Michell Apollo

"This is a great-sounding unit, and it sounds quiet, delivering a wonderfully dark canvas for the sound to grow from"

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When we think of Michell, it's the company's strikingly styled turntables that come to mind first. The likes of the Gyrodec and Orbe are deeply woven into the fabric of British high-end turntables, and deservedly so. Both models have been on the market for decades, yet their combination of engineering, aesthetics and sound quality remains hard to beat.

The brand has always made more than just turntables, of course. Michell's current range includes tonearms, cartridges and various accessories, but it has a history of making electronics too. Michell made an unexpected foray into the world of premium amplifiers that started at the tail end of the '80s. Over the next decade or so, it produced exceptional preamplifiers (Argo, Argo HR and Orca) and ever-so-capable Alecto power amp (available in both stereo and mono). There was also the Iso, one of the first standalone phono stages on the UK market and now something of a forgotten gem.

The new Michell Apollo is part of a two-box package that includes the Muse power supply. The phono stage and supply are built into identical-looking aluminium cases and connected via a short umbilical cable. This casework is beautifully made, impressively rigid and feels wonderfully dense. It is machined from a solid billet of aluminium, and there is some nice detailing, such as the grid texture on the top panel and the gold branding.