Audiophilepure

https://www.hifinews.com/content/arcam-sa45-streaming-amplifier

The SA45’s digital stage performs admirably overall, sounding focused and detailed if not quite hitting the precise, airy highs of dedicated solutions. Black Sabbath’s riff-filled ‘Symptom Of The Universe’ from the album Sabotage [Rhino/Warner; 96kHz/24-bit] sounded a little more cohesive and revealing in the high frequencies played via a Matrix Audio Element X2 Pure streamer [HFN Dec ’23] into the SA45’s balanced XLR input. Using that source to stream Kari Bremnes’ ‘A Lover In Berlin’ [Norwegian Mood, Kirkelig Kulturverksted; CD res] found the amp combining a detailed, textured depiction of the upright bass with a feather-light delivery of her vocals.

Thanks to this ‘best of both worlds’ performance, I struggled to find any music that would trip up Arcam’s flagship. Eric Clapton’s ‘Goin’ Down Slow’ [Pilgrim, Reprise Records; CD res] sounded clean and crisp, with rattlesnake-like percussion flitting behind keyboards, guitar, and Slowhand’s understated vocals. This track may straddle blues and easy listening, but the SA45 made every second a pleasure.

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