It's supposedly taken 25 years, but Leema Acoustics has finally unveiled the first official offerings from its recently announced Quantum range: the Neutron preamplifier and the Graviton power amplifier. The Quantum range is itself the first proper Leema Acoustics audio line for the brand in over a decade, building on the company's flagship Constellation series but with a greater emphasis on affordability (by Leema's standards) and simplicity of design.
The new Neutron model is, per the manufacturer, a "modern preamp that perfectly distils Leema Acoustics’ near 25-year hi-fi manufacturing experience into an affordable audio hub". Developed to elicit maximum audio transparency, the Neutron's offering of a whopping 13 inputs makes it a hugely flexible unit.
Those inputs include four RCA and a single XLR, an MM/MC phono stage, three optical, three coaxial and a single USB input. Outputs, meanwhile, include a fixed-level record, two dedicated subwoofer ports, a dedicated headphone amplifier slot and even a 12V trigger.
The Neutron also introduces Leema Acoustics’ newest circuit designs, with reduced crosstalk for greater sonic transparency. Vinyl lovers, meanwhile, will benefit from the model's switchable MM/MC phono stage, based on Leema's unique proprietary design. The preamp employs an asynchronous ESS 24-bit/192 kHz USB DAC and a dedicated headphone amplifier, as well as a Burr-Brown analogue volume control.
Conversely, the Class A/B Graviton stereo power amp utilities what Leema claims could be the "biggest toroidal power supply ever seen at its price point" for greater control over a wide variety of speakers. The new amp offers 150W per channel into 8 ohms, with a high-current topology deploying six transistors per channel.
The Graviton also boasts a single transformer supply and six matched output transistors per channel for rapid current delivery. The use of dual speaker binding posts should allow for simpler bi-wiring, while line-level loop through-outputs facilitate easy bi-amping.
According to Leema founder Lee Taylor: "Quantum takes much of the Leema Acoustics’ Constellation product design (which has been) simplified to meet a more affordable price point. However, no compromises have been made where it really counts".
Available in brushed black or silver finishes, the new Nuetron pre-amp is available now for £1500, while the Graviton will also set you back £1500. Bought together, however, and you'll receive a £200 package discount, taking the total down to just £2800.
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