New Chord Electronics ULTIMA Integrated amplifier receives high praise in a recent What Hi-Fi? review. Designed and manufactured by John Franks' team in Kent, this amp follows purist approach where most effort goes into achieving pristine sound.
The What Hi-Fi? review discusses the basic functionality one expects of an integrated amp and concurs with the Chord Electronics rationale that extra 'frills' like phono stage or DAC can be added later as standalone units and the existing four line inputs, one of which is XLR, are more than enough for a modern high end system.
While the controls of the ULTIMA integrated are minimalist they are thougthfully designed and offer nice original touches like volume dial changes input with the LED ring changing colour to red, yellow, green or blue, the colour code for Input 1 to Input 4. There is even a channel balance adjustment via the other large rotary dial and the remote handset is a neat metal unit. This amp is not 'bare essentials' as it may seem first, for instance, balance control is a useful feature missing on many other products in the hi-fi market.
For the music experience with ULTIMA integrated system we refer you to the original review, but it's good to read that 'This integrated amplifier succeeds in delivering a large dose of the pricier ULTIMA pre/power’s performance in a more convenient and affordable package. It is a refreshingly straightforward product to use, and when partnered with a similarly talented system is capable of weaving a wonderfully spellbinding sound".
A five-star review from What Hi-Fi? for great sound and, build quality. Another positive feedback from industry professionals following previous press responses as mentioned in our article a couple of months back.