It has been said that the Hi-Fi is as an essential component of a Bachelors pad as the cocktail bar or signature furniture. Finding the perfect sounding Hi-Fi is difficult enough; we’re all different and what sounds perfect to one can grate on another, indeed it doesn’t help that at times separates can be uninspiring to look at and won’t sit well in a distinctive listening room. This is an especial problem for audiophiles who live in contemporary / statement homes; a boring hi-fi system, no matter how good it sounds just doesn’t do justice to the discerning listeners good taste and can seem very out of place.
All is not lost, however; for the listener who wishes to combine high performance audio with a modernist apartment or listening room the updating of the classic Quad 99 system with the Quad Elite comes as welcome news indeed. Their smart, understated looks are unconventional enough to catch the eye but not enough to dominate a room unnecessarily – and naturally they are designed with top-of-class sound in mind. Taking the remarkably successful 99 series as the base, Quad have spent the past three years assessing each and every component in every single separate; CD Player, Tuner, Pre Amp and Power Amp with a ‘if it isn’t broke don’t fix it’ mantra. By only replacing components when a genuine increase in quality would result, the Elite series remain true to the original concept while bringing them firmly into 2010.
A fine example of this comprehensive redesign is the Elite CDS CD player, which has benefited from a new transport & servo system, and has had its DAC upped from 96kHz to a 24bit/192kHz for the best possible sound. The FM Tuner, a complete ground up redesign promises audiophile quality sound, as do the carefully revised pre/power amps. With such an emphasis on the musicality and experience, this midi-sized system are absolutely perfect for a flat or room where space is at a premium and quality is a must.
The Quad Elite system will be available from September from Audio Affair.