HIGH-END 3: CD-BASED

SYSTEM TOTAL

£34,619

And so we reach the top tier of this triumvirate of high-end systems, and it includes a pair of speakers that have been part of our reference set-up for well over a decade.

This time we’re staying offline with our duo of sources and celebrating physical media as we pair a Vertere Acoustics turntable and Marantz CD player with a gorgeous Luxman integrated amplifier and those trusty ATC speakers.

That Vertere deck, which again we’ve paired with the company’s Phono-1 MkII phono stage, is the MG-1 MkII. The MG-1 is just the second step up in a four-strong turntable family, though it still sits firmly in the high-end