EISA - Awards 2005/2006: AUDIO

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

EUROPEAN AUDIO PLAYER



Harman Kardon HD 970

The HD 970 belongs to that rare class of products which give a taste of high-end audio at a low-end price. Demonstrating the audiophile spirit embodied in even the most affordable Harman/Kardon models, the HD 970 employs an ultra-silent power supply, ‘minimalist’ analogue output section, digital circuitry that upsamples to 384kHz at 24 bit resolution, and a fast, accurate transport mechanism. The HD 970’s rich, fluid, transparent sound will allow discerning listeners to rediscover even their most-played recordings. The HD 970 also has full MP3 decoding capability and can be used as a DAC for other digital sources.

 

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

EUROPEAN TWO-CHANNEL AMPLIFIER



Marantz PM-15S1

The new PM-15S1 proves Marantz is still a serious force in audiophile two-channel music equipment. This amplifier, successor to the legendary PM-17, completely justifies its membership of the high-class Premium component range. Luxury touches include a shimmering solid-aluminium fascia and a solid metal remote control. Advanced technology includes an accurate electronic volume control. And thanks to a unique four-way stacking option, with central channel steering, the PM-15S1 is ready and willing to lend its natural, powerful sound to movies as well as music.

 

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

EUROPEAN LOUDSPEAKER



KEF iQ3

KEF’s Uni-Q concentric drive-units continue to evolve in the new iQ Series. And the iQ3 model – ideal for bookshelf or stand mounting – is an excellent first buy for price-conscious customers in search of high-quality listening. The new magnetically-shielded 160mm driver features a die-cast basket, which with help from a front-firing bass-reflex port and carefully profiled cabinet, allows the iQ3 to deliver weight, detail and dynamics. This KEF enclosure shows you don’t need a big box or a big budget to enjoy real musical pleasure.

 

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

EUROPEAN AUDIO COMPACT SYSTEM



Philips Wireless Music Center WACS700

As the burgeoning Streamium concept proves, Philips is making full use of ‘WiFi’ wireless networking to deliver cable-free music throughout the home. The WACS700 Wireless Music Center is a central music server, whose 40GB hard disk is big enough to hold complete song collections in MP3, Windows Media Audio and WAV formats. Stored songs become available on demand, individually and collectively, to multiple wireless music players anywhere in the home. This eliminates the traditional inflexibility and complication of ‘wired’ multiroom systems. The WACS700 looks good, sounds good – and there’s nothing else quite like it on the market.

 

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

EUROPEAN PORTABLE MEDIA PLAYER



Samsung YH-J70

Samsung’s YH-J70 is an unusually versatile portable multimedia player that is equally capable with audio and video. It handles multiple audio formats (MP3, Windows Media Audio/ASF and Ogg Vorbis), and displays crisp still-image JPEG files and MPEG4 movies on a 65,000-colour 1.8-inch TFT-LCD display. A 20GB, shock-protected hard disk drive assures ample file storage, and to ease file transfer the YH-J70’s USB Host function allows direct connection with many USB peripherals – no need for a PC. One final bonus is the line input, which allows direct digital recording of analogue signals.