This imposing heavyweight, fully balanced stereo integrated amplifier has a fabulously constructed chassis, and Levinsonesque styling. Much of the weight of the Moon i-7 is attributable to the chassis and three large transformers, including a massive 0.5kVA toroid. Spikes help to couple the amp firmly to the surface it sits on, but washers or cups are available to spread the load. Power output is 150 watts into eight ohms, not quite doubling to 250 watts into four ohms and with a more than generous current yield said to be around 40 amps peak.
The list of major facilities is short and sweet. There are five inputs, one of which is balanced, and the single-ended options include a single tape circuit. All inputs are exclusively at line level. A processor facility can be used to lock the volume control out when the i-7 is used with an external processor.
The user interface is centred on a massive programmable dot matrix alphanumeric display that can be seen across the street, a smooth acting rotary encoder (that otherwise defaults to volume control) and a number of small push buttons, which alter the encoder's current assignment. The range of features (accessed this way) closely parallels that of recent
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microprocessor-base
d amplifiers from Arcam and others. It includes programmable maximum volume for individual inputs, volume offsets to match levels between inputs, a 12V trigger that can be associated with any or all inputs, and input labelling, again on a per input basis. Finally, you have the ability to disable unassigned inputs. Curiously, there is no accessible means of adjusting channel balance, even using the anatomically-shaped diecast remote control.
A design feature we were particularly intrigued by was the very feature that put the lid on the otherwise promising performance of the Prima Luna pre/power combination. Namely, the elimination of overall negative feedback. Simaudio (the company behind the Moon designs) points out that eliminating negative feedback means "real time" amplification. This is true by definition, as there is no processing time for the input to respond to feedback from the changing output if there is no loop feedback. This in turn means "virtually zero" TIM (transient intermodulation distortion – essentially distortion of musical ‘leading edges') and the elimination of phase errors resulting from feedback.
