‘The best hi-fi of 2023’ is a collection of products that audiophile webzine The Ear’s reviewers consider to be the very finest they’ve enjoyed over the year. Among them is Computer Audio Design’s (CAD) GC 1.1 Ground Control unit, “an essential audition for anyone with a half-decent system”. But, buyer beware: once you’ve heard how your system sounds without the detrimental effects of high-frequency noise, there may be no going back!

“If ever there was a product I did not know I needed in my system until I tried it, then this is it,” writes reviewer Chris Baillie. “The GC 1.1 is perfectly formed to fit next to the average-sized component on the average rack, yet allows your system to deliver a performance that is far from average.”

CAD’s designer Scott Berry believes that dealing with high frequency noise on the signal ground plane is critical to allowing sound systems to deliver their full potential. While Berry keeps the precise details of what goes into his Ground Control units close to his chest, we do know that the technology involved is borrowed from aerospace engineering and features an ultra-precise internal configuration and construction. The proof, however, is in the listening.

“The GC 1.1’s noise-reducing abilities helped to deliver a more detailed and dynamic sound in a more holographic soundstage,” writes Baillie. “It is one of those devices you remove from your system at your peril. The beauty of CAD’s Ground Control range is that their effect is incremental, and further GC 1.1s, or even the big brother GC 3.1, can be added as budget allows.”

“CAD is quite possibly the most significant brand in high-end audio that remains under the radar.”

To find out more, get on CAD’s radar and track down your nearest specialist retailer, visit www.computeraudiodesign.com

Read the full line-up of The Ear’s best hi-fi of 2023 at https://the-ear.net/review-hardware/best-hi-fi-of-2023/