Investing in something that costs a lot of money is often a long process that can cause distress and perhaps sleepless nights. You’re actually excited, but subconsciously, doubts can creep in. This is when most people have trouble sleeping. It could be an imminent car purchase with a lot of money involved. Or it could …
Shortly after I got total goose bumps from Bowers & Wilkins’ flagship, the pig-headed and dizzyingly good 801 D4, a pair of the slightly more sensible 803 D4 have entered the test room. But only a little more, because even though the price has almost halved, it’s still possible to buy a new car at …
Most people associate wireless speakers with Bluetooth and a democratic price range that the majority can identify with. That doesn’t mean there are no wireless speakers for a narrower market and in a completely different price range. Just look at Bang & Olufsen’s superb Beolab 28, which impressed in our test. The heavy price tag …
No soundbar can beat a pair of stereo speakers for realistic music production. And neither can Bluetooth speakers. Not even the unique Naim Mu-so 2. Two speakers add an extra dimension to music that soundbars and desktop speakers lack. This becomes very clear when you plug in KEF’s new LSX II, which looks very similar …
It’s only been a few months since we had the top-of-the-range 801 D4 from UK-based Bowers & Wilkins in for review. I was pretty quick to crown the speakers the best I’d heard. Perhaps a little too quickly … There’s nothing to criticise about the B&Ws when it comes to engineering and distortion-free sound reproduction, …
When you mention Technics, most people probably think of turntables. Maybe amplifiers, after all they have made many really good amplifiers. Tape recorders should also be mentioned, although most people have forgotten what they are and many have probably never seen one. But loudspeakers are hardly something you associate with Technics. They have struggled to …
Few speakers have left me on the couch with goosebumps all over. The Quad ESL 63 has done it. Sonus faber, Dynaudio and Audiovector have done it a few times. But very few speakers have left a lasting impression. These, on the other hand, have, and it didn’t take many minutes. Note the name: KEF …
I’ve often said that you get more for your money in a compact speaker. Rarely has that been more true than when we tested the little Lumina I from Sonus faber in 2020. The compact speaker made the impossible possible and really just continued the tradition Sonus faber has of making incredibly good compact speakers. …
I felt I was on a ladder higher than the clouds. With a total view over the whole world. A musical world, where every instrument unfolds freely, in a large, airy and three-dimensional room. No, a cosmos. Full of dancing filaments of energy, vibrating and together creating the building blocks of music. In short: the …
Among all the speakers Gråbein has tested, if you asked which one he would like to buy himself, Audiovector SR6 Avantgarde Arreté V2.0 would be high on the list. Nevertheless, the choice would probably eventually end up on the newer and smaller R3 Arreté, which at half the price is more achievable, and which also …
I do not remember exactly when it was, but I do remember the experience. I had never heard such a bass from any speakers before, and after a few tracks, I concluded that these had to be my dream speakers. The chubby Bowers & Wilkins speakers had a 12-inch woofer in a separate enclosure, and …
Following the success of the Kaya 90 compact floor-standing loudspeaker, which Vivid Audio magically managed to make it sound twice as big, the British-South African manufacturer has faced a new challenge: How do you use the same concept, which normally needs a much larger cabinet, in a small compact speaker of only 12 liters? The …
Klipsch’s biggest soundbar is really heavyweight, intended for home cinema enthusiasts who want the sound pressure and sound quality you are used to with separate components, but as simple and elegant as only a soundbar can do. However, the Klipsch Cinema 1200 is not discreet. With a total amplifier power of 1200 watts and a …
When you want a simple and practical upgrade of the TV sound, the choice often falls on a soundboard. Unfortunately, even the best soundbars have a rather monotonous and flat sound image compared to a traditional stereo system – especially when it comes to music. Modern audio formats and DSP technology do not quite mask …
Samsung HW-Q960A takes over for last year’s model, HW-Q950T, which we named the best soundbar of the year in the high-end class of 2020. This year’s model is similar to the old one in terms of appearance, but has even more speaker channels to reproduce surround sound. Exactly what that means, we’ll come back to …