Arcam SA35

Arcam's impressive streaming all-in-one ticks a lot of boxes

- 

Arcam’s Radia range already has a What Hi-Fi? approved five-star music streamer in its lineup in the shape of the ST25. And it has not one but four five-star stereo amplifiers (the updated A5+ and A15+, and the original A5 and A15).

You would think, then, that for Arcam and the SA35, it’s going to be a relatively straightforward case of taking the best bits from its streamer and amps, adding a smattering of extra features, and just sitting back and admiring its work.

We know, however, that marrying everything together to automatically create five-star synergy isn't a guarantee.

Like its ST25 streamer and A15+ stereo amplifier siblings, the SA35 is quite a chunky unit. It weighs in at 12kg, which you can definitely feel when moving the unit into position. The black chassis hides its size well, though - we think Arcam has really nailed the styling of this Radia series of hi-fi products.

The clean but stealthy look combined with the yellow halo-lighting around the input and volume dials, and the yellow highlights around the top vents, make for a striking piece of equipment.

There's nothing stealthy about the large 6.5in hires display in the middle of the fascia, though. It's bright, punchy and colourful, and virtually identical to that found on the ST25. This means album artwork generally looks great on the Arcam, offering you a few different configurations for how it and the accompanying metadata are displayed.

The display's size and clarity also make navigating the onscreen menus very straightforward when you're carrying out functions such as choosing inputs, cycling through filters and setting up Bluetooth.

The display is flanked by those input and volume dials, which give the front of the unit a neat symmetry. Both rotary controls feel good to use. They turn smoothly but, being ultra-critical, we think they could have a tiny bit more resistance to them. Otherwise, you're treated to a tactile user experience.