Volume control is by a 256 step 0.5db incremental step. Output can be balanced 3Pin DIN or RCA/Phono. The LA4 has several inputs including 2 balanced pairs and 2 unbalanced RCA inputs. I am using balanced input from the LA4 so my set-up was pretty easy. There are various sensitivity settings that you are walked through in the documentation. The AHB2 has limited space given the compact nature and it takes only 3 Pin DIN balanced input. The DAC 3 is a fraction light and feels less compact and substantial compared to the other two.Īll three boxes are faced up with a metal front panel with the Benchmark signature heavily engraved at the front, I really like this touch.Īt the backs of each, there is an intuitive layout although at the end of setting up you end up very cramped at the end. The LA4 has the same finish but the DAC3 has a different nobbly black finish that is not so nice but is fine. The AHB2 is a lovely chunky thing, mine is in a brushed black aluminium finish, the cooling fins are to the sides but don’t seem to heat up much, despite the compact nature of the set-up. The boxing of these three elements is very heavy and well up to scratch. I’m getting more and more into the idea of getting the best box for a single job, so this system test is right up my street. Other Benchmark DACs have pre-amplifiers and headphone amplifiers that I am not interested in. The final element in this Benchmark system is a DAC3 B, which is simply Benchmark’s DAC with no bells and whistles. My source in this Benchmark system test is, in fact, a Bluesound Node 2i as a streaming transport connected with a Coaxial audio cable from Chord. It is a stripped out Benchmark HA4 that I reviewed recently, it was gorgeous. It does very little other than connect the source to the amplifier with a gain knob in the middle. Indeed the key element that Benchmark focusses on is the cleanliness of the signal path, as evidenced by the Specs below that centre on minimal noise. This is all in the design with Benchmark using a hybrid Class A/B design that uses revolutionary THX-patented AAA™ technology to virtually eliminate all forms of distortion. ![]() This Benchmark system is characterised by its compact size it is nearly half the width of a standard HiFi separate, indeed the AHB2 (just under 30 cm wide) seems amazingly small given the power it seems to be chucking out. ![]() The system I have here is the Benchmark AHB2 Power amplifier (retailing near £3,300), a Benchmark LA4 pre-amplifier (£2,750) and a Benchmark DAC3 B (£1,900, total cost near £7,950, excluding cables and speakers, etc.). So with this in mind, I am very interested to see how this Benchmark system stacks up (literally) against the outgoing Naim Supernait 3, ND5 XS2 with the same speaker and cable set-up. However, as several years go by and I’ve experienced premium systems from the likes of T+A (HV), Rega, Moon and now Benchmark, I do get the original premise and I may have taken a different path as I’ve expressed many times.Īt the end of the day, this is all very subjective as we know and all of this equipment is rather good in broad terms, it is mostly about your perception of tone and then the interaction with the equipment (Naim’s App is still poor, Moon’s better, Auralic is great, BluOS is still my preferred interface). To some extent, I am less concerned about this view because I like the Naim sound and I have invested so much of my time and money into the glowing green logos of Naim Classic Series. This is my HiFi Review of an all in Benchmark system, the Benchmark DAC3 B with an LA4 pre-amplifier and the flagship 100Wpc AHB2 power amplifier.Ī few years ago a good friend of mine mocked Naim as a middle of the road English HiFi Brand, and I was incredulous.
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