Hi-Fi Essentials
Hardware and treatment for a system you already own: headphones, DACs, amplifiers, streamers, isolation, racks and grounding. The next purchase after the system exists.
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This is the upgrade section rather than the starting point. It assumes you have a system, know roughly what it does well, and want to work out what to change next.
The order that usually works starts with the mechanical foundation. A rack that resonates undermines everything sitting on it, so proper support and isolation come first. Then the source, because nothing downstream can recover what a poor source has already lost. Then the electronics, and last the treatments that sit around the edges of a system, such as grounding.
Some of what is here is uncontested. Speaker stands, isolation feet and a rigid rack do measurable and audible things. Other categories, grounding in particular, divide opinion sharply, and we say so on the pages where that applies. What we will not do is recommend something we have not heard, or call a component essential when your system does not need it. Tell us what you are running and what you want to improve, and we will give you a straight answer.
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£107.50Ex. VATThe iFi Audio ZEN Air Blue 2 is a Bluetooth 5.4 audio receiver featuring an ESS Sabre DAC, aptX Lossless support at up to 1200kbps, and a three-stage circuit design, bringing wireless hi-res streaming to any existing amplifier or active speaker system. -
£107.50Ex. VAT
The iFi Audio ZEN Air DAC 2 is a USB DAC, headphone amplifier, and preamplifier featuring a Cirrus Logic DAC, balanced 4.4mm output, PCM 384kHz and DSD256 support, and analogue XBass and PowerMatch controls, in a compact midnight blue desktop form.
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£107.50Ex. VATThe iFi Audio ZEN Air Phono 2 is a turntable phono stage with selectable MM and MC gain modes, a precise RIAA curve to within 0.15dB, an intelligent subsonic filter, and an ultra-low noise floor, offering audiophile-grade vinyl playback at an accessible price.
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£190.83Ex. VATWinner for Best DAC under £250 at the What Hi-Fi? Awards 2026
The AudioQuest DragonFly Copper is a portable USB DAC, preamplifier, and headphone amplifier featuring a 32-bit ESS Sabre DAC, a copper-plated RF-draining case, and twice the output power of previous DragonFly models, compatible with Mac, Windows, iOS, and Android.
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£1,041.67Ex. VATThe Gold Note DS-5.2 is a compact fully balanced network streamer and DAC featuring an AKM AK4493 chip, Roon Ready, TIDAL Connect, Qobuz, Spotify Lossless, HDMI eARC, Bluetooth 5.2, and both XLR and RCA outputs, with an integrated preamplifier and headphone output -
£224.17Ex. VATThe Ortofon MC X10 is a moving coil cartridge featuring high-purity silver coils, a tipped elliptical diamond stylus, a MIM-moulded honeycomb stainless-steel body, and a newly developed optimised magnet system, offering an accessible entry into moving coil performance. -
£499.17Ex. VATThe Ortofon MC X30 is a moving coil cartridge featuring a nude fine-line diamond stylus, high-purity silver coils, a MIM-moulded honeycomb stainless-steel body, and an optimised magnet system, delivering precise resolution and refined detail from vinyl. -
£1,082.50Ex. VATThe Ortofon MC X50 is a moving coil cartridge featuring a nude Micro Ridge diamond stylus on a boron cantilever, high-purity silver quad coils, a MIM-moulded honeycomb stainless-steel body, and a newly formulated rubber suspension engineered specifically for the model. -
£399.17Ex. VATThis is a pre-order item, due for delivery late summer 2026
The WiiM Bar is a 3.0.2 Dolby Atmos soundbar with an 8-driver array, top-firing height channels, HDMI eARC, RoomFit room correction, and full WiiM ecosystem integration, expandable to 5.1.2. (31 words) -
From£57.50Ex. VATThe SVS SoundPath Subwoofer Isolation System uses precision-engineered elastomer feet to decouple a subwoofer from the floor, delivering tighter bass and measurably less room rattle. Available in 4-foot and 6-foot configurations. -
£49.96Ex. VATThe AudioQuest HL-5 is a set of four tonearm headshell leads designed to replace stock cables in a turntable or headshell setup, bringing AudioQuest build quality directly into the analogue signal path. -
Atacama
Atacama Apollo Storm 10 With Vinyl Storage Premium Black Edition Hi-Fi Rack Inc. Base ShelfSKU: Apollo Storm 10 Premium Black Vinyl
£483.32Ex. VATThe Atacama Apollo Storm 10 Vinyl Storage Module is a solid British oak add-on for the Apollo Storm 10 rack, storing and displaying up to 70 twelve-inch records alongside a turntable, with left or right configuration options and a choice of two leg heights.
