MiniDisc was introduced in 1992 and spent its early years in a dogfight with Philips’ now-defunct DCC format before disappearing entirely. Despite its excellent ergonomics, the format sounded so terrible that its end appeared imminent. But suddenly, around 1997, the first generation of ATRAC version 4 devices came, and the dying format seemed to find […]
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Every self-respecting mass manufacturer offered the same thing in a single package during the hi-fi boom of the 1970s, when every lifestyle magazine was advising people to buy enormous, bulky stereo separates. It was known as a music center, and the breed was mocked a little because there were some rather rudimentary items for sale
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The DVP-S7000 was one of the most famous and thrilling first generation DVD players, having been released in March 1997 in Tokyo, Japan, and arriving in the UK six months later. It was outrageously overengineered, like with Sony’s ‘first’ ever product – CDP-101 CD player, TCD-D3 DAT player, etc. With just one glance inside, you’ll
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This machine has recently received a lot of attention, and it is quickly becoming collectible. Of course, it has every right to be, as the world’s first commercially available CD player and not only Sony Corporation’s first silver disc spinner. It was first released on October 1, 1982, at a cost of Y168,000, but only
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The range and depth of hi-fi in the 1970s were enormous. We’ve all heard of the emergence of the major Japanese labels, but there were lots of smaller continental European names developing as well, amid the last gasps of British brands like Garrard and Leak. Bang & Olufsen was arguably at its pinnacle at the
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In 1986, just as it appeared that vinyl was nearing its end, the SME Series V arrived. The tagline “the best pickup arm in the world” had been used by the Steyning company for a long time, but it had become a bit of a joke. The SME Series III was far from this, and
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The name SME precedes the brand. Everyone in the audiophile community knows it’s a terrific firm with a fantastic history. Any SME product is guaranteed to be of high quality, and it has never produced a dud. Is that the case? Some people don’t consider the Series III, which was introduced in 1978 and won
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This turntable was a breath of fresh air in the turntable industry when it was released a decade and a half ago, giving genuinely great performance in a small size. It also provided the option of purchasing it as the 10A, which contained the superb SME Series V tonearm, rather than the armless Model 10.
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The ‘Scale Model Equipment Company Ltd’ was founded in 1946 to produce parts for the model engineering industry, but by the 1950s, it had expanded to include aircraft instruments and commercial machinery. The first ‘precise pick-up arm’ from SME didn’t come until 1959. It was a revelation by agricultural standards of the time, and it
There have been few items in hi-fi that have lasted as long as the Shure V15. It was the American company’s main pickup cartridge from 1964 to 2005, and it went through eight different iterations. It cultivated a devoted following; for others, it was the only method to listen to LP music. The V15 had
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