Not everyone wants a full multichannel surround sound system in their home, yet they may still want the connectivity that a home cinema amplifier can offer with the performance of a quality stereo amp.
Enter the Arcam SR250, a stereo AV receiver making its public debut at CES 2016, and it's just gone on sale in the UK for £2500.
Under the lid is 120W of Class G amplification (as used in the Arcam A49), which allows the unit to run in full Class A mode for most of the time, then switch to Class A/B when more power is required. Arcam says that because it only has to provide two channels of amplification, not five or more, it has been able to spec the SR250 with better quality amps.
Yet at the same time it offers all the connectivity you could need for home cinema as well as hi-fi duties. There are seven HDMI 2.0 inputs with HDCP 2.2 compatibility (and six of them will handle 4K video signals), three HDMI outputs with ARC (Audio Return Channel), ethernet connectivity and auto setup using Dirac Live room correction.
Music lovers get the benefit of built-in Spotify Connect and a free MusicLife iOS streaming and control app.
