![]() The MM phono stage module comes as standard, but can be reconfigured for use with moving-coils. Meanwhile the amp has two analogue line-ins and a tape loop – remember those? – and as well as two sets of speaker terminals to facilitate bi-wiring there's also a stereo subwoofer output for use with active subs, also under the control of the main volume adjustment. The DAC itself is one of those ubiquitous ESS Sabres, in this case an ES9018K2M that can handle file formats up to 384kHz/32-bit and DSD256, which should be more than adequate for almost any 'computer audio' need. Using the 'OSB' button on the amp allows this DAC output to be used while the power amp output stages are in standby, this also being a handy facility for keeping the Unico Due ready for more rapid use, as the valve preamp stage is kept powered with this setting. However, even here the design is unusual, as the DAC has its own line output as well as being connected to the preamp, so should you want you can use the Due as a standalone DAC, for example straight into a headphone amplifier. ![]() In practice this is basically an analogue input amplifier, including a phono stage, but it also has an onboard DAC, albeit with just one input, on a USB-B socket, to allow a computer to be connected. However, there's more to the hybrid thing here than just the valve/solid-state combination. Plug it in, and given a bit of time for the whole caboodle to warm up, you're ready to play music. This, then, is the valve amp tamed, made domestically acceptable, easy to use and fully compatible with a wide range of loudspeaker types. In fact, this hybrid design aims to bring the user the best of both worlds: the character of valves, thanks to one ECC83 double triode per channel in the preamp stage, plus real-world speaker-driving ability thanks to a MOSFET-based power amp claiming 100W per channel, and designed for ultra-low distortion to let all that valve character through. Despite an outward appearance suggesting a completely conventional integrated amp, the Due – which sells for £2500 in standard silver with black available at a £100 premium – is very definitely a valve amp, or at least half of one. At the same time its Unico series has adopted a more mainstream aesthetic and includes valve-based amplifiers that, well, don't really seem like valve amplifiers. The latest addition to the Italian manufacturer's range is said to be a ground-up design to make the most of its hybrid – valve preamp, solid-state power amp – configurationīased in Treviso, Italy, Unison Research has long specialised in making very traditional looking tube amps with polished wooden chassis and rows of glowing bottles on display.
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