This Venetian charmer isn't cheap, but it's superbly built and delivers on romance, atmosphere and musicality

The latest single-ended Unison S6 offers audiophiles pure Class A operation and a honey-rich glow

A hybrid amp combining solid-state practicality and power from a single-ended thermionic valve preamp stage

Italians love music – they are the only inhabitants of a hot Mediterranean country who make serious and successful audio components. Maybe having the cooler northern climbs of the country helps in this respect as Unison Research is based in the north east environs of Treviso, where it produces a broad selection of electronics – the majority of which are powered by parallel single-ended valves.

We've seen quite a few products from Unison over the years and the family likeness is not hard to find. That classic Italian love of medium-dark hardwood, for a start, and the proud way in which the valves stand alone. Like many other Unison Research products, this is a single-ended amplifier, using just one valve for the output stage of each channel.

Unison Research is a name very much associated with valves - that, and sumptuous Italian styling. The company's upmarket models are visually striking, and few would deny them the epithet 'gorgeous', too

The Unico CD's wood-mounted logo, graphical display, button layout and thick finished front panel look fantastic. The remote's a pretty piece of gadgetry too, just slightly let down by two very ornery screws holding it together from the front.

Hi-fi companies are a funny lot. As the Unico Secondo's maker demonstrates, they can produce a nice new amp... and forget to put it on their website, surely most people's first port of call for information these days

Over the past two decades, Unison Research has built itself an impressive reputation as a maker of fine quality valve amplification at realistic prices. Electronics lecturer Professor Gianni Sacchetti, a valve/hi-fi enthusiast who is still the main man behind the valve amp designs, originally started the Unison operation.