Using our years of testing expertise, we've created a cracking budget hi-fi system that adopts a ‘do-it-all’ philosophy and executes it with aplomb. If ever a system could be described as being more than the sum of its parts, it’s this one. First-time buyers; prick up your ears.
At the heart of the set-up is a current What Hi-Fi? Best System Under £500 Award-winner – the Denon D-M41DAB. This is a complete microsystem in its own right, comprising a DAB radio, CD player, analogue and digital optical inputs (for attaching external sources), an on-board amplifier and a pair of compact two-way speakers. It also offers Bluetooth, meaning you can play music from pretty much any source. And once you have done that a few times, you won’t want to stop, because this multi-tasking marvel seems not to have a weak link in any of its chains.
The system
- Micro system: Denon D-M41DAB (£349 / $461 approx / AU$678 approx)
- Phono stage: Rega Fono Mini A2D Mk2 (£110 / $195 / AU$249 )
- Turntable: Pro-Ject Primary E (£199 / $299 / AU$475 )
- Total price: £658 / $955 approx / AU$1402 approx
Micro system: Denon D-M41DAB
We slide a copy of Hot Chip’s Made In The Dark into the CD tray. At once we are struck by the pleasingly forward presentation. The Denon revels in the urgent rhythms of tracks such as ShakeA Fist and Ready For The Floor, and there’s a surprisingly well defined soundstage along with a good level of detail. Dynamics, too, are far more insightful and expressive than we would expect at this sort of price. That forward presentation doesn’t mean a lack of depth; in fact, it’s a real achievement on the part of Denon to have supplied a sound with such heft and stability – and that’s regardless of whether you have the speakers against the wall or away from it.
Switching to a Spotify stream of Ryan Adams’ Heartbreaker, we discover that the Denon can supply as much grace as it does energy. There’s a sweetly light touch to the fingerpicked acoustic guitars of Oh My Sweet Carolina that nevertheless allows plenty of space to communicate the weight and depth in Adams’ vocals.
It doesn’t take us long to conclude that the D-M41DAB can more than hold its own in terms of sound quality against separates costing much more. If you want, you can, for a reduced price, buy the unit without its supplied speakers (the SC-M41s) and connect an alternative pair, but you will struggle to find compatible boxes that work as well as the SC-M41s without leaving yourself significantly out of pocket.
Phono stage: Rega Fono Mini A2D Mk2
Of course, the one thing you can’t do on the Denon is play records; but adding the Pro-Ject Primary E turntable and Rega Fono Mini A2D Mk2 phono stage is a simple, relatively inexpensive business.
You might think it’s a shame that the Denon microsystem doesn’t have a built-in phono stage (it has just about everything else) but that apparent inconvenience is actually a blessing in disguise; it means you can hook-up the impressive Rega Fono Mini A2D Mk2 – a phono stage of a quality that any Denon on-board alternative would never be able to match, given the D-M41DAB’s compact dimensions.
The turntable here is the Pro-Ject Primary E (more on this below). Not only do the Rega and Pro-Ject work well together as price-compatible models, they also both complement the Denon’s talents beautifully.
If you are worried about having to accommodate another box alongside the Denon, the Fono Mini isn’t much bigger than a box of extra-long matches, yet it performs out of all proportion to its size.
The Mk2 has a slightly cleaner appearance than its predecessor but the audio circuitry is unchanged. And that is actually a good thing. The Rega’s 47kOhm/100pF input loading is a good match for the Pro-Ject Primary E’s Ortofon cartridge, and the digital output of the unit’s USB connection means you can connect it to your computer and turn the music signal from your records into a digital file. It is time-consuming to digitise vinyl in this way but the Rega makes it an easy thing to do.
Most users of this system, though, will simply be using it to boost the signal from the Pro-Ject so they can listen to their vinyl direct. And in that respect it is a treat. Like the other two elements here, the Fono Mini is decidedly a budget proposition but – like them – it concentrates on getting the important things right. And that means it does a good job of delivering dynamic contrasts, complementing the lively, forward presentation found in the Denon and Pro-Ject, and paying commendably close attention to detail. The really impressive thing here though, is the musically cohesive way in which the Rega organises the information it is given, resulting in a sonic presentation that, for this price bracket, is unusually musical.
Turntable: Pro-Ject Primary E
The fact that Pro-Ject produces deeply competitive decks costing many thousands means it is well placed to funnel all its knowledge and expertise into budget models – and few of those can hold a candle to the Primary E.
Our current Best Turntable Under £200, this deck is our favourite entry-level record player and does everything we would expect from a back-to-basics, budget deck. Equipped with an Ortofon moving-magnet cartridge (a big plus), the Pro-Ject’s priority is entertainment, making it the perfect companion for the Denon’s lively musical presentation. It confidently nails the basics of vinyl replay, from an even tonal balance to a clear, clean delivery, and its sound is spacious enough to give a decent sense of three-dimensionality to multiple strands of music, while organising all the information in a musically coherent way. Add in a spirited sense of drive with rhythms and the Pro-Ject is already looking like great value for money.
On The National’s Trouble Will Find Me it shows its sensitive side, communicating the dreamy instrumental warmth and plaintive vocal of Fireproof nicely. In fact, we are struggling to think what more we could want from a sub-£200 deck – particularly one that is so easy to set up.
Verdict
For anyone looking to step onto the first rung of the stereo-systems ladder, this trio has it all. Not only can you play music from virtually any source you care to mention, that music will sound far better than it has any right to at this price.
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