Pre/power amplifier ₹NA
What do you get for all that money? The answer is carefully developed, beautifully built yet understated products that shoot for the stars and get way closer than most.
The Mimesis 37S NextGen preamplifier is the brains of this pairing. It comes in two chunky boxes; one houses the sensitive audio circuits while the other is home to the hefty power supply. This divide-to-conquer approach is sensible given that power supplies have high current flow and can generate unwanted magnetic fields and plenty of vibration. Such things will tend to spoil all aspects of the unit’s sonic performance if left unchecked.
This Goldmund preamp is a focused design aiming for the ultimate in performance, so the feature count is limited. Such features as headphone connectivity or a phono stage, even when implemented with care, can easily adversely affect absolute sound quality, so justifying their exclusion.
Take the preamp’s lid off and you will find an immaculately constructed unit. The audio circuits are laid out in a neat dual-mono arrangement where any interaction between the channels is minimised. Goldmund’s amplifier design ethos has long centred around high bandwidth circuits with special attention paid to minimising group delays and time distortion. These priorities remain intact here.
There is a good choice of inputs – five single-ended and two balanced XLR – so this amplifier shouldn’t be caught short in even the most complex of stereo systems.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
YG Acoustics Carmel 3
On paper, the Carmel 3 from Colorado-based speaker specialist YG Acoustics has a credibility problem. They cost a huge amount of money but are small, rather plain-looking two-way floorstanders.
SME Model 20 Mk 2/Series V
SME launched the Model 20 turntable back in 1992. The partnering tonearm on our review sample, the now legendary Series V, dates back even further to 1986.
TOP FIVE LAUNCHES
Five products to look out for this month
Real slim shady...
FOR Slim profile, superb dispersion, soundstage AGAINST Can get a little expensive
THE BIG PICTURE
This projector-based home cinema set-up aims to please
MOVIES ON THE MOVE
Great pictures and quality sound-wherever you are
DREAM CINEMA
An incredible high-end home cinema experience, at a price
GAMING GEM
Serious gamers will be well served by this serious rig
CINEMATIC STUNNER
A truly immersive system for both gaming and movie nights
SOUNDBAR SUPERSTAR
The benefits of a surround set-up, without the fuss