Hi-Fi Choice

Music buyers’ craving for vinyl is insatiable across every genre, but horror movie soundtrack collectors have never been better served. Public-service labels such as One Way Static, Mondo, Waxwork Records, Blackest Rainbow, Silva Screen and Death Waltz continue to raid the movie crypts, emerging into the light with dusty reels of scores from the sixties, seventies and beyond – some forgotten; others legendary; many previously unreleased; increasing numbers seminal. To put the current cream of the crop into context, we need to go back to the beginning…

Italian maestro Sonus faber has announced a new loudspeaker collection. Like all its models, the Sonetto range is handcraftedin Vicenza, and the new lineup sits between the company’s existing Venere and Olympica loudspeaker collections. With five models sold as stereo pairs, it includes two standmount and three floorstander designs, plus two home cinema centre speakers and an on-wall model for multi-channel installations. Starting with the Sonetto I (£1,450), the smallest standmount is a two-way configuration ported cabinet measuring 219 x 359 x 305mm (WxHxD) fitted withthe company’s 29mm DAD (Damped Apex Dome) tweeter and a 150mm mid/bass driver that claims 87dB sensitivity and 4ohm nominal impedance.

Having played a big part in the low-cost DAC revolution with the likes of its acclaimed xDSD portable DAC/headphone amplifier (HFC 439), iFi Audio has turned its attention to the home and studio market with its latest addition to its flagship audio component series. The Pro iDSD DAC/headphone amp/preamp brings together tried-and-tested techniques combined with cutting-edge, 21st-century technology. A hi-res DAC/preamp, wi-fi streamer and headphone amplifier, it claims an array of sonic tailoring facilities including DSD remastering, which upsamples PCM and DSD files to DSD512 or DSD1024, and a switchable valve/solid-state output stage. Input decoding is handled by an XMOS XU216 X-Core 200 Series processor and the chassis has a comprehensive range of galvanically isolated digital inputs, including USB (Types A and B), S/PDIF (optical/coaxial) and AES-EBU, plus Ethernet and microSDHC card support.

Designed and built in the UK, Mitchell & Johnson has announced the launch of its 800 Series of hi-fi components. The first two products to be unveiled in the new flagship series are the S800 preampwith multi-input DAC and phono stage, and matching S815 power amp – both priced £1,299 each. A matching CD player is expectedto follow in November.