On the way from Musical Fidelity is the 21st Century version of one of the company's classic designs – the A1 is back!
Highly acclaimed from its introduction in 1985 to the mid 90s, not to mention being celebrated for its griddle-like top-plate heatsink, which tended to run a little warm(!), the 20Wpc A1 went on to sell some 200,000 units.
Now it's been updated. Modern facilities include a USB input, a front-panel display and full remote control, and there's improved build quality and some styling changes. Yes, the top-plate is now flat.
The amp has line and MM phono inputs, and the Class A design is said to make it sound sweet, warm and full, with no hardening or muddying as it nears full power output.
But what of its typically Class A – ie rather modest – power output? Doesn't that fly in the face of Musical Fidelity's recent preaching about the importance of plenty of power to drive speakers properly?
No, the company says: you either have to make sure your speakers have at least 92dB/W/m sensitivity, or use the new £999 amp to drive a pair of its 550K or 750K Superchargers.
The new A1 will be available in mid-April, and will be joined a month or so later by a matching CD player, the A1 CD PRO 2.
Technorati Tags: amplifier, Class A, Musical Fidelity