Интегральные усилители — Hegel H600

The H600 is the reference integrated amplifier from the Norwegian company Hegel and the successor to the H590, developed over three years. It combines a dual mono power stage, a bit-perfect DAC and a streaming engine inside a new aluminium chassis that measures 17.1 cm high, 43 cm wide and 44.5 cm deep and weighs 22 kg. Shipping in the US began in late September 2023 at USD 12,500, and the UK price was GBP 10,500.

Key specs that matter

Rated power is 2 x 303 W into 8 ohms at 1 kHz and 1% THD, and Hegel states the figure holds on 100, 120 and 230 V mains. The minimum load is 2 ohms and the damping factor exceeds 4000. Distortion is under 0.005% at 50 W into 8 ohms at 1 kHz, signal to noise ratio exceeds 100 dB and crosstalk is below minus 100 dB. Line level connections are two XLR balanced inputs and two RCA inputs, while the outputs are two RCA pairs - one at fixed level and one variable. Digital connections include coaxial S/PDIF inputs on both BNC and RCA connectors, each taking 24 bit 192 kHz, DSD64 over DoP and MQA, plus three optical inputs limited to 24 bit 96 kHz. The USB input accepts 32 bit 384 kHz and DSD256 over DoP. A BNC S/PDIF output passes 24 bit 192 kHz to other equipment.

Engineering and use context

The DAC has its own dedicated power supply and shielding. Every digital input except USB has signal sense, so a connected source can wake the amplifier and select the correct input. The network input matches the coaxial inputs in PCM resolution and DSD support, and the streaming feature set includes Spotify Connect with lossless playback, AirPlay, Google Cast, Roon Ready, Qobuz Connect, Tidal Connect, UPnP and airable internet radio and podcasts, with JPLAY certification as well. Hegel builds the amplifier around several of its own technologies. SoundEngine 2 is the company's feed forward error correction, DualAmp separates the voltage gain stage from the current gain stage, DualPower feeds separate sections from separate supplies, and MasterClock governs the digital timing.

Pairing

The low minimum load and high output make the H600 a candidate for large floorstanding speakers with low impedance dips, even in rooms well beyond 20 m2. A powered subwoofer connects to the variable RCA output, and the fixed one serves a recording device or another room's amplifier.

Alternatives

The Hegel H400 is the step below in the company's integrated amplifier catalogue and gives less output than this model.