Autumn is here, which means lots of things are changing. The days are getting darker and we won’t get another Bank Holiday until December. But it’s not all bad news.
In fact, over the past seven days, there have been plenty of great product launches and reasons to celebrate if you’re a hi-fi and home cinema fan.
And to help you shake off the autumnal blues, we’ve even penned a fresh entry to our Rewind news digest, detailing them, in case you missed the news the first time round.
Technics' new direct-drive turntable impressed
The Technics SL-1500CS turned heads when it was first unveiled earlier this year. The latest iteration of the firm’s iconic line of direct-drive turntables, it’s a successor to numerous legendary record spinners, including the five-star, multi-Award-winning SL-1500C.
Initially, our reviewers were a little nervous when the SL-1500CS arrived in our listening rooms, with it looking all but identical to its older step-down sibling, despite costing £300 / $300 more.
But thankfully, the moment we connected it to our reference system, we found plenty to like, with the changes Technics has made to its direct-drive motor control circuit, which features the firm’s Delta-Sigma (ΔΣ) Drive technology, having paid off in spades.
As we said in our Technics SL-1500CS review: “Under-the-skin upgrades take the direct-drive SL-1500 design to new sonic heights.”
The only slight issue is that, while it’s easier to tinker with the Technics, the Rega Planar 3 RS Edition remains the class leader at this level for pure audio quality, based on our testing.
Read our full Technics SL-1500CS review
Audio-Technica is taking on Grado in an unexpected area
Wireless open-back headphones are a rare sight, even in our listening rooms. Not because we think they’re a bad idea, but because there aren’t that many of them out in the wild!
In fact, until last week, the only pair we’ve recently reviewed and recommend that are still on sale were the Grado GW100x. That’s why we were equal parts curious and excited when Audio-Technica unveiled its first-ever pair of wireless open-backs, the ATH-AL5NC mere days ago.
Built around a set of 53mm dynamic drivers and offering 75 hours of music playback (50 if you turn on their “noise reduction” tech), the cans look impressive and, as an added perk, cost £30 less than their Grado rivals, being set to retail for £219 / $279 / AU$499.
Read the full story: Audio-Technica's first wireless open-backs seek to bring audiophile quality to the convenience of a wire-free design
Sony unveiled new affordable headphones
Sony also unveiled new wireless headphones last week. Specifically, the affordable WH-CH530 and WH-CH730N.
The WH-CH530 are the successor to the five-star WH-CH520, while the WH-CH730N replace the Award-winning WH-CH720N. So big shoes to fill for both.
The WH-CH730N has had the biggest refresh, with a new Sonos Ace-like redesign which adds a new look and folding mechanism. The latter is a key feature we wished the old CH720N had that will hopefully improve portability.
Outside of this, both feature the same drivers and core tech as the older models, but Sony is still quoting “palpable” audio quality improvements thanks to tweaks it has made to its digital signal processing and algorithms. Fingers crossed they ring true when we get the new Sony wireless over-ears in for testing.
Read the full story: Sony has finally upgraded its budget five-star wireless headphones range – and it's promising a major sonic boost on both sets
New Apple iPhones launched
Like clockwork, Apple ran its September iPhone launch event last week. Though we’d have liked to have seen a bit more AV hardware on show, it brought a few treats that are of interest.
For music fans, the big-ticket item is the new AirPods 5. Available in two options, the earbuds feature a wealth of upgrades designed to improve ANC and audio performance.
It also showed off three new iPhones: the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, as well as the foldable it’s been rumoured to be working on for many moons, which we now know is called the iPhone Duo.
Read the full story: Apple’s foldable iPhone Duo is here – and it's immediately eyeing up the Samsung Z Fold series
Read the full story: Apple AirPods 5 boast improved ANC and updated acoustic architecture for a "richer, more detailed sound"
MORE:
These are the best wireless headphones we’ve reviewed
Our experts rank the best turntables for music fans
Our picks of the best cheap headphones
