Happy Monday and welcome to the latest entry into the What Hi-Fi? team’s weekly Rewind news digest, where we dive into the top hi-fi and home cinema headlines you need to know about.
The Holidays may be fast approaching but that hasn’t stopped the news flooding in. Last week we saw everything from a new Dolby Atmos rival to new cutting edge SACD players appear.
Here’s what you need to know.
Musical Fidelity launched its second premium turntable
Music Fidelity launched its second premium turntable, the M6xTT last week. It’s the follow up to the firm’s M8xTT which first launched all the way back in 2002.
The M6xTT aims to offer the same core DNA as the M8xTT but in a more compact, wallet-friendly package. At its heart it features the same belt-driven design, with a dual-layer acrylic plinth that naturally isolates the tonearm and bearing assembly from the motor. This plus its four magnetic feet with Teflon spacers aim to radically improve its stability and resonance control.
There are differences, however. Due to its size there's a smaller 9-inch tonearm. It’s also a lot cheaper, with the M6xTT set to retail for £4799 / $tbc / AU$9000. The original M8xTT costs £8,249 / $9,999 / AU$18,000, by comparison.
Read the full story: The M6xTT turntable is more gorgeous acrylic from Musical Fidelity – just in a smaller and cheaper package
We finished reviewing the Cyrus 40 ST
Last week we finished reviewing the Cyrus 40 ST, a premium streamer designed for serious music fans. For those that missed the original 40-series news, the 40 ST is one of four new products in Cyrus' new range. There’s also a 40 AMP, 40 CD and 40 PSU.
If you were to take a glance at its specifications sheet you’d notice a few omissions, chief of which are a lack of Chromecast and DSD file support – though the latter omission is expected to be fixed soon via a software update.
But hooking the 40 ST up to our reference Burmester 088/911 Mk III amplifier and ATC SCM50 speakers we found these omissions are more than forgivable for one key reason: the unit sounds great. Whether it was fast paced jazz, precise classical arrangements or booming 12-bar blues, the unit delivered an expressive, punchy and exciting sound with plenty of rhythmic drive.
Hence our reviewers’ five-star rating and verdict: “We’re no strangers to fine-sounding Cyrus products, but this 40 ST streamer surprises us with its breadth of talent and even-handed nature. It doesn’t favour any particular type of music and is a strong enough all-rounder to shine in a wide range of systems.”
Read our full Cyrus 40 ST review
Denon launched a CD/SACD player
People have been talking about the “CD revival” for a while and last week Denon got in on the action, unveiling its new CD/SACD player, the Reference series DCD-3000NE.
Denon claims the Reference series DCD-3000NE has been tuned to "reveal unprecedented sonic detail in all of your favorite music". And, based on its specifications, it’s certainly an interesting unit.
Highlights include a 'high-performance' 32-bit/384kHz DAC in a quad configuration that’s backed up by Denon’s own Ultra AL32 Processing for upsampling audio signals.
We’re yet to get a sample in for testing so can’t comment on its actual performance, but if you don’t want to wait for our review you can pick the player up now for £2200 / $2999 / €2500.
Read the full story: Denon's premium CD/SACD player aims to deliver "truest sonic reproduction" from your digital audio collection
Dolby Atmos is getting a new rival
Spatial audio is a growing topic with everyone from Apple to Bose talking about it. Last week, UK-based firm Audioscenic revealed it wanted a cut of the action, and unveiled a new Amphi Hi-D® spatial audio standard designed to take on Dolby Atmos and DTS:X.
At launch it's focused on laptops and monitors, though the company has confirmed it wants to bring it to soundbars in the not too distant future. Audoscenic claims the standard is different to Atmos as it leverages its proprietary "position-adaptive" technology to deliver "consistent 3D audio regardless of the listener’s movements".
We’re yet to listen to Amphi Hi-D® so can’t comment on its performance yet. But the standard is set to make its debut in the physical world at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where we’ll be on hand and hopefully get a chance to get an opening listen with it. Stay tuned for our findings.
Read the full story: There's a new Dolby Atmos rival in town – and it has its eyes on soundbars
MORE:
These are the best music streamers we've reviewed
We rate the best record players
Our picks of the best CD players
