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Introducing Clearaudio's latest addition to its entry-level family of moving-coil cartridges, the Essence MC. Clearaudio has been researching into moving-coil technology since 1978 and the design team found itself facing quite a challenge when tasked with developing a brand new cartridge that would improve on the existing entry-level Concept MC, without breaking a key price point. By taking the essence of the Concept MC design and applying even more stringent parameters to key elements of its construction, the German manufacturer believes it might just have come up trumps. Like the Concept MC, the Essence MC’s body is constructed from a high-density aluminium-magnesium alloy, which is then coated with a ceramic layer to minimise resonance.

Danish loudspeaker designer Vifa has unveiled its latest product, a portable Bluetooth speaker with a distinctly Scandinavian flavour. Constructed from a single-piece of diecast aluminium (dimensions 181 x 268 x 90mm – wxhxd), the Oslo generates its sound from a pair of 50mm full-range drivers with aluminium cones and neodymium magnets alongside a pair of 65mm woofer drivers with flat sandwich core and neodymium magnets. The woofers are mechanically mounted back to back in a force balanced configuration supported by a brace of passive radiators. There's a 3.

Getting its first official showing at the High End Show in Munich, Cyrus has unveiled its new ONE integrated amplifier. It’s not the first time that the Huntingdon firm has given the ‘1’ model name to an integrated amplifier, and the original Cyrus 1 some 30 years ago provided the footprint for its compact range of components that continue today. The reimagined ONE has a distinctly contemporary aesthetic with two large front panel controls for source selection and volume level control. Internally it offers a claimed 2x 100W maximumpower output and utilises the third generation of the company’s hybrid Class D technology with automatic Speaker Impedance Detection (SID) circuit to instantly measure the speaker impedance connected to its bi-wire-compatible speaker binding posts and to adjust the amplifier to suit.

Formula One motor racing and loudspeaker design might seem worlds apart, but a clear understanding of aerodynamics and the effects of air turbulence and drag is one of the key considerations in the design of PMC's Advanced Transmission Line bass loading, found in its new twenty5 series of loudspeakers. PMC's headof design, Oliver Thomas, has some experience in the motor sport, and has used his knowledge to develop an aerodynamic Advanced Transmission Line (ATL) bass loading Laminair vent that's employed in the five-strong loudspeaker series to reduce resistance and increase efficiency. Additional innovations incorporated throughout the new series include a new long-throw mid/bass driver with woven glass fibre cones, as well as refinements to its established Sonolex fabric dome tweeter to improve dispersion for a wider soundstage, says PMC. As with previous speakers from the company, the new series has slopping front and rear baffles.

When it comes to choosing how to listen to your favourite music there area number of different options available. You can go with a traditional loudspeaker hooked up to your system via cables, you can go down the wi-fi route with a digital music system, you can stream your sounds to a Bluetooth speaker or you can lose yourself in a world of your own and put on a pair of headphones. This month, the kind folk at KEF offer up a prize for each of these eventualities, meaning that no matter what way you choose to listen, you can be sure of great sound quality. The first prize in our bumper giveaway is the rather gorgeous LS50 standmount loudspeaker.

Former HFC editor and current reviewer, David Price, recently met up with Musical Fidelity's ownerAntony Michaelson for a chat about the Musical Fidelity Encore 225 streaming music system. Here's what happened. . .