Strengths: It's got that lovely rich Arcam sound, loads of presets, easy to use and a nice looking bit of kit. Oh, and fantastic value for money if you shop in the right places!
Weaknesses: None I can think of at the price I paid. You need a roof aerial for best results but that's true for all tuners. I don't see the lack of DAB as a problem as I play my satellite tv through the hifi so if I want channels not available on fm I can listen via sat.
Overall: I bought the T61 as an upgrade from my Arcam 8 tuner, an improvement as far as the facilities are concerned but retains that great sound that FM delivers on the likes of Radio 2,3 & 4. Brilliant value for money, nicely built and a fantastic source when tuned to a Radio 3 concert or Radio 4 play as it really brings the event to life. If you listen to "compressed" commercial stations all the time they'll probably sound worse so don't bother, otherwise......
Strengths: I own several PURE radios so there must be something good about the brand. I've also got the additional speaker for stereo sound. Sound quality is very good, the standard of construction high. A very good set up for the dining room or kitchen only outdone in my household by the SONUS which beats it on facilities (these however, are more appropriate to the bedroom!!)
Weaknesses: Digital radio has (as seems so often the case) been over hyped but within the limitations of the format the PURE EVOKE is a great buy, the SONUS remains my favourite though.
Overall: An excellent radio set up, particularly with the additional speaker, for the dining room or kitchen, or kitchen/diner in fact! High standard of build and good sound quality and looks good in it's wooden casing.
Strengths: The Pure One works really well as a portable, I take mine out in the garden and it accompanied me on a camp out. The sleep/timer facilities are really useful as it the fact that it's also equipped with FM should you ned it.
Weaknesses: Like all digital radios, it's power hungry and you definitely need the rechargable power pack so it's not as "green" as a small FM/AM portable.
Overall: I'm pleased with my Pure One (and Pure Sonus come to that)and it works well bearing in mind the limitations of digital radio.
'PHILIPS WACS7000 - A GOOD FUN WIRE FREE SYSTEM BUT NOT HIFI'
Strengths: Looks good,(matches the LCD screen I'm using for looks)easy to use and as my kitchen system with TV played through it works well. If I'm moving around the house the music will follow.
Weaknesses: The sound is pleasant but isn't what one could truly call hifi so if I play something on my Roksan set up there's hell of a difference. And you certainly need to change the default downloading bit rate to the maximum available. The kit came supplied with poor Euro 2 pin plugs - I'm surprised that manufacturers can get away with that in this country.
Overall: For someone starting off their music collection and who is a major PC user this Philips set up could be an attractive proposition. After a time however, I suspect one would be seeking a more revealing sound quality and I'm not sure I'd trust my music collection to a server in light of the reliability of computers - it's gonna crash sometime!!
'NATURAL, MUSICAL HEADPHONES AND EXCELLENT VALUE FOR MONEY '
Strengths: Natural sound quality, they work really well with classical music which I think is always a good test, and comfort, I can where them for ages without discomfort. Using a Project Headphone Amp and these headphones provides excellent listening.
Weaknesses: Yes, quite alot of plastic but that doesn't me as long as the phones are well made, and they are, and the plastic keeps the 'phones light.
Overall: Great sound, very comfortable, excellent value for money.
Strengths: The Set looks great, picture quality and rendition of colours is generally excellent, useful range of inputs and outputs.
Weaknesses: Some smearing occassionally but this is charactisitic of many lcd sets, the sound is acceptable not stunning but as I play sound through the hifi (as many will) this is not much of a problem
Overall: The Samsung offers great value for money and is surley the benchmark at this level. The SOny and Panasonic models way have a slight advantage in terms of quality but you do have to pay for it!
Strengths: Solid build, great levels of detail with convincing weight of sound. Digital and analogue outputs.
Weaknesses: I experienced some problems with programming tracks initially and the machine developed a skipping fault and wouldn't play some CDs however, ROKSAN sorted all the problems out and the machine is now excellent and works well in combination with my KANDY amp.
Overall: Great player in its price range, I love the solid build and feel of the machine and the weight of sound that the KANDY combination produces. I was less than please when the skipping fault developed but I really must compliment ROKSAN on their customer care and obviously my local Salisbury dealer - both very professional and keen to put right the wrongs.
Strengths: Quality of build and finish is fabulous, biamp capability, clear and clean sound. They work well with my ROKSAN KANDY.
Weaknesses: The sound veers towards the bright side and I would imagine that tied in with a lean sounding amp like the Cyrus the presentation would be very detailed but a bit thin (for my tastes anyway!).
Overall: These speakers were a great buy (I was upgrading from QUAD 11Ls so I had an idea of the type of sound I was getting) as SUPERFI were offering a special deal due to the upgraded L2 model that was about to be issued. The build and finish is superb so they look great too which (being realistic about these things) helps with persuading partners of the benefits.
Strengths: Weight of sound, impressive and realistic soundstage, plenty of power to play with, good range of inputs including phono, solid build.
Weaknesses: Hard to think of anything very obvious here but there must be something ummmmm! Ahhh, for those who want to biwire there is only one set of speaker connects!
Overall: In its class the KANDY is an excellent amp, solid casework, flexible as far as inputs are concerned, and a very convincing sound. I compared the KANDY with the Cyrus before purchase and credit to the Cyrus for the detail it produced but the KANDY possessed greater weight of sound and more realistic soundstage. I listen to a wide range of music and the KANDY presents all types in a most convincing fashion.
I'm tempted by the biamp option with the new L3 poweramp following some very useful advice and info from PLUTO on the forum.
