There is so much good going on inside this AVM device. It does have excellent imagery, presenting an extremely three-dimensional soundstage. It does have oodles of detail, but in a coherent manner. It does that rooted-in-place solidity that many ‘next gen’ digital devices struggle with so much. It does have a projected vocal articulation that gives you a somewhere between ‘in the studio’ and ‘third row of the stalls’ presentation. It does have effortless dynamics and great musical flow. And it does have a good foot-tapping nature. All of these things can be found in exaggerated form in other devices, but few give you the full package in one. I found this worked even with resoundingly difficult tracks, like ‘Heaven, How Long’ from indietronica star East India Youth [ Total Strife Forever, Stolen ]. This can sound like someone worthy singing over a Tangerine Dream album (and later a Hawkwind track) if not well handled, and here it took on the sophistication and energy that’s buried in the track.
It’s a fine replacement to about three or four separate devices in one simple box. It’s a joy to use, sounds excellent, and takes charge of all of your audio system as one, good sounding hub. Highly recommended, for today and tomorrow.
