Top-shelf toys for music lovers

Jan 12, 2009 13:37 GMT  ·  By

If you're looking to replace your existing audio rack components with some new, high-class ones, without having to get a loan, then you definitely must take a look at Simaudio's new Moon series, as it boasts a heap of nifty features selling for a decent price and being one of the best deals in the audiophile entry-level range. Having “audiophile” and “entry level” in the same sentence might seem a bit strange, yet the price for the new Moon series is a perfect excuse: you can brig home a top-notch integrated amplifier, capable of giving you a lot of bang for the bucks, with uncompromised quality and a first-class CD player to complement it, all for under $6,000.

The CD3.3 could be the first on your list: a nifty high-end CD player, which will instantly make you hear the difference between the sound your old CD player used to treat you with and what is actually “happening” on your fav disc.

The CD3.3 builds on the same chassis used by the initial model of the series, CD-1, but on the inside you get a re-clocking jitter reduction special module, high conductivity gold-plated circuit boards, a PCM1798 DAC coming from the acclaimed Burr-Brown, a fully-balanced analog output stage, and a high-tech 24bit/352.8kHz upsampling module. The whole equipment rests on 4 feet, which isolate your player from the rest of the room by using a small gel-based suspension system, so that vibrations are kept to a minimum. If you want it, fork out some $2,799 and it's yours.

The integrated amplifier codenamed i3.3 is the follow-up to the acclaimed Moon i-1 amp, and it uses pretty much the same design. Thanks to the over-sized toroidal transformer, the new contraption can offer you quite a blast: it can drive 100W in 8 Ohms, while using it in 4 Ohms impedance will put no less than 200W at your fingertips. You can hype it up and add some optional components, such as balanced inputs, a Class-A phonostage, and an internal DAC, for $300, $400, and $500, respectively. However, if you think the i3.3 is just perfect as it is, it will set you back some $2,999.

These new Moon audio components can be ordered in either a brushed aluminum or a black finish, and are already available for discerning customers.

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Photo Gallery (4 Images)

The Simaudio Moon i3.3 integrated amplifier
The Simaudio CD3.3 CD playerThe rear panel of the CD player
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