The Ruark R410 is an all-in-one with all the (streaming) facilities you could wish for. Only its appearance is very retro.
We write it here with some regularity: vintage is hot. So hot in fact, that many thrift stores earn a pretty penny from the discards donated. Castoffs that used to go for recycling are now on sale for pretty hefty sums. Yet there are also problems with these retro devices. Often they have to be overhauled to sound good again. Then again: sound from the seventies was pretty “dark brown” colored. Partly a matter of the taste at the time regarding ‘hi-fi’, partly also a result of technical shortcomings of parts used and designs of electronic circuits. This brand new Ruark R410 all-in-one is packed with modern electronics but has a retro look from the 1970s. Ideal if you like more neutral modern sound with a touch of nostalgia without the hassle.
Stream it
The Ruark R410 is an all-in-one that offers plenty of streaming capabilities and features a built-in amplifier and speakers. Also available are a DAB /DAB+ and FM tuner. When it comes to streaming, Internet radio is ready to use, while listening via Tidal Connect and Spotify is no problem either. The latter of course only if you also have a subscription to one or both music services. In terms of wireless connectivity, you can also go either way: AirPlay 2, Bluetooth (with aptX HD support) and Chromecast are available.
eARC HDMI and phono preamplifier
The Ruark R410 feels perfectly at home near a television too, thanks to its eARC HDMI connection. Even the sound of a vintage vinyl record can be heard thanks to the built-in phono preamplifier. The Class D power amplifier delivers up to 120 watts of power per channel. D/A conversion is handled internally by a BurrBrown DAC chip that offers a maximum PCM resolution of 24 bit/192 kHz
The Ruark R410 isn’t super cheap, with a price tag of £1299. But after paying you got yourself a piece of retro design in your home!
