Did you hear? What Hi-Fi? has turned 50! That’s right, we are more than halfway to retirement and our 'shouting-at-the-sky whenever something mildly perturbs us' era!
Yes, last night the team and I donned our glad rags and joined the crème de la crème of the hi-fi and AV industry at the What Hi-Fi? Awards to raise a glass to this year’s Product of the Year winners and our publication reaching such a critical milestone.
And what a ride it’s been over the past five decades. The arrival of multiple new formats, ranging from the humble CD and DVD to SACD and Blu-ray; the eventual domination of streaming; magazine cover disasters; the arrival and rapid decline of 3D TV; more than a few weird and wonderful speakers; numerous office (and publisher) changes…
We dealt with all of it, usually with a “sponsored” trip to the pub when things were particularly grim, or we were out of ideas for the next cover.
But yesterday, as the band packed up and the team stood diligently at the bar making sure the last guests were looked after, we couldn’t help but start reminiscing about our personal memories of the brand.
Given how much we enjoyed them, we thought we’d continue the fun by sharing them here with you, our awesome readers, who have supported us and are the real reason we reached the big five-O.
Thanks for everything!
It's all about the music
Editorial Assistant (2004)
Content Director (present)
Having worked at What Hi-Fi? for more than 20 years, I'm happy to say that there have been many highlights. Seeing and hearing incredible products before anyone else in the world, working with brilliant and inspirational people, and travelling to far-flung locations to report from shows and factory floors – the job has some great perks.
But arguably my overriding memory is of enjoying time spent in the office, albeit in the legendary What Hi-Fi? test rooms. As a 20-something enjoying my first “proper job” in journalism, I knew I’d landed on my feet when I could tell my friends I spent my days listening to music on incredible speakers or watching films on a projector with a surround-sound system. “That doesn’t sound like work,” would be the general gist of the replies, and it was hard to argue.
The unavoidable days when work doesn’t feel quite so much fun can always be rectified by sitting down on the trusty What Hi-Fi? sofa (don’t worry, it hasn’t been the same one since I started), shutting the test room door, and blasting some of my favourite tunes on the reference system. Lest we forget, it’s all about the music.
Watching cartoons on a £38k system
TV and AV staff writer (2024-present)
I may not have worked at What Hi-Fi? quite as long as some of my colleagues, but that doesn’t mean I can’t look back with wistful nostalgia at my time so far. One memory that stands out is when I was only a few months into the job and didn’t have much first-hand experience with top-notch home cinema kit.
After excitedly buying the Blu-ray of Arcane just before starting at What Hi-Fi? (irritatingly, the 4K Blu-ray was released a few months after), I was desperate to watch my favourite TV show in the AV test room.
At the time, we were using the glorious PMC Twenty5.23 speaker package and Marantz Cinema 30 AV receiver as our reference system, which gave me a memorable taste of what was to come. That was paired with the Sony Bravia Projector 8 and Oppo UDP-203 Blu-ray player.
Before then, I had only seen the show on my laptop (thankfully, those days are behind me), so watching on a system worth around £38,000 was quite the experience. I remember being absolutely blown away by the scale of the sound, the crispness of the image, and the sheer size of the projector screen. It was like seeing the show for the first time all over again, and it made me fall properly in love with home cinema.
GWAR-ful music
Editor in chief (2022-present)
I’m a relative newbie to What Hi-Fi?. But as a kid, I grew up in a household where a copy of the mag was always on the coffee table – which meant I had some pretty unreasonable requests in my annual letter to Santa over the years.
But if you were to press me for my favourite memory, it’s one from when I had just started at the brand and been let loose at a launch event. Picking up my little lanyard, which for the first time had my new job title and What Hi-Fi? as the publication, it was a moment of pride.
I remember taking particular care with my notes – in part because it was my job and I knew it was going in the mag, but mainly because Dad had already booked a call to hear all about it that evening. Sadly, I didn’t do him proud, and may have been a wee bit naughty during the listening session.
I won’t name the brand as it took them a while to forgive me (apparently there’s a limit to even the most zen of Danes’ patience). But I will confirm it was launching a particularly swanky noise maker that treaded a fine line between the hi-fi and luxury markets.
And as a result, the event was crammed with an atypical mix of audio and luxury-homes press. For those out of the game, that’s as close to a real-life Breakfast Club moment as journalism gets.
To make matters worse, while the AV crowd and I had been quizzing the engineers, the lifestyle press had decided to go to the listening room and enjoy some free champers in the comfy chairs. This meant that by the time I got in, the room was packed, and I was forced to stand at the back, far from the sweet spot.
I’m not proud to admit it, but I may have acted out a little bit.
Come the usual request from the man running the demo at the front for tracks to listen to, I put my hand up and, when called, in a calm and collected voice said, “GWAR.” I expected a chuckle and for him to move on, but he wasn’t familiar with their work and proceeded to run through the top tracks on their Tidal profile, asking which I’d like.
“Sick Of You?, Saddam A Go-Go? Stripper Christmas Summer Weekend? [Censored] An Animal?
Heads turned, tuts echoed through the halls – all while my predecessor Simon Lucas barely kept it together, snickering away on my right. And that was all before they started playing the track. You’ve never seen people in high heels and boating shoes move so fast. But hey, at least it freed up the sweet spot, right?
Rockaoke!
Magazine editor (2017-present)
Managing editor (2007-2017)
Deputy editor (1999-2000)
As with most things in life, it’s all about the people. There’s not much point, in my opinion, in spending the majority of your time with human beings you struggle to tolerate – even if you’re being paid to do so. And, if you look down the list of colleagues I have shared desk space, listening rooms, hotel bars and Awards evenings with, you will find a vanishingly small number whom I would not greet with open arms and the offer of a pint. That is hugely valuable.
To go along with being decent people, they all – to a man and (a gratifying number of) woman – have taken their role as the guardians of the integrity of What Hi-Fi? incredibly seriously.
The way we test, the traditional separation of church and state – or editorial and advertising in our case – has always been followed diligently and with serious intent. Without that, after all, our readers would no longer trust us to provide useful product reviews; without those, there would be no What Hi-Fi?.
As for personal highlights, I’m not allowed out into the wild much, so most of those have come from inside the What Hi-Fi? tent. There was, though, the launch party of whathifi.com (a website? Whatever next?!), where I had to sing a Beatles track with a full live backing band in front of 200 people. It was near the start of the evening, and I had a mere half-bottle of beer inside me when I was called up to sing (not enough Dutch courage by quite some margin); that stands out as both a terrifying yet, in the end, hugely fun memory.
It’s the listening and learning sessions though, with Ketan, Kash, Tom, Simon, Dom and all the Andrews (so many Andrews…) that stand out the most over the years.
Quite a few of us have left the What Hi-Fi? fold at some point, only to return a few years later. This seems to be a long-term gig for many of our staff; which is saying a lot.
As I say: it’s the people.
Hi-fi journalism can be in-tents!
Hi-fi and audio staff writer (2026-present)
Having only been at What Hi-Fi? for under a year, I must admit to feeling somewhat underqualified for misty-eyed reminiscing. But even in that short time, now I come to think of it, there has been no shortage of weird and wonderful moments. So many, in fact, that choosing just one took considerable effort.
As I’m sure many others on the team will echo, the people are what make What Hi-Fi?. Joining such a passionate, fun and hard-working crew has been a highlight, in itself, but to avoid rehashing what others might say, I’m going for a memory that is mine and mine alone.
Just a few months into my time at What Hi-Fi?, during the peak of an incendiary summer, I wrote a news story about a small camping radio from Roberts called the SolarDAB99. As the sun blazed beyond the office window, I couldn’t help but daydream about taking the product on an overnight expedition. It could even make an interesting article... So, after getting the okay from our Audio and Hi-Fi Editor, Kashfia Kabir – who I can’t help thinking was somewhat bemused by my scheme – I embarked on an adventure.
Logistically, it wasn't my finest hour: a train to the middle of nowhere, a brutal cycle even deeper into the sticks, and a frantic struggle to pitch an unfortunately undersized tent. Then, of course, I had to do the whole thing in reverse to make it back to London for work the next morning. Nonetheless, my prevailing feeling throughout the experience – one which I’ve encountered many times since – was of faint disbelief that I get to do this for work.
Conversations with industry legends
Technical Editor (present)
What Hi-Fi? has always been about the products. In my almost three decades of working at the brand, I must have seen and heard thousands. Thankfully, I still get a buzz from new ones, particularly those that tread a different design path.
However, products come and go pretty regularly. Even class leaders rarely last more than a handful of years without some sort of revision. There are honourable exceptions, of course: Cyrus’s recently discontinued CDi and Rega’s range of Planar turntables come to mind. But, in general, products are transitory, and easily ignored after something better comes our way.
It’s the industry people I’ve met over my time that have made the biggest impact. The highlight of this job is the direct access it gives to most of the top engineers in the Hi-Fi and Home Cinema industry. I’ve been lucky enough to meet many of the legends and enjoy their experience.
My fondest memories include spending a day with Ken Ishiwata (Marantz) as he argued that the latest high-res DAC chips were no match for the original 16-bit Philips converters he had squirrelled away. Karl-Heinz Fink (Fink Audio Consulting and Epos Loudspeakers) explaining speaker design is a masterclass in itself, while time spent with the likes of Tetsuya Itani (Panasonic), Eric Kingdon (Sony), John Dawson (Arcam) and Roy Gandy (Rega) has left me with many moments I treasure.
Spend a few hours with someone as obsessive as Touraj Moghaddam (Roksan/Vertere) or Steve Sells (Naim Audio), and it is hard not to be convinced by their methods and overwhelmed by their natural enthusiasm. That they usually make excellent products helps.
There are so many others I could mention, but you get the idea. The products are important, but the people devoted to pushing the standards are the real stars.
Back-to-back TV trips in incredible cities
Senior staff writer (2024-present)
Staff writer (2022-2024)
I’m fast approaching my fifth year on the What Hi-Fi? Team, which – if my maths works out – is a tenth of What Hi-Fi?’s lifetime; we are 50 now, after all…
As the saying goes, time flies when you’re having fun, and narrowing down a single highlight is easier said than done, and that’s not just because the years are starting to blur into one.
During my tenure, I’ve grown to love OLED TVs and AVRs, tested projectors that I could only dream of owning, and visited corners of the Earth I never thought I’d see; and I’m sticking with that last point for my favourite memory.
From Las Vegas to Tokyo, Copenhagen to San Francisco, and more days spent in Berlin than I care to think about, I’m incredibly privileged and grateful to get to these incredible destinations to see the latest and greatest AV products.
However, there’s one literal adventure in AV which tops them all, and it came from two amazing trips merging into one.
Late in 2023, I was invited on two back-to-back TV trips on the other side of the world; the first was a jaunt to Qingdao, China, to visit Hisense’s head office, factory and R&D centre, followed immediately by a flight to Seoul, South Korea, to get a sneak peek at Samsung’s then all-new TV range headlined by the five-star S95D.
Spending the best part of two weeks in Asia, and being the furthest from home I’ve ever been, was a truly special experience from both an AV enthusiast and a personal perspective.
Getting behind-the-scenes access to new TVs from two of the world's biggest manufacturers was incredible, and spending time in these jaw-dropping cities – sampling new cuisines (a special shoutout to Korean BBQ) and taking in these vast, Blade Runner-esque city skylines – was the cherry on top.
With 2027 fast approaching and new TVs inbound, I’m already looking forward to seeing what’s coming and where I’ll head next.
My first time in the fabled What Hi-Fi? test room
Staff Writer, Deals (2025-present)
I've only been at What Hi-Fi? a year – a mere blink of an eye compared to the decades-long service of several of our seasoned staff – but it's already proved to be a memorable year with many options I could choose from. But my favourite memory also happens to be one of my earliest, when I was first invited to the magazine’s legendary AV testing room to see some reviewing in action.
Senior staff writer Lewis Empson had kindly volunteered to show me the ropes. And by ropes, he meant the Sony Bravia Projector 7, a native 4K home cinema projector with an eye-watering price tag of £6999 that he happened to be testing that day.
Peering into the test room for the first time, it was, quite simply, a home cinema fan’s dream. There was the current reference system set up – including an Award-winning sound system, AV receiver, 4K Blu-ray player and more – as well as several other TVs and speakers, a projector screen, sound-absorbing acoustic panels and, importantly, a comfy sofa. Of particular interest to me was a certain bookcase in the corner, which was jammed from floor to ceiling with 4K Blu-rays.
Lewis began our testing with the Times Square scene from The Fantastic Four: First Steps, with the alternate New York’s lighting in the night sky ideal for testing contrast. Now I’d long been interested in projectors, but I’d rarely been given the chance to see one in action outside of the cinema – and especially one at this price level. And while I was attempting to be analytical, I was mostly just blown away at getting to experience a set-up of this scale. And this was part of work!
We then moved on to Civil War and an excellent road trip montage, which involves a particularly striking forest fire that, on this projector, was burning with an intensity I didn’t think possible. And for a moment, time stood still, and I experienced a bit of movie magic – I forgot I was at work, that I was meant to be testing, or that I’d seen the film before, and instead found myself absorbed in the movie and reminded why I joined this industry in the first place.
Ultimate guide to TV testing
Deputy Editor (2020-present)
Content Editor (2015-2020)
Reviews Editor (2012-2015)
First Tests Editor (2008-2012)
Staff Writer (2002-2006)
Editorial Assistant (2002-2004)
One of my first big writing tasks after graduating from Editorial Assistant to fully fledged reviewer was helping put together our Ultimate Guide to televisions spin-off magazine. The year? 2003.
Now I know you’re probably thinking – ”favourite memory? Are you sure?” – after all, I was stuck in a cramped warehouse with a fellow reviewer (who just happened to be future What Hi-Fi? Editor, Dominic Dawes), for what felt like an eternity surrounded by boxes and doing nothing but unboxing CRTs, plasmas and the LCD TVs, reviewing them, moving them around for our photographer and boxing them back up. We were well into double figures by the time it came to an end (and I have the chiropractor bills to prove it).
It felt a bit like being thrown in at the deep end, but I’m pleased to say the crash course in testing helped mould me into the Deputy Editor I am today. Good times.
The Audition: Harbeths With A Side Of PlayStation
TV & AV Editor (2020-present)
Reviews Editor (2017-2020)
Reviews Editor / Deputy Editor at sister publication Stuff (2012-2017)
Staff Writer / Multimedia Editor (2007-2012)
My favourite What Hi-Fi? memory actually predates my time at What Hi-Fi?. Way back in early 2007, I was a chocolate salesman (yes, really), making zero use of my journalism degree and passion for hi-fi and home cinema, which I’d inherited from my dad.
Knowing this about me, a friend of mine called to say he’d spotted an ad for a staff writer position at What Hi-Fi?, and that I should throw my hat into the ring.
Well, I did precisely that, somehow made it to the interview stage, and even more bafflingly made it to the final two. My rival and I were then invited to spend a day (different days, thank heavens) at What Hi-Fi?’s Teddington offices, doing some testing and writing, and generally being auditioned.
This was, of course, a terrifying prospect, but the day itself was brilliant. I spent the morning with Technical Editor Ketan Bharadia, listening to Metallica on a pair of Harbeth HL Compact 7ES-3 speakers (my bucket list speakers to this day), then I joined the entire team for a liquid lunch at The Anglers next door (I politely declined the second offered pint), before writing a mock review of the Harbeths after that.
The very best was yet to come, though. Once the day was officially over, then-Deputy Editor Andy Kerr suggested we head down to the AV test room (a magnificently huge space with a 12-foot projector screen, Classé amplification and a Mordaunt-Short Performance 6 speaker package), where the team was unboxing a pre-release PlayStation 3 ahead of its review.
What followed was a couple of hours of the best gaming experience of my life, with the projector-sized images of Resistance: Fall Of Man forever etched in my memory.
Leaving What Hi-Fi? Towers at 7pm or so that evening, I knew I was desperate to turn that day into every day, chocolate be damned. Thankfully, I was given that chance, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Bristol Hi-Fi Show 2023
Senior staff writer (2024-present)
Staff writer (2023-2024)
There isn’t much that encapsulates the phrase “thrown in at the deep end” quite like attending the Bristol Hi-Fi Show just two weeks into your time at What Hi-Fi?. I know colleagues who have joined the team just before Black Friday – no walk in the park – but nothing quite prepares you for the idiosyncratic world of intense hi-fi enthusiasm like a major audio expo.
It isn't a place to be if you’re a novice, let alone one wearing a branded What Hi-Fi? T-shirt. A punter asked me if KEF were attending the show that year. I, at the time, had no clue what KEF was. I thought it was a person. I feigned partial deafness and hurried away.
Looking back, I wouldn’t have it any other way. If the current theories on language acquisition are to be believed, you only learn by immersion, and what could be more immersive than room after room of speakers, amplifiers and turntables? Plus, it meant spending time with (almost) the whole What Hi-Fi? Team – AV and audio – a rarity in this age of hybrid working.
Turns out, they’re quite a nice bunch. Oh, and I’ve since found out that KEF is a British audio brand. The more you know.
The magic of magazine making
Hi-Fi and audio editor (2022-present)
Features editor (2017-2019)
First tests editor (2015-2017)
Multimedia journalist (2012-2015)
I was lucky enough to join What Hi-Fi? in the days when magazine was still king, and the team was based in our old offices in Teddington. As my first job in journalism, it was a glorious place to be – busy, buzzing, full of paper everywhere – a far cry from the minimal hot-desking environment of most offices now – with stacks of magazines and printed layouts of the next issue with corrections and notes written in red pen.
It was also full of people going about the very intense but very exciting job of making magazines. And while I’ve been to some amazing press trips (Vegas, Japan, Southend) and had some fantastic experiences over the past 14 years, really, the best time has been simply that: making the magazine.
Our mag editor Jonny will find this insane, but my favourite memories are of our monthly press week in that Teddington office: the week when the current magazine issue had to go to the printers with very strict deadlines. There were often quite stressful days, and often very late nights, but as a young reviewer, watching the editor, production editor, sub-editor and the designers go about that intense but exciting (and rewarding!) work of putting the magazine together was quite special.
There was a crackling energy in the air (likely stress and too much caffeine, Jonny will say) – but it was amazing watching the production team go back and forth about punctuation, layouts, images and more – essentially, pulling together to make sure the pages were the absolute best they could be. And in between the stress and hard work, there were also moments of levity; you were never quite sure if the jokes the art editor was cracking were because things were going really well or because we were too close to the wire.
On the best press weeks, it was both.
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