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Audiolab’s 8200CD CD player won a well-deserved Recommended badge back in HFC 340, and now its long-awaited successor, the 8300CD, spearheads the all-new 8300 Series, which also includes the 8300A – a completely redesigned update of its original integrated amp. Available in silver or black, the 8300CD is built around the Sabre32 9018 DAC which, it’s claimed, reduces jitter to the levels expected from a much more expensive player. It processes data up to 32-bit/384kHz via USB, and also accepts DSD files, while a full range of inputs and outputs have been retained from the original models, along with an AES/EBU digital input and XLR digital output. The 8300A has a dual-mono power amplifier section delivering 75W into 8ohm and is powered by a 300VA toroidal transformer.

Want to find a way of getting your music distributed around the home without going down the Sonos (or the like) route, yet desire the same kind of multi-room integration using more traditional audio components? Yamaha's MusicCast range of products has arrived with the aim of doing just this. With its own multi-room standard integratedinto its new series of hi-fi components, soundbars and AV receivers, it allows audio to be shared over wired and wireless networks as well as using Bluetooth and AirPlay through connected devices. If the MusicCast name sounds familiar, it's because it is the monicker (but not the tech) that was also given to the brand's hard-disk-based system launched in 2003. With 23 MusicCast products announced – including the MCR-N670D micro system (£700) pictured – there looks to be plenty of component options to enable customers to quickly establish a multi-room setup and share any input on any MusicCast device with any other around the home.

Schumann’s rarely recorded Das Paradies und die Peri featuring a superb lineup of soloists is set to becomeSir Simon Rattle's debut recording on LSO Live with the release of this special boxset containing two SACDs and a Pure Audio Blu-ray disc. Well known as a champion of this rarely heard work, this is the first audio recording Rattle has made of Schumann’s great oratorio. As Sir Simon Rattle says: "It’s the great masterpiece you’ve never heard, and there aren’t many of those now. .

Abbey Road Studios will host a new series of public lectures from November entitled ‘Sleeve Notes: From Mono to Infinity,’ and presented by acclaimed and influential music producer and recording engineerAlan Parsons. Parsons – who is indelibly linked to Abbey Road for his work with Pink Floyd, The Beatles and his own music with The Alan Parsons Project – willchart the development of his own skills and experience as an engineer, producer and recording artist alongside the developments in music technology at Abbey Road that enabled the creative envelope to be continuously pushed, resulting in groundbreaking, inspirational and timeless recordings. He will share his first-hand experiences – both anecdotal and educational – of his time working with the artists who passed through the iconic studios’ doors. The talks will incorporate audio recordings, video footage, photos and vintage studio equipment used to create classic tracks.

Pure has announced details of its new line of digital and internet radios with Bluetooth connectivity. The new line up includes: theEvoke F3digital and internet radio with Bluetooth and Spotify Connect; the third generation of the One Mini, Midi and Maxi digital radiosand theEvoke C series – a range of all-in-one home audio systems. The Evoke F3 (pictured above) is a compact digital and internet table-top radio with with instant access to over 25,000 stations worldwide. It offersBluetooth connectivity and also has Spotify Connect for simple music streaming.

It’s just over 12 months since we looked at luxury headphones in a Group Test, but the market has grown so rapidly in the past year that we felt it was time to revisit this increasingly popular sector once again to compare six of the most significant home-use designs that are grabbing the headlines today. The rise of the once humble headphone has been well documented in these pages, and has been fuelled partly by a passion for music on the move and fashionistas wearing trendsetting cans. But there are several other reasons closer to home for the expanding headphone market, that has seen it reach audio fans who are turning to a pair of quality ear speakers as their transducer of choice. In a perfect world, we wouldn’t need headphones for home listening at all.

Atlas Cables has announced the release of its new updated Ascent Ultra interconnect and Ascent XLR cable. Hand-built at its factory in Kilmarnock, the Ascent Ultra uses a fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP), which is extruded around the bare OCC copper conductors. This process, says Atlas, allows the required geometry of the conductor within the dielectric to be maintained and offers greater manufacturing consistency and wider bandwidth. The Ultra Plug has a claimed 57 percent reduction in mass over its predecessor and includes solder-free construction, self-cleaning insertion and material consistency that helps, says Atlas, to deliver the best fidelity.