Category: News

Today Linn has launched their most powerful amplifier ever – the Klimax Solo 800 Monoblock.

As its name suggests, it has a power output of 800 watts into a 4 ohm load. However, as the saying goes, power is nothing without control. Klimax Solo 800 ensures any speaker, no matter how difficult the load, can perform to its full potential. At normal listening levels, Klimax Solo 800 has a Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise ratio that is around a hundred times better than other similarly priced amplifiers.

Innovations in the design of the Solo 800 which enable this leap in performance include:

• A new, high power version of the Utopik Switch Mode Power Supply that has transformed the performance of Linn source components recently. In Klimax Solo 800, the Utopik can provide up to 2,000 watts of stable power to drive the amplifier, regardless of mains voltage and quality.
• Adaptive Bias Control to minimise transistor crossover distortion. In common with most high powered, high fidelity amplifiers today, the Solo 800 is a Class AB design, which uses multiple output transistors (16 in this case). For a Class AB amplifier to sound its best and have a long lifespan, there is a bias current that needs to be adjusted to an optimal level. This is normally only done when an amplifier is built or serviced and tends to drift over time. Adaptive Bias Control allows Klimax Solo 800 to continually adjust its own bias current to each of the 16 transistors which keeps crossover distortion to an absolute minimum, no matter what the age or temperature of the internal components.
• Well designed, cool running circuits and thermodynamically efficient casework mean that Klimax Solo does not need the cooling fan that competitor products depend upon.

Following on from the success of Naim’s New Classic 200 series, we are delighted to have the 300 series available for demonstration by appointment at our Ascot showroom.

Consisting of the NSS 333 streamer, the NAC 332 Pre-amplifier, and the NAP 350 monoblock power amplifiers the New Classic 300 takes Naim’s performance to the next level.

A separate MM/MC phono stage is available, along with a matching power supply.

This year it is the fiftieth anniversary of the Linn LP12 – a product that revolutionised the way that hi-fi was demonstrated and sold by challenging the conventional wisdom that loudspeakers were the most important part of the hi-fi chain, and encouraging customers to trust their ears when making buying decisions.

The LP12 is still in production today, it’s modular design allowing even a fifty year old turntable to be upgraded, piece by piece, to the latest specification.

To celebrate this landmark anniversary Linn has teamed up with LoveFrom – a design agency run by Sir Jony Ives, formerly lead designer of many iconic Apple products.

The LP12-50 features the new Bedrok™ plinth, formed from layers of beech compressed under extreme pressure to create a solid and heavy plinth with minimal resonances to isolate the turntable mechanics.

LP12-50 also has Sir Jony’s trademark rounded corners, a new machined control button, and – refining the one part of the LP12 that really needed refining – new lid hinges, crafted in Scotland.

There will be just 250 of these turntables produced, at £50,000 each. To register your interest please visit https://www.linn.co.uk/uk/turntables/lp12-50

To celebrate their fiftieth anniversary, Naim has introduced a limited edition version of their first integrated amplifier – the NAIT1.

The NAIT 50 is a modern day re-incarnation of Naim’s first integrated amplifier, the NAIT 1 from 1983. Today’s version has replaced the Tuner input with a Streamer input, and new version includes a high quality 1.5 watt headphone amplifier instead of the balance control on the original. The main amplifier is 25 watts per channel, with a peak output of 225 watts allowing it to comfortably drive most loudspeakers. A quality moving magnet phono stage with discrete circuitry is also built in.

The NAIT 50 is a limited edition product – just 1,973 will be produced with a retail price of £2699. We are expecting delivery at the end of July but if you’d like to reserve one now please get in touch.

We are delighted to have the first products from Naim’s New Classic 200 Series on demonstration by appointment in our Ascot showroom.

The NSC222 streaming pre-amplifier can handle digital signals with a bitrate of up to 32bit/284kHz, and has access to all the major streaming services such as Qobuz, Spotify and Tidal. It also has the facility to listen to radio stations from around the world via the internet.

A high quality Moving Magnet phono stage is built in, so you can connect your turntable and give your records a new lease of life. If you want to keep your music to yourself, a headphone output using technology derived from the award winning Atom Headphone Edition is included.

It can be partnered with the latest version of the iconic NAP250 power amplifier, delivering 100 watts of Class A/B power per channel to really get the best out of your loudspeakers.

Also newly available is the NPX300 power supply, which will enhance the performance of the NSC222 and many other Naim products past and present by virtue of the 6 Discrete Regulator (DR) technology.

Our favourite loudspeaker manufacturer, Kudos Audio, has today announced a eco-friendly finish for its Titan Loudspeaker range.
Liquid Amber veneer is responsibly harvested from the fast-growing Liquidambar styraciflua tree, native to the south-east USA, before being finished with a soft sheen and hard-wearing lacquer to ensure that the loudspeakers look great for many years to come.

Following on from the award winning Dione soundbar earlier this year, Devialet has today launched the Mania rechargeable speaker.
With up to 10 hours of playback on a single charge, the Mania features a unique adaptive cross-stereo system that ensures you hear stereo sound wherever the unit is positioned. Like Devialet’s Phantom, the Mania utilises Devialet’s push-push woofer configuration to deliver impressively powerful bass, and it is the first Alexa-compatible Devialet product.
Mania is available for you to try today by appointment at Hidden Systems.

Linn has replaced the Akurate LP12 with the new Selekt LP12. This deck features the new Arko 7075-grade aluminium gimballed tonearm and the Kendo moving coil (MC) cartridge, along with:

• Karousel single point bearing
• Kore aluminium sub-chassis bonded to a machined-from-solid armboard
• Trampolin suspended aluminium base board
• Lingo 4 power supply

The Arko and Kendo are both separately retro-fittable to any LP12, allowing you to take advantage of the recent developments in materials technology and engineering expertise no matter how old your LP12 is.

Call us to arrange your demonstration today.