Hi-Fi Separates

The appeal of hi-fi separates is one box doing one job properly, and the freedom to improve any of them without replacing the lot.

Here is what each box actually does, and which one to buy first.

Start With the Amplifier

Everything else plugs into it, so the amplifier sets the ceiling for the whole system.

Our integrated amplifiers combine the preamp and power amp in a single chassis, which is where most systems should begin.

You will meet Class AB and Class G on the spec sheet. Class AB is the traditional approach and still the most common by far.

Class G, which Arcam has been refining since 2009, runs from a lower voltage most of the time and calls on a higher rail only when the music demands it. The result is efficiency at normal levels with reserves in hand when a track suddenly needs them.

Mission's 778X revives a name from the early Eighties, back when the company built far more than speakers and the original 778 went on to become the first Cyrus product. Audiolab sits under the same parent group, which is why the two share more engineering than their badges let on.

Choosing a Source

Streaming is where this category has moved fastest, and our music streamers reflect that.

WiiM proved a capable hi-res streamer needn't cost hundreds. Eversolo went the other way and packed a touchscreen, a balanced ESS DAC and a drive bay into a single box.

Prefer physical media? Our CD players and turntables still earn their shelf space, though vinyl needs a phono stage either built into the amplifier or added alongside it.

Upgrading One Box at a Time

This is the real reason to buy separates rather than a single unit.

Speakers shift the sound more than anything else, so put your money there first and let the electronics catch up later. Our hi-fi speakers will finish whichever route you take.

If assembling it yourself sounds like hard work, our complete hi-fi systems arrive already matched.

Not sure what to change first? Tell us what you are running and we will tell you honestly whether an upgrade is worth the money.