DENSEN CAST AMPLIFIER

Danish highend manufacturer Densen has launched its Cast amplifier, which it says will be the first of a string of new products.

Densen’s Cast amplifier is the first Densen product to allow streaming and does so by using Google’s ‘Cast’ audio technology. ‘ This will allow for the use of Tidal, which has become the de facto standard for premium streaming, but it will also allow for a myriad of other streaming software,’ said Chris Strom, of Radiance Audio Visual, which distributes Densen in Australia. The new Cast amplifier is also one of the smallest products in Densen’s range, being the first product in Densen’s ‘Dino’ range, all of which are half the size of previous Densen products. ‘ Densen has for years been working on streaming solutions, during which it realised that the real challenge is not to make the Wi-Fi receiver, but to keep the software always up to date,’ Strom told Australian Hi-Fi Magazine. ‘ And from an audio point of view: avoid Wi-Fi interference inside the cabinet and most importantly, secure superior sound quality. Out of this came the idea of using an external Wi-Fi source, instead of installing the high frequency receiver close to sensitive audio circuits inside the cabinet.’

The external Wi-Fi source Densen decided on was Google Cast, for which the Densen Cast amplifier provides a dedicated power supply, and a dedicated optical input. ‘ These provisions, plus the use of a dedicated power cord to connect the Google Cast to the Cast amplifier, are what allow the Google Cast to perform at its best, with the highest possible data quality,’ says Strom. Densen rates the new Cast amplifier with a power output of 60-watts per channel into 8 loads, and an output of 120-watts per channel into 4 loads. It measures 72×220×310mm (HWD) and is available in Albino silver and black finishes. It retails for $4,500 (RRP).