Hi-Fi Choice

Since the demise of the iPod Classic and the rise of the smartphone as the portable audio device of choice for the majority of users, the digital audio player market has struggled to flourish. This hasn’t stopped some specialists from carving out a niche, though, and Astell&Kern has been offering a considerable range of high-end players for some time. With an eye on keeping things in the real world, the A&norma SR15 is at A&K’s more affordable end of its extensive product range and is £100 more than the AK70 (HFC 428) that’s more recently been updated to mkII. The specification of the SR15 improves on the AK70 mkII and it’s fitted with 64GB of internal memory, which is supplemented by the inclusion of a microSD card slot for a card up to 400GB.

Damping pucks fulfil a number of useful functions, such as helping to keep the surface flat during vinyl playback or by adding to the rotation mass to reduce instantaneous speed changes when tracking loud passages of music and limiting record slippage. The DPS claims to go one further by collecting and removing unwanted vibrations during playback.

Danish loudspeaker company Dynaudio has introduced its five-strong Evoke Series, which includes two standmounts, two floorstanders and a dedicated centre for multi-channel setups. Designed at its purpose-built R&D facility in Skanderborg, the series fits the same new 28mm Cerotar tweeter with Hexis inner dome to all models. All Evoke drivers were developed alongside the company’s more upmarket Contour and Confidence loudspeaker designs and employ strong ferrite+ magnets as well as the company’s proprietary MSP (Magnesium Silicate Polymer) cones to its bass drivers. The Evoke 10 (£1,250) is a two-way standmount with a 140mm mid/bass driver, while the 20 (£1,800) employs a 180mm mid/bass driver.

One event that really caught our eye at last year’s busy Hi-Fi Show Live was the unveiling of Copland’s CTA408 hybrid integrated amplifier that utilises both valve and solid-state circuitry. Unlike many other manufacturers, Copenhagen-based Copland prefers to do things differently and the CTA408 is based around an arrangement usingthe latest KT150 output valves and its own output transformers, offering a power stage rated a 2x 75W into4 and 8ohm that’s equipped with a special startup procedure designed to prolong valve life. Measuring 435 x 220 x 460mm (WxHxD) and weighing 26kg, it offers four line-level inputs and a tape loop, plus a fully shielded phono stage that has dedicated moving-magnet and moving-coil inputs and a solid-state circuitry design said to use 100+ discrete components. A dedicated Class A headphone amplifier is also built in, and the 6.