Huei distils 30 years of amplifier design and engineering into an all-new phono preamp. Advanced microprocessor-controlled phono preamp brings Chord Electronics’ three-decade-strong amplification expertise to turntables everywhere for £990.

As part of its ongoing 30th-anniversary celebrations this year, Chord Electronics has unveiled Huei, an all-new phono preamp that distils three decades of amplifier development into a high-performance yet space-saving chassis. Entirely conceived, engineered and manufactured in Great Britain, Huei has been carefully designed to provide turntables with the same high standards of amplification the company has become known for over the past 30 years.

Benefitting from both Moving Magnet and Moving Coil functionality, Huei offers compatibility with a huge range of cartridges thanks to comprehensive gain and impedance-matching options; Huei’s high- and low-gain switching settings are easily accessible via front-panel controls, introducing welcome flexibility.

Huei’s advanced design offers (for the first time in a Chord Electronics phono preamp) ultra-low-noise microprocessor control of its main features, including a convenient memory function. With multiple options for impedance-matching, seven-stage switchable gain and a switchable rumble filter, Huei’s design offers comprehensive compatibility.

Precision-machined from solid aircraft-grade aluminium billet, Huei has a similar form factor to the company’s Qutest DAC and also offers a top-mounted viewing window into the illuminated electronics within. The design also shares the same polychromatic control spheres the company has become known for in its digital products. The illuminated front-panel spheres offer direct access to Huei’s gain and impedance settings, selection for MM/MC cartridges and access to the on-board rumble filter.

Huei is a stylish, practical and high-performance solution for integrating turntables into Chord Electronics’ (and other) systems and features both balanced (RCA) and unbalanced outputs (XLR) with RCA inputs. A high-quality 12V external power supply is also supplied.

Specifications

Input impedance: 30Ω-47kΩ, 50pF-1uF
Input noise: 1.1nV/Hz
Max output voltage: 10V RMS equalisation
Gain range: 0dBV-75dBV
Equalisation response: RIAA curve; Equalisation accuracy: +/- 0.1dB
Frequency response: RIAA curve = 12Hz to 25kHz
Rumble filter: Rausch Slope -24dB per octave below 50Hz
Output impedance: 520Ω (resistive)
Input power supply: 12V 100V to 240V 50/60Hz PSU
Dimensions/weight: 160mm (W) x 43mm (D) x72 (H); 770g