REPRODUCED FROM HI-FINEW S
ABOVE: W ired/wireles network control/stream ing supplem entsac es to m ore m usic via internaland external (HDD) USB-A drives. A USB-B (DSD512/DXD) input is joined by Toslink, coax and AES (DSD64/192kHz)alongside analogue line and phono inputs.Variable analogue outputison RCAsand balanced XLRs
JOYOUSEXPERIENCE Even with the Bil Evans take on ‘Alfie’ from his Another Tim e – The Hilversum Concert album , recorded (adm itedly m agnificently) back in 1968 and revived to DSD by the 2xHD label [2XHDRE1069],the sound brim swith the easygoing interplay between Evans, Eddie Gom ez and Jack DeJohnete in frontofasm alaudience.It’sajoyous experience viathe AltairG2.1. The tim bres of realvoices and instrum ents are a m ajor strength here,for while m ainstream pop is revealed in al its autotuned awfulnes , give it som ething like ‘Litle Black Dres ’from The Bles ed Unrest, the 2013 Sara Bareiles album [Epic 88883739832; HDtracks 88.2kHz/24-bit], and it punchesoutnotonlyeverylineofthe vocal,butalso the gutsy ac om panim ent,with realdefinition and im pact.It’sa sound to have you wanting to explore m ore ofthe singer’scatalogue,fairerthan which one realycan’tsay. It’s also as adeptwhen growling outsom e driving rockasitiswhen playing m ore hi-fi-show-friendly m usic.Thisreview period coincided with the dem ise ofZZ Top bas istDusty Hil,which alm ostinevitably led to acouple ofeveningswith m e im m ersed deep inTexasboogie.Icantelyouthatfrom theslowburn blues of‘Just Got Back From Baby’s’al the way through to the charging guitar solo of ‘Cheap Sunglas es’,thisnew Altairdid proud the exhaustive Goin’50 com pilation [W arnerBros0603497851621].
Its analogue output drove the am plification, and thus the speakers, to suitably raucous efect, while stil keeping those good-tim e rhythm sroling asthe trio powered on.Ieven played the odd track–welalrightthen,quite a lotofthem !– severaltim es,justto im m erse m yselfin althe thunderand snarl.
ABOVE: Hidden under the top-plate and screening the digital electronics within is a branded,silver-coloured enclosure.
MUSICATHOME+ 27
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