Cyrus i9-XR Integrated Amplifier DAC

The Cyrus i9-XR is the flagship integrated amplifier in the new XR range. The familiar Cyrus precision die-cast case is the same, but everything else has changed. With ground-up engineering inside, an all-new phantom black paint finish, touch sensitive controls and a higher resolution display that is customisable for brightness, contrast and polarity, the high-quality finish of XR makes a strong statement.

Our Thoughts

From early testing, both the new i7 & i9 amplifiers sounded really very good, there was a clear difference between them, with the i9 instantly showing us why its worth the premium price, we were surprised when the i9 sounded more open with a slightly better soundstage than both it’s rivals, as both the Aethos and the Supernait amplifiers are superb, so if your budget allows the i9 is definitely worth the extra, however the slightly less powerful i7 is a great amplifier just not quite as natural as the i9 however at its lower price we thought it was an extremely capable amplifier. 

We tested them with the B&W 705 Signature speakers, we thought these with the i9 produced an incredible sound, this combination had all of us listening to our favourite tunes for hours during Lockdown. Both the i7 & i9 also paired very well with the B&W 606 S2 Anniversary and the Dali Opticon 6 speakers so both these new Cyrus Amplifiers are easy to pair and not fussy, as long as you don’t want a very large set of floorstanding speakers, they will go well with which ever speaker you choose.

XR DIGITAL PERFORMANCE

The DAC input stage of the i9-XR features a new 2nd generation version of our award-winning QXR DAC, but with an all-new high-speed analogue buffer stage. Seven digital filter alignment options are user adjustable to suit the taste of the listener. Input options include USB audio (to 768k sample rate) and DSD to DSD512, 2 x SPDIF digital and 2 x optical digital inputs.

PSU-XR PORT

The i9-XR includes a port for the new PSU-XR power supply. Thirty years ago Cyrus broke new ground with the introduction of the PSX-R, the first-ever regulated power supply upgrade that automatically adapted to match perfectly the power requirements of any connected product. The PSU-XR raises the bar by sourcing no less than five independent regulated supplies in a single box. For the i9-XR a pair of these are assigned to provide ultra-smooth power for the preamplifier, and a second pair to provide a huge dynamic boost for the power amplifier.

ALL NEW ANALOGUE PREAMPLIFIER

Derived from the new high-end Pre-XR preamplifier, the i9-XR analogue preamp features relay input selection and a new high-performance gain stage. This short-path design makes the analogue preamplifier extremely transparent. With four analogue inputs and phono MM, the i9-XR will cover just about any system requirement for analogue connectivity

POWER AMPLIFIER

The wideband power amplifier of the i9-XR responds from DC to beyond 100kHz ensuring ruler-flat frequency response and keeping any undesirable phase shifts out of the audio band. With a generous, over-specified power supply the i9-XR power amplifier is very capable of reproducing the scale and drama of the musical performance.

LOW NOISE PHONO STAGE FOR VINYL

Inheriting many design features of the award-winning Phono Signature, the phono stage in the i9-XR performs at a level way above its class. Featuring low background noise and high dynamic range, the phono stage is a perfect complement for a quality vinyl turntable source.

Specifications