Cambridge Audio Sonata AR30 V2 Stereo Receiver
You find out all the attributes of cool musical amplifier in the device of British Cambridge Audio. When you examine it there is a feeling that this is the dead spit of full-sized Hi-Fi component, made in the scale of 1:2. This is also indicated by the positions of control elements, body's proportions and the design itself. A relief chassis is used here, stamped from rolled iron, which is closed from the top by a perforated cover. The faceplate is a polished and anodized aluminum plate. You can see inside a switching and pre-amp board, radiators of output transistors and a small "donut" of toroidal transformer with quite a fanciful stabilization system. By the way, almost the entire audio path is made on the discrete elements. So, everything except the mass of 4 kg looks very seriously. Even network power intake is 300W - like in adult amplifier!
The device has the selector on four linear inputs, outputs for subwoofer, recorder and stereo-phones. It is equipped with the remote control and dock-station for iPod, which is connected through a special connector (certainly, the cable is attached).
The sound of this receiver returns you back in the thirty-old times when everyone and their sister produced Hi-Fi, but only the most competent showed a good sound without extra functions in the design. Experienced audiophiles will remember this sound. The emphasis is on the big musical forms. Bass is deep and complete. The middle is convex, bright and often with transistor taste, but rich in timbres. Tops are free, not stressed and largely soft. In those times CD hadn't widely used yet and everyone used analog sources and that's why nobody thought about super dynamics, neutrality and detailing of playing - nevertheless a half of nuances sank in the noises of magnetic tape. Audiophiles respected not the technical aestheticism but the power of musical sensations and, of course, stereo picture - such one which "covers", takes the listener away.
Sonata AR30 really takes you away. It has the scene with faults but it is deep, entraining, with quite material images. Bass is simple, albeit without flabbiness and with clear dynamics. The middle is slightly but beautifully colored - the vocal "chest" area is dedicated due to that the sound literally comes to life. The tops are not very dynamic, a bit foggy but certainly not bland and scratchy.
But here and everywhere you find "but". You feel in the sound of British mini-receiver a some lack of subtle detailing, but this also turns out to be a plus when you begin to listen to songs of compressed formats - they are reproduced not so flawed when in the devices with high sound resolution. This is not the most appropriate device for the listening of audiophile recordings. However, Sonata AR30 will play everything else quite expressively.
