Chord Electronics’ innovative amps make their UK debut at the Bristol Hi-Fi Show
Studio-grade amplification meets modular design in the form of the company’s Alto and Suzi amps

Chord Electronics has announced that its Alto and Suzi amps will be making their public UK debut at the Bristol Hi-Fi Show next week, letting showgoers get up close and personal with all manner of the Kent-based company’s Hi-Fi goodies.
Launched in November, the £3,000 Alto combines a four-output headphone amp with speaker-driving capabilities in a single unit. Originally developed for recording and mastering studios, it's built around Chord's flagship Ultima amplification technology, which uses a dual feed-forward error correction circuit that monitors and corrects distortion before it reaches the output stage.
The versatile unit can drive four devices simultaneously through its generous selection of front-panel outputs – including a 3.5mm jack, two 6.35mm sockets and, for the first time in a Chord product, a 4.4mm Pentaconn connection for balanced high-end headphones. The rear panel features balanced XLR outputs with bypass functionality for system expansion, alongside RCA inputs and speaker connections that can deliver 25 watts into 8 ohms, doubling to 50 watts into 4 ohms.
The Chord Suzi, designed by company founder John Franks, will also be on static display at the show, ahead of its official spring launch. This modular pre/power amplification system uses Ultima-derived technology from Chord's flagship products – including the Ultima Pre 3, Ultima 5 and 6 power amplifiers, and the Ultima Integrated.
The power amplifier section delivers 30W per channel, while the system's modular design allows for three primary configurations – as an analogue pre/power combination using the Suzi Pre, as a DAC/amplifier setup incorporating Chord's Hugo 2, or as a complete streaming system when paired with both Hugo 2 and 2go units. This compact solution has been specifically designed to match the dimensions of existing Hugo 2 components.
Chord's expanded ground floor Bristol Suite space will also showcase several established products, including the Mojo 2 DAC/headphone amp, Hugo TT 2 DAC/preamp/headphone amp, and systems from the Qutest range. Visitors can also experience the flagship DAVE DAC/preamp/headphone amp paired with a Hugo TT 2, while the main demonstration area in the SS Great Britain 1 Suite will feature the Ultima Integrated amplifier with DAVE DAC, demonstrated through Kerr Acoustic speakers.
The Bristol Hi-Fi Show runs from Friday 21st to Sunday 23rd February at the Delta Hotels Marriott, Bristol City Centre Hotel. Tickets are available now, with adult day passes priced at £17.
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