News

Loudspeakers are easily the most popular sector of the hi-fi market right now, with more models vying for our attention than we can shake a stick at. A quick flick through the pages of this month’s issue is testament to this flourishing sector, with models of all different shapes and sizes designed to help you find the one that best fits your environment and meets your particular music needs. From the new Q Acoustics Concept 500 flagship floorstander using the latest cabinet construction and resonance control techniques, to seventies retro cool with the first model from Tannoy’s new Legacy line and the rebirth of the Eaton standmount, there’s plenty of different designs to tantalise the audio taste buds. But it’s the speaker that first got us started along the hi-fi path that so often holds a special place in our hearts.

It is now 50 years since The Doors released their startling debut LP, which unleashed the audacious and unsettling poetic visions of Jim Morrison on an unsuspecting world – and a flurry of Doors-related activity is underway to mark this rather auspicious anniversary. The group’s self-titled debut album is being reissued this month in a new three-disc deluxe edition, featuring remastered mono and stereo mixes and previously unheard live versions of eight of the original album’s 11 songs, recorded just as the band was on the verge of superstardom (see p100). It follows closely on the heels of the release of London Fog 1966, an historic album of recently unearthed live recordings from a gig in a club on Sunset Strip shortly before the group signed its first recording contract. That the music of the Doors continues to exert such a profound and far-reaching influence on our collective psyche so long after the event is in stark contrast to the group’s active lifespan, which – even by the ephemeral standards of rock and roll – was extraordinarily brief and fleeting.

Thanks to the large number of you that shared pictures with us of your vinyl setups in response to last month’s Twitter poll asking whether or not you own a record player. The result of the poll shows that 65 percent of respondents do indeed have a turntable, with a further 10 percent looking to discover or return to the format soon. Receiving the pics of your systems on our Facebook and Twitter feeds was very enlightening and provided a clear demonstration of the level of equipment owned along with the care and attention lavished upon turntables. With this in mind, we felt it was a perfect time to look more closely at moving-coil cartridges, and this month’s Group Test compares six upmarket MC pick-ups (£650-£1,000), designed to make a significant upgrade to your vinyl replay.

Considerably smaller than its first digital audio player, the new DP-S1 follow-up model from Onkyo is milled from a solid block of black aluminium and boasts 16GB of built-in memory, which can be expanded to 416GB thanks to its twin MicroSD card slots. Underthe hood there are dual ES9018C2M ESS SABRE DAC chipsets, ensuring that the player can support DSD 2. 8MHz and 5. 6MHz, FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF (up to a maximum of 32-bit/192kHz), AAC and MP3.

German manufacturer sonoro has unveiled the sonoroHIFI flagship audio system. Costing £1,299, the new all-in-one incorporates a CD player, FM/DAB/DAB+ tuner and aptX-capable Bluetooth so that it can stream music from mobile devices. Additional connections include RCA, optical and a 3. 5mm aux input for hooking up other sources such as a TV or portable media player.

Refreshing the design of its Model One – and adding streaming and multi-room capability in the process – Tivoli Audio has unveiled what it describes as its “table-top radio for the music streaming age”. The result is a stylish single-box solution that can be utilised for listening to DAB or FM radio, connecting to suitably equipped mobile devices using Bluetooth or streaming from services like Spotify via wi-fi. The Model One Digital’s high-resolution screen and multi-operational dial combine to make music selection a breeze, while the specially designed app allows the sharing of Spotify Connect, Tidal, Deezer, QQ and TuneIn playlists or selections alongside local audio content on devices like smartphones, tablets and NAS drives. There’s also a 3.