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Cambridge Audio CXA81
£999
It’s one thing to pull off four Best Buy Awards in a row (as a number of products this year have), but to secure a fourth successive Product of the Year gong in any category is no ordinary feat. Then again, the Cambridge Audio CXA81 is no ordinary amplifier.
Part of the reason for the CXA81’s continued dominance is that a few years ago Cambridge’s engineers upgraded this amp’s signal path and the capacitors in both the pre and power sections. They also slotted in a superior ESS Sabre ES9016K2M DAC and an improved USB input that supports audio of up to 32-bit/384kHz and DSD256 quality. An aptX HD Bluetooth receiver allows direct streaming at up to 24-bit/384kHz.
On the analogue side there are four RCA ins and a balanced XLR, while the coaxial input will handle files up to 24-bit/192kHz. Its pair of Toslink optical connections take that up to 96kHz.
The CXA81 also has outputs for a pre-amplifier and subwoofer, as well
