June is always a tricky time for hi-fi and home cinema fans. For whatever reason, companies seem to think the Summer Solstice period is the perfect time to launch new products.
2026 has proven no different. Over the past seven days, our team has wrapped up its coverage of the High End Vienna show, dealt with some surprise AV announcements at Apple WWDC, all the while continuing its eternal search for the best hi-fi and home cinema products.
Eager to make sure you don’t miss any of the important announcements, we’ve inked a fresh entry for our weekly Rewind column detailing all the salient points.
We had an opening look at Dali’s new premium system
Hi-fi systems are a growing category, even at the premium end of the market. Which is why we were curious to check out Dali’s take on the format at the High End Vienna Show.
The giant new Dali Vega is an instantly eye-catching, eight-channel system designed with flexibility, as well as performance, in mind.
At a platform level, this is due to its use of BluOS, which means it has all the streaming smarts most music fans will need.
But it is also due to its design, with Dali claiming you can position it horizontally on a stand/desk or on a wall in either portrait or landscape without impacting performance.
Read our full Dali Vega hands-on preview
One of our favourite portable DACs is back
The appearance of a new AudioQuest DragonFly Copper portable DAC / headphone amp was a welcome surprise last week. Unveiled at High End, the tiny portable DAC is being pitched as a refinement, rather than a rethinking, of the DragonFly’s offering.
It’s a tiny USB dongle designed to offer hi-fi fans a quick and easy way to improve their laptop, tablet or phone’s audio. Key upgrades on its recently retired predecessor include the use of a new 32-bit ESS Sabre DAC and Microchip Technology Microprocessor.
The ESS Sabre doubles the unit’s power output, while the microprocessor reduces the current draw by 25 per cent. We didn’t get to demo it at the show, but we are hoping to get a DragonFly Copper in for review soon. Watch this space.
Read the full story: The DragonFly Copper hovers into view as AudioQuest's most powerful and efficient DAC yet
We had a chinwag with Ruark about why it loves CDs so much
There’s a lot of hype around CDs right now, with numerous reports suggesting Gen Z is suddenly interested in the format.
But, UK-based firm Ruark has long championed CD, even when it wasn’t in vogue with younger listeners.
Which is why, when the firm launched its new Ruark R710 streaming amplifier with integrated CD player at High End Vienna, our hi-fi and audio editor, Kashfia Kabir, headed straight to its stand to have a chinwag with owner and managing director Alan O’Rourke about it.
Read the full story: "It's the last physical format we'll ever have." How the demand for CDs, tactility and good design led to Ruark's new R710 streaming amplifier
Apple unveiled its new TV software
We’ve wanted to see a new Apple TV 4K streaming box for quite a while now – especially our senior staff writer, Lewis Empson.
While one didn’t appear at the tech giant’s WWDC developer conference, we did at least get a hefty update to the current Apple TV’s software, in the shape of tvOS 27.
The new OS promises to help give the long-in-the-tooth Apple TV 4K, which launched all the way back in 2022, a new lease of life, making it “30 per cent” faster and more responsive.
Read the full story: Apple officially announces tvOS 27 – and it nearly makes up for the missing next-generation Apple TV 4K
Moon’s new hi-fi left us wanting more (in a good way)
Moon’s latest 491 streaming preamplifier (£5950 / $6500) and 461 power amplifier (£4450 / $5000) are the latest additions to the firm’s high-end Compass Collection, which includes the five-star 371 streaming amplifier we reviewed in March.
Designed specifically for high-end hi-fi enthusiasts, both units come armed to the teeth with top-end features and hardware. So much so that after having an opening look and listen to both at the High End Show, our global technical editor, Ketan Bharadia, walked away wanting more, reporting:
“All in all, the Moon 491/461 combination makes a great first impression. We’re due to get the products in for review in the next few months, and we can’t wait to hear what they do in our test room's more familiar surroundings.”
Read the full story: Moon's new 491 streaming preamp and 461 stereo power amp is a formidable combination – our first impressions left us wanting more
MORE:
We rank the best stereo amplifiers for hi-fi fans
Our picks of the best hi-fi systems
The best DACs ranked by our experts
