This review page is supported in part by the sponsors whose ad banners are displayed below

Further on tendencies, I detected a greater talent for musical flow than extreme PRaT. This became telling vis-à-vis Myryad's quite impulsive MXI 2080. Be it drum set, guitar, piano or harp, the Myryad always led by a nose in the transient rip or hit. The Rega's speed seemed normal, i.e. not exceptionally charged as the Myryad's. Conversely, the Rega clocked advances with free swing-outs of tones, what's technically called their sustain/release phase. This doesn't pertain to tone body per se which undoubtedly is supported by accurate decays where the Elicit is strong. I want to focus here on a form of audiophile finesse however which -- new lingo alert! -- might be called the temporal shifts of tone color through complete decays. There Rega's Elicit pays extreme attention. I could of course compact my lingo and simply call it a musically elegant flow. But what's it mean?


I propose that when we talk of flow, we also must invoke timing. Vice versa, timing isn't just about transients. The post-impulse period is significantly longer and thus, far from unimportant. The fine meshing of gears between leading and trailing edges is fundamental to the mystery of musical flow. And it's something the Elicit is particularly blessed with. This became redundantly clear over Tori Amo's "Icile" from Under The Pink which I'd abstained from for a while. Switching from Rega to Myryad, I encountered outright stuffiness which the finely detailed piano attacks of the Myryad couldn't make up for.


Rega's Elicit is bodacious as I already confirmed and this segues into soundstage flavor and organization. Voices and instruments gain a pleasantly physical plasticity to conjoin into a realistic whole but it clearly arrives not at millimeter-obsessed sonic holography. Separation is good but transitions are fluid, not sharp-edged. The virtual stage has width and depth but this isn't a special virtue. Special virtue enters in how the music is spatially rendered. The soundstage is believably dimensioned but rather than spectacularly layered, individual sounds are fleshed out, not caught in the cross hairs. Spectacular on the other hand are macrodynamics. When an orchestra gains steam and goes for the gusto, the more tympani the merrier. The Rega will whip that big drum something fierce when appropriate...


Conclusion
With Rega's Elicit, anyone who fancies a powerful and fleshy sound with an ultra robust bass foundation and goes after rather a tad more bass than treble will find true happiness. This doesn't default into something muscle-boundedly grotesque or tied up. Au contraire, this amp operates with an elegantly round, finely nuanced flow which initially can appear rather harmless. The danger in such understatement is to be overlooked in the hasty audition. The Elicit rather aims long term. If curious, you should plan on a more extended audition and bring a broader range of test CDs. This machine deserves it.

Rega's Elicit sits firmly in a saddle of true bass extension. The lower octaves show grip and definition but don't default into bone dry or brittle.
The midrange is somewhat fulsome and earth bound. The treble is seamless and overall the amp plays nicely integrated and cohesive. More openness and resolution in the treble is available elsewhere. The Rega seems bred more for long-term friendliness and comfort than extreme transparency.
This amp gives exceptional music flow with a real knack for accurate and thus nuanced decays – very impressive.
Voices and instruments gain believable body. This leads to a very natural organic soundstage. Image lock is good but not of military precision. It's more about sounding objects than checker boards.
Macrodynamics are tremendous and reach into the very low bass.
The optional phono board is €150 and definitely worth its weight.

Facts:
 Category: Solid-state integrated
Dimensions: 430 x 270 x 90mm (WxDxH)
Trim: Black or silver
Output power: 82wpc into 8 ohms
Inputs: 5 x RCA + tape (input one optional phono), direct
Outputs: 1 x speaker terminals, 1 pre-out, 2 x tape out
Other: Pre-out, 2 record outs, direct switch for AV integration, remote standard
Website
redaktion @ fairaudio.de