and a approach to business. our Cable Upgrade much faster service. Orders for Scheme to US in-stock products ship to customers too; the anywhere in mainland USA “Cable Upgrade within 48 hours and shipping is Program” enables free of charge on all orders over customers to $150. receive a refund of A new dedicated website at up to 100% of the www.russandrews.com/us original cost features products carefully against the cost of selected for sale in the US. As a higher well as our multi award-winning specification model PowerKord power cables and if returned in Russ Andrews-brand perfect condition accessories, the close working (the exact refund relationship between Russ and amount is Ray Kimber has enabled the dependent upon entire range of genuine Kimber age and condition Kable products, from speaker of the cable). cables, to analogue While we have interconnects, HDMI cables and served customers The USA arm of the Russ Andrews website: its outstanding USB cables, to www.russandrews.com/us Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE 5

NEWS

National Audio Show ’14 Report The National Audio Show at Whittlebury Hall just seems to get better and better. This time we took over two rooms, giving us the opportunity to have dems running constantly throughout the two days in our dedicated room. This also had the advantage of not having to close the shop for each dem, which was handy as it was pretty well busy for the whole time!

This year Russ’s dem was split into three with the duties shared between Russ himself, Rohan, Zac and Simon. Dem 1 illustrated the difference that the introductory range of cables can make to a simple CD/amp/speakers set-up; Dem 2 took the same format but used cables towards the top of the range to show how much more can be gained from your components; and Dem 3 was a simple demonstration of our new SuperFuses and the huge improvement they could bring even when just using a basic ‘ghetto blaster’ as a source!

We were all kept very busy!

6 CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

Common to all three was the idea that to truly appreciate the improvements brought by these upgrades – or, indeed, a great way to judge any upgrade whether it be a cable or a new piece of hardware – was to listen to the music as a performance rather Our shop was next to our dem room than a recording. Russ to, whether that be a new cable or clarified this with the analogy of a new amp. The audience was listening to a live performance and certainly struck by the how its character can change as the improvements in the performance performer relaxes and grows in brought by our cable upgrades, and confidence in response to the the fuses were flying off the shelves audience. You will often find, for next door in the shop! example, that the second half of a Once again, it was also a great concert is better than the first and opportunity to meet you at the the way we appreciate this is by show and put faces to names old observing the manner in which the and new and it’s always a pleasure performance touches and affects us. to meet up again with our regular How engaged are we? How much friends who attend the show does our mind wander to thinking every year. about other things? Or are we enthralled and wholly captivated by the performance?

It’s this latter condition that we should expect from our music systems at home just as much as at a live performance. And if we listen to the performance rather than the sound we’ll be in a much better position to judge the quality of the components we are listening

Show competition winner

At every show we have a competition and this year was no exception.

Congratulations are due to Mr R Wall of Ashford who was randomly chosen from the correct entries who guessed the length of speaker cable we’d placed in a jar - 9.1m. He won a 1m PowerKord-100™ fitted with the WattGate EVO320 IEC worth £155.

NEW PRODUCTS

Upgrade your Meridian M80/ F80 Prompted by Russ who wanted to improve his own M80, we’ve been investigating ways in which we can improve the performance of the popular M80 and F80 portable systems from Meridian Audio.

The area we’ve found gives a significant improvement is its mains transformer; we have spec’d a very high performance replacement which has been built by the same transformer manufacturer that makes our Balanced Mains Units.

The new transformer uses our SuperSilent technology which virtually eliminates transformer noise through the use of innovative core technology, higher quality materials and better quality control.

New Products

Technical Ground Faceplate

Russ Andrews customer John Conway sent us pictures of a binding post faceplate he’d constructed to tidy up the installation of his RF Router and spike. We liked his idea so much that we’re making our own version with the same high quality binding post we fit to our X-Blocks and PowerBlocks.

You would use the Technical Ground faceplate to provide a point at which you connect the output of your RF Router or Star RF Router. The faceplate fits to the wall with the backing box provided; behind it you connect the cable that passes through the wall to your external grounding spike.

Technical Ground Faceplate

New LP cleaning brushes £12.00

Code: 1914

How to upgrade

We’ve sourced these superb new record cleaning brushes. There are two types – the first is a brush with synthetic bristles which is designed to be used with wet record cleaning machines that need the application of cleaning fluid. There are three sizes of brush suitable for cleaning 7”, 10” or 12” discs.

We recommend you send your unit to us in its original packaging. If required, we can arrange fully-insured carrier collection. Turnaround time is usually 2-5 days, but you must contact us before it is sent to us to ensure we have the capacity to do the work.

The second brush has goat hair bristles and is suitable for dry use – use it for spot removal of stray dust and hairs before playing. Both brushes are suitable for both vinyl and shellac records.

Owners of the Meridian F80 and M80 will need to send their units to us for modification. The work is carried out in-house by us - this is a Russ Andrews modification, not a Meridian Audio modification.

M80/F80 Upgrade

Code: 8617

£349.00

Record Cleaning Brushes 7” 10” 12” Goat Hair Brush (12”) Code: 4320

Code: 4320

£18.00 £21.00 £26.00 £42.00

Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE

7

New Balanced Mains Unit 3000

NEW PRODUCTS

Our flagship Balanced Mains Unit, the BMU3000, has been completely refreshed. The new unit features not one but two balanced mains transformers which combine to give 3kVA of power – enough to power all sizes of Hi-Fi or Home Cinema. The design allows us to use our new SuperSilent transformer technology which, in our subjective tests, is quieter in operation and sounds better.

The new unit is mounted in an equipment-sized case, making it perfect for housing in an equipment rack (it’s heavy though; we recommend sitting it on the bottom shelf). The casework is constructed from impact and fireresistant ABS. On the back of the unit, next to the 16A IEC input socket, there are five 13A UltraSocket mains outputs, meaning that in many cases the BMU3000 can act as your mains extension as well as your balanced mains supply.

5 UltraSocket mains outlets

Balanced Mains Unit 3000

Code: 1196

£3599 Dimensions: W: 425mm D: 300mm H: 93mm Weight: 23.4kg

8 CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

Twin-isolated 1500V transformers providing 3kVA of power

Output protected by a 2-pole (live and neutral) circuit breaker for safety and high sound quality.

High current 16A IEC mains input for your own choice of mains cable (not supplied – we recommend the PowerKord-300 or better).

“I did not realise how much grunge there had been before” R. McInnes, Aberdeen

NEW PRODUCTS

Original BMU 3000

What is balanced mains?

If you are familiar with balanced audio circuits in Hi-Fi systems, you’ll be aware of the benefits of balanced systems. A Hi-Fi system with a balanced circuit (usually connected together with ‘XLR’ type interconnects) splits the audio signal into two halves – negative and positive. The benefit of this is that ‘noise’ on the positive half of the signal is cancelled out by ‘noise’ on the negative half of the signal. If done correctly, the resulting sound can be of higher quality than an unbalanced circuit.

It’s this same principle that can be applied to the mains supply.

About the UK mains supply

Mains in the UK is unbalanced; in other words there’s 230V on live and 0V on neutral. To ‘balance’ it, you need to split the mains supply and put 115V on live and 115V on neutral.

Because there’s still a 230V difference between live and neutral at the sockets you don’t need to make any modifications to equipment to work on a balanced mains supply. Many recording studios use a balanced mains supply because it is so very effective at reducing the level of buzzes and hums.

The benefit of a balanced mains supply is that both 115V ‘legs’ are of different polarity – so that noise on the live legs is effectively cancelled out by noise on the neutral. It’s this noise cancellation that’s essentially the same as balanced audio.

Why balanced mains?

In our opinion, feeding your system with balanced mains is the very best way to reduce mains noise and get the best performance from your system.

Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE

9

NEW PRODUCTS

Meridian Explorer 2 Explorer 2 is an extremely high performance USB Audio DAC.

Developed from the original multi awardwinning Explorer, the new Explorer 2 incorporates the latest audio technology, enhancing its performance far beyond what has previously been achievable.

Included in these advances is the playback of MQA, or Master Quality Authenticated files.

In simplest terms, Explorer 2 replaces your computer’s soundcard and can be used in a variety of applications from private headphone listening to full system playback.

Explorer 2 offers a really simple, effective way of upgrading your computer’s sound quality – whether you listen to mp3s, stream music from the likes of Spotify or Tidal, or listen to high resolution music from Linn Records and HDTracks.

Meridian Explorer 2 includes a short USB cable to connect to your computer. Better performance can be achieved by using a Kimber Mini-B USB cable. Explorer 2 is plug-and-play with Linux and Mac computers, and drivers are available for use with Windows PCs.

What is MQA?

MQA stands for Master Quality Authenticated and is a new type of file system invented by Meridian.

There are two types – MQAencoded lossless audio files and MQA Studio files. MQA Studio files are based on a new, exclusively sourced, artist/ producer-approved studio master. Explorer 2 includes a powerful decoder and audio renderer for MQA-encoded audio files, offering very high resolution audio from a compact file size.

Features: •

Designed and built by Meridian in the UK

•

Compact USB DAC that outputs a line-level signal for connecting to a Hi-Fi system and a separate headphone output

•

Accepts files of up to 24bit 192kHz resolution

•

Inputs upsampled to provide 24bit, 176.4/ 192kHz resolution outputs (depending on original file resolution).

•

3.5mm analogue output socket, fixed at 2V RMS, for connecting to your amplifier or receiver

•

3.5mm headphone jack with variable-level output (controlled by your computer’s software)

•

Headphone output impedance 0.47Ω suitable for driving all headphones

•

USB Mini-B input socket for connecting to your laptop or desktop computer

• •

Robust metal case Lights indicate incoming sample rate and whether the files are MQA-encoded lossless audio

Meridian Explorer 2 Code: 4653

10 CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

£199.00

NEWS

Coming soon… our all-new website! www.russandrews.com

Images are for illustrative purposes only

As we write this, we’re busy building a brand-new Russ Andrews website. It’s a while since our existing site was refreshed, but the new site we’re developing will represent a major overhaul!

We’re working hard on the new site to make navigating around it much easier. There will be separate ‘home’ pages for Russ Andrews mains products, Kimber Kable, and Torlyte, which will mean it will be easier to tell the ‘story’ of the mains supply, connecting cables, and equipment supports. The product pages will feature a configuration tool, which means you’ll be able to build a cable to your specific requirements – or browse from a list of the available termination options, if you prefer.

The product pages will also feature lots more

information about our products and there’ll be better images too, so you’ll be able to see our products in far more detail.

The site will be ‘responsive’ meaning that it’ll look great whether you’re browsing it on a desktop or laptop computer, or a tablet, or a phone.

All this is a major investment, but we guarantee that finding your way around our product range will be far more intuitive, and the new site will be packed with information, tips and advice. We’re planning to go live with the website in Spring 2015, so keep your eyes peeled. If you’re a subscriber to our e-mail newsletter, we’ll let you know by e-mail when the new site is up and running.

Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE 11

Research & Development

FEATURE

Past and Present You’re probably aware that here at Russ Andrews we don’t just sell Kimber cables. Headed up by Russ, Research and Development (R&D) has always been, and remains, a very important part of the business. John Armer looks at Russ’s background as an R&D consultant and where our R&D energies have been directed.

Before the formation of Russ Andrews Accessories, in the late 1970s and early 1980s (and following his time as a Hi-Fi retailer in Edinburgh), Russ was involved as an R&D consultant for many companies.

These included QED, Meridian Audio, Nytech (Russ goes into more detail about Nytech on page 16) and ARC loudspeakers which gave a breadth of design experience not normally available to one engineer. It was around this time that Russ started his investigation into the mains supply and its effect on Hi-Fi systems which ultimately resulted in the creation in 1986 of the company you know today. R&D into the mains supply is ongoing, witnessed by the increase in the size of our mains product range, all designed to solve specific mains problems. Back in the 1980s, the range of mains products consisted of just PowerKords and SuperClamps!

Alongside the research into the mains supply, a major R&D focus of the new company was into component quality. The impetus for this was to improve Russ’s own

12 CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

system; not just by improving its infrastructure – mains, cables, supports and so on – but by improving key internal components. This led to a period of investigation into the ‘sound’ of the individual components that make up each piece of Hi-Fi equipment, and the selection of the bestsounding resistors, capacitors, inductors, diodes, switches, volume controls and so on.

We have an extensive stock of parts, and research Gathered together, these into components is ongoing; we are continually high quality components testing and listening. became the foundations of the ‘Audiophile Catalogue’ Whilst equipment – such as CD which was the forerunner to our players and amplifiers – aren’t part of existing mail-order catalogue. our core range of products today, At the end of the 1980s, Russ was many of the products in our range given the opportunity to put into exhibit features that hail back to practice all that he had learned when those R&D discoveries. The electrical his friend and investor in the components that feature in many of company Chris Bonar commissioned products, whether they are our him to build a ‘cost-no object’ mains filters, interconnect system. There followed an intense attenuators, power supplies and so period of R&D, and the fruits of his on have been chosen based on what labours – the Olson II 3-way system – we know about how they sound. Our was unveiled to critical acclaim at the RAVE-1 USB amplifier was designed 1991 Hi-Fi show in London. That from the ground up by Russ, system is still in use by Chris to this incorporating audiophile day, and Russ built a second system components rarely found in for himself, again still in use to this equipment at this price level. And day. Russ went on to develop a range our popular and acclaimed Sky HD of Hi-Fi equipment derived from the Box with Russ Andrews upgrades Olson commission including CD owes its high performance in part to players, preamps, power amps, the choice of components we use in integrated amps, phono stages and the power supply and circuit board loudspeakers. modifications.

Equipment upgrades One area we’ve been expanding recently is that of equipment upgrades. Upgrading equipment was a service we offered back in the 1980s and early 1990s, but recently, encouraged by the enthusiasm and skills of Zac Wilson, our Head Product Technician, we’ve been reviving the service. Almost any Hi-Fi product can be upgraded to higher performance using our techniques and components. The two things go together – the know-how and the right component.

The first equipment type to benefit from our expertise was loudspeakers, and our speaker upgrade service has proved very popular. This has been followed by source components upgrades, such as to SKY HD boxes and the superb Oppo BDP-105 Blu-ray Disc player… even the Meridian F80 and M80 upgrades featured in this issue on page 7. It’s fair to say that there’ll be more upgrade services to come in the future – watch this space! ■

“

The Russ Andrews design philosophy

FEATURE

From our 1993 audiophile catalogue...

Whilst most manufacturers have been dismissing the significance of component quality, we have been at the forefront of research, designing and developing our own range of Audiophile components; driven by a desire to achieve the best sound we possibly can, for the enjoyment of all kinds of music at home.

Over the last 12 years it has been more and more evident that the single most important influence on sound quality is component quality. The logical progression of our work is to design and perfect our own circuits using those components. It becomes immediately apparent when you do this that many of the subjective sound qualities attributed to particular circuit designs are, in fact, the sonic signatures of the components used. The performance of audiophile components is far closer to the ideal so a variety of circuit design possibilities can be assessed objectively and the optimum chosen.

Adopting this radical approach has resulted in the development of less complex circuits that achieve their objectives with the least degradation and greatest musicality.

”

In short, fewer components are used of higher quality, and the quality of each component has a greater significance.

It’s not just loudspeakers we upgrade; a recent R&D project has been to update our upgrade guides for the Nytech range of amplifiers. Here Zac is putting the finished touches to an upgrade of a Nytech CTA 252 XD II. Issue 28 Summer ’14 CONNECTED MAGAZINE

13

Become an expert:

PRODUCT FOCUS

Kimber Select Interconnects

Kimber Select KS-1016 analogue interconnect

Kimber’s range of Select analogue interconnects are superb performing cables and recommended for anyone who wants an uncompromising connection between source components and amplifier. But all those numbers – 1016, 1026, 1036... – can get a bit confusing, so here’s our guide to help you decide which one’s best for you.

Kimber Select KS-1026 analogue interconnect

Features throughout the range

Kimber Select KS-1036 analogue interconnect

The first thing to note is that the basic structure of the cable remains the same throughout the range but the composition of the conductors and connectors changes. Kimber’s Select interconnects are made with either very high purity copper conductors (the start-ofthe-range KS-1016), pure silver (the range-topping KS1036) or a mixture of the two (the hybrid KS-1026).

Select interconnects use gold-plated copper connectors except the KS-1036 which uses platinumplated silver plugs.

Fluorocarbon dielectric – the use of this specific insulation allows it to be applied to the conductors under high pressure but at a lower temperature. This ensures that the application process has as little effect on the metal as possible, ensuring minimum disruption to the integrity of the conductors.

Geometry - Select interconnects start with Kimber’s proprietary X38R core compound to minimise vibration interference. The conductors are then applied to the surface of the core in a specific geometry and held in place within a constrained matrix. The matrix is woven from Kimber’s own ESD yarn to minimise electrostatic interference and is applied at precisely the same time as the conductors to ensure the integrity of the geometry.

Which cable is best for me?

As the points above show, the key differences in the cables are down to the type of conductors and the RCA phono plugs used. The simple advice is to go for the very best interconnect in the range you can afford – and remember, until 4th February 2015 you’ll save 20% off the normal price!

Internal construction of the Select KS-1036, showing three of the six Silver woven conductors and the Kimber ESD constrained matrix.

WBT NEXTGEN RCA phono plugs

WBT have an international reputation for their high quality connectors and the NextGen range uses their unique low mass design to aid efficient signal transfer. The Cu versions feature gold plating over pure copper whereas the 0102 Ag plugs use pure platinum plating over pure silver contacts.

Cable comparison Cable

Prices are for 0.5m pair

Conductors Copper Silver per channel

KS-1016

6

100%

KS-1026

6

50%

KS-1036

6

WBT plugs

WAS

SAVE

NOW

0102Cu

£703

£140.60

£562.40

50%

0102Cu

£1097

£219.40

£877.60

100%

0102Ag

£1749

£349.80

£1399.20

Sale prices only available until 4th February 2015 14 CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

Dalton’s Deliberations

Stop. Listen. Look.

I read with interest Lee Dunkley’s opinion piece in the latest issue of Hi-Fi Choice magazine (December 2014) which discusses the trials and tribulations of a visit to a Hi-Fi Show.

He’s clearly a fan but is frustrated with the often cattle-market like conditions at most events. One down side of this, he argues, is that “visitors walk in and out as they please, sometimes making a swift retreat if the demo room is too crowded to comfortably see what’s on display”. He continues: “The problem is it’s too easy to make a snap decision on a room and vote with your feet – meaning that you might miss out on the star of the show”.

He’s got a point and there’s no doubt that Whittlebury Hall (the venue for the National Audio Show) is not the most intuitive venue to find your way around and the rooms are far from perfect for demonstrations. But there are a couple of other points here that interest me, points which are, I think, far more important. And they are hidden in the two quotes above...

Seeing is believing?

I’ve sometimes overheard Hi-Fi fans (note I say Hi-Fi fans, not music fans) talking about the look of Hi-Fi components as though this has some inherent bearing on their musical performance. “Wow, look at that” they may say, “I’d love one of those!” And it’s not even playing...

Sadly, I wonder if this view partly underlies the statement above that

OPINION

Write to Simon at - simondalton@russandrews.com

“visitors walk in and out as they please, sometimes making a swift retreat if the demo room is too crowded to comfortably see what’s on display”. What about hearing?

Surely, whether or not you can see the items making the music, if they sound good enough you’re going to hang around to listen?

“Surely, whether or not you can see the items making the music, if they sound good enough you’re going to hang around to listen?”

Again, he says “it’s too easy to make a snap decision” with the result that “you might miss out on the star of the show”. Really? I kind of doubt I’d make the snap decision to walk away if the music sounded that good – at the very least I’d make sure I’d come back later. In fact, ironically, I’d suggest that if the system is really the best in show you would be able to make a snap decision, but to stay rather than leave, because you’d instantly be aware of how good it sounded (interestingly, this is an aspect about listening that’s often missed; if something sounds better you shouldn’t have to listen to it for very long to notice).

Now don’t get me wrong, I love the look of a nice amp or speakers as much as the next man but let’s be candid; it has no bearing whatsoever on the performance of the component. To me, the sad thing is

that too many systems at Hi-Fi shows look fabulous but sound pretty awful. And that includes ones costing many tens of thousands of pounds.

This can have a positive side: one of our customers confided in me that he enjoyed coming to shows because he always felt so much better when he got home and listened to his own system. The fact was, although it hadn’t cost anywhere near as much, having followed the Russ Andrews upgrade path his system was so much more enjoyable to listen to.

If you check out our show review and Russ’s First Words in this issue, you’ll see that our own dem (which was a closed door event to alleviate the ‘cattle market’ issue) emphasised the importance of listening to the overall performance of the music to give you a true insight into how well a Hi-Fi is reproducing it (see pages 4 and 6). Keep this in mind and you should have no problem deciding which rooms are worth going into – and all it takes is a walk around listening through the doors; when you hear Hi-Fi, pass by, but when you hear a performance, well that’s worth waiting for.

Sadly, I suspect the real reason many visitors to Hi-Fi shows don’t hang around is not because a room is crowded and that they can’t see but because there’s nothing musical enough emanating from the space to make you want to stay.

Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE 15

CLASSIC HI-FI

Classic Nytech

It’s not a name we see in Hi-Fi magazines today, but in the 1970s and 1980s Nytech was a well-regarded British Hi-Fi manufacturer, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Linn, Naim and Meridian. Initially involved with Nytech from his days as a retailer, Russ went on to become a consultant to the company, working with Nytech’s MD Richard Hay to improve and expand the range of receivers and integrated amplifiers.

In the first of a series of articles, Russ gives some background to Nytech’s distinctive products and his involvement with the company…

Back in 1975 the Nytech CTA 252 seemed a very unlikely candidate for cult status.

It looked a bit weird – like a desk calculator, was a tuner/amplifier with the emphasis on the tuner, and had very modest, measured performance (15W continuous at 1kHz into 8 ohms with a 1% distortion figure. It fell to 11W at 20Hz to 20kHz!).

Its ‘ace up its sleeve’, however, was that it just sounded so enjoyably musical.

At Hi-Fi Corner in Edinburgh and then at the Russ Andrews High Fidelity shop we sold bundles of them with Rega Saturn turntables and KEF Coda loudspeakers; a choice combination. At that time we were selling lots of entry-level amps like A&R Cambridge A60s and needed a suitably modest but good-sounding tuner to match so I persuaded Richard Hay to put the tuner section of the CTA in a conventional box for us. The Edinburgh Wireless Company The Edinburgh Wireless Company FMT1 tuner FMT1 tuner was born.

16 CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

My association with Nytech was long and fruitful though stormy as Nytech CTA 252 receiver Richard Hay, like me, was a strong personality with strong views. I clearly remember my first visit to the original Nytech factory when they were still assembling the last of the ‘Scandinavian music centre’ style units but had just started making the stand-alone CTA 252.* I was the only Nytech retailer who visited and took an interest in the performance of the products and Richard was easily persuaded that there was a commercial opportunity in improving that performance of the CTA 252. He quickly responded with more power across the audio band to 25W per channel and with better disc stages – first on the existing moving magnet circuit and then with a separate input board that could be configured for any moving coil cartridge input requirement. By this time I had, after a serious car crash, parted from my partners in Russ Andrews High Fidelity and moved down to Hampshire. After my recovery, I was able to work as a consultant to Nytech helping develop new products like the CA 252 and CA 202 range of integrated amplifiers that used the CTA output

CLASSIC HI-FI

Russ and Zac discuss the upgrades to the Nytech receivers

stages, disc stages and an improved preamp section, free from tone controls and filters.

I met Alistair Clark and helped him set up ARC loudspeakers (which is another story I will cover in a later issue). Using ARC 101 and 202 loudspeakers in their active configuration, Richard designed active electronic crossovers and a new era was born in loose association with Linn, Naim and Meridian (again another story for later).

The Nytech CTA started to gain serious attention with the Series 1 XD version in 1978 when it gained the uprated power supply, power amps, banana speaker outlets and a ‘preamp-out / power amp in’ facility that cleared the way for a more powerful power amp – the CPA 602 and ‘active’ electronics of the early 1980s. This is the

* I remember seeing a stack of obviously-reject Garrard autochangers piled in a corner and asked why they seemed abandoned. Richard said that when they accumulated 50 or so, the engineer came from Garrard to fix them. “How does he fix them?” I asked. “He’s got a specially calibrated tool that precisely bends a connecting rod in the mechanism.”

I couldn’t stop myself laughing out loud because back in the 1960s when I was just learning to be a Radio and TV service engineer, one of the nonelectronic jobs they gave me was to repair

point at which Nytech gained cult status as ‘the poor man’s Naim’. I agree with that sobriquet in as much as it wasn’t as good as the Naim but the next best thing musically and a whole lot cheaper.

It is very clear to me that a lot of Nytechs have survived and change hands at good prices because they have always made very enjoyable music. I have been giving a repair service ever since Nytech ceased trading and written upgrade guides for the CTA 252 XD II, the CA 252 and CA 202. We have updated these using our current best-sounding components. The upgrades give a a double benefit now that the capacitors are dying of old age and need replacing anyway.

The new capacitors we have chosen are both inexpensive and the best-sounding we can find – perfect! >> autochangers. I had a jig with a mirror below it so I could watch the mechanism in action. Some of them resisted all my attempts at subtle adjustment and lubrication. In these cases I found that very carefully bending a connecting rod with a pair of pliers did the job! My dictum was “when all else fails, bend it!” I think it made my decade to discover that what I thought was an unsatisfactory fudge was how the manufacturer did it! It opened my eyes to manufacturer ‘fudges’.

Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE 17

CLASSIC HI-FI

Nytech

Nytech upgrades

If you are the owner of a working Nytech CTA 252 XD/ XDII, a CA 252 or a CA 202, we have produced upgrade kits with instructions on how to improve key components.

You need to be technically-minded and have some experience with electronics (or know someone who does). Each kit includes all the parts you need to perform the upgrade and the instructions are illustrated with line drawings showing what goes where.

Alternatively, we can offer an upgrade service, doing the upgrade work here in Kendal.

The upgrades are well worthwhile; the Nytechs are fine sounding in their own right, but the upgraded models sound more transparent, musical and enjoyable and can easily hold their own against modern, more expensive equipment.

We also have a repair and set-up service if you have a faulty Nytech component. Contact us for details.

Finally, we have a small quantity of upgraded Nytech CT 252 XD II receivers for sale: again, contact us for more information and prices.

Russ’s tip

If you don’t fancy a ‘full-on, upgrade everything’ challenge, just do the power supply and disc input if you play vinyl. Next, you can tackle the power amps – or if you don’t feel confident enough, send them to us for upgrade and setting up. The CTA 252 XD II is very complex, so do it a bit at a time and check that it works at every stage.

18 CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

Product Spotlights CTA 252

This very compact tuner/ amplifier (receiver) is very much a product of its time and origins.

It started life in the early 1970s as part of a modestly-priced non-Hi-Fi music centre. It featured an FM tuner with manual tune and four push button pre-sets, mono switch, low and high filters, only two inputs – tape and disc. In addition to the volume and balance controls it had bass, middle and treble controls. To further gild the lily, it had two pairs of speaker outputs and a third pair to provide a differential output for two rear loudspeakers which can be used together with a front pair in a quasi Hafler surround sound configuration. This function is aided by a blend control to regulate the degree of left and right mixing applied to the rear loudspeakers. All this and two headphone sockets! No wonder the inside is as tightly packed as a modern car engine bay. DIN standard sockets ruled on the back panel.

CTA 252 XD II

The XD II was the final version of the beast but souped up to Hi-Fi performance rather like the early VW Golf became the GT hot hatch. I had persuaded Richard to drop the Hafler-style surround sound facility and switch to 4mm banana speaker output sockets. The ‘tune-up’ included power supply, power amp, preamp and disc stage improvements.

CA 252

Nytech

CLASSIC HI-FI

By the late 1970s the inevitable demand for a simple ‘purist’ integrated amplifier resulted in the launch of the CA 252. It was a precursor of a full range of similarly-cased amps, electronic crossovers, preamps and a tuner. The CA 252 was based on the CTA circuitry stripped down, improved and presented in a very stylish sloping front metal casework. This was the first product of my ‘no compromise’ approach allied to Richard’s design talents and cost-conscious production engineering. As a consultant, I could make demands and give opinions no employee could. It was a stormy but very rewarding period.

With the CA252, Nytech could seriously compete with anyone. Its strengths were low cost and a very musical performance. I seem to remember Richard being rather insulted by the ‘poor man’s Naim’ comment in the press, but I thought it was fair and well-meant. The subsequent cult status rather proves it, I think.

The shortage of inputs became a problem when the number of source components proliferated beyond tuner and tape needs. The advent of the CD player at this time was incompatible with the old DIN standard input sensitivities, but it was a long time before CD was really accepted and many owners remain vinyl-only fans to this day. The way to adapt any of the Nytech integrated amps and preamps to enjoyable CD performance is to use our type G attenuated interconnects plugged into either the Tape or Aux inputs. The same leads can be used for any source (tuner, DVD player, Sky box) with the 2V CD level standard.

CA 202

To meet demand for an even less expensive integrated amp, Richard simplified the circuitry even further whilst still including the very successful power amplifier modules from the CA 252 and CTA 252 XD. These compact, reliable and sweet-sounding amp modules are upgradeable and repairable. Although several of the transistors are obsolete and unobtainable now, we have found suitable replacements that work very well as substitutes. Today, the CA 202 would be described as a CA252 ‘lite’. ■

Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE 19

LETTERS

Your letters

A route to better sound It took me about 10 mins to install the router RF Router £169 between a Supersocket earth terminal and my new earth rod. I’m really into acoustic guitar at the moment so my first choice of CD was Paco Pena’s “Fabulous Flamenco!” Within the space of half a track I knew that whatever the router does and however it does it the result is quite astonishing.

My initial reaction was that the sound was just so “relaxed”, as though some strain and stress had been taken out of the reproduction.

I find the effect quite hard to describe, it’s sort of subtle and profound all at the same time. The maestro’s mastery of his instrument was transparent and the guitar gained both in texture and fine detail (if I didn’t know better I’d say that it now sounded like two guitars playing rather than one!). I could hear more notes and decays were wonderfully prolonged.

I played the whole CD right through a couple of times, forgetting that I had intended to watch last night’s World Cup match, and then indulged in a bit of Kraftwerk’s Tour De France. I listened to that twice as well, finally going to bed at 2am quite beguiled by the whole experience.

As you predicted, I LOVE it! So, it’s Rodrigo y Gabriela next... WOW! J. Conway, Lancs

No to chrome

STAR LETTER Win a Silencer mains filter, worth £52.00

STAR

LETTER I was very interested to read Russ’ First Words in this month’s Connected – especially his description of ‘chromium plated’ high-end trophy equipment. This last weekend I was lucky enough to be in a music workshop presented

by Kris Drever of Lau (fantastic electro-folk trio, if you haven’t already heard of them). Kris, who is a brilliant guitarist, had brought along his battered old Martin acoustic. So battered that he frequently has to stick small squares of plectrum-plate over the holes that he manages to wear in the body of his guitar with his incredible playing. He said that he loves to hear the buzzes, rattles, squeaks and other ‘non-perfect’ sounds that his instrument makes.

For him it adds character and warmth to the sound he somehow manages to squeeze from 6 strings and a wooden box.

Kris records his fantastic music carefully, he uses good quality equipment and an expensive instrument but he’s a folk musician he doesn’t want a pitch perfect, clean but boring sound. And I think that is what we should strive for in our hi-fi - warmth, character and musicality. Not bland, flawless, characterless perfection. If it’s good enough for a pro like Kris, it’s good enough for me.

R. Mellors, by e-mail

Want to share your experiences with our readers? Or simply want advice? Write to us! We’ll publish the best, funniest and most interesting in each issue of Connected.

The writer of this issue’s Star Letter receives a Silencer, worth £52.00 Get in touch at: connected@russandrews.com or write to us at: Connected, Russ Andrews Accessories, 2b Moreland Court, Westmorland Business Park, Kendal, Cumbria, LA9 6NS, UK.

It’s all clear now I bought a Clarity 8 in your very recent sale and would agree with Russ’s summary of its effect which is indeed not subtle. More detail, greater air and space and the stereo image better resolved. Bass was cleaner with a sweeter treble.

The result was all the more surprising as my system is connected to the mains via a PS Audio Power Plant and a Ben Duncan isolation Clarity-8 £799 transformer, well protected or so I thought from the vagaries of the mains. I was only expecting a marginal improvement with the Clarity, however all of the above improvements were readily apparent. I sometimes listen to CD via a Teufel surround sound decoder (powered by a home-made battery supply). Listening this way, small events and details which were only vaguely resolved were with the Clarity intelligible. There may be a small clue as to what is going on, as the distortion readout of the Power Plant is showing lower distortion by 0.1 or 0.2%.

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CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

LETTERS

So if you do not have a Russ Andrews Clarity in your system then you need one as it is likely to be the single most effective improvement you can make.

P Graves, by e-mail.

A Clean Upgrade I’ve finally realised my goal of using Russ’s products throughout my entire system, from SuperSocket to speaker cable and everything in between. After making all of the connections and a short satisfied test listen, I decided that it would be a good time for some system and cable maintenance. So I purchased some DeoxIT and the nifty little RCA cleaning tool recently added to your product range, then proceeded to clean and treat every contact, socket

and connection, before carefully plugging everything back together again.

The initial test listen had sounded fantastic, but my efforts optimising the connections between components, have proven to be extremely worthwhile. In fact, you could almost categorise the improvements as an ‘upgrade’ in their own right, and a very cost effective one at that. The sound has moved into another dimension all together, like placing a very delicious cherry on top of an already fantastic cake. Not only that, as I sit here with a smile that smacks of satisfaction, I’m more listening to the music, than the sound of a stereo system which is now greater than the sum of its parts.

As the mind wanders to wondering where my next hi-fi fix will come from, I recall the subject of a previous ‘Connected’ issue competition, in which the readers were tasked to suggest ideas for items that could be added to Russ’ already substantial product line, that I hadn’t gotten around to entering.

As a sound engineer, being well aware of the capabilities of acoustical treatments being used in various applications in recording studios, I’d like to propose that this could be an area you might like to investigate, with a view to becoming a supplier of such products to us customers. Regardless, thank you for your efforts on behalf of audiophiles throughout Europe and beyond, keep up the excellent work.

A. Jack, by e-mail

Fidelity of sound Customer Ray Johnston wrote to us to tell us about his experiences upgrading his system which consists of a Musical Fidelity hi-fi system and Onkyo home cinema.

Said Ray: “I went into the Russ Andrews shop and I had a chat with Peter who I didn’t know but now, seven years later, is nearly family. He said start with the mains, which I did. When I left the shop I was blown away with the approach and as time went on I got on really well with John and all of the staff. And the best thing is you’ve got the opportunity to try everything. There has never ever been any hard sell: they’ve made me feel like being part of the Russ Andrews family.”

Ray lives quite close to us in Kendal so Peter and John couldn’t resist popping round and having a look at his system which is fully supported with Kimber and Russ Andrews cables and accessories. Ray has a Michell Gyrodec turntable and Musical Fidelity CD player, with Musical Fidelity amplification and Russ Andrews-upgraded KEF loudspeakers. His Home Cinema consists of a Denon BD player and

Sky HD box with Russ Andrews upgrades, Onkyo surround sound amp and Celestion speakers playing into a Samsung 4K screen. Ray powers his system with a 3KVA Balanced Mains Unit, with PowerBlocks and Reference and Signature PowerKords to power his kit. Interconnects are Kimber Select and his Hi-Fi system, which is bi-amped, uses KS-3033 and Crystal-24 speaker cable. His Home Cinema systems features Kimber HD29 HDMI cables and 4PR speaker cables. As Ray said to us “I love my system and I’m absolutely delighted with the sound and picture quality”.

Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE 21

The Law of Accelerating Returns

FROM INSIDE THE INDUSTRY

Robert Harley, editor of US publication The Absolute Sound, turns the idea of the law of diminishing returns on its head - something Russ calls the Rule of Increasing returns.

Many audiophiles think of an audio system from the perspective of The Law of Diminishing Returns. That’s the idea that each successive dollar you add to your hi-fi budget realizes progressively less sonic improvement. To use an extreme example, there’s undoubtedly a greater sonic difference between a $1000 loudspeaker and a $2000 loudspeaker than there is between a $100,000 loudspeaker and a $101,000 loudspeaker. The additional thousand dollars buy you much less at the top end of the scale.

The Law of Diminishing Returns also suggests that sonic improvements are much more difficult to achieve once you have a great system. The mountaintop is a more challenging climb than the

SONIC IMPROVEMENT

The Law of Diminishing Returns

COST

22 CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

foothills. Moreover, according to this thinking, the sonic differences become less and less musically significant once you’ve achieved some threshold of performance. The small improvements to an already superlative system are not only very expensive, but of increasingly little consequence.

“It was as though upgrading one component liberated every other component in the system.”

My experience with state-ofthe-art audio suggests that The Law of Diminishing Returns is a fallacy. In fact, I think that an audio system follows The Law of Accelerating Returns.

First, by improving one link in the reproduction chain you better reveal the qualities and characteristics of every other component in the chain. For example, replacing a preamplifier that is slightly opaque, shaves off a layer of very fine detail, and compresses dynamic contrasts with one that is much more transparent, resolving, and dynamic allows you to hear, for the first time, just how transparent, detailed, and dynamic your sources, cables, and loudspeakers really

are. The upgrade isn’t just to the preamplifier; you’re unlocking the potential of every other component in the signal path—potential for which you paid good money that was otherwise wasted.

This observation applies only if the other system components are of high quality themselves.

A more transparent preamplifier can also reveal previously unheard flaws in your sources.

Consequently, upgrading a hi-fi system is a fine art that requires that you not only target the weakest link but that you also select each new component very carefully; your next upgrade will unmask every other component’s intrinsic sonic personality. It’s also essential that the upgraded component is a demonstrable step forward in transparency and resolution, not merely one that offers a different set of virtues and flaws that tilts your system in a different but lateral direction. Such is the path to years of “upgrades” that result in no real increase in musical realism.

Over the past two years my audio system has taken one performance leap after another.

With each upgrade, I gain a new appreciation for every other component in the system. I recently called my friend and colleague Jonathan Valin and began the conversation by saying “I just heard the [Magico]

The Law of Accelerating Returns

SONIC IMPROVEMENT

COST

COST

Q7s for the first time.” He was perplexed until I explained that the improvement I had made to the system revealed capabilities and qualities that had lain dormant in the loudspeaker. It was as though upgrading one component liberated every other component in the system.

The second reason why The Law of Accelerating Returns applies to an audio system is something Meridian Audio co-founder Bob Stuart calls The Increasing Importance of the Smaller Difference. He posits that humans are naturally inclined to make very fine discriminations, such as differences between two champion dogs of the same breed. Dog aficionados aren’t interested in the differences between dogs and cats, or The Increasing Importance of the Smaller Difference

between different breeds of dogs, or even between mediocre and stellar examples of the same breed, but they are fascinated by the very finest differences among the breed’s elite dogs, some of which are invisible to the untrained eye. The smaller the difference, the greater that difference’s importance to those who care about such things.

Music reproduction takes this concept to the extreme because musical ecstasy is such a profound and rewarding experience—we long to experience it more deeply and more frequently.

Because we care so much about music, there’s not a linear relationship between a sonic improvement’s magnitude and its musical significance.

There’s a step function in which a “small” increase in, for example, resolution of micro-detail, vaults the sense of musical realism into a totally new plane because we find musical meaning in that detail. No matter how modest or ambitious your system, listening to your favorite music after realizing such a leap is nothing short of thrilling. And that’s a return worth pursuing.

SONIC IMPROVEMENT

Many thanks to Robert Harley for permission to reprint his editorial from The Absolute Sound, issue 246. www.theabsolutesound.com

One of us!

STAFF FOCUS

Name: Job:

Peter Bevir Head of sales and product development Time with us: 13 years

Peter joined Russ Andrews back in 2001, making him one of the longest standing members of staff, so we’ve picked him to be the first in a series of mini staff profiles.

Peter’s love of electronic and dance music goes right back to his time as a DJ in the clubs in the north west of England and as far as Canada and Tenerife, and it was there too that his interest in Hi-Fi electronics began.

He studied studio engineering at college and this has formed the foundation of an ever expanding knowledge of audio electronics, and he loves to keep up with the latest in Hi-Fi technologies.

Ask him for his favourite band and there’ll be an immediate response: “Depeche Mode”. Beyond that, he says, it’s difficult to pin anyone specific down as he tends to like a wide variety of individual tracks rather than particular artists as such – though still broadly electronic and dance orientated.

Since purchasing his Sony W905 LCD TV last year he loves watching movies! Although it’s capable of 3D pictures, he still finds he generally prefers high quality 2D images, with the exception of the classic Vincent Price film ‘House of Wax’ which he says is by far the best 3D film he’s experienced, despite its age.

Apart from his sales role, Peter also sources new products for us, alongside Russ and Zac who head up R & D. This is a part of his role he really enjoys, particularly the aspect of seeing a project developed from a simple idea all the way through to production.

COST

Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE

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Reviews

REVIEWS

Reviews

Keep up to date with new reviews in our news section at www.russandrews.com/news

Kimber D-60

Kimber’s superb D60 digital interconnect is the latest in our range to receive a recommendation from Hi-Fi Choice magazine in the December 2014 issue.

The reviewer tested D60 in the more traditional set up of CD player and DAC and concluded that “the Kimber D60 is a beautifully made cable that effortlessly conveys the digital signal from my CD to an external DAC and is one to consider if you’re looking for a premium-quality digital interconnect”.

PowerKord-8™

Kimber D-60 interconnect Verdict:

RECOMMENDED Price: Magazine: Issue:

£201 for 0.5m Hi-Fi Choice Dec 2014

The October 2014 edition of Hi-Fi Choice carries a short review of the PowerKord-8 and the reviewer Neville Roberts finds “an overall improvement in the sound with the PowerKord 8 fitted, particularly with image placement and focus”.

And it’s not just these areas where improvements are to be found, as he continues by reporting that “I also find improvements in the lower registers with the bass drums feeling deeper and tighter with more impact. The sound is more compelling to listen to and somehow fuller in presentation”.

All in all, the reviewer is very impressed with the PowerKord-8, noting that the benefits it brings are to be found right across the musical spectrum, observing “an improvement in overall refinement across a wide range of music genres and this, coupled with a discernible ease in the way the music is reproduced when compared with a standard lead, means that it gets the full five-star rating from me”.

PowerKord-8™ Verdict:

RECOMMENDED Price: Magazine: Issue:

24 CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

£99 for 1m Hi-Fi Choice October 2014

REVIEWS

Upgraded Sky HD Box For Paul Rigby of www.theaudiophileman.com the biggest and most important gain that the Russ Andrews upgraded SkyHD Box brings is via the clear improvements in sound quality. If your TV is running sound through a high quality Hi-Fi or Home Cinema system then, he suggests, the “Russ Andrews’ project not only gains validity but becomes a serious audiophile choice”. Starting with a listen to Radio 4 to assess the box’s ability with vocals, he states that “Differences were immediate. The Russ Andrews’ Sky box offered voices with greater resonance and enhanced reverberation that seemed to emanate from the speaker’s chest” creating an overall “more believable presentation”.

Moving over to the higher sampling rate of a Radio 3 broadcast revealed even more obvious improvements: “The Russ Andrews box lifted the presentation from its previously flat soundstage” and “the silences between each instrument were stark”.

Russ Andrews Upgraded Sky HD Box Price: £611 Magazine: www.theaudiophileman.com Published: October 2014

All in all, the improvements lead the reviewer to conclude that “if you have invested £1,000 or more on a quality sound support system for your TV... then this new Sky box is a good investment”.

SuperFuse™

Our new SuperFuses have been incredibly popular and the first review comes courtesy of the September issue of Hi-Fi Choice magazine. The reviewer comments that “it is not just a replacement fuse, but more a mains plug upgrade kit” as it comes with a sachet of DeoxIT Gold contact cleaner for sprucing up the plug contacts when fitting the fuse.

“When I fit the Superfuse” writes Neville Roberts, “I can detect a subtle improvement in overall musicality, topend detail and openness”. In addition to all this, he also experiences “an improvement in the sound stage”. As he says: “not bad for a fuse!”

SuperFuse Verdict: Price: Magazine: Issue:

£25 each Hi-Fi Choice September 2014

Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE

25

REVIEWS

Torlyte Speaker Stands ®

The November 2014 issue of Hi-Fi Choice magazine finds our new Torlyte speaker stands receiving a 4.5 star award with a solid recommendation.

The reviewer points out the unique properties of Torlyte and the distinct advantages: “high mass stands have the potential to store more energy, so these stands adopt a low mass design in order to diffuse or ‘dump’ the energy with the intention of improving rhythm and timing”. And it works, as he observes: “They certainly don’t disappoint. I have no sense of colouration or an over lively bass”.

Torlyte® Speaker Stands Verdict:

Torlyte Rack ®

RECOMMENDED Price: Magazine: Issue:

£695 per pair Hi-Fi Choice Nov 2014

The unique Torlyte modular rack system receives a review in the June 2014 edition of Hi-Fi Choice magazine. The great advantage of Torlyte’s construction is that it manages to achieve a high amount of rigidity and strength whilst remaining very light in weight. As the reviewer observes; “light it may be... but flimsy it isn’t and I have no problems with it supporting my weighty valve monoblock amplifiers!”

The effects on the musical presentation are just as impressive with far greater insight into the recordings.

“Musically, what strikes me is a fast presentation with good clarity and sparkle, but without any edge or brashness to the sound, an indication low colouration” he says.

In conclusion, Neville Roberts (reviewing) suggests that Torlyte “will reward you with great detail and super clarity”.

Torlyte® Rack Verdict:

RECOMMENDED Price: Magazine: Issue:

26 CONNECTED MAGAZINE Issue 29 Winter ’14/15

from £460 Hi-Fi Choice June 2014

Win one of four SuperFuses™ WIN

COMPETITION

We’ve something a bit different for this issue’s competition, with a wordsearch. Our new Superfuses have proved to be one of our most simple and popular upgrades with lots of customers coming back for more.

For your chance to win one of four superb SuperFuses, simply find all the words in the list and highlight them on the puzzle. Send your completed entries to:

A SUPERFU worth £2SE™ 5

Connected 29 Competition Russ Andrews Accessories, 2b Moreland Court, Westmorland, Business Park, Shap Rd, Kendal, LA9 6NS.

The last date for entries will be 9th February 2015 and the winners will be picked at random from the correct entries.

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Congratulations!

Congratulations go out to customer Mr Andrew Roberts of Stafford who won a 1m PowerKord-100™ mains cable worth £155. We asked; ‘In what year did our PowerKords™ first go on sale?’ and Mr Roberts was picked at random from the entrants who correctly answered ‘1986’.

.,0%(5 683(5.25' 683(5&/$03 5(9((/ 6,/9(5675($.

32:(5.25' 6,/(1&(5 &/$5,7< &21()((7 6(/(&7

;%/2&. $%=25%(5 =$33(5$725 7,0%5( %851,1

Terms and Conditions 1. The closing day for entries is 9th February 2015 and the winners will be notified by 27th February 2015; 2. The rules of entry are given in the text of the competition; 3. No purchase necessary to enter; 4. There are four prizes, each of one SuperFuse, picked at random from the correct entries; 5.The prize is not transferable, cannot be exchanged for cash nor will a cash alternative be offered; 6. Our decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into; 7. We reserve the right to feature photographs and the names and counties of all entrants in future publications and publicity; 8. This promotion is not open to employees of Russ Andrews Accessories or their families, or anyone connected with the promotion; 9. The promoter is Russ Andrews Accessories Ltd, 2b Moreland Court, Westmorland Business Park, Shap Road, Kendal, LA9 6NS, UK.

Issue 29 Winter ’14/15 CONNECTED MAGAZINE 27

Return address: Russ Andrews Accessories Ltd, 2b Moreland Court, Westmorland Business Park, Shap Road, Kendal LA9 6NS, UK.

Customer Number

Reference Code

How many Wi-Fi networks can you pick up?

The answer is probably ‘quite a few’. Wi-Fi networks are more prevalent than ever and in our opinion present their own potential problems. Our listening tests have shown that Mains Zapperators are particularly useful in homes with computer networks. Plug one in close to your system to create a quiet zone or use them in multiples next to computers and Wi-Fi routers.

"I have been staggered by the degree of improvement this mains device offers" Mr. B. Hodgetts, New Zealand

"If anyone hasn't used a Mains Zapperator, you'll be impressed by what one can do. If you already have one, add another!"

Mr. K. Harrison, Doncaster

Order Code: 1443

Try one now in your own system for only £87.20 (was £109)

"music seems more lifelike and real" Hi-Fi Choice, Nov 2012

Exclusive UK distributor

Buy online at

SAVE 20%

in our SALE until 4th Feb ‘15

www.russandrews.com 01539 797300 Int Tel +44 (0)1539 797300

Call UK Orderline

Russ Andrews Accessories Ltd, 2b Moreland Court, Westmorland Business Park, Shap Road, Kendal LA9 6NS, UK.

Mail Order Direct • 60 Day Home Trial • Cable Upgrade Scheme • Free Delivery (orders over £100 within UK Mainland)