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Covid19 update

Dear Harrow Audio Customers and Hi-fi fans, 

So, we are just over 4 weeks into the #coronavirus lockdown and I thought I would take this opportunity to update, inform and reach out to you all. 

It's been an odd month to say the least. Being in retail for over 20 years, I personally have never not seen and talked to people face to face for so long. Sure, I am comfortable on the phone and writing emails in the same way I would talk to people, but to not have that face to face contact when you are enthusiastic about products feels odd. 

We are usually a team of 4 across 2 stores, but at the moment we are just me (Mark!) running the website and mail order behind closed doors at Harrow. To be totally honest, I have been lazy and the stock room has migrated into the front of the shop as we have stocked up on Rega turntables, Project turntables, Dali speakers and Marantz amps, for the countless Turntable systems we have supplied in lockdown. 

One thing I have noticed over the last week is the amount of conversations I have had where the customer has said "I have been meaning to get my Vinyl out and play it again for (insert, 6 months, 1 year, 5 years etc.) and now I am at home I’m going to do it and enjoy it!" 

We have a choice of simple, turntable starter systems that have everything you need to get up and running and these have been mega popular. Far from wallet bashing, unless you want it to be, but all offer great solutions to get you back to listening to your records at a level you can enjoy for hours. 

Office systems have been popular as well and when I say "Office" I really mean 2nd systems for the new work from home area. Sonos, Bluesound and Bluetooth speakers all offer a way of getting music into your workspace without the need for lots of equipment. 

Strangely, Headphones have not been as popular as I would have guessed. My assumption was if households are experiencing having to learn to work from home together, that Headphones would be a way of keeping the music going without annoying other people. Maybe we are starting to see a shift in enjoying music as a family, rather than isolation and, in fact, isolation is doing the opposite to its name and people are actually doing things together. 

We have started to experience some delivery issues and delays. Not with DPD, who we use to ship items out, they have been top class and still getting parcels to people on next day services. But other couriers delivering into us are starting to show the strain. It isn't nationwide, but certainly the North West London depot of a couple of companies are starting to struggle and parcels are getting delayed or returned. We have tried to combat this by getting parcels shipped from Manufacturers direct, to skip out our local depots, and if we can’t do that, I have had deliveries shipped to my home address which again, miss out the local delivery depots. As I am driving in everyday, rather than the train, it is easy enough to bring in. The Van has never been so useful! 

Everyone is adapting in these trying times, small business are offering services that they wouldn't usually do, slimmed down take away food, local deliveries, the Cheese and Wine shop in Wendover are even offering a special cheese delivery service (complete with Cheddar, the owners dog) These are all avenues that businesses were not doing before the lockdown, but I will bet a fair few will continue. I have personally delivered in Harrow and various places back to Wendover over the last week and the response has been amazing. People appreciate the personal touch, from a hand delivery the same day as ordering, to a free Vinyl with a system because you had a conversation about Led Zeppelin when you ordered. 

The stand out music release for me is the new Strokes album - The New Abnormal. If that was an album name chosen a while ago, it seems very relevant for life today. Either way, for me, it’s a band that defined my 20s and finds them back at their best. Touches of 80s influence but in a typical starchy, Strokes kinda way. The opening track drives along through the bass line and drums but "Brooklyn Bridge to Chorus” is a stand out anthem. It has taken me back to some of their older, less listened albums and I have a new appreciation for a band I once loved. The Vinyl has been ordered!

Another new discovery and possibly down to the extended Van time, is the Sea Girls. An Indie 4 piece that formed in London in 2015. They have an EP out at the moment but expect to hear more of them this year. Also, The Magic Gang have been about for a few years too, and vary in style a little, which keeps them fresh. Their current single "Think" has a Northern Soul feel mixed up with The Jam! 

On a darker note, I have just cleaned out the coffee machine and it was horrid. But it has made my Americano taste better!

Stay safe and positive. Make sure you look after your loved ones and they look after you. We will all come through this and get back to the new Abnormal as the Strokes have declared. 

 

 

 

 

Real World Hifi
What is Hi-Fi?
Spy Shots!!

**NEW Product Alert**

Sneaky beaky spy shots of some new #rega items due to be available over the next month. We have them all on order already and demo stock will be available as soon as it can be!!

Pictures below show the new Apollo CDP CD player, Fono MM Moving Magnet Phono Pre Amp and Fono MC Moving Coil Phono Pre Amp.

Keep your eyes on the website for all the latest specs when they are available. #sneakybeaky #hifi #papped

 

#freshkitfriday

Quite the Whirlwind week this week! Just got enough time to tell you what's landed in Harrow Audio over the last few days. If you are travelling to the #bristolhifishow this weekend you may see some of them. If you are going to the show, make sure you visit the #rega room. There are some tasty new products being showed for the 1st time this weekend!

We have taken delivery of our demo Marantz Europe SA-10 and PM-10 Reference series products. They will be up and running in the demo room by tomorrow morning. The Reference range from Marantz has always had a bit of a cult status and this new series looks to continue the tradition, with a no compromise combination. The personal love of Ken Ishiwata (Mr. K.I to the 90's Marantz owners) he has produced a beast of an amplifier alongside a very, very detailed CD Player/DAC

http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/marantz-sa-10

http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/marantz-pm-10

 

Stock of the Arcam Of Cambridge rPhono is here! A high quality MM/MC Phono Stage in the R-Series is a welcome addition and with performance well above its £399.00 price, it is going to be one of our favourites. The rHead headphone amp and new rPlay HD Streamer is all killer and Arcam looks like having a great compact range of upgrades.

http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/search?q=arcam+r

 

We also ordered the new Blue Aura V40i Limited Edition Valve amp and matching PS40 speakers. Looking suitably retro in a high gloss wood finish, we have long felt the amp is capable of driving higher quality speakers and along came the ribbon equipped PS40. Rumour has it there maybe some secret new bits in the Blue Aura room at the show too.

http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/blue-aura-v40-le

 

**Just in** Rega have released limited details on the new Planar 2 and Planar 3 Red edition, as well as the £498.00 Ania MC cartridge, a new TT-PSU and Fono MC Phon Stage. If that wasn't enough, there is a digital tracking force gauge and the 2017 Record Store Day deck gets its Debut!

After all that I need coffee. Will post up some pictures when I can get them. Enjoy you weekend!

 

Black Friday deals

 

High end without the spend!! 

Black Friday is here and this year we havent been caught snoozing!! 

We have some great in store offers running from Friday 25th November until 5pm Monday 28th November. In fact, some deals are sooooo good they are too good to publish! 

Up to 20%* off some speaker brands, 15%* off some Electronics and plenty of one off specials! Not the "old model, end of line type offers" though, proper offers on things you might want to buy. As with any secret squirrel sale you will have to visit the store or call us on 0208 930 9933. You can email shop@harrowaudio.com but please be patient for a reply, we are expecting a busy day! 

Come down and see us, we can promise it will be worth it! 

*Restrictions apply. Please see staff for details. (not Mark though, he is off and hates giving discount)

Musical Fidelity M6 Encore 225 Trade In

Our friends at Musical Fidelity have launched a very generous trade in offer on their new M6 Encore 225, allowing you to trade in your old amplifier and get your original money back!

For example, if you paid £849.00 for a Musical Fidelity A3 amp, trade it in and get the full £849.00 back off the RRP price of the Encore 225! How good is that?! 

There are some catches, maximum trade in value is £1500.00 and we will need to see a purchase invoice showing the original value of the trade in. If it was purchased from us then we will have a record of it, but if it was purchased elsewhere then you may need to check you have it. 

This offer is open to non-Musical Fidelity trade in items, but the same rules apply. 

If you have any questions, please call 0208 930 9933 or email shop@harrowaudio.com

We have the amazing Encore 225 in store, so come along and have a listen. http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/musical-fidelity-m6-encore-225

This offer is available on the M6 Encore 225 (max £1500.00 trade in) and the M6 Encore 225 Connect (max £1000.00 trade in)

 

What Hifi Awards

Or should it be called What "should of won a" HiFi Award? 

102 award winners in 27 categories. Champagne, food and plenty of fun!

As the dust has settled on the 2016 40th Anniversary What HiFi awards there have been countless social media posts congratulating brands on winning awards, and rightly so. What HiFi put on a great evening at the Hilton on Park Lane. Pre event drinks, a quality meal and entertainment from Comedian Mark Watson. The particular highlight was picking on a Panasonic PR girl called Helen who he had been stalking on Facebook. Drawing lots of laughs and making the poor girl the centre of attention. We were on the table closest to the stage and was dreading being picked on but luckily we got away with it!! 

Once the hangover had started to disappear (Thursday I think) and the "congrats guys" posts started to roll through the internet, we started to think of the products that got totally over looked. With information so freely available on t'internet these days its all too easy to make up your mind by reading someone else's. What Hifi do a sterling job of reviewing products and have a very hi-tech listening room and reference system, but that isn't to say it will sound the same in your home, with your ears. 

For instance, the biggest omision, and there are some big ones, is the Audiolab M-DAC+. How this amazing DAC didn't win "Best DAC £500 - £1000" is craaaaaazy! Solidly built, incredible resolution and detail but retaining its musicality, it is one of the best DACs to come through our doors. AND its got rave 5 star reviews everywhere. 

The Marantz PM6006 amplifier improves over the PM6005 which won product of the year for the last 2 years. Its better, more refined, another Digital input and a perfect sub £500 amplifier. It also matches the CD6006 which did win best CD Player under £500! No one wants a mis-matching system anymore. Collars and cuffs and all that :o) 

If you want the best Wireless speaker on the market, it is the Devialet Gold Phantom. Period. No question. There isn't another product out there that has the engineering and soundstage Devialet can achieve. Don't get me started on the Sennhesier HD800s, Momentum 2.0 Wireless or Covert Plato one box solution. Surely the best accessory has to be the Arcam MiniBlink?! Tip top Bluetooth performance for any amp and under £100!!

I hope the awards are judged like the Mercury Music Prize. There is a panel of tech-heads battling between each other over hours of coffee to who's makes use of a sabre DAC chip better or who's ears can tell if there is a mid-range hole they can here or not. But I suspect not!! 

Sure, the review lead Magazines to an amazing job and without them it would be a minefield trying to work out where to start, but there are plenty of places you can go, to look at and listen to products and most of us have already celebrated our 40th year. 

Use reviews as a guide 1st, then use your ears. It's totally worth it. 

**This post is not written to offend, it's an alternative view, with a lot of tongue in cheek**If any offense is caused, please blame the hangover!! 

#HarrowAudioAwards anyone?

#WhatHiFiAwards #Hifi #harrowaudio 

Dear Apple...

Even if you are a non-iPhone user I am sure you have heard the news Apple have dropped the 3.5mm Headphone Jack from the new iPhone 7. You may not be bothered about it, you may not understand the fuss, but if we look back a few years, there was a mutiny when the iPod was dropped and the same mutiny is on the rise again. 

The classic Apple device that started it all was dropped from the line up in 2014, but was it unexpected? Maybe more so than the vanishing headphone socket, those rumours have been going around for a few years, but in the same way music lovers adapted and in most cases, embraced the change. The improvements in Digital Audio Players (DAPs) have helped people migrate over to Hi-Res music in a portable package and the services of Spotify, Tidal and Deezer increased in use on Mobile devices. Storage on mobile devices has got bigger and realistically, the need for a Phone and an iPod decreased. 

So what does not having a headphone jack mean now? Alot. And not alot. Apple using music lovers will again move on and evolve but his time there are already alot of options in place to make it as easy as possible. Apple have announced they will include headphones with a lightening connector with the iphoe 7, along with an adapter to use your "old" 3.5mm headphones. You can even buy a pair of Airpods, the wireless bluetooth version of Apples own headphones. But they are £159.00 and we think you can spend alot less and get a better result. 

If you intend to purchase an iPhone 7, or indeed you are one of the lucky ones who has it already, then take a look below at all the available options to get the best out of your music. 

First up, Bluetooth Headphones.

The easiest and most convenient way of listening to music. Turn Bluetooth on within the device, press and hold a button on the headphones and you are paired! Easy, great sound quality, no wires. It doesnt get much easier than that. 

Pioneer have a range of on-ear Bluetooth headphones starting from £59.00. The SE-MJ561BT comes in Silver or Tan and has a 15hour play time (and 200 hours in standby) Lightweight and comfortable, without being a street syle headphone. Think discreet rather than show-off!! http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/pioneer-se-mj561bt

There is also the new SE-MJ771BT at £75.00 which has the advantage of touch sensitive controls on one earcup, a 32 hour battery life as well as being foldable. http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/pioneer-se-mj771bt

If you like the idea of in-ears then we have a very under-rated pair of Optoma NuForce BE6i headphones. At £99.00 you get a high quality in ear with a choice of several style ear buds, including Comply tips. Secure fit and sweat and dust proof, they are a superior option to Apple's own aipods and £60.00 less.  http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/nuforce-be6i

Higher up the headphone scale, Denon and Sennheiser both have premium models aimed at the travel market. The Denon AH-GC20 is one of the best value headphones we have ever come across.  http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/denon-ah-gc20 Noise cancelling as well as bluetooth, they are exceptionally well built and comfortable to wear. A clean, open soundstage makes for an engaging listen. 

The Momentum Wireless range of headphones share the same headband and internal electronics but come in On-Ear or Around-Era designs. Noise cancelling technology is included and the premium finish comes from Oxford leather and alacantra earpads. Available in a Black or Ivory finish they are super stylish and a pleasure to use. All our Bluetooth headphones can be seen here http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/bluetooth-headphones

One of our favourite upgrades is the AudioQuest Dragonfly. Coming in 2 different versions, the Black or Red, these 32bit DAC and Headphone amps are the size of a USB memory stick. Using the Apple camera kit (or equivalent Amazon special!) they connect directly to the lightening socket on your iPhone. Taking the digital signal from your device the Dragonfly does a high quality conversion and powers your headphones properly. At £89.00 the Dragonfly Black is powerful enough to drive any in ear headphones and small to medium sized On Ear. The Dragonfly Red at £169.00 is designed to drive larger headphones and comes with a little bit more power. They can also connect into a Laptop or Computers USB socket to allow you to listen to headphones or connect into your main system. Personally, I use a Dragonfly Black everyday on the train and it sounds massively better than the standard headphone socket. AND you get to use the headphones you already own! http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/search?q=dragonfly

Finally, Audeze are one of the market leaders in high end headphones and currently have 2 models in their range that have a lightening specific lead, the Cipher. Both employing Planar Magnetic technology, the Sine headphones are a premium made, high quality portable headphone desgned by BMW DesignWorksUSA. The Cipher lead contains a 24bit Digital Sound Processor and DAC making the audio experience exceptional. http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/audeze-sine-with-cipher-cable

The Audeze EL-8 Titanium uses the same Cipher lead and is based on the best selling EL-8 range. A slightly larger, closed back design, they are comfortable to wear and immerse you in sound. http://www.harrowaudiohifi.co.uk/audeze-el-8-titanium

It goes without saying here at Harrow Audio, we wouldn't recommend anything without being able to demonstrate the benefits to you, so all of the above solutions are available to listen in the Headphone Booth. 

 

 

Records and Rebels

We had the honour of being invited to a pre-preview of the new "You Say You Want a Revolution? Records and Rebels 1966-1970" exhibition at the Victoria and Albert museum in collaboration with Sennheiser. 

It is an emmersive journey through 5 years of music, culture, film, war and human rights at a time where many different voices and styles where trying to be heard. 

The V&A is a beautiful setting by night and if you are in London, or are willing to make a trip there, you will find a collection of some of the most iconic images, styles and music of the late 60s. 

Once kitted out with your Sennehsier headphones and active audio guide, you can wander through the 5 areas at your own pace. We found ourselves looking at displays longer than usual, purely for the music that was playing. Walking from zone to zone the tracks change from Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, to Martin Luther King interviews, to the Doors. Its difficult to move on once you are listening to a track you like and we found ourselves reading every little plaque in sight, just to hang on to the song! 

There is a mixture of 60's Twiggy culture, to a display of classic album covers, to The Beatles and their Sergeant Peppers outfits. They have even got a replica Revolution Records store where you can flick through albums like you are browsing in the shop. 

The highlight for me was the Woodstock Area. A large open room, with Astroturf flooring and huge outdoor bean bags where you can lay down and look up at a 30min highlight reel from the legendary Woodstock festival, all displayed on 3 huge projector screens. Adorning the room is one of Kieth Moon's drumkits with Who stickers all over it, as well as some Hendrix and Townsend Guitars, or whats left of them. What makes this area so good is how you can loose yourself for half an hour without even realising. Sennehsier have done a stellar job of making you really feel like you are in the middle of the festival. They call it Ambeo 3D sound, which essentially translates into a constantly moving audio experience. Projections change between the 3 screens and the audio changes with it. Sometimes making you feel you are further away other times closer than you actually are. 

It all ends with Jimi Hendrix distorting his way through Star Spangled Banner, yet the film rarely shows him playing it, just his facial expressions and emotion. 

When I say it all ends there, the exhibiton does, but the standard walk through the gift shop is still to come! Loads and loads of cool retro prints, vinyl, badges, bags etc. 

As a bit of a suprise, Sennheiser also bought along the HE-1 and ff you havent seen it yet you have to!

10 years in the making, it is Sennheisers flagship product. The best way I can expain the HE-1 is "an occasion". You will have a ritual everytime you sit down to listen to these amazing headphones, weather it be a glass of red wine or freshly brewed coffee, the lights will be dimmed (mainly so you can see the 8 Valves glow!) and you will find yourself transported into a sound stage so detailed and open that, a bit like the Woodstock room, you will loose hours just listening. 

The HE-1 is a thing of beauty, from the solid block of Carrara marble, to the way the valves and headphone storage open automatically. It is pure theatre but with the sound to back it up. Compare it to the classic Aston Martin DB5, stunning design, and although you wont take it to work everyday, on the occasions you do drive it will be worth every second.

We took some pictures of the event which can be seen here: https://www.facebook.com/HarrowAudio/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1215256018526621

And the link to the V&A exhibition can be seen here: http://www.vam.ac.uk/exhibitions/you-say-you-want-a-revolution-records-and-rebels-1966-70

 

 

Loan at home

Try before you buy!!

Here at Harrow Audio we try to keep our demo room as home-like as possible. We are in the lucky situation that the shop is a converted terrace house, typical in size and layout of the surrounding suburbs. Our demo room is essentially the master bedroom and mirrors the size of a living room. 

The demo room has a sofa at one end, a TV and AV Stand at the other, in front of where the chimney would be, with alcoves either side. 

It is set up like this to give as a relaxed and familiar feel as possible when we are auditioning equipment and systems to everyone. 

However, we are fully aware we cannot 100% replicate certain things and although it is very easy to hear differences between speakers or amplifiers, the finer upgrades are harder to pinpoint. 

Speaker cables for instance are difficult to assess unless they are in your own system, where you have a bit of time to relax and listen at your own pace. Smaller items like DAC's and Headphone Amps can offer huge improvements but again, the improvements are not always apparant when the other parts of the system are not familiar. 

As we always try to improve your musical enjoyment we have put together a selection of loan items. Things you can leave a deposit on and take home to try over a few days. 

Our loan speaker cables are all cut to 3m pairs and we have a selection from AudioQuest, Atlas and Dali. If you have ever said "Naaaah, cables dont make a difference" you now have the chance to prove us wrong! Ranging from £50.00 up to £500.00 we can find something to suit your system and let you try them against your current cable.

As there are many products on the market, it is often hard to make a decision, even after a good listen. So with DACs and Headphone amps we have a selection of loan units you can try at home. The IR-DAC II is the perfect example. A high quality DAC, with Bluetooth and a headphone amp is a great addition to any system. But until you get it home you might not realise how good an addition it can be! Play your TV through your Hifi, no problem. Add wireless streaming from a phone or tablet, easy. Have a dedicated Headphone output to drive your cans properly, it does that too! 

Drop in a have a look and a chat, but don't say we don't try and look after you! It is all about enjoying music and we try and make that as easy as possible. 

Loan items T&Cs: 50% deposit is required to secure a loan item. All loan items are to be returned and refund applied with a maximum of 7 working days. Refund will be applied on the day of return. If you wish to purchase an item after a loan period, then a new item will be supplied as a new sale at an agreed price. 

AK Jr software update

We have heard from a few customers about the issues your are experiencing with the software update on the Astell & Kern AK Jr. 

The AK Jr is the only Hi-Res player from Astell & Kern that doesn't auto update. The isntructions on the AK wesbite seem to be a little confusing and written in a very "computery" way! We have taken the time to update our demo AK Jr and written some simple instructions on how to do it. 

We successfully updated our demo unit and below is simple instructions on how it can be done. 

If you have any issues, please call us in the shop on 0208 930 9933 and we will try and help. If you are in any doubt about the update, then please either contact support at Astell & Kern or talk to the dealer you bought the item from. If they are a reputable Hi-fi dealer then they should be able to help. In the meantime, please see the instructions below. 

Windows version:

Click here to download the latest Astell & Kern junior firmware

http://www.iriver.com/down/file/Down/2015051915064322956.zip

Plug the Astell & Kern junior into the PC USB and select “Connect Removable Disk” on the screen

If autoplay starts, select “Open folder to view files”. Otherwise start Windows Explorer.

Windows Explorer will show something like AK Jr (E:)

Find and double click the firmware you downloaded. It will show you a file called AK_JR.hex

Drag and drop this file onto AK Jr (E:)

Right mouse click on AK Jr(E:) and eject it

Unplug the player. The player will update any music libraries and then detect and install the new firmware.

Queen by Rega

Limited edition Rega turntable designed in partnership with Queen.

Rega are proud to have been approached by legendary rock band ‘Queen’ to produce a limited edition (fully licensed) turntable to coincide with the release of their 18 piece 180g vinyl LP boxset containing all 15 hit studio albums sourced from the original master tapes mastered by Bob Ludwig and cut at Abbey Road studios.

The design of this unique custom turntable includes reproductions of classic Queen logo’s, and incorporates the tonearm technology of the multi-award-winning ‘plug and play’ Rega turntables. Both brand and band are quintessentially English and the combination of engineering and musical achievements make for a perfect match.

Click here to see the pictures

Turntable features:  

The Queen turntable is a brand new product designed specifically for ‘Queen’.

A custom designed high gloss acrylic laminated plinth silk screened with ‘Queen by Rega’ logo.

Silk screened ‘Queen crest’ platter from artwork created by Freddie Mercury.

Hand built RB101 tonearm.

Factory fitted Rega Carbon moving magnet cartridge.

Low noise low vibration 24v synchronous high performance motor.

Queen dustcover lid badge.

Optional upgrade (sold separately) is available to the handmade high performance moving magnet Rega Bias 2 cartridge.

This cartridge is designed specifically for the ‘plug and play’ RB101 tonearm mounted on the ‘Queen by Rega’ turntable.

Please note:

This item will be available to purchase from stock on the 25th September. All orders prior to this date are a Pre-Order only. Only 2000 made for worldwide market so please do not delay your Pre-Order. Any questions, please call us on 0208 930 9933

Headphone Amnesty

Shelf of the Month April 2015

Shelf of the Month April 2015

Shelf of the Month has been difficult his time round. There has been a raft of new products coming through and we haven't even got to "New AV season" yet!!

Everything was all in place for our favourite new products of the month, until last week, when the new DALI A/S Menuets turned up ‪#‎WOW‬ We have been totally blown away by these compact speakers and simply cannot stop listening to them. They are beautifully open and articulate, with amazing detail in the mid and high frequencies, yet it is the bass that impresses the most. We can only applaud the engineers for getting a tight, tuneful, deep bass out of a cabinet as small as the Menuet. The soundstage is on point too. They really are a joy to listen to and if you have any urge to replace your speakers, you MUST listen to them.

On April 18th we celebrated Record Store Day and spent the day playing Vinyl non-stop. REGA are well known for their turntable range and the RP3 with Elys 2 cartridge impresses everytime we demo it. With the ability to add the TT-PSU at a later date, the Rega RP3 starts out amazing value for money, with the option to improve further down the line. Typically Rega in its sound, musical, detailed and with a touch of warmth associated with Vinyl, everything we played sounded like it had a new lease of life. Plus, we love the look of the white against the Atacama Audio Eris Eco Bamboo stand. (other colours available!)

Arcam Of Cambridge are on a winning streak at the moment. It all started with the multi-award winning FMJ A19 and irDAC. Along came the FMJ A49 Class G powerhouse but there was always a gap waiting to be filled. Queue the intro....... please be upstanding for the FMJ A39! With 125w of Class G amplification, an acoustically damped chassis and exceptionally low levels of distortion, Arcam's latest stereo amplifier raises the bar once again. With a big bodied, full sound, it has an authority over the music, with great dynamics. With the RP3 feeding it a signal, it sounds fantastic with Vinyl.

On pure musical enjoyment, Shelf of the Month April has been magic.

For pictures please visit our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/HarrowAudio

Record Store Day 2015

Record Store Day came into being in 2007 when over 700 independent stores in the USA came together to celebrate their unique culture. The UK followed suit and 2015 will see the eighth celebration of the UK's unique independent sector. This is the one day that all of the independently owned record stores come together with artists to celebrate the art of music. Special vinyl and CD releases and various promotional products are made exclusively for the day and hundreds of artists across the globe make special appearances and performances. Festivities include performances, meet & greets with artists, DJ's, in store quizzes and many other events.

In celebration of all things Vinyl, we have some special in store offers from Project (see below) as well as the exclusive Rega RP1 RSD2015 limited edition turntable available. 12 of the 500 production run have been signed by famous musicians. Factory sealed at Rega, you may just be lucky enough to purchase one! Click here to see the list

Here at Harrow Audio, we will have 4 systems set up and running for you to be able to bring your Vinyl along and listen to it like never before! The Rega RP1, RP3, RP6 and Project 1 Xpression Carbon will be ready to audition and Vinyl will be spinning all day long! Pop in for a coffee and enjoy the tunes! 

Demo room set up

Our demo room gets some pretty regular use but today we have been setting up an AV demo for a customer who wants to hear the new DALI A/S Rubicon LCRs partnered with the mighty REL Acoustics S/5 Subwoofer.

What that means though is taking apart the demo room and getting the whole system working to its best. Thats cool, we can do that, but it does take 2 of us (mainly to lift the REL!) and a bit of time to get everything sounding awesome! And it does sound AWESOME!

The Pioneer LX58 is a breeze to setup and the Arcam Of Cambridge UDP411 gives a stunning picture out of the box.

A quick shout out to Ben Stykuc for the loan of the customers favourite film, Super 8. ‪#‎dali‬ ‪#‎rel‬ ‪#‎pioneer‬ ‪#‎arcam‬ ‪#‎harrowaudio‬

To see the video click here 




Shelf of the Month March 2015

Shelf of the Month February 2015

Here we are again, shelf of the month for Feb (minus the Raleigh Chopper Mug!) and its been an unanimous choice this time! Being an independent shop we get to choose what we stock and that generally comes down to what we like and what we feel offers above performance for the price tag. This month we showcase 3 products that offer exceptional performance and, accidentally, all sell at the same price!

The tell-tale sign of a product we love is how often it gets used. With the Monitor Audio SIlver 8 we have a speaker that is constantly on demo. These speakers are always playing in the shop, on whatever system is connected. Considering the staff's varied musical tastes, they never fail to convey the scale and subtlety of any music you throw at them. What makes the Silver 8 special is the dedicated Mid-range driver. It takes the load off the mid/bass driver and lets the vocals and instrumentation breathe. On looks alone, you would think the Silver 8 has oodles of bass, and it does, but it is very controlled and never feels like it overpowers the rest of the range. Tall but smart in stature, they come with an Editors Choice recommendation from Hi-Fi Choice magazine and a glowing Stereophile Magazine review. If you visit the shop and they are not playing, they will be in the demo room upstairs being listened too. Guaranteed.

Before I whittle on too much about the Silver 8's, I must turn attention to the new ROKSAN AUDIO K3 Amplifier and CD player. We have beenRoksan Audio stockists for a while and have loved the Caspian range since the start. The Caspain M2 won, and continues to win, many awards. However, the new K3 is a serious contender to take some of those awards. What is lacks in out an out finesse of the Caspian M2 it makes up with a truly involving sound that pulls you in and makes you forget you are listening to electronics and just enjoying the music. The K3 pair together makes perfect sense, but the K3 Amp does come with bluetooth built in to allow you to stream directly from any smart device. And its Apt-X bluetooth, so if you are in the Android camp, it allows high resolution streaming. If thats not enough, it comes with a high quality MM Moving Magnet Phono stage for your turntable. And if thats still not enough (still, really?!) Whathifi.com and Hi-Fi World both gave it glowing 5 star/globe reviews!

Roksan is available from our lovely friends at Henley Designs Ltd. who incidentally distribute the Custom Design Milan stand that the equipment is on.

So there you are, we have thoroughly enjoyed listening to the £1250.00 superstars this month and long may it continue! Honestly, from my desk upstairs, I can hear the Silver 8's playing Supertramp

‪#‎monitoraudio‬ ‪#‎roksan‬ ‪#‎k3‬ ‪#‎shelfofthemonth‬ ‪#‎supertramp‬‪#‎henleydesigns‬

Shelf of the Month Feb 2015

Shelf of the Month February 2015

Here we are again, shelf of the month for Feb (minus the Raleigh Chopper Mug!) and its been an unanimous choice this time! Being an independent shop we get to choose what we stock and that generally comes down to what we like and what we feel offers above performance for the price tag. This month we showcase 3 products that offer exceptional performance and, accidentally, all sell at the same price! 

The tell-tale sign of a product we love is how often it gets used. With theMonitor Audio SIlver 8 we have a speaker that is constantly on demo. These speakers are always playing in the shop, on whatever system is connected. Considering the staff's varied musical tastes, they never fail to convey the scale and subtlety of any music you throw at them. What makes the Silver 8 special is the dedicated Mid-range driver. It takes the load off the mid/bass driver and lets the vocals and instrumentation breathe. On looks alone, you would think the Silver 8 has oodles of bass, and it does, but it is very controlled and never feels like it overpowers the rest of the range. Tall but smart in stature, they come with an Editors Choice recommendation from Hi-Fi Choice magazine and a glowing Stereophile Magazine review. If you visit the shop and they are not playing, they will be in the demo room upstairs being listened too. Guaranteed. 

Before I whittle on too much about the Silver 8's, I must turn attention to the new ROKSAN AUDIO K3 Amplifier and CD player. We have been Roksan Audio stockists for a while and have loved the Caspian range since the start. The Caspain M2 won, and continues to win, many awards. However, the new K3 is a serious contender to take some of those awards. What is lacks in out an out finesse of the Caspian M2 it makes up with a truly involving sound that pulls you in and makes you forget you are listening to electronics and just enjoying the music. The K3 pair together makes perfect sense, but the K3 Amp does come with bluetooth built in to allow you to stream directly from any smart device. And its Apt-X bluetooth, so if you are in the Android camp, it allows high resolution streaming. If thats not enough, it comes with a high quality MM Moving Magnet Phono stage for your turntable. And if thats still not enough (still, really?!) Whathifi.com and Hi-Fi World both gave it glowing 5 star/globe reviews! 

Roksan is available from our lovely friends at Henley Designs Ltd. who incidentally distribute the Custom Design Milan stand that the equipment is on. 

So there you are, we have thoroughly enjoyed listening to the £1250.00 superstars this month and long may it continue! Honestly, from my desk upstairs, I can hear the Silver 8's playing Supertramp

Spendor speakers - A6R

Spendor's new A6R is currently getting some rave reviews. Our Walnut pair have run in nicely and are currently playing on the end of a Rega system in the shop. The A6R just seems to do everything well, really well. 

Whatever you have read about them already, believe it. They are incrediably musical and a joy to listen to, regardless of music genre. There is a depth and scale available that we havent experienced on speakers at this price before. In fact, until you get to the Spendor D7 (super stunning speaker!) we haven't another speaker in the shop that can sound as good as these on the right equipment. 

Aty £2495.00 they are a relative bargain and a must audition if you are in the market for a new set of speakers. Understated looks, with exceptional build quality, partnered with a sweet, open soundstage, you really cannot wish for anything else. 

As for the D7......well, where do we start.......

Rega RP10 apology

Merry New Year everybody!!

Sorry its a bit late, but we have been so gobsmacked listening to the new REGA RP10 we have lost days. Building on the success of the RP8, Rega have produced a turntable that begs you to forget everything else and just enjoy music. Wonderfully insightful with a stunning mid and top end. Hear your vinyl like never before! Our demonstration RP10 will be with us next week, so don't expect any more blog entries until Feb!

Sennheiser IE800 Latest Review

What Hi-fi have just reviewed the Sennheiser IE800 and given them a glowing 5 star verdict. 

The IE800 is a member of the Club Orpheus range and benefits from extended warranty and exclusive dealership. The flagship In-Ear headphone has long been one of our favourites, producing amazingly open and detailed sound. 

Harrow Audio are handpicked by Sennehsier to be a Club Orpheus dealer and are happy to show you these stunning headphones. Don't just take out word for it, read the full review below.

http://www.whathifi.com/review/ie-800

New Headphones

Sennheiser have just released the new Momentum On

Building on the reputation of the Momentum and Momentum Black headphones, these smaller, light weight versions are perfect for the daily commute or trip to town. Effortlessly stylish, the Momentum On delivers all of the uncompromising sound quality that you have come to expect from Sennheiser. 

Pop in for a demo!! Bring your iPod and we will supply the coffee.

Latest Review - Audiolab M-PWR

Audiolab have introduced the M-PWR power amp to partner their Q-DAC and M-DAC This perfectly proportioned half width ppower amp delivers enouogh power and punch to make you feel its twice its size. We have our demonstration unit available to audition with either DAC, so all we need is your laptop and music! 

http://www.whathifi.com/review/m-pwr

Call to book a demo and be prepeared to be amazed!

Latest Review - KEF E305 system

The brand new KEF E305 surround sound speaker package has just had a glowing What Hifi 5 star review. 

http://www.whathifi.com/review/e305

We have our demo unit in store availble for audition. As well as good looks and a compact sub, it is one of the best sounding AV speaker packages in a long time! 

Its "DAC" time of year

The sun is out (finally!!), Glastonbury has been and gone and we at Harrow Audio have got 3 new DAC's to play with!

With the Audiolab Q-DAC set to land anyday now, today marked the arrival of the latest Arcam irDAC and the Musical Fidelity V90-DAC. 

Don't just think of DAC's being useful for people who store their music as files on Computers or Hard Drives, these latest devices have connections for a multitude of devices, all designed to enhance your listening pleasure. Laptops, Computers, Sky, Virgin, Set-top Boxes, Games consoles, CD players, Sonos and other multiroom systems can all benefit from an external DAC. In fact, any device with a Digital Co-Ax or Optical output can be used. 

The new irDAC from Arcam has 2 x Optical inputs, 2 x Coax inputs and 2 x USB inputs, all switchable from the Arcam remote and capable of handling 24-bit 192kHz signals. With the airDAC also in the pipeline, you will be able to Airplay from your Apple device with the benefit of Arcam's legendary sound quality. 

The Musical Fidelity V90-DAC is the start of the new V90 series and, although it only has 1 x Coax input, 1 x USB input and 2 x Optical inputs, it does benefit from 32bit 192kHz upsampling and at £200, its half the price of the Arcam duo. 

The new Audiolab Q-DAC, also at £400, is a stripped down version of the award winning M-DAC. Built to match the M-PWR power amp it offers 98% of the functionality of the M-DAC, but £200 cheaper. 

Now has never been a better time to audition a DAC and see what they can do for your system.

Once we have all 3 in store we will report back with our first impressions.