The A1 is Back!
Another winner from Musical Fidelity
Remember the Musical Fidelity M2si integrated amp? It was a big deal.
Literally. The M2si remains one of our most successful product promotions ever. When Kevin saw that the newer M3si had an onboard DAC, he knew there was a strong market out there for a straight, simple, 'line stage only' integrated amp and bought several hundred of the M2si. These sold at a steady two or more a day until we ran out. It was the source of many rave reviews and also provided our customers with a true long-term foundational product in their systems.
We're remembering the M2si because Musical Fidelity has made magic again. Welcome to another re-release of their classic, the A1. "Another re-release" isn't a redundancy error; because of the original A1's popularity, it has seen multiple re-issues and new versions since the first one in 1985.
This time, Musical Fidelity has gone back to the original 1985 design (both appearance and circuits) but with an updated transformer, power supply, and components.
Ash N., our product manager, fondly remembers the original A1 from years ago. He was working at an ultra-high-end audio outlet, and they took in this little integrated amp on trade. He needed to test it and was curious about it, like he usually is with audio, so without expecting much out of it, he connected it up to two Focal bookshelf speakers. To this day, he still clearly remembers his surprise at how good it sounded.
"It was liquid-sounding and very immediate and present. I was not expecting it to be that good, and I never forgot that moment."
Ken Davis, our sales manager, said nearly the exact thing about the sound of the new version of the A1, mentioning "That typical class-A sound."
In fact, the A1 has been the talk of the office, and we always pay attention when a product generates in-house buzz. (And sure enough, this just in: shortly before publication, we have sold through our entire first order before it has even got to us!)
A Solid Bank of Caps
Ash remembers the one big drawback of the original: it ran extremely hot, and the relatively small capacitors in the output stage wore out quickly. (Because class-A amps essentially run at full throttle all the time, they can put a lot of stress on output-stage components.) Peering into the new A1, Ash was pleased to see a bank of large, high-quality caps totaling 40,000 microfarads per channel, meaning far more reliability.
As with the original, the entire top of the amp is a heatsink connected with thermal paste to an internal heatsink just below. This ensures those 25 W of power are dissipated when not used. If, by chance, you have some difficult speakers and like to play really loud, the new A1 is able to slide (not switch) into class-B operation and draw more power as needed.
We have a demo unit ready in the store, but it's more important than usual to call to set up an appointment because we're already fighting over who gets to take the A1 away to try out at home. Plus, we have sold through our entire first order before it's even landed at the warehouse, so place your pre-orders now to reserve your A1 in our second shipment.
Feliks Audio Echo Price Drop, Price Drop, Price Drop
Find out why Kevin thinks Feliks Audio is "one of the most amazing brands on the planet." A great audio deal even at full price just got even better. The Feliks Audio Echo Mk II headphone amp, normally $1,099, is now just $995.
Don't Forget: In-Store Event on October 12
Save the date! On Thursday, October 12, from 4 to 7 p.m., we will have an in-store event featuring several representatives from Upscale brands.
John Hunter and Paul Magee of REL Acoustics will be there with a line array (six pack!) of the REL Serie S Carbon Special.
Brad Crawford will represent both Klipsch and Focal and will be showing off Klipsch Heritage speakers and the Focal Utopia EVO.
Lenny Mayeux of MoFi Electronics will be there to tell you all about HiFi Rose digital sources and the MoFi MasterPhono.
And, of course, Kevin Deal and your favorite Upscale team members will be there, too. We'll send out more details as we get closer to the event. We can't wait to see you!
Join Kevin in His Listening Room
Top Sales and Deals!
Here are the noteworthy sales and offers we have going right now. Note: There are further terms and conditions; this is just a summary. To get all the details, contact our sales crew on website chat, via email (info@upscaleaudio.com), or call 909-931-9686.
Free Cartridge with Purchase: From now until October 31st, Clearaudio is offering a free cartridge with the purchase of select turntable packages. Contact an Upscale Audio sales team member for details.
Price Drop: On Chord Electronics.
JL Sale: Take $400 off the JL Audio Dominion d110 10" subwoofer.