Hi-Fi News Magazine December 2021 Back Issue

How much?! That’s not an uncommon response to the price tag hanging from more than a few of the very high-end audio
products that have featured in Hi-Fi News over the years. The
£137k Engström ERIC Encore tube amps [HFN Nov ’21] raised
a shackle or two [see p119] but I remember even greater outrage
greeting the arrival of Naim Audio’s Statement NAC/NAP S1
preamp/monoblocks [HFN Jun ’15] at £155k, now £179k. The debate about the cost of these very limited edition pieces, all typically comprising years of product development, countless staff payroll hours, custom components and requiring unique tooling, will rumble
on. Our cover stars this month, the astonishing-looking, fabulous-sounding and backbreakingly heavy NHB-468 from Swiss brand darTZeel will doubtless spray more jet fuel onto the fi re [see p40].

MUSIC: George Michael’s fi rst solo album, Faith, is our Vinyl Icon (p84), while Steve Sutherland recounts a career cut short by tragedy as Kirsty MacColl’s Kite reappears on 180g vinyl (p82)

PLUS: Hi-Fi News & RR is the UK’s representative of EISA’s Hi-Fi Expert
Group. Editor Paul Miller took over as EISA’s President in June 2016.