And about time, you might say, because Piega’s Premium Wireless range of wireless speakers is already four years old. In the streaming market, that’s a considerable amount of time.
Piega Premium Wireless Gen2 – a new generation
Premium Wireless Gen2 consists of the 301 compact speakers and the 501 and 702 floorstanding models. With a stereo pair, you get everything you need for amplification and wireless music streaming.
These speakers are in the same class as KEF with its LS50 Wireless II and LS60 Wireless, demonstrating that it is indeed possible to give people great usability and sound quality in one package.
Supports most everything
The 2nd generation Piega Premium Wireless requires the Connect Plus hub to support almost everything you could want: AirPlay, Chromecast, Roon Ready, Spotify Connect, DLNA and Bluetooth. We only miss Qobuz and Tidal Connect to be in heaven, but these services can still be used via the wireless technologies the speakers support.
Wired inputs include HDMI (ARC) to the TV, three optical, one coaxial and one USB DAC input. Analogue RCA and 3.5 mm minijack are also present if you want to connect a turntable with its own RIAA stage, for example.
Note that although Connect Plus supports signals up to 24-bit/192 kHz, it only passes 96 kHz to the Piega Premium Wireless Gen2 speakers. This is done with uncompressed, “lossless” transmission.
If you don’t need the streaming capabilities of the hub, you can opt for a cheaper box with physical connections only.
Sealed enclosure
In the Gen2 version of the speakers, Piega has removed the bass port in favour of a sealed enclosure. This provides cleaner bass and also makes it easier to place the speakers against a back wall. The deep bass that is lost by removing the bass port can be regained by adding an additional woofer along with the DSP.
Overall, Piega promises better impulse response, better precision in the low frequencies and – as mentioned – increased placement ability.
The speakers can be calibrated to the room they are placed in via the Piega Control app for iOS. Android users will unfortunately have to borrow an iPhone for the task.
Ribbon tweeter
All speaker models feature a ribbon tweeter for a more airy and fast reproduction of the overtone range. The floorstanding 501 and 702 are three-way speakers with a separate midrange driver, while the compact model 301 is a two-way design where the woofer also handles the midrange.
The cabinets are handcrafted and made of aluminium, just like Piega’s other Premium models. If you don’t want the natural aluminium finish, you can pay extra to get them in black anodised aluminium or polished white.
Piega Premium Wireless Gen2: Pricing and availability
The new speakers are available now. The Premium 301 Wireless Gen2 has a unit price of 1,475 euros in aluminium, or 1,675 euros in black or white.
The Premium 501 Wireless Gen2 starts at 2,975 euros, while the largest Premium 701 Wireless Gen2 costs at least 3,750 euros. All prices are per unit.
The Connect Plus wireless connectivity device is priced at 590 euros, while the more affordable Connect box without streaming service support costs 290 euros.
More information: piega.ch