Musical Fidelity
Amplifiers
CD Players
DACs
Digital Sources
Best Known For
Amplifiers
/
British Heritage
Used Products
92
 Available
Average Price
$2,501-$5,000
Brand Popularity
42
 of 900+
Products Listed
52
Review Count
154
Founding Year
1982
Headquarters
Austria
Musical Fidelity
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What's unique about the brand

Musical Fidelity is known for its unique amplifier designs, particularly the A1 integrated amplifier that uses its top plate as a heatsink and features a distinctive current-mode phono stage. The brand stands out for its innovative dual-monoblock approach in integrated amplifiers, where separate power transformers and dedicated power supplies are housed in a single chassis, as seen in their M8xi and M6i models that deliver exceptional power output.

What reviewers are saying

We read all the reviews. Here's what reviewers feel most strongly about:

  • They place a significant emphasis on achieving a distinctive, energetic sound, even at the expense of absolute neutrality, leading to a more engaging and enjoyable listening experience.
  • Musical Fidelity often integrates advanced features, like sophisticated equalization or balanced inputs/outputs, into their designs to enhance versatility and cater to audiophiles' evolving needs.

Our favorite reviewer quotes:

  • "Billy Gibbons' cutting electric blues My Baby She Rocks ( The Big Bad Blues , Concord) with its dirty guitar was mind-blowing through the M6scd. I don't think I've ever heard so much unrelenting energy and animalistic detail flowing from this song through any digital source." (https://www.audiodrom.net/en/digital-sources/detail/35-digital-sources/788-musical-fidelity-m6scd)
  • "The result is tremendous weight extension and a pneumatic grip over bass notes that powers the deepest rhythms up through your feet to the point where you think you're going to lose your fillings. But what's perhaps more of a surprise is the way that the instantly recognisable percussion and "hey, hey, hey, hey" samples from John McLaughlin and the Mahavishnu Orchestra allow the M8xi to show its dexterity in other areas such as resolution of colour, timbre, dynamics and ambience." (https://www.hifichoice.com/content/musical-fidelity-m8xi)
  • "But the sound! Life-like vocals with all of those little clues: the sound of tongue touching teeth, breathiness, smooth 'S' sounds. Bass with just the right resonance, yet no overhang. Acoustic guitars with woody ambience. Brass with punch and sparkle. But most of all, a sense of effortlessness which allows music to flow, yet with enough control to keep it in check…as required." (https://www.kenkessler.com/hifi/musical-fidelity-nu-vista-pre-amplifier)
  • "This is a punchy but gentle-minded amplifier that really understands the music it plays. The cymbals in 'Blue Rondo' from Dave Brubeck were precise and beautifully engineered, and similarly, the kick drum was excellently controlled from initial transient to final decay." (https://www.hifipig.com/musical-fidelity-nu-vista-800-2-integrated-amplifier-2)
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Our interview with the brand

What are two key technological innovations or strong opinions that differ you from other brands?

What's your approach to customer support?

Musical Fidelity (like other Audio Tuning brands) is structured in a pretty traditional way, whereby support and advice are best administered on a local level. Of course, they have a technical team positioned at HQ to help all their partners around the world, and in some more extreme cases you may need to be put straight through to this team. But it's the job of the distributor to support the territory in the best way it can.

What are your favorite tracks for showcasing the strength of your products?

I can tell you this, as we've done this recently for others. These are personal choices:

Simon Quarry – the chief designer – selected these three.

  • Low Desert Punk – Brant Bjork
  • Moon Love – Electric Moon
  • Psychic Chasm – Ozric Tentacles

Heinz Lichtenegger – the brand owner – selected these two:

  • Tosca – Puccini, Leontyne Price, Di Stefano, Taddei / Vienna Philharmonic with Herbert von Karajan (Decca, 1963)
  • Don Juan – Richard Strauss, Tod und Verklaerung, Also Sprach Zarathustra / Vienna Philharmonic with Herbert von Karajan (Decca, 1960)

What other products pair best with yours?

This is a tough one! Partly because of the diverse range of products on offer from Musical Fidelity. For example, with the A1, we have a lot of success pairing this amp with Klipsch Heresy or Forte IV – but in smaller rooms, our own-brand LS3/5A are a wonderful choice. For Nu-Vista, we pair very nicely with Piega – which requires some deeper power reserves to really get going. So I would say it's very difficult to pair the sonic ID with one brand in particular. Musical Fidelity pairs pretty nicely with a wide range of products, giving customers a great degree of choice.

From Julian's interview with
Simon Powell
.

Products

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Lineup comparison

We think it's helpful to understand how their products compare. To learn more about each, scroll to the section above to click through to individual product pages.

V90-BHA

  • Positioning: The entry-level balanced headphone amplifier in Musical Fidelity's lineup.
  • Description: Offers excellent sound quality with balanced audio technology. Features balanced XLR inputs and outputs, which minimize noise and interference, providing a cleaner sound. This makes it ideal for users with a limited budget who want to enhance their headphone listening experience.

M2si

  • Positioning: An affordable integrated amplifier designed for audiophiles seeking high-quality sound without extra features.
  • Description: Delivers a pure and dynamic sound, drawing on technology from Musical Fidelity's premium models. Stands out with its fully discrete power amplifier and independent power supplies, offering a performance akin to a pre/power configuration in a single unit.

M8xi

  • Positioning: A super integrated amplifier, positioned as a high-performance model in the M8 series.
  • Description: Known for its powerful and articulate sound, featuring dual mono power amps and a high-quality DAC. It offers significant power output and low distortion. Provides extensive connectivity options, including digital inputs, catering to users with diverse system compatibility needs.

Nu-Vista 800.2

  • Positioning: The flagship integrated amplifier in the Nu-Vista series, representing the pinnacle of Musical Fidelity's offerings.
  • Description: Combines the unique Nu-Vista tube technology with modern design, delivering an exceptionally smooth and powerful sound. Features dual mono power amps and a locally decoupled output stage, providing remarkable stability and control over any loudspeaker.
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Julian Shapiro
ExtremeHiFi Writer

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What other products pair best with yours?

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What are your favorite tracks for showcasing the strength of your products?

What other products pair best with yours?

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Our interview with the brand

What are two key technological innovations or strong opinions that differ you from other brands?

What's your approach to customer support?

What are your favorite tracks for showcasing the strength of your products?

What other products pair best with yours?

Website author headshot
Julian Shapiro
ExtremeHiFi
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What are two key technological innovations or strong opinions that differ you from other brands?

What's your approach to customer support?

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Julian Shapiro
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