Hegel H120 - Amplifier with integrated streamer

Standing on the shoulders of GIANTS, the H120 continues the proud history of HEGEL amplifiers. Award-winning designs that have dazzled listeners over the years with their combination of raw dynamics and delicate naturalism. The H120 carries that legacy with it, but in a smaller, more affordable package.

"If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants" - said Isaac Newton in 1675. Without comparing ourselves to Isaac, we say the same for the H120. It is a relatively affordable integrated amplifier that would not have been possible, if it were not for its brothers who were behind its design. The Hegel H120 is a small step up from our entry level amplifiers in terms of price, but it is (and we refrain from obvious quotes here) a solid step up in terms of features and performance. The significantly larger power supply creates a more dynamic sound and for the combination with large speakers that present more demanding drive loads. The digital section is taken directly from its bigger brothers, and this is really the heart of the H120. We see the typical user of the H120 as people who enjoy streaming digital music. For the money we say the H120 does it better than anything else.

Digital to analog conversion is of the highest quality in the H120, with technology built from the ground up by Hegel. We take full control of the digital data stream, using technology developed from our absolute reference products, ensuring that digital music is delivered in its purest form. The result for you is perfectly natural sound, without artefacts that make you want to turn down the volume. The H120 has Apple Airplay, Spotify Connect, IP Control, Control4 and upnp streaming. More features are already in development and will be offered free of charge, using the simple software update functionality. All inputs are configurable for volume bypass, so you can integrate them into a home theater or with (for example) a Bluesound or Sonos. Whatever you want, you can do it with the H120.

The H120 uses the Hegel SoundEngine 2 amplifier platform which allows for a damping factor of over 2000 along with extremely low distortion levels. Details on the SoundEngine can be found at hegel.com. In many ways it works like a noise canceling headphone. It compares the amplifier output to the input. It picks up all the noise pollution (distortion) and plays it forward into the speaker output, but in reverse phase. Like 1 minus 1 equals 0. It cancels out all the pollution in real time, leaving you with only the most natural sound. The SoundEngine technology has been developed over 30 years, from inception to where it is today. Millions of dollars were invested in the initial development. It is what makes the sound performance of the H120 possible for the money.