Bel Canto C7R Integrated Amp Receiver with Tuner Preview

Bel Canto asks the question: Why choose different components for your music downloads, computer, CD player, turntables, cable/satellite box or game consoles? Their answer is to "keep things simple" with Bel Canto's compact, powerful C7R Receiver! The C7R, which is more like an integrated amp, tuner, and DAC all rolled into one, is loaded with inputs including two 24/192 SPDIF, two 24/192 TOSLINK, and one 24/96 USB, MM Phono and Analog Line Level inputs. Output connections are via upgraded WBT NEXTGEN Speaker Connectors plus RCA Line Out and a Headphone Output.

Think of the C7R as a fine-sounding, amazingly cool-running, high-output, low-power-usage analog and digital media center. It is designed to produce low jitter, low noise, and excellent power supply isolation. You can connect your computer, CD player, turntable, cable box or game console and you’re in total system control - just send your video directly to your display, because the c7r isn't going to handle that, nor will it handle surround sound or high resolution HDMI-sourced audio. But for tweakers and stereo audio aficionados, this is a great product.

The REF150S-based power supply includes the REFseries filter board and like all Bel Canto components it runs so cool it can be placed in a variety of locations. Add a Bel Canto CD3t Transport and you've got an entire system in two high performance half-width cases.

The 24-bit digital volume control is made to be completely transparent and accurate throughout the volume range. The engineering detail that Bel Canto is known for results in custom 0.1% audio grade resistors, class-A output control circuitry, and low-noise power supply components. The heavy-gauge all-steel chassis design prevents mechanical resonance from compromising the audio signal quality. The stereo amplifier section is based on an elegant switching output stage that eliminates thermal distortion caused by changes in operating temperature.

At $2995, we're not going to say this is a product for everyone, but then again, that's not who it's designed for.

Unless otherwise indicated, this is a preview article for the featured product. A formal review may or may not follow in the future.