Five years ago, Hegel enriched the audio world with the H590, an integrated amplifier that set completely new standards not only in terms of performance but also convenience. Both critics and audiophiles were equally thrilled by this product. After an intensive three-year development period, Hegel is now proud to present the H590 successor: the H600.
The H600 presents itself not merely as an evolution of its predecessor, but as an evolutionary leap in audio enjoyment. The list of innovations and improvements is impressive, suggesting that genuine engineering prowess was at work here.
Design and Performance
The exterior design has undergone a careful revision, resulting in a successful symbiosis of elegance and modernity. The clean lines and high-quality materials underscore the technological sophistication contained within the device. Because, as is well known, true beauty comes from within.
With 303 watts into 8 ohms, a damping factor of 4000, and the ability to drive the amplifier into 2 ohms, the integrated amplifier can confidently and effortlessly drive any speaker. It features a dual-mono design that comes as close as possible to the performance of two mono amplifiers in a single chassis. The H600 also includes a state-of-the-art preamplifier with the extremely precise volume control found in Hegel's reference amplifier P30A. All electronic circuitry has been developed in-house using the highest quality components. The result is an enormously broad and deep soundstage with exceptional dynamic range and tremendous bass control. This amplifier reveals all the details and nuances of the music. All you need to do is connect a pair of truly good speakers of your choice.
The H600's D/A converter with a 24-bit/384 kHz input features a bit-perfect design that offers pure audio reproduction without resampling or upsampling. The DAC has a large, separate power supply that ensures an unadulterated and stable power delivery, and is shielded by a thick steel plate to prevent interference from other electrical components in the amplifier. The result is a state-of-the-art D/A converter with incredible resolution and smoothness.
The chassis is made of aluminum to enhance audio performance. It consists of a solid base and a top cover with milled ventilation openings in two layers, providing additional strength and air circulation. Large aluminum feet with a scratch-resistant design ensure excellent stability and reduced vibrations, while high-quality RCA connectors and optimized positioning of analog and digital connections reduce noise and improve channel separation. The large rotary controls are equipped with touch control, making the amplifier effortless and intuitive to operate. They also feel very pleasant to the touch, making every adjustment a pleasure.
The H600 boasts an extensive list of streaming options. It supports UPnP streaming, Spotify Connect, Airplay 2, Tidal Connect, and Roon Ready integration. But that's just the beginning. The state-of-the-art streaming engine ensures that the amplifier is always up-to-date, offering you the latest options for streaming your music.
The H600 is also highly customizable to meet specific requirements and fit into any environment. All digital inputs except USB feature signal detection. This means that any source – e.g., a TV set – connected to these inputs can wake up the amplifier and activate the correct input. Additionally, the volume can be limited to match your maximum volume preferences. The remote control function allows you to program the amplifier to be controlled by common TV remote controls, eliminating the need for two remotes and making it easier for all household members to enjoy great TV sound. Most inputs can also be set as fixed high-level home cinema inputs, allowing the H600 to be easily combined with surround receivers or multiroom devices. As with streaming, more features will be available in the future. These firmware updates are, of course, always free, and the amplifier installs them automatically when released, ensuring your H600 is always up-to-date.
The amplifier features a large number of analog and digital connections to connect various audio sources. There are two pairs of True Balanced XLR inputs and two pairs of RCA inputs. On the digital side, it has a LAN network connection, a USB 32/384 input (with DSD256/DoP support), three optical inputs, one coaxial input, and one BNC True 75-ohm input. For analog outputs, it offers one pair of fixed-level RCA outputs and one pair of variable-level RCA outputs. It also has a BNC digital output with fixed level and true 75 ohms.
The H600 is an extremely powerful and excellent-sounding amplifier. It is highly versatile, offering high-end sound and ease of use, all within a high-quality and minimalist enclosure that suits any interior style. The H600 is a hub for your digital music, a home for all connected sources, with a sound that – if necessary – is also suitable for very large rooms: The H600 is now available from us.
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