Atlas Mavros interconnect

Atlas cables have been a bit of a revelation. We took on the range about 6 months ago and have been totally staggered by how well they perform. Some of their budget end designs have been winning various, quite prestigeous awards, but for us, it's the top end which has been the most impressive.

Asimi has become our high end cable of choice,  but if you are not at the extreme top end of the hifi world, then Mavros is a substantially cheaper alternative. Mavros uses a lot of the technology found in Asimi, but uses copper not silver .... this is the main reason for the price advantage, but dont be fooled into thinking that this is any more cheaply constructed, the build is exceptional and the quality of the copper second to none.

As with Asimi, Mavros gives music such a sense of 'reality' that it can be quite a shock .... but it doesn't fall into the trap of being open and detailed at the expense of character or soul

You really should try it out for yourself .... Atlas cables are very compatible (unlike a lot of high end) and even sound brilliant with Naim Audio

See the range here :

http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Atlas.html

On the Jig today .. Linn Sondek Ittok / K18ii

In for service recently

This Linn came in with intermittent speed and poor sound .... nice condition for the year, manufactured in around 1985. The normal issue with Linns around this age tends to be a failing Valhalla board, this can be repaired, but as there are a few better alternatives out there we tend to fit either a Hercules board ... or a Heed Orbit kit

In this case we fitted a  Hercules .... this, as well as offering a punchier more musical sound, also gives the option of electronic 33/45 speed change ... quite a bonus on the 33 only Sondek. Linn used to offer a larger 45 sleeve to fit over the 33 pulley to step up the speed, but it was a clunky solution.

The old K18mk2 had to go, as at 18+ years old it sounded dreadful. This has been replaced with a Rega Elys2, which suits the Ittok really well and has a very 'Linn like' presentation

After a full strip down and rebuild, the sound was nicely back to what you would expect ... a well tuned LP12 is still a hard act to follow !

If you have any queries re Sondek servicing/repair ... ring Philip on 01270 582154

Stax SR404 Signature Headphones secondhand

Just taken in an immaculate pair of Stax SR404 Signatures - quite a sought after model

For sale now on Ebay

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=251383607868

So bid away!

Lyra Dorian .... last chance to buy!

The Lyra Dorian was officially finished as a model a couple of years ago ... but Lyras UK importer managed to buy the rights to 50 or so more cartridges that would be produced solely for the UK market

We have stock of the very last of these cartridges ... parts have now run out and there are only 5 left!

The Lyra Dorian - £649

So, as the cheapest Lyra available after these have gone will be the £1000 Delos, this may be your last chance to own a Lyra at such an affordable price.

See the range here

http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Lyra.html

Or ring us on 01270 580734

Lyra Atlas - Worlds first asymmetric MC cartridge

Lyra have a new flagship model

The new Atlas has been designed to have an asymmetric structure, having different shaped components on the left and right sides suppresses the tendency for standing waves to develop. The resulting lower resonance leads to a cleaner more precise sound due to a lower noise floor ... all good news

As with the previous top model the Titan i, the Atlas uses a titanium body that is carved from a solid billet ... through obsessive attention to detail, avoidance of parallel surfaces and keeping dimensions unique and not multiples of others, makes the body supremely inert.

All this obsession comes at a price of £7495 ... but as you would expect from Lyra, it's worth every penny

See the range here

http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Lyra.html

Atlas Element Integra interconnect - What Hifi Awards

 

We have just had conformation that the Atlas Element Integra interconnect has again won 'Best analogue interconnect' in the What Hifi Awards

 

For a hand crafted product like the Element to win in 2012 against mass produced competition at this price was quite a feat ... but to win again in this years 2013 awards just proves how far ahead Atlas are in this market. Not only do they produce (in my opinion) the best available interconnect and speaker cable combination in the Asimi ... but they are also head and shoulders above the competition at the more affordable end of the range.

 

 

If you would like to try out any of the excellent Atlas range of interconnects.... or speaker cables .. give us a call on 01270 580734

see the Element here :- http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Atlas.html

Atlas Cables

Just had a nice big delivery of Atlas interconnects ... and an Asimi loom for a very lucky customer

.... Give us a call if you want to try some out

Atlas are becoming the new dominant force at the mid to high end of the market .... but they still take the budget end seriously too ... the Element Interconnects keep winning award after award!

http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Atlas.html

Vienna Strauss with Sonority stands

We have a pair of Vienna Strauss on Ebay at the moment

Have a look, they may sell quite cheaply as big speakers are quite a difficult sell secondhand -

The Strausses are a bit of a hidden gem really, glorious big sound with realistic dynamics and extremely natural treble

One of my all time favourites!

See them here:

Link to Viennas on Ebay

Or ring me for details on 01270 580734

We are back!!!

After a couple of weeks of serious server issues we are now back!

Our original hosting company upgraded their servers and for some reason they didn't work properly with our site ... we have now been transferred to a new server, tested and retested and everything is working 100% .. Which is a relief

Many thanks to Teclan for sorting everything ... we only had about 12 hours down time in the end while the site repropagated itself onto the web

Server issues

Apologies if you are trying to buy from us via the Website and are getting error messages. The company who host our site have upgraded their servers and a few compatability issues need to be sorted out .... hopefully soon

You can still buy from us over the phone - 01270 580734

Stax Lambda Nova Classic - Secondhand

....and more secondhand Stax

We have just taken in a very nice condition pair of Stax Lambda Nova Basics and matching SRM Xh Energiser

These are listed separately on Ebay:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/251341184361?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/251341187297?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

Any questions feel free to contact us

More secondhand Stax Headphones

Bit of a rarity here .. Stax 'The New' SR-3 c.1974

'New' refers to them being an upgrade of the standard SR-3 .... wonderful condition and quite collectable

The SR-3 needs a standard Stax socket rather than the newer 'Pro' version

Stax 'The New' SR-3
 

We have these on Ebay at the moment .... bid away :-)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/251337000338?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

Also coming in ... Stax SR303 Basic and matching Energiser (which I can't remember the model of at the moment)

Any enquiries ring me on 01270 580734

Or email : mail@cheshireaudio.co.uk

Stax SR303 secondhand

Just put onto Ebay, one really nice pair of Stax SR303

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/251334357391?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

Have look and put in a bid :-)

More Van Den Hul for demonstration

We've just had another batch of Van Den Hul interconnects for demonstration .... dont be shy, give us a call if you want to try out one of these wonderful cables!

Van Den Hul interconnects
 

A great selection from this renowned manufacturer .. from the well reviewed The Wave to the quite incredible The Rock.

Call Philip on 01270 580734 if you want to try one out

Link to Van Den Hul interconnect page

Stax SR009 - more in stock!

We're back now after the summer break .... OK we didn't actually go anywhere as such, but generally the summer is not the time that Hifi folks think about buying and talking about equipment so things go very quiet ... hence the gap in blogging

First stock in for the new season :- two pairs of SR009 .. a very rare thing as the total UK allocation for all Stax dealers is four pairs a month!

Stax SR009

We also have quite a few bits of secondhand Stax that we need to sort out and advertise ... these will be shown on here first.

To find see more Stax headphones and perhaps buy a set of SR009 ... click here

Or if you want to trade in your headphones against a pair ring Philip on 01270 580734

or email mail@cheshireaudio.co.uk

Vandenhul Speaker cables

We are in the process of updating out Vandenhul speaker cable page

See the range here :

Link to Vandenhul Speaker cables

Van Den Hul Mainsserver and Mainstream Mains Leads

It's easy to forget about products when they fall out of the public eye. Vandenhul have had a few changes of importer over the past few years and have not really been promoted very well. They now have a new UK team in the shape of Flamingo Audio who promise great things for the brand.

Just as a little reminder ....

One of our best selling Mains leads a few years back was the VDH Mainserver and their higher end Mainstream. These were popular partly due to some big awards in the Audio press, but more importantly through our own tests and customer demos.

Both models are still available ... but now with more length options. In our opinion they are still the one of the ones to beat under £400.

Superb sounding cables that, due to some clever technology are very resistant to degradation due to bending.

Link to Vandenhul mains leads

Trichord Dino Phonostage

We have had much success with the Trichord Dino over the years. Excellent value and very upgradeable and adjustable.

The Dino can be taken from it's basic £350 form, up to a giant killing £899 twin box by adding the Dino + power supply. This is available in various forms including the renowned GEN2 Never Connected version

See the range here:

Trichord link

Atlas speaker cables

One of our favourite ranges of speaker cables

Almost unique in that they work extremely well with Naim amplifiers, which are renowned for not performing with anything other than Naims own NAC A5

The range performs consistantly above its price point, giving an open, musical sound ... its stability and compatability make it the perfect choice from quite basic systems through to Ultra High End.

See range here

Stax SR007 Omega Headphones secondhand

For sale

Stax SR007 Omega MK2 Headphones

These are a couple of months old and were traded in against a set of SR009

Stax SR007 MK2
 

Price £1500 - or see them on Ebay and put in a bid

Ebay link

Ring us on 01270 580734 for more information

Leema Elements Phonostage

We are now agents for the Leema Elements range

The first on is the wonderful little Elements Phonostage .... The small size of this unit hides some quite advanced circuitry taken from some of Leemas high end products. The result is a multi award winning unit which is gaining many friends.

Leema Elements Phonostage

Internally switchable for MM or MC and available in black or silver - price £495

Link to Leema page

Stax Headphones - SR009 now listed

We have now updated or Stax headphone page to include the Stax SR009 headset

Link to Stax Headphones

or for our general Stax page

http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Stax.html

Garrard SP25 Mk3

We get all sorts of interesting things in for service ....

On the bench today, one Bush Arena 'Music centre' fitted with the iconic Garrard SP25 turntable .... in this case the Mk3 version. Absolutely immaculate condition and easily 40 years old... only issue is the notorious Auto mechanism which seems to have developed a mind of its own.

 

Ok, not the last word in audiophile High Fidelity, but the 25 has earned its place in the Turntable hall of fame ..... I reckon that anybody who was bitten by the audio bug in the 70s and early 80s will have owned an SP25, Pioneer PL12D or a Dual CS505 at some time during their upgrade route to better things....and so, rather than turn this away and dismiss it as awkward to work on (which it is ) and not worth the effort, decided to give it the respect it deserves and break out the Isopropyl and grease and give it a good service.

Although the 25 is hellish complicated inside ... (the earlier models were purely manual and weren't saddled with the crazy muliple levers and springs of the auto) they are fairly reliable and generally only fail due to lack of use . which is the case here ... hardened grease and dry runners ...

Can't wait to fire it up ( I have the Bush Arena speakers here too :-) ) and revel in a bit of nostalgia

Stax SR009 - now in!!

At last, a pair of Stax 009 that we can call our own .... these will be put out for demonstration as soon as we have run them in .... it takes 150 hours so I may be some time :-)

Stax Omega SR007mk2 secondhand

Expected in soon:

Stax SR007mk2 headphones, around 6 months old

We'll post up a few photos and some more details when they arrive.

Price likely to be around £1500

Synergistic fuses in Naim Audio equipment

Ok, I can hear the dismissive comments already... £45 for a mains fuse? ... snake oil ... you can convince yourself of anything if you've paid that much... etc etc

But no, upgrading fuses is a very simple and fairly cheap way of pepping up you system. I was reminded of this last night after spending a few hours with a customer/friend who has a high end Naim set up. Naim systems are very difficult to 'tweek' they only really work with Naim sourced options .... this isn't a Naim sourced myth .. I've tried some really high end cables with Naim only to find that their own basic A5 cable worked better .... So, substituting fuses seemed like there would be potential for a wasted evening (in Hifi upgrade terms anyway)

We started of with a single 13a Synergistic SR20 fitted to the Thor mains distribution (one of the few of its type that works with Naim) ... Now, I've heard what fuses do before, but I still had a reservation due to Naims resistance to upgrades ... but the difference, even with just a single fuse, was quite spectacular....

Synergistic Research SR20 Mains Fuse

Bass was much more 'sculpted from the solid' and vocals separated from the mix in a very natural way. Overall the kind of improvement brought about by a major component upgrade ... We then moved on to replace fuses elsewhere, which stepped things up again, not quite to the same degree as the first, but very pleasing all the same.

The next move here is to try Synergistic internal fuses ... which I've never tried, but according to the importer they make a bigger difference than the mains versions!

link to Synergistic Fuses

Rega A2D Mini Fono - Phonostage

We have had a lot of success with the little Rega Mini Fono recently. At £89 it would seem like it is aimed just at the 'get you going' end of the market ... but actually this is quite a capable unit and is basically the same as the internal circuit used in the Rega Mira amplifier.

In typical Rega fashion, it performs way above it's price point ....

To keep things simple, the A2D is MM only and as you can see from the picture, if you use the screw heads for a scale reference, quite tiny.

Fairly straightforward 'in' and 'out' sockets and the A2D comes with an external power supply

The front panel has a USB socket .. which relates to the other feature of the Rega hinted at by the A2D designation.... you can also connect this unit up to a computer and record directly to the hard drive from your record player.

Cut and pasted below .. Regas explanation of how to do this :

To transfer vinyl to your PC You will need to install a digital audio editor. Such software is widely available as a free download (such as Audacity) from the internet. This is a simple interface which allows monitoring of volume and balance whilst transferring your audio to your PC hard drive.

Audio editing software includes a level meter which indicates the output level achieved when playing a piece of vinyl. You should adjust the output as necessary via the ‘Level’ control located on the front panel. Always take special note of record levels to ensure optimum recording quality.

Click here to visit our Rega Phonostage web page

Technics 1200 turntables

Just had a couple of Technics 1200 mk2s in for repair ... new arm assembly on one, both need a rewire ... plus both need new cueing lights. Not difficult, but very time consuming

The 1200 has always been looked down on in Audiophile circles, which is a shame as they are actually quite decent sounding decks. They are designed with a totally different set of criteria ... rapid start up, resistance to knocks etc .. all things that are pretty irrelevent for a great sounding turntable. But even so they manage to sound quite punchy.

Technics 1200

Picture shows first deck on the Linn Jig ready for disassembley.... a couple of mm too wide hence the adapter board underneath

Guru Speakers

We've been watching Guru for a while ... very interesting designs, a little remeniscent of 80's Royd speakers in sound (which is a massive compliment)



A few days ago we were approached by Guru and given a pair of Guru Juniors to play with

Review to follow

Rega 'upgrade' drive belt

If you have a Rega turntable and it's due a new belt ( 5 years is about as long as they work to spec) for a little extra you can upgrade to the higher performance 'Upgrade belt'. These used to be called the 'white' belt, but an early life improvement in spec, due to a change of manufacturer, resulted in more of a cream colour... which hasnt quite got the same ring to it.

Suitable for all Rega turntables ( except one version of the Planar 78....and according to Rega the original, and very rare 'Planet', though I'm not certain why this wouldn't work as it takes the same standard belt as the other models)

The sound improvement is quite obvious, more dynamic and musical and well worth the £21 price (only £9 more than the standard)

click here to see Rega Turntables and spares

Rothwell Attenuators

We now have the 'Source' versions of the Rothwell In-Line attenuators in stock

Until now these were only suitable for connecting into the amplifier end when used between source and amplifier .... which limited their use with certain amplifiers, such as Naim. The 'Source' version has the correct directional alignment to be connected at the CD end

Rothwell

Dont forget, the attenuators are not just for systems with too much gain, they can enhance the sound of any system, by allowing the preamp to work further up its range (where it is more accurate)

Buy a set here ..... send them back if they they dont work for you

http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Easy_Tweeks.html

Nordost Norse Bi-Wire Jumpers

This is a nice little upgrade

A few years ago there was a trend towards Bi-Wiring speakers ... the theory was that a bass driver will put a certain amount of EMF back into the crossover and this signal could get into the treble element and blur the sound. Separating the crossover into bass and treble with independant inputs and running a cable to each was the solution. This did work quite well with lower end designs, but with higher end systems with better designed crossovers and amplifiers with more bass control, Bi-wiring could actually sound worse. As is the way with trends though, manufacturers felt obliged to offer biwirings twin sockets on their speakers.

Most Biwirable speaker use 'Bus bars' to link the treble and bass inputs when being used with a single cable

These look very substantial, but are not actually particularly good conductors.

Swapping these for short bits speaker cable does improve things, but this can be very fiddly and hard to get a good connection.

The solution is to buy a dedicated high quality link like Nordosts Norse Jumper Link. Quite expensive for a short bit of cable, but they do make quite a noticable improvement which is more than worth the money

We have a loan set if you want to give some a go ..... ring to book a set on 01270 580734

Link to Nordost cables page

Grado Prestige cartridges

Grado have been around for a long time. I remember when I started in Hifi, one of the favoured budget cartidges at the time was the Grado GT Super. Compared to its peers (A&R C77 and the Nagaoka MP11) The Grado was punchy, yet refined too, which at the price was quite remarkable.

Over the years Grado slipped off the radar, I came across them again when I took on Grado headphones a few years ago .... they were on the listing so I added them to the site. They didn't seem to have changed much, the same body design, with Grado's unusual stylus fitting, I must admit I dismissed them as old fashioned and overpriced.

This week though I have had chance to revisit the range ... I have traded in two fairly new Grados. A Prestige Blue and  Prestige Gold ... I always run trade ins for a couple of days to check them out and I must say I was quite bowled over with how good the two models were. The Blue is very natural and open, with a tuneful bass. The Gold was the real star though, very dynamic with a superb extended bass and detailed and refined top end ... I tried a few of my awkward recordings but the Gold never sounded flustered .... and this is a £160 Magnet ... I'm tempted to leave it where it is for a bit

See the range here :

http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Grado.html

Synergistic Quantum fuses

Coming soon!!

We have just ordered a batch of Synergistic Quantum fuses to try....

After the demise of Furutechs range of mains fuses we need something to fill the gap left by the popular T13a

A test report will appear here shortly

WBT silver solder

For any project, good quality solder is a must .... the very best available is WBT silver solder. Available in reels as small as 42g, the difference in connection quality is quite audible on cable terminations and interconnects. If you are building your own amp the improvements would be quite  dramatic.

WBT silver solder
 

see it here

http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/WBT_Solder.html

Nordost cables - Price rise

Nordost have announced a price of around 5% across the range. This takes effect as of the 1st March 2013 ... which has already passed

We will need around 2 weeks to update our pricelists and upload them to the site, so any orders before this time will be at the old price.

So be quick!

Nordost Purple Flare .... 5% more expensive - very soon

 

http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Nordost2.html

Rega Carbon Cartridge

Rega have introduced a new cartridge.

The Carbon is based on the Audio Technica AT91 and comes with a high tech carbon cantilever. This is being supplied as standard fitment on the RP1 turntable, which it suits very well

Priced at £25.99 it represents tremendous value ... very reminiscent of the Audio Technica based Linn Basik cartridge from the 80s and 90s which totally dominated the budget market at the time.

Rega Carbon in Box
 

See it here : http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Rega.html

Bristol Hifi Show 2013

Here are a few pictures for the Bristol Hifi Show this year ... quite busy ,despite the bitterly cold weather and snow flurries, which is a good sign as Hifi show attendance seemed to be dwindling quite a bit over recent years.

Live band playing through McIntosh and Focal Utopias

Wilson Benesch room

Our friends at Rega ... and one of the better sounding rooms

Proper Tannoys!
 

Black Rhodium Speaker cable

We have just updated our speaker cable models and prices for Black Rhodium

See them here

http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/copy_of_copy_of_Black_Rhodium.html

Rega Elys 2 cartridge ideal replacement for Linn K9

We are getting through lots of Rega Planar 3 turntables in for service and upgrade. The most common request is to replace the (now ageing) Linn K9 cartridges, which were a favourite choice some years back.

The closest equivalent appears to be the Rega Elys2 .. very similar in presentation to the K9, clean and dynamic .. and it suits the Rega arm well. In this arm you can also take advantage of the Elys's three point mounting system, which makes alignment foolproof.

Very keenly priced at £119, the Elys is somewhat cheaper than the K9 was in real terms too

We have also had good results in Linn Akito, Basik and Ittok arms

see them here :

http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Rega.html

Furutech fuses - pictures

Our blog software seems to be working again ... so here are the pictures of the Furutech fuses

Furutech fuses

Quite often in Hifi it's the simplest things that make the biggest differences!

The mains supply is where it all starts .... decent quality cables and plugs give a better connection and better RF rejection. The one part of the chain which quite often gets overlooked is the mains fuse. Fuses are quite often very poorly made and prone to corrosion/oxidation .... and easy solution is to take them out occassionally and give them a clean, this does improve matters a little, but spending a little money here can sort the issue permanently.

We have had really good results with Furutech fuses ... not cheap items when you compare them to everyday hardware shop items ... but for performance per pound, they work really well. (particularly in conjunction with the Furutech 1363R mains plug)

Our blog software seems reluctant to do pictures at the moment .... to see them, go to :-


http://www.cheshireaudio.co.uk/acatalog/Mains_Plugs.html