Adapted from the Vinyl 2, the Nu-Vista Vinyl S uses the same Nuvistor 7586 tubes (per 8), with slight revisions to the circuitry and, above all, the chassis of the previous model.
Now designed to match the front panels of the 600.2 and 800.2 integrated amplifiers, the Vinyl S reduces its mechanical footprint by 45% thanks to optimized components and revised PCB boards, which limit the space required inside and therefore the overall dimensions of the device. The Class A topology around the tubes that have made Musical Fidelity’s high-end brand famous remains unchanged, despite modifications that also point to financial savings, as the new model is launched at £5 499, almost half the price of the Vinyl 2 at £9 999.
Made entirely of discrete components and completely symmetrical, the phono equalization curve management circuit is based on three stages. The first two are completely passive, allowing for optimal impedance adaptation and minimal deviation. The third stage amplifies and corrects the signal with a gain of 20 or 26 dB. In addition to the RIAA curve, the Vinyl S supports the COLUMBIA and DECCA curves (this last label which launch a new Pure Analogue vinyl series, but under the RIAA curve).
With two pairs of RCA or XLR inputs to integrate the signal, the Vinyl S is capable of reading MM and MC cartridges over a wide range from 40 dB to 69 dB, with capacitance and impedance adjustments made using relay circuits. This new Nu-Vista phono stage is very quiet and benefits from special care in its power supply, with the current being handled by two ultra-quiet transformers before being filtered by EMI filters. To output from the device, you can choose between balanced XLR or unbalanced RCA connectors, depending on your system.
With its new, slimmer S remote control, the Vinyl S is expected to arrive in Europe soon at a price almost half that of the Vinyl 2, normally around 6 000 €/6 500 €.
Three weekends after the Paris Audio Video Show, the Provence Audio Show was held on the other side of France.
Like last year at the Mariott Renaissance Hotel in Aix-en-Provence, the second edition of this show allowed more than a thousand enthusiasts and audiophiles from the south of France to discover a range of more than 70 brands.
Spanning two floors and 300 m2, this Provençal show, with around twenty exhibitors, is distinctive in that it brings together big names in hi-fi with many traditional manufacturers, offering a wide selection of French speakers and electronics.
Over the weekend, we were able to listen to and rediscover Riffaud, Michell and Thrax turntables, Tsakiridis, TD Audio, Helixir, Ultrafide, Boulder and Bryston amplifiers, a wide selection of headphones and cables, and Martin Logan Neolith, PMC, Kudos, ACL, Solen, Microphase Audio Design, La Manufacture d’Orphée, La Rosita and Thrax speakers.
Particularly rich in analogue reissues, 2025 saw the launch of the new Verve Vault and Muse Master Edition series, reissues from the Strata East catalogue, and the excellent Rhino High Fidelity and Rhino Reserve series.
No doubt motivated by the success of the Original Source series from its Deutsche Grammophon catalogue, Universal Music is continuing the adventure by announcing the launch of a series of Decca Pure Analogue vinyl records, featuring iconic recordings from the Decca and Philips catalogues. Like the DG series, it is mastered by Rainer Maillard and cut by Sidney C. Meyer at the famous Emil Berliner Studios, which guarantee that only 100% analogue (AAA) techniques are used and that no additional devices (i.e. no digital processing) are involved in the signal transfer.
Only analogue sources from the original stereo and quadraphonic master tapes are approved, including recently discovered analogue masters from the label’s early digital recordings. The set will be pressed on 180g vinyl at Pallas and presented in deluxe gatefold sleeves in limited, hand-numbered editions. The entire series is supervised by Dominic Fyfe, director of the label, who will also provide historical and technical annotations for these reissues.
With this announcement, Decca is opening new opportunities to showcase its catalogue and that of Philips, thereby satisfying the desires of classical music enthusiasts who are still drawn to analogue listening.
The first Decca Pure Analogue selection will include three titles, available from 16 January:
* Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring by Sir Georg Solti, recorded in Chicago in 1974, mastered from the original Decca stereo tapes released in two ¼-inch tracks and pressed for the first time at 45 rpm to achieve a wider high-frequency response and best reproduce all the “fury and clarity ” (Chicago Tribune) of the original recording.
* Jean Sibelius’s 5th& 7thSymphonies conducted by Colin Davis, recorded in 1975 for Philips with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, mixed and pressed directly from the original quadraphonic master tapes released in four ½-inch tracks. Spread over two vinyl discs for optimal duration, this recording now also includes the symphonic poem Tapiola, taken from the original multitrack (4-track) master tape.
* The 1979 New Year’s Concert in Vienna, with Willi Boskovsky conducting the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, long celebrated as Decca’s first digital recording. Recent research has uncovered a set of previously unreleased ¼-inch 2-track analogue masters, allowing this famous recording to be heard in analogue for the first time.
Following this promising introduction, we will try to get hold of one of the three LPs as soon as possible so that we can tell you about it in issue 63, if possible.26/11/2025
Unveiled in September, the Hegel H150 is now available throughout Europe.
Positioned between the H120 and the H190v, it features the triangular angle seen on the front panels of the Viking CD player (VU57 FR review) and the D50 DAC (VU60 FR review). However, while it retains a width of 43 cm and a height similar to that of the two sources (10 cm), its depth is 45 mm, which is still within the very accommodating standard of 35 cm.
Like all the Norwegian manufacturer’s integrated amplifiers since the first current model (H95), the H150 not only features analogue inputs, but also digital inputs, in this case on a four-layer SynchroDAC technology, directly derived from that of the Viking. Like the H120, it has a pair of RCA inputs and a pair of XLR inputs, in addition to a pair of variable RCA outputs, but it is the first model in the catalogue to also feature a phono (MM) input, which was previously only available from the H190v.
With a nominal power output of 2 x 75 Watts into 8 Ω in class AB, and a phenomenal damping factor of 2 000 thanks to SoundEngine2 technology, the H150 can power even energy-hungry speakers thanks to its impressive power supply, derived from a large, very low-noise toroidal transformer. Compatible with Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect, Qobuz Connect, Apple AirPlay, Google Cast & UPnP, it is still awaiting Roon certification and does not have Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. Thanks to its RJ45 Ethernet connection and numerous digital inputs (1 x S/PDIF; 2 x Optical; 1 x USB-B; 1 x USB-A data), it can play all files up to PCM 192kHz/24-bit.
Available now, the H150 confirms the trend towards making modern integrated amplifiers true all-in-ones. It is available in white or black for 2 990 €.
Revised last year in a new SE version, with a Master Sound Discrete DAC redesigned from scratch based on two FPGA chips implemented in dual mono, the K-01XD SE & K-03XD SE CD/SACD players are appearing at the end of this year in a “Black Edition” version limited to 50 units each.
While black versions have always been available occasionally from Esoteric, the Japanese brand has long justified these models with an anniversary, such as a decade to celebrate. More recently, the 05 series, which includes the N-05XD preamplifier-streamer and the K-05XD, has become available in gray or silver as standard, without extending this option to the 03 and 01 series models.
At the end of this year, the K-01XD SE and K-03XD SE are available in black, but in a limited edition. The main reason given by the brand’s teams is that some Americans with McIntosh or Mark Levinson systems would prefer a CD/SACD player with Esoteric’s VRDS-ATLAS mechanism, but are reluctant to invest because they don’t want to spoil their black system with a silver component.
The idea may seem secondary, but this very limited edition will delight users and collectors alike with both sound and image quality. Because while an Esoteric may lose a little of its personality in black, inside, nothing has changed. Both devices maintain some of the most reliable and accurate transport mechanisms on the market (even better on the K-01XD SE with the ATLAS 01, which is 20 mm thick compared to 18 mm on the ATLAS 03). The capacitors still achieve a filtering capacity worthy of the largest mono amplifier blocks, with 26 double-layer super capacitors with a total capacitance of 650,000μF on the K-03XD SE, and almost triple that on the second (71 EDLC; 1,850,000μF)!
Preferably used with their XLR analog outputs, given the perfectly symmetrical structure of the two CD/SACD players, they also have a pair of RCA outputs and two digital outputs, in addition to offering four digital inputs to directly integrate the DAC, notably via a network transport.
With a difference of only a few thousand yen in Japan, the prices of these Black Edition models should remain fairly similar to those of the classic silver versions in Europe, i.e. close to 20 000 € for the K-03XD SE and 29 000 € for the K-01XD SE.
