Meridian’s G Series line of high-performance digital and analogue consumer audio components features a stylish cabinet design in traditional black or a sleek silver finish. The Meridian G08 is CD-optimised, and able to play virtually any CD, including those storing MP3 files (64–256kbit/s). The computer-style CD-ROM drive is capable of spinning discs much faster, allowing multiple high-speed re-reads to ensure accurate recovery of data from awkward discs and ten times the error correction of a conventional CD player. On-board digital signal processing at up to 150 million instructions per second upsamples digital information from the 44.1kHz, 16-bit signal of conventional CD to 24 bits, and to a sample rate of 176.4kHz for digital-to-analogue conversion to drive the analogue outputs, and 88.2kHz for the digital outputs. A triple buffering system and a new design of high-stability clocking system reduce jitter and ensure a high level of detail is recovered from a disc, while multiple PSUs ensure that digital and analogue circuitry are kept separate and can provide the required power when called upon. The G08 includes both balanced (on XLR connectors) and unbalanced (on phono connectors) two-channel analogue outputs. S/PDIF (Sony/Philips Digital Interface, IEC 60958) digital outputs are also provided and both optical (TosLink/EIAJ) and coaxial digital formats are included. The optical digital outputs can even support surround-encoded bitstreams.
Meridian Audio, 01480 445678
www.meridian-audio.com

Thule Audio has appointed Hermitage Agencies as its new distributor, bringing the Danish hi-fi electronics brand back to the UK. The marque will offer budget Spirit, midrange Space and high-end Sphere Line ranges. Prices start at £475 for the Spirit IA60 60W integrated amplifier, up to £3100 for the Sphere AV120S six-channel AV amplifier.
Hermitage Agencies, 07710 512074
www.thule-audio.com

A new flagship headphone from Sennheiser is the HD650. Weighing 260g (without the cable), the open-backed HD 650 is intended for use in studios or with quality hi-fi equipment, with neutrality, clarity and long-term listening comfort as the major design aims. The low-resonance design uses new drivers with damped fibre frames, black stainless steel grilles and a titanium/silver finish. It’s said that new materials developed for the £1000 MKH40 microphone are used in the HD650 to reduce distortion and enhance clarity, while its sound balance is said to be based on that of the £10,000 Sennheiser Orpheus headphones. Boasting a frequency response of 16–30,000Hz (±1 dB), the HD 650 uses acoustic silk to achieve ultra-low harmonic and intermodulation distortion. The Sennheiser Duofol drivers are specially selected for performance and then pair matched to the tightest tolerances, while low-coloration drivers deliver a spacious sound voiced for a neutral balance with deep bass and smooth highs.
Sennheiser, 0800 652 5002
www.sennheiser.co.uk

Retailing at £500, the C372 is the latest in NAD’s range of affordable integrated amplifiers. Apart from an improved SR5 remote-control , improvements over previous models include an upgraded pure Class A pre-amplifier and driver stages using the latest high-performance semiconductors. Seven line inputs and NAD's acclaimed ‘soft clipping’ circuit complete the picture.
Lenbrook UK, 01908 319360
www.nadelectronics.com

After the radical departure from its norm with the BeoLab 5 speaker [HFN, Dec Õ03], B&O seems to have returned to its more traditional principles with the new BeoCenter 2, a DVD/CD/MP3 player and RDS tuner. Of course, B&OÕs ÔtraditionÕ is one of futuristic, all-in-one designs: and so this product is dressed in shiny aluminium, and features some rather exotic doors on the front Ð pressing the Load button opens up two panels in a manner reminiscent of a DeLorean car, retracting to their original position for playback. Other funky details include concealed cabling and an oversized display that can be read from a distance and changes brightness according to exterior light conditions.The BeoCenter 2 is on sale for Christmas at £2550.
Bang & Olufsen, 01189 692288
www.bang-olufsen.dk

Vieta Audio, the Spanish producer of home electronics has launched a UK subsidiary to sell DVD players, receivers, loudspeaker systems and screens (TFT and Plasma) screens for home cinema plus a complete range of automotive speakers and electronics. Vieta — whose L'Adagio Prestige loudspeaker is part of the permanent collection of the New York Museum Of Modern Art — is an important player in the consumer electronics market in Spain. Francisco Máquez, president of Vieta UK, said, ‘To be present in the UK is very important in consumer electronics, as the UK is an influential market and the British press has a global following, in many cases acting as a reference for the consumers of other countries.’
Vieta, www.vieta-uk.com

The Penguin Guide to Compact Discs and DVDs, March, Greenfield & Layton, 1566pp, paperback, £25, Penguin, ISBN 0141013842
As the title says this 2003/4 edition now includes new format discs. Modelled on the original Sackville-West/Shawe-Taylor Record Guides, this work has been regularly updated since 1960 and long published by Penguin. Clean styling makes this rather nice to read, although the single-volume format is a lump!

Gramophone Classical Good CD Guide, 1432pp, paperback, £22, Gramophone, ISBN 0860249972
Also available in a 2004 revision is this publication from Gramophone magazine. The book draws on a much larger pool of critics and is consequently fresher and more varied in the writing. On the other hand, the CD reviews tend towards a digest of more recent issues: material you’d expect big stores to stock, whereas Penguin strives to greater comprehensivity. Christopher Breunig

Signor Marconi’s Magic Box, Gavin Weightman, 312pp, hardcover. B&W photos, £16. HarperCollins, ISBN 0007130058
One of the best things about the book Longitude was that it launched a genre of digestible histories: readable studies of momentous events that are the antithesis of dry textbooks. After titles covering Harrison’s invention, the discovery of nutmeg and others, here’s one about the dawn of radio, and it’s a cracker. It even opens like a Victorian thriller: ‘On a winter’s evening in 1896 a brougham left the fashionable stucco’d terraces of west London...’ Weightman has dramatised the crucial development in electronic communication, the invention of radio, in the manner of the best of the BBC’s archaeology-brought-to-life programmes. The trials, the obstacles, the zeitgeist, politics, commercial rivalry, the birth of the BBC, a cast that includes Tesla, Nobel, Czar Nicholas II, Hertz, Bell. — At last, a book related to our passion that you’ll read. Ken Kessler

Denon’s new £400 AVR-1804 multichannel receiver features 32-bit DSP and six matched125W channels with high-current output devices. The Denon 5/6-channel stereo feature allows five or six speakers to reproduce unprocessed stereo, while there’s a range of DTS and Dolby surround options. Denon, 01234 741200
www.denon.co.uk

KEF Audio has announced details of the new flagship system joining its award-winning KHT family. The KHT9000 ACE combines KEF’s latest innovations with an impressive technical specification. Aiming to create an audiophile-quality 3D sound-picture, the 165mm KEF Uni-Q driver is claimed to bring out the full depth and texture of vocals — not surprising, as it is the same unit found in KEF’s upmarket Q and XQ series. On either side is a matching pair of long-throw bass drivers with ultra-low distortion, short coil/long gap motors for low frequency response –—which, with KEF’s Acoustic Compliance Enhancement technology, is claimed to add a level of bass extension normally only obtainable from much larger speakers. Designed to complement modern interiors, there is the option of wall brackets or infinitely adjustable desk or floor stands with stand-mounted terminals connecting to the drivers via a sliding track system. Available separately, and with a choice of compatible powered subwoofers, the user is free to adapt the setup to personal preferences. The speakers are sold individually to allow users to configure their ideal multi-channel system and will retail for £500 each. The adjustable height floor stands and brackets are £125 each and £100 each respectively. The choice of subwoofer for KHT9000 ACE system depends more on individual taste than the size of the listening area. The on-board power amplifier in the PSW3000 subwoofer is rated at 300 watt, driving a large 250mm long-throw cone. With audiophile-grade internal components and output, phase and low-pass filter frequency are fully adjustable via RF remote control, the 3D soundscape is said to be held within a deep and clear bass response. Alternatively, there is the top-end PSW4000, which boasts 500 watt of high-efficiency Class D power and a 300mm long-throw cone in a hand-finished wood cabinet of furniture standard.
KEF Audio UK, 01622 672261

TEAC has introduced a silver- finished CD-radio, the SR-L50, which forms part of the new TEAC Compact Audio range. The remote-controlled SR-L50 combines a quartz PLL synthesized AM/FM stereo tuner, a digital clock with sleep and daily timer and a compact-disc player, supporting CD, CD-R and CD-RW. There is an easy-to-read LCD, featuring a neat theatre-dimming facility, while a 3.5mm chrome-plated headphone jack and an auxiliary input make the unit more versatile, as well as pop-up knobs for tuning and volume control to prevent you accidently tuning out or turning it up to its full 15W output. Music performance is enhanced further by a built-in subwoofer with variable bass control.
TEAC UK, 01923 819630
www.teac.co.uk

Building on the success of its existing high-end DVD players, Arcam has released the DV78. An affordable enthusiast-level machine with the video performance of the DV88 Plus, the DV78 supports both interlaced and progressive video outputs including 625p PAL. Designed and built in the UK, it features a new single four-layer main circuit board and revised power supply, while a 32-bit Zoran audio DSP and a 24-bit, 192kHz Wolfson WM8740 DAC serve analogue outputs.The unit is housed in a sturdy heavy-gauge steel and aluminium cabinet featuring front-panel navigation buttons – so you can still use your £700 machine even when the new and improved slim-line remote control has slipped down the back of the sofa.
Arcam UK, 01223 203 203
www.arcam.co.uk

Tivoli Audio’s UK distributor, Ruark Acoustics, has announced details of the Model Three Clock Radio, an analogue clock featuring GaAs MES-FET mixers, 5:1 ratio analogue tuning dial, and the same inputs and outputs as the Tivoli Model Two radio. The Model Three features a 20-minute sleep timer, snooze button, a sleek thumbwheel to set the alarm time, and the option to wake to the alarm or radio. Offered in metallic taupe or cherry, it costs £200 and comes with an external FM antenna and an AC power supply.
Ruark Acoustics, 01702 601410
www.tivoliaudio.com

Priced at just £700, the NAIT 5i is the latest version of the classic integrated amplifier from Naim Audio. Combined with the new CD5i CD player (at £825), this model has effectively lowered the entry-level point to build a Naim system. The 5i extends the NAIT’s versatility by offering RCA phono sockets for all four line-level inputs, as well as the company’s preferred DIN inputs. Advertised at 50W/ch (8 ohm) it will be the most powerful NAIT ever, addressing another hitherto criticism of the modestly powered design, and even claims 500W peak power into a 1 ohm load. The new design is said to be usable with a wide range of interconnects and speaker cables.The input labelled ‘av’ can be configured as a unity-gain feed, allowing easy integration with a surround-sound processor such as Naim’s own AV2. While the NAIT 5i replaces the NAIT 5, the CD5i CD player will be offered alongside the preceding CD5 (£1200). The drawer and transport suspension are borrowed from the CDX2, while the replay/contol software is taken from the reference CDS3. Continuing the trend of recent Naim product releases, the CD5i will also include phono socket outputs next to the five-pin DIN output.
Naim Audio, 01722 332266
www.naim-audio.com

Two versions of the Concerto interconnect are available from the brand founded by Graham Nalty and formerly known as Sonic Link. The standard Concerto — using regular gold-plated RCA phono plugs — has an asymetrical configuration of two 0.5mm and one 1mm conductors, with the ‘return’ signal carried on a single 1mm wire. The conductors are actually solid-core nickel, individually insulated with PTFE. A variant on this cable is the Concerto Bullet, using Eichmann Bullet Plug terminations, and a different cable topology. Two solid nickel conductors of 0.5mm and 1mm are used for ‘send’, and the same again for ‘return’. Concerto and Concerto Bullet are priced at £135 and £187 respectively for a 1m pair.
Black Rhodium, 01332 31390 www.blackrhodium.co.uk

From the creators of the Qube, SubStation and Mini Sub comes a new product to clean up mains power. The PowerStation is the company’s most ambituous unit yet, as it will regenerate a pure 50Hz AC cycle, (or 67.5, 80 or 100Hz for special applications, the former allowing direct 45rpm replay of a 33rpm-ready AC motor’d turntable). It uses a combination of power factor corrected switch-mode PSU, quartz-locked signal generator, full-bridge inverter, and output isolation transformers to provide four independent 80VA supplies. Separate step-up transformers are used for each outlet. Housed in an eye-catching metal chassis, the PowerStation is convection-, rather than fan-cooled, and includes digital monitoring circuits to keep track of the unit’s temperature. In the event of overheating, a failsafe will shut the PowerStation down safely. Another monitor tracks incoming input voltage and frequency, and it can be powered up remotely by the custom installers’ usual 12V trigger. The 20kg PowerStation includes a 25 year guarantee, and costs £2800.
Activ Distribution, 01635 291357
www.isoteksystems.com

A classic name from the 1980s British audio scene is being revived. Now known as Inca Designs but still using the talents of Inca Tech’s founder Colin Wonfor, the new company has announced the return of the Claymore integrated amplifier, along with another sword-inspired product, the Katana CD player. The Claymore and Katana are projected to sell for £1000 and £700 respectively. Inca Designs has also announced the Falcon pre-amp, Eagle power amplifier and Osprey class A monoblock power amplifiers. Distribution will be by Activ, whose other brands include Clearlight Audio, Isotek Systems and Lehmann Audio.
Activ Distribution, 01635 291357
www.activdistribution.com

Nordost UK has announced several new products: the 1m Silver Screen SCART lead costs £220, the 2m Shiva power cable costs £220, the 2m Vishnu power cable costs £450, while the 2m Valhalla power cable costs £1750.
Nordost UK, 01352 730251

London has a new Decca cartridge available through Presence Audio, as seen at the Hi-Fi Show & AV Expo. The new London Reference is priced at £2000. Mono LP and 78 rpm versions are available to order.
Presence Audio, 01444 461611

One-For-All has added several new ‘learning’ remote controls to its range. The Kameleon 4 can operate up to four devices and costs £50. Lesser versions are available for £13–£20.
One-For-All, 01444 46161

Winner of our September ’03 competition prize, a £2500 REL Stentor III subwoofer, was Mr J Jacques of West London.