John
What I dig most about Red Wine Audio’s battery powered approach is that the end-user doesn’t need to spring big for deluxe power chords, power filters/regenerators and the like; this is one of the many reasons why the Signature 15 integrated netted a DAR-KO award last year.
Chief sommelier Vinnie Rossi has been touting his high-end Signature 57 integrated at shows for most of 2013 and now he’s finally ready to formally announce its availability.
At its core sits Red Wine Audio’s LifePO4 battery technology that brings 12-18 hours of off-grid listening from a single charge. Under the hood, “a discrete Class AB MOSFET” design that pushes (you guessed it) 57 wpc into 8 ohms and 115 wpc into 4 ohms (hello Magnepan MMG); the Signature 57 will cope with 2 ohm loads/dips meaning those with more challenging speakers aren’t left out in the cold. Imagine a pair of Red Wine Audio’s Liliana mono blocks locked under one roof.
The Signature 57 is an integrated amplifier with integration on its mind. Users can opt for the Isabellina Pro DAC and/or Analogica phono boards as internal add-ins. The Cassabria’s single-ended headphone output is also an option.
“Combining these products into one enclosure not only saves the customer a lot of money compared to buying them separately, it also eliminates the added expense of interconnects and chargers associated with separate components — making for a true all-in-one high-end listening experience.”, says Rossi.
The Signature 57 base unit has four analogue inputs and is available in cherry, maple and walnut finishes. It will sell for US$3995.
Additional module pricing is as follows:
Isabellina Pro DAC – add $1500
Analogica phono stage – add $1000
Headphone amplifier stage, single ended – add $500
This could be just the ticket now that Peachtree Audio have decided to discontinue their Grand Integrated amplifier. I’ve got a Signature 57 coming this way for review so stay tuned.
Further information: Red Wine Audio / Audio Addiction
[Ultra HighEnd Review are hosting a copy/paste of the Signature 57’s press release]
