Audio - Organizer

11:01 pm | July 21, 2021

Editor's Note

• Original review date: July 2021
• Launch price: $99 / £99 (approx. AU$185)
• Official price now: $89 / £99 / AU$119

Update: February 2024. Stock seems to be running down on the Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0 in some countries, and these days these earbuds have been largely surpassed by more advanced entries among the best budget wireless earbuds. You can get fantastic sound and solid active noise cancellation (something the Lypertek lack totally) from the Sony WF-C700N at around the same price, or you can get ANC and a bunch of other smarter features from the Earfun Air Pro 3 for cheaper than the Lypertek. However! The battery life here remains fantastic – these noise cancelling buds can only dream of 10 hours from the buds, and 80 hours in total including the case. So they still have something to recommend them, but generally we'd suggest looking to the Sony or Earfun options. The rest of this review remains as previously published.

Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0: One-minute review

When we first reviewed the original Lypertek PurePlay Z3 true wireless earbuds (then known as the Lypertek Tevi), we were blown away. We couldn’t believe that a pair of headphones that sounded as good as they did, with the battery life they offered, could be sold so affordably and be the product of a company we’d hardly heard of. They were so good, we made them our headphone product of the year, as well as including them in our look at the best true wireless earbuds.

Dial the clock forward a couple of years, and we’re now looking at their successors, the Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0 true wireless earbuds. They’re very similar to the originals, with a few key improvements, and yet still come in at the same affordable price point the originals did – $99 / £99.

This gets you everything we loved about the original PurePlay Z3 (detailed balanced sound, a whopping 80 hours total battery life from its petite USB-C charging case, and a comfortably fitting bud with physical buttons), and adds wireless charging, a powerful new LDX Audio mode, improved app functionality and a hear through ambient mode. This is one of the best cheap headphones to buy in 2022.

For the most part, it’s an improvement across the board and one of our top picks of the best wireless earbuds, as well as the best headphones. LDX Audio adds a well-tuned, full bodied sound for those that want more oomph than the near-reference default, wireless charging works a treat, EQ features respond well to tweaks and battery life remains stellar.

However, app connectivity is patchy at best, and the ambient hear through mode is pretty much useless in comparison to the competition from the likes of Sony’s noise cancelling WF-1000XM4.

And yet, with the price still rock-bottom low, and nothing to detract from the quality standard the originals set out, with a few notable improvements, they remain must-have earbuds, more than a match or headphones two or three times the price. Get them.

Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0 review: Price and availability

The Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0 is out now, priced at $99 / £99 (about AU$185). That’s not a penny more than their predecessors, despite a raft of new features being included. And though they don’t feature active noise cancellation, they more than challenge rivals many times the price. That includes the Apple AirPods Pro ($249 / £249 / AU$399) and Sony WF-1000XM4 ($279.99 / £250 / AU$449.95). They are a total steal.

Design

From the outside, not much looks very different about the Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0 compared to its 1.0 predecessors, and that’s indicative of the product as a whole in many respects – this is a refinement on that top-notch original, rather than a revolutionary new direction.

Again, you’ll find ovoid, stemless earbuds sitting within a pill-shaped, fabric covered case, complete with a removable carrying strap. Both white and black versions of the PurePlay Z3 2.0 are available, and each features USB-C charging and four LED indicator lights to show battery levels. The earbuds securely fit into the case with a magnetic snap, which will start them charging from the case’s own internal battery – removing them from the case will start the Bluetooth pairing process, and once they’ve been paired once, you won’t have to perform the process again unless you’re looking to pair additional devices with the headphones.

The case (being just a touch too big for a comfortable trousers pocket fit), is quietly attractive, and makes use of its size to fit in a gigantic battery. You’re already getting a solid ten hours of playback from the buds themselves, but there’s an additional 70 hours to be had by recharging them in the fully-juiced charging case. That’s a whopping 80 hours total battery life before you’ve got to plug the cable back into case. And, in a first for the line, there’s wireless charging support too here. These are top-class battery specs, in case you were in any doubt.

In terms of the earbuds themselves, they’re lightweight and comfortable in the ear. Each can be paired with small, medium or large silicone ear tips, or Flexifit foam tip that expands slightly in your ear for a tighter seal and better passive noise cancellation. That’s worth pointing out as, due to the budget nature of the earbuds, there’s no active noise cancellation here. Still, with strong volume levels and a snug fit, ambient noise was very rarely a concern with the PurePlay Z3 2.0. IPX7 waterproofing makes these safe for a quick splash in the shower, though note that the case is not similarly protected.

Both earbuds also feature physical buttons, controlling volume, track selection, play, pause, call response and hear-through mode activation. They’re far more reliable than touch-sensitive buttons (and preferred here as a result), though pushing them without driving the earbuds further into your ear takes some practice.

Internally there is an improvement too, with the introduction of Bluetooth 5.2 support. This allows for SBC, AAC and aptX codecs to be handled without fuzz, with the Qualcomm QCC3040 chipset allowing for improved battery life even to offset the introduction of the afore-mentioned LDX Audio mode.

Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0 review: Audio performance

The original Lypertek Tevi, or PurePlay Z3, excelled when it came to bringing a clear, neutral sound to your ears. Just shy of what we’d consider reference or audiophile quality, they were revelatory when considering their price point. And that base-level, out of the box tuning remains present here. Making use of 6mm graphene drivers, there’s an identical level of clarity to the Z3 2.0, presenting an unbiased sound that favours studio intentions rather than ramping up any individual frequencies. As a result, we’ll point you to our original Lypertek PurePlay Z3 review for a detailed rundown of the out-of-the-box sound of the Z3 2.0.

However, despite it being a preferred way of listening for audio connoisseurs, it’s not always the right tuning for every scenario. What about if you’re down the gym, and want a little more bass? Or generally want a punchier, more-powerful sound, even if that’s at the expense of balance?

That’s where the PurePlay Z3 2.0’s new LDX Audio mode comes in, accessible from the also-new accompanying app. Switching on LDX Audio in the app is a bit like hitting an overdrive button – raising the volume of less-present frequencies (particularly bass tones), widening the soundstage.

It results in a more energetic, dynamic delivery, and one that certainly is a noticeable departure from the stock tuning. They are two very distinct sound profiles, and both have their merits – I found myself switching between the two depending on the listening situation, favouring LDX Audio when out and about, while going for the stock tuning when indoors and intently listening to songs and albums. What neither is lacking in is clarity – the PurePlay Z3 2.0 does well to highlight details, and does well to avoid distorting when even at high volumes. They’re simply a pleasure to listen to.

Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0 review: Features

It’s more of a mixed bag when it comes to new features.

First the good – the LDX Audio mode, as mentioned, is excellent, and is accompanied in the app by an equally-impressive EQ option. As well as a number of presets, from Rock to Jazz, Pop to R&B, there are also presets that favor Bass or Treble response. That’s in addition to two custom slots for your to save your own tunings. They make a noticeable impact, really letting you refine the sound to your tastes.

But other features aren’t as impressive. A "Hear Through" mode, which is intended to let you hear more of your ambient surroundings via the earbud mics without interrupting playback, is pretty much useless, not making anywhere near the impact needed to make you comfortably more aware of what was going on around you. A Find my Earbuds feature was similarly patchy, while the app itself sometimes struggled to identify and connect to the headphones at all – even without any nearby wireless devices to potentially cause confusion.

Despite some failings here, it’s hard to be too critical of the PurePlay Z3 2.0 though. Managing to bring more to the table than earlier models (mostly positively too), and still retaining the same price point, they remain an overall improvement to an already-impressive package.

Should I buy the Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0?

Buy it if...

Don’t buy it if…

Looking for the best earbuds? Check out where the PurePlay Z3 2.0 rank.
The best true wireless earbuds: how does the PurePlay Z3 2.0 compare?

Technics SL-1500C Turntable review

2:21 pm | June 23, 2021

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Hi-Fi Turntables | Comments: Off

Editor's Note

• Original review date: September 2019
• Launch price: $999 / £899 / AU$2499
• Target price: $1,299 / £1,099 / AU$1,895

Update: February 2024. Despite its relative age (although anything released within the past 10 years hardly qualifies as 'old' for a turntable – this is heritage physical music) the Technics SL-1500C is still emphatically one of the best turntables on the market. And it's not even the iconic SL-1210! What it is, is a direct-drive turntable built to listen to music (rather than to DJ with) and in the years since its release it has become a benchmark for quality at the price – a price which has actually risen owing to the proposition's success and desirability. Features? It's got a switchable phono stage so it'll work with your amp plus nice hefty buttons, but ultimately this is a deck for the purist and vinyl archivist. For clarity, in January 2024 Victrola's record turntable with repeat function arrived, but the firm's 2023 Victrola Stream Carbon can also work with your Sonos multi-room wireless setup, so the category has seen some breakthrough vinyl-meets-wireless tech since the Technics landed. Do you need any of that, or is wired analog audio still the star in your house? That's up to you. The rest of this review remains as previously published.

Technics SL-1500C: one-minute review

The first time Technics died, it was a long and unnecessarily drawn-out affair. Parent company Panasonic inexplicably lost patience and faith with the brand around the turn of the century (despite it being one of the few true icons of consumer electronics) - starting its slow demise and leading to fewer and fewer Technics-branded products coming to market.

By 2010 it was official: Technics was no more. Anyone who’d ever visited a nightclub or danced to a DJ set was a little bit heartbroken.

But, in 2015, Panasonic had a change of heart, and Technics was reborn. And while many enjoyed the reborn audio brand, things weren’t quite the same - the first fruits of the brand’s resurrection were both uncharacteristically expensive and a bit misguided.

...Until now. Meet the budget-friendly Technics SL-1500C that will only set you back £899 / $999 / AU$2499. It's still not the most affordable turntable on the market, but it's first the reborn Technics has so far delivered to really remind listeners of what they loved about the brand in the first place.

Technics SL-1500C Turntable review: design

To most people, the words ‘Technics turntable’ means Technics SL-1210 - but the Technics template was set down long before the company designed The World’s DJ Deck, and it would seem strange were they to mess with the formula now. So, naturally, they haven’t.

That’s not to say the SL-1500C is a facsimile of the SL-1200/SL-1210. It’s not built as a DJ deck, but rather as just a record player, so it doesn’t feature pitch control, target light, stroboscope or the other ‘hands-on’ bits ‘n’ bobs that make the SL-1210 look such a purposeful machine.

But the SL-1500C has the same hefty aluminium top-plate, the same aluminium-with-complicated-composite chassis and the same overweight, utterly inert and resonance-rejecting aluminium platter. In fact, here the platter’s substantially rubberised to make it even more efficient.

And, of course, the SL-1500C is a direct-drive design. Technics has almost always preferred this technology for its record players (not just its DJ decks), and here it’s using a fearsomely over-engineered motor intended to resistance the restless ‘cogging’ effect that can afflict some direct-drive Technics-wannabee turntables. It’s engaged using the big ‘on/off’ dial and big ‘stop/start’ button familiar from the SL-1210.

Technics SL-1500C Turntable review: Features

Technics has gone to significant lengths to make the SL-1500C as user-friendly and painless as possible. Niceties start with the Ortofon 2M Red cartridge that’s pre-fitted to the detachable headshell - it’s simplicity itself to attach or detach it from the S-shaped tonearm.

It stands on four hefty (the word ‘hefty’ springs to mind a lot when trying to describe the SL-1500C) rubberised feet. They’re pliant and have quite a lot of articulation so, while - you should always put your record player on a sturdy shelf, where it can avoid vibrations - the SL-1500C isn’t as unsettled by less-than-perfect positioning as some price-comparable but less, yes, hefty rivals.

It’s also fitted with a switchable phono stage. Not every stereo amplifier has the necessary oomph to make a record player audible (though every mixer attached to an SL-1210 does), but because the SL-1500C is packing sufficient pre-amplification it’s compatible with any amplifier you care to mention.

There’s even a switchable auto-stop feature. When the needle reaches the run-out groove it can, if you so desire, return to its resting ‘off’ position. Such pandering to the user is not something you’d ever catch an SL-1210 indulging in.

Like Technics turntables of old, the SL-1500C has big ‘33.3’ and ‘45’ rpm speed-selection buttons - and, like Technics turntables of old, pressing them at the same time delivers 78rpm performance. Ideal for the true vinyl archivist.

Technics SL-1500C Turntable review: Performance

There’s really only one place to start with a Technics record player, and that’s with some thumping dance music. So it’s out with a ‘much-loved’ (for which read ‘slightly knackered’) copy of deadmau5’s single-sided Lack of a Better Name to find out if the SL-1500C is worthy of its illustrious brand name.

The short answer is ‘yes’. The slightly longer answer is ‘yes, all day long’.

Much of what is so prized in the vinyl format - the warmth, detail and texture of its sound, the rhythmic surefootedness, the sense of integration and unity of performance - is here in the SL-1500C, and in good measure. But that’s not what is so initially remarkable about the way this Technics goes about music-making.

Many an otherwise-excellent record player overplays its hand where low frequency information is concerned. The temptation to overstate the luxurious warmth and substance of vinyl-derived bass seems almost impossible to resist - but the SL-1500C is made of sterner stuff. It absolutely snaps into low-end sounds - it doesn’t wallow, it doesn’t drone. Instead, it draws an unarguably straight edge at the start of bass notes and doesn’t let their decay hang around. The result is a sound that has all of the body and momentum vinyl-fanciers delight in, but none of the overhang. The SL-1500C is a snake-hipped listen where too many of its nominal rivals have the bass equivalent of muffin-top.

And above this gloriously well-controlled bottom end, the news continues to be good. One grinding gear-changing from deadmau5 to Ella Fitzgerald’s Dream a Little Dream of Me allows the Technics to showcase its keen eye for the detail and nuance of a vocalist’s delivery. Fitzgerald’s pure tone and impeccable phrasing is served up explicitly by the SL-1500C - her voice is utterly packed with character, and occupies centre-stage in the most natural manner imaginable.

To complete the nap hand of frequency response expertise, the Technics has sufficient bite and attack at the top end to make the fiercer moments of Talk Talk’s Spirit of Eden properly forceful, but there’s never any suggestion things could get splashy or in any way out of control. The same LP highlights the SL-1500C’s confident manner with both high-level ‘quiet/loud/quiet’ dynamics and the low-level harmonic dynamics of Mark Hollis’s piano- and organ-playing.

Sound-staging is impressive, with recordings given plenty of elbow-room for individual instruments to make their presence felt. There’s depth and height to the Technics’ stage, as well as width, but despite all this breathing-room there’s no lack of unity to the sound the SL-1500C delivers. And no matter whether you choose to listen to the cramped, claustrophobic beats of Burial’s Untrue or the wide-open elegance of Brian Eno’s Another Green World, the Technics remains completely authoritative.

Overall, there’s remarkably little to take issue with here. Some alternative turntables (from the likes of Rega and Pro-Ject) will extract even more detail, and manage rhythms and tempos with even more assurance. But they don’t have electronic speed change, or direct drive, or a phono stage, or the build quality to survive a medium-sized detonation.

And they don’t say ‘Technics’ anywhere on the top-plate, either.

Technics SL-1500C Turntable review: Final verdict

It’s been a bit of turbulent start for the reimagined Technics brand, but with the SL-1500C it seems the company is beginning to find its line and length. This isn’t the most out-and-out accomplished turntable you can buy in purely sonic terms, but it’s not far off - and it’s more robustly made, better specified and has greater cachet than any price-comparable alternative.

First reviewed: September 2019

You'll find the SL-1500C on our list of the best turntables

Deezer review

1:03 pm | June 17, 2021

Author: admin | Category: Audio Audio Streaming Computers Gadgets | Tags: Apple Music | Comments: Off

Deezer: Two-minute review

Deezer may not be the most popular music streaming service, but it’s been around since 2007 and even though the space has become more and more competitive over the years, it’s still well worth checking out today. It’s a solid option if you don’t need all of the social features and constant recommendations that Spotify offers but would like a boost in audio quality without having to pay for Tidal’s HiFi Plus.

With more than 120 million tracks, Deezer has a bigger music library than many of its rivals and a bunch of added features, too, including a selection of podcasts, quizzes and a Shazam-like clone called Songcatcher. What sets it apart from rival Spotify is it offers a bump up in audio quality at 1411kbps, which makes it similar to Tidal’s HiFi tier and Apple Music.

It doesn’t feel like Deezer knows your music personality inside out in the same way Spotify does, but there are some good curated suggestions and a constantly-updated playlist of recommendations called Flow. There are several premium options to choose from that come with a one-month free trial. But there’s also a completely free tier with ads and some restrictions – although rumors online suggest this might be coming to an end in several regions.

In terms of design, Deezer’s user interface doesn’t feel quite as ‘put together’ as its rivals, it’s much more minimal. But at the same time, there’s something refreshing about how simple it is. That’s the big appeal of Deezer in my opinion, it may not have the bells and whistles of Spotify, but if you own one of the best wired headphones and want good quality music – and you’re not as interested in social features or a broad selection of fun playlists – it might be well worth your time.

Deezer review: Pricing and subscription

The Deezer apps on a laptop, phone and tablet — (Image credit: Deezer)

Free version with ads
Premium is $11.99 / £11.99 / AU$13.99 per month
One month free trial

There’s a free version of Deezer that has ads and a couple of restrictions – you can only shuffle songs rather than play whatever you like. It’s great there’s a free version as it’s likely to convert a lot of non-paying users into premium subscribers. However, according to several online reports, Deezer has emailed users in some countries recently saying this free tier will be coming to an end in 2024. We’ll update this review when we get official confirmation, but for now it still seems to be available in most regions.

The Premium Deezer tier removes any restrictions and costs $11.99 /£11.99 / AU$13.99 per month. Like Spotify, there’s also a Duo option available for $15.99 /£15.99 / AU$17.99 that’s aimed at couples, bringing you two individual accounts that can be used across up to 5 devices. If a few people in your household use Deezer, the service’s Family subscription plan ($17.99 / £19.99 / AU$21.99) allows for up to six individual accounts across up to 13 devices, offering optional kids’ profiles that let you keep an eye on what your children are listening to.

In an earlier version of this review, we said Deezer was a good value option but it’s upped its prices over the years. Rather than being cheaper than its rivals, it’s now a little more expensive than Spotify and Tidal’s HiFi option, which are both only $10.99 / £10.99 AU$12.99.

Deezer review: Specs

Deezer review: Music library and content

The Deezer features as seen in the app — (Image credit: Deezer)

120 million tracks
160,000 podcasts
Infinite recommended music with Flow

Like most music streaming services, Deezer has added more and more tracks over the years. Right now it says it has more than 120 million, which is more than rivals Spotify and Tidal, which say they currently have 100 million.

Like Spotify, Deezer has added podcasts to its offering. There are more than 160,000 available to listen to at the time of writing and there’s a good selection. During testing, I could find all of my favorites, but it’s worth checking if your top ones are available. If they’re not, head on over to Spotify where there are currently more than 5 million podcast titles.

There were no audiobooks available when I was testing Deezer in the UK, they could be found via the search bar but couldn’t be played. This is likely because Deezer does offer a limited audiobook library, but only to users in certain regions, including Germany and The Netherlands.

Thanks to a tie-in with Tune My Music, a third-party app, you can easily import your entire music collection from other streaming services, including your playlists and favorites. You can also bring MP3s from other sources to Deezer via the web version and listen to all of your music in one place. With a Premium subscription you can also download any tracks, albums, playlists and podcasts for offline listening, which is ideal for travel.

There are a couple of cool extras available alongside Deezer’s music library, including a selection of live radio stations, music quizzes – with themes like 90s Rap, Disney and TikTok Hits – as well as a feature called Songcatcher, which is Deezer’s answer to Shazam. These are all ultimately nice additions, but definitely not enough to pull you away from a rival music streaming service.

Deezer review: Apps and compatibility

The Deeezer app on several devices — (Image credit: Deezer )

Desktop, mobile, or web player
Chromecast and AirPlay support
Available in 185 countries

Deezer is available to use via a desktop app, mobile app, and a flash-based web player. You can download the mobile app for Android, iOS devices, and Windows 10 mobiles and tablets. Deezer is also compatible with a range of smart watches, smart TV platforms, wireless speaker systems such as Sonos, car interfaces, and the Xbox. There’s also support for Chromecast and AirPlay, which means you can send your music to even more devices.

While I preferred using the app, the Deezer web player works well, offering a stripped-back version of the platform in your browser. Deezer’s user interface looks similar to the likes of Spotify and Apple Music with a dark background and grids of tracks and album artwork, but the design here is a little more minimal and somehow less elegant – which might be due to some of the font choices. However, I like that there are bright pops of color accents throughout, as well as when you play a track. Deezer seems to select a shade from the album artwork – or at least it looks that way – and uses it as the background color while you play the track.

The experience is a little different depending on how you’re listening, but for the most part you’ll find a menu along the bottom of the screen and the first option is Home, which is populated with a wide selection of content. Including your favorite artists at the top, followed by a section called “Mixes inspired by…” which consists of new tracks similar to your favorites. While I was testing out the Deezer app, there was always a solid recommendation here for me.

Promo images of the Deezer app on Apple TVs — (Image credit: Deezer)

You’ll also find “Made for you”, which is filled with curated playlists and it’s where you’ll find Flow, as well as a bunch of Daily playlists to accommodate different moods. Deezer also serves up general playlist recommendations, like Electronic Soundtracks, and fresh new releases. In a section called “Go beyond streaming” you’ll find everything that isn’t music, like podcasts and other extras.

Along from Home, you’ll find Explore which feels a little repetitive to me. Suggestions are divided by genres, but also moods, which are helpful, like “Feeling Sad”. The next option in the menu bar is Favorites, which is where tracks you’ve favorited and your playlists live, as well as albums, artists, podcasts, shaker groups, and any downloaded music. Search is where you’ll find a search bar, allowing you to search across track titles, artists, albums, playlists, lyrics, podcasts and podcast episodes. The Songcatcher feature lives here, too, which works well whenever you’re out and about and want to know what a track is – I like using this when I’m watching a move or TV show, too.

Deezer review: Playlists and recommendations

The new Deezer app's Shaker feature — (Image credit: Future)

Flow is good, not great
Not as fun as Spotify
Keeps things simple

Like Spotify, Deezer uses its recommendation algorithm to suggest music you might enjoy, which results in a number of specially curated playlists and different suggestions for different moods and activities, like Girl Power, Chill and Workout.

One of Deezer’s standout features is Flow, which serves up an automated mix based on your tastes. It combines your favorite tracks with new recommendations and other songs you might have forgotten about. You’ll need to ‘favorite’ at least 15 tracks before the Flow playlist appears on your home screen, but when it does it’ll fast become a staple and probably the first playlist you tap when you open the app.

I found Flow to be a really fun listen. No, it didn’t get my tastes right with every track, but most were the kind of songs I’d want to listen to throughout the day, especially as I’m working. This suited me as, unlike Spotify’s playlists, Flow is played in an “infinite” stream of music, meaning you’ll have an easy way to listen to music with very little thought required on your part.

Deezer has some good social features and you can share what you’re listening to straight to Instagram and Facebook stories. However, as it doesn’t have as many users as Spotify, you might feel like you’re missing out when a new and fun update hits, like Spotify Wrapped, or the way everyone is still sharing their unhinged Spotify Daylist playlist titles. These points are all a testament to Deezer being a more simple option. This means a less sociable and fun experience, which is bound to be a red flag for some and exactly what others are looking for.

Deezer review: Audio quality

Promo shots of the Deezer app — (Image credit: Deezer)

Ranges from 128kbps to 1,411kbps
CD quality music
The same as Tidal HiFi and Apple Music

There are three different streaming quality options for Deezer listeners. Standard streams at 128 kpbs, High Quality at 320 kbps and High Fidelity at 1411 kbps (FLAC), which Deezer says requires a high-speed connection. You have the ability to adjust the audio quality settings and set presets for when you’re listening over Wi-Fi as opposed to using your phone’s mobile data – handy, if you’re keeping an eye on your data usage.

This High Fidelity option is lossless, which means you get CD-quality streaming and FLAC music across any device that you’re listening on, including Deezer’s desktop app, web player, iOS, Android, and Xbox.

How does this compare to other streaming services? Deezer's High Fidelity setting is the same as what’s on offer from Tidal HiFi, also delivering a similar listening experience to Apple Music and Amazon Music Unlimited. However, it’s better than Spotify’s 320kbps. You'll only get better than that by opting for Tidal's HiFi Plus offering, which brings you 9,216kbps or 24-bit/192kHz.

During testing, I was using wired high-quality headphones with an iPhone 14 Pro and Deezer’s music certainly sounded more immersive, offering a clearer and more detailed listen when I was comparing the quality options, as well as when I was comparing tracks to their equivalent on Spotify. However, the key thing to remember here is that if you’re not using higher-end audio equipment, then you may not notice a significant difference between the audio on offer from Spotify and Deezer. This is probably one of the reasons why Spotify is still such a popular option, even though services like Deezer and Tidal offer a bump up in audio quality.

Which is the best music streaming service for you?

Amazon Music Unlimited review

5:44 pm | June 9, 2021

Author: admin | Category: Audio Audio Streaming Computers Gadgets | Tags: Dolby Atmos, HD | Comments: Off

Amazon Music Unlimited: Two-minute review

Amazon Music Unlimited is a high-quality music streaming app to rival audiophile-grade services, like Tidal, at a good price.

If you’re a little confused by Amazon’s music streaming naming conventions, you’re not alone. There used to be Amazon Music Unlimited and Ultra HD and Amazon Music HD. But now you’ll find everything under the Amazon Music Unlimited umbrella.

What’s more, there are a few different tiers here, all offering different things. Amazon Music Free gives you free access to some top playlists and has ads. Then there’s Amazon Music Prime, this gives you access to 2 million songs ad-free and some playlists and stations. It’s included with Prime at no additional cost.

Then there’s the service we’re reviewing here, Amazon Music Unlimited, which is Amazon’s premium music subscription service. It has more than 100 million tracks, like most rivals, and brings you lossless FLAC audio qaulity up to 24-bit/192kHz, while Spotify, for example, only offers 320kbps.

It’s arguably the best value music streaming service if you want lossless audio. And the good news is that if you already have a Prime membership, you’ll get the music streaming service for $9.99 / £9.99 / AU$11.99, making it a cheaper option than all of the competition.

If you have Amazon products there’s great Alexa integration and even the option to buy the streaming service so you can listen to it on just one smart device. But even if you’re not already bought into everything Amazon, this is still a good value option with hi-res audio and a solid library of tunes.

Amazon Music Unlimited review: Pricing and subscription

The Amazon Music Unlimited app — (Image credit: Amazon)

Discount for Prime members
A (sort of) free version with restrictions
A 30-day free trial

As a quick recap, anyone can access Amazon Music Free. But that has ads and restrictions. Amazon Music Prime is free for Prime members and that gives you access to 2 million songs ad-free. But if you want the premium subscription service, Amazon Music Unlimited, you’ll need to pay.

Prime members can get Amazon Music Unlimited for $9.99 / £9.99 / AU$11.99 with a monthly subscription or $99 / £99 (roughly AU$190, although annual pricing isn't shown on Amazon's site) a year with an annual subscription. If you’re not a Prime member, you’ll need to pay $10.99 / £10.99 / AU$12.99 a month. If you sign up for the monthly subscription, you’ll get a 30-day free trial and, at the time of writing, those in Australia can get a free trial that lasts three months.

For $5.99 / £5.99 / AU$6.99 month you can listen to Amazon Music Unlimited on a single Echo, Echo Dot, Echo Show, Echo Look, Amazon Tap or Fire TV device. This is a really nice option for anyone who knows they only really like listening on one device.

There’s also the option of a family plan, but only for Prime members and each person will need an Amazon account. This allows six different people to listen to music all at once and costs $16.99 / £17.99 / AU$20.99 per month or $159 / £179 (AU$242) a year. Amazon Unlimited for Students is available for $5.99 / £5.99 / AU$6.99 per month.

Amazon Music Unlimited review: Key specs

Amazon Music Unlimited review: Music library and content

Amazon Music Unlimited app screenshots on an iPhone — (Image credit: Future/Amazon Music)

More than 100 million tracks
Good selection of podcasts
Save for offline listening and local files

There are more than 100 million songs in the Amazon Music Unlimited library at the time of writing and these are a mix of HD and Ultra HD quality. This is the same amount as Spotify, Tidal and Apple Music.

Amazon added podcasts to the streaming service a few years back, and a lot of my favorites are available. But do check your go-to podcasts are available before signing up, as the choice feels limited compared to Spotify.

You can download music to listen to later via offline playback. I found this to work very well, and it was good knowing if I lost a data or Wi-Fi connection, I could keep listening. But remember that those high-quality audio files take up more space on your device.

You can also store music you already own locally within the Amazon Music Unlimited app and import playlists from other streaming platforms with the help of a service like SongShift or TuneMyMusic.

Amazon Music Unlimited review: Apps and compatibility

Web browser, desktop app, and mobile app
Integration with home audio devices
Interface not as slick as Spotify

You can stream Amazon Music Unlimited via your web browser, but it works the best in a desktop app or mobile app on iOS, Android, Mac and Windows devices. It’s also integrated into a range of home devices, including speakers, amplifiers, and soundbars. As you’d expect, this includes all of Amazon’s Echo products, Sonos speakers, Fire TV devices, and more.

The desktop app isn’t as slick or good-looking as Spotify or Tidal. But it offers a very similar user experience with a grid-like design displaying album and playlist artwork in full color across the screen that allows you to swipe horizontally through playlists, tracks and albums. The color palette is simple, with dark grey and some bright blue accents.

In the menu you’ll find Home. This is where you’ll find recently played tracks, album and playlist recommendations, and sections dedicated to the latest tracks. The following section is Find, which is both a search and music discovery section where you can browse by genre and audio quality. Library is where your music is stored, including what you’ve listened to recently and your saved playlists, artists, and tracks. The final section is Alexa, and you need to grant Amazon microphone access to your phone for this to work – so be sure you’re happy with that before you agree.

The bar that runs along the bottom of the screen has playback controls, and there’s the option to send your music to a connected device – like an Echo speaker.

There’s also a three-dot ellipsis next to playlists, albums and tracks that expands features and brings up menus. This keeps the interface clean and presents a range of options, including adding to queue, adding to a playlist, downloading or sharing – this opens up a link and social media with more options in the mobile app, including Instagram Stories.

At times I actually prefer the look of Amazon Music Unlimited’s app more than Spotfiy’s because it’s simply less cluttered and jammed with text and content. So even though it may not be as slick-looking as other services, its minimal design, easy-to-use controls, and menus make it straightforward. For that reason, this would suit someone who hasn’t dipped their toe into music streaming before.

Unsurprisingly, Amazon Music Unlimited works with Alexa and it does work remarkably well to surface new music. You can ask Alexa to play tracks or playlists, or ask for specific genres and types of music, and Amazon’s voice assistant will access Amazon Music Unlimited to play a mix for you.

Amazon Music Unlimited: Playlists and recommendations

Good playlist recommendations
Algorithm not as intuitive as Spotify
Create your own playlists

You can create your own playlists with Amazon Music Unlimited – just head to Library > Playlists. However, the service also makes many good playlists for you, too. Many aren’t personalized to you but do surface good suggestions, and you can find many of these recommended in the Home section of the app.

The ones that are personalized are My Discover Mix, a new playlist delivered to you every Monday with fresh new tracks. Think of it like Spotify’s Discover Weekly. Then there’s My Soundtrack, a constantly updated radio station tailored to your tastes, this is like Deezer’s Flow feature. I liked this and felt it definitely got better the more I used the app, bringing me a mixture of tracks I already like and fresh new ones.

Overall, Amazon Music Unlimited’s recommendations felt right for me and surfaced great new tracks in My Discovery Mix and provided a great soundtrack for me to work and not have to worry about moving between playlists with My Soundtrack.

The playlists don’t feel quite as fun as Spotify’s recommendation engine and there are less to choose from and none that are updated daily – I say this because I’m a big fan of Spotify’s 'Daylist'. However, if you don’t need all of that and just want a couple of fresh ways to discover new tracks you’ll find that here with Amazon Music Unlimited.

Amazon Music Unlimited review: Audio quality

amazon music hd — (Image credit: TechRadar)

HD and Ultra HD
Encoded in FLAC
Dolby Atmos and Sony 360RA

Amazon Music Unlimited brings two types of audio quality. There’s HD and Ultra HD, and both are hi-res audio quality in a FLAC format. You’ll also find some standard quality tracks of up to 320kbps, which matches Spotify.

The lossless High Definition (HD) songs on Amazon Music HD have a bit depth of 16 bits and a sample rate of 44.1kHz. This is what’s called CD quality. You can stream many other songs in Ultra HD on Amazon Music HD, with a bit depth of 24 bits, sample rates ranging from 44.1 kHz up to 192 kHz, and an average bitrate of 3730 kbps. This is better than CD quality and puts Amazon Music Unlimited in line with the audio quality on offer from Tidal HiFi Plus and Qobuz.

As a quick refresher, lossless audio allows you to hear the full range of sound from recordings that have been mastered from better-than-CD quality music sources. This means the sound you hear from Amazon Music Unlimited more closely replicates the quality that the musicians and engineers were working with in the studio when recording compared to the highly compressed versions you might find on many other services.

There are also songs – no word on the exact number at the time of writing – remixed in Dolby Atmos and Sony 360RA 3D Audio formats. However, you’ll need the right equipment to experience these formats – the Amazon Echo Studio smart speaker is one device that can handle both spatial audio technologies.

Spotify currently offers a bitrate of up to 320 kbps. These audio files are compressed, and won’t reveal as much detail as less highly compressed sources. When comparing the two streaming services, this difference in quality is noticeable. Expect more detail, immersion and better performance from Amazon Music Unlimited.

This is because Amazon Music Unlimited brings you the original recording served up with a much higher quality sound. Or at least it’ll try to based on your network, which device you’re listening on, and whether you have the best headphones and speakers – they’ll need to support HD and Ultra HD playback to make the most of the sound quality on offer.

When you’re browsing Amazon Music Unlimited, you’ll see that every track is labelled with a quality badge. Click on this in the desktop or mobile app, and you’re shown what the quality of the track is, what quality the device you’re using is capable of bringing you, and what it’s playing at right now. If you’re not getting the quality you expect, take a look at your settings.

This is a great way to prove you’re getting the quality you want – especially if you’re an audiophile and want to make sure you’re getting the best of the best consistently.

How to get the most out of your music streaming service

JBL Charge 5 review

8:09 pm | May 26, 2021

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Hi-Fi Wireless & Bluetooth Speakers | Comments: Off

Editor's Note

• Original review date: May 2021
• Launch price: $179 / £159 / AU$229
• Target price: $110 / £130 / AU$170

Update: February 2024. The JBL Charge 5 remains as one of the best Bluetooth speakers thanks to its particular mix of usefuless – it's bigger and more powerful than the likes of the JBL Flip 6 or Sonos Roam, making it better for bigger spaces, with a longer battery life, and it can charge your phone in a pinch… but without being too large. Nothing has really beaten it in this regard, even now, especially with the discounts you can find in 2024. Our target price above is what you can often find it for, though perhaps not in every color. The rest of this review remains as previously published.

JBL Charge 5: One-minute review

JBL has a long history of making great Bluetooth speakers and the Charge line has always stood out for its value. Historically, the Charge series offered incredibly impressive sound for its size. Battery life has always been impressive, allowing users to use their Charge speakers as a battery bank in a pinch.

In terms of features the JBL Charge 5 is relatively basic compared to something like the JBL Pulse 4 – which provides a customizable lightshow for users – but for this fifth generation JBL has incrementally improved sound quality and volume while still offering all-day battery life.

We’ve heard every Charge speaker since the JBL Charge 2 and it’s been interesting to see the speaker line evolve from a bass monster to something more balanced and mature.

In short, the JBL Charge 5 offers only subtle changes, but add them to the speaker's legacy as a rock-solid portable Bluetooth speaker, and you've got a serious contender for one of the best Bluetooth speakers on the market.

JBL Charge 5 review: Price & availability

The JBL Charge 5 launched in 2021 and is available now around the world for $179 / £159 / AU$229. That's actually a pretty good price considering what's on offer here, however there are more affordable portable speakers out there like the JBL Flip 5, Anker SoundCore Flare 2, and Tribit XSound Go for folks who don't want to spend as much.

JBL Charge 5 review: Design

The design of the JBL Charge 5 is an iteration of the cylindrical design it has had for years. The biggest visual change is the large JBL logo on the front of the speaker. On the front, the individual power LEDs have moved from the bottom base to an LED strip under the JBL logo, which looks sleeker.

Physical controls remain the same with slightly raised buttons on top of the speaker. There are buttons to control playback, volume, power, Bluetooth pairing, and “Party Boost” (more on that in the Features section).

Around the back, the JBL Charge 5 has a waterproof USB-C charging port as well as a flap hiding the USB-A port that can be used to charge up your smartphone. The Charge 5 drops support for the 3.5mm aux jack from the JBL Charge 4, which is a bummer for some who have legacy devices they want to hook up.

The Charge 5 retains the exposed bass drivers on the left and right of the speaker, which lets you see the woofers moving in and out. The drivers are protected by a lip around the speaker, but you’ll still be able to touch the drivers without damaging them.

One subtle change is that the JBL Charge 5 is shaped like a trapezoid with the sides tilting inward. This difference isn’t a big deal until you want to set the speaker up vertically, allowing the speaker to look like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. We preferred the stability of the Charge 4’s square design to allow for easier vertical placement.

JBL Charge 5 review: Features

In terms of technical specs, the Charge 5 includes Bluetooth 5.1, a 7500 mAh battery capacity, and a frequency response rated 65 Hz - 20k Hz. However, like other JBL portable speakers, the Charge 5 features the “PartyBoost” mode, which allows users to pair a second JBL speaker to either amplify music or use as a stereo pair.

The feature is great if you want to play music across a large area where multiple speakers can help amplify sound. It’s also nice to get true stereo playback out of a pair of speakers.

JBL offers a nice mobile app that allows you to customize its speakers and to download software updates, though it's worth noting that firmware updates can take upwards of 15 minutes.

In terms of battery life, the JBL Charge 5, like the Charge 4, is rated for 20 hours of playback, which we had no problem reaching while playing at 50% volume. If you’re pushing the speaker at higher volumes or are using it as a battery bank to top off your phone, expect that number to drop.

JBL Charge 5 review: Audio quality

Overall, the sound quality of the JBL Charge 5 hasn’t changed much from the Charge 4. There’s an additional tweeter in the Charge 5 that helps with overall clarity, and bass is slightly more impactful than the Charge 4, too.

Tonally, the JBL Charge 5 sounds balanced at medium to low volume. Bass is impactful and deep, which is surprising for a speaker of this sound. We’ve heard bookshelf speakers that produce less bass than the Charge 5. Mids are clear with vocals given good presence, and highs are rolled off for a warmer presentation, until you start pushing the volume up and up.

Both the JBL Charge 5 and Charge 4 play extremely loudly and still distort at higher volumes. Distortion starts kicking in above 60% volume, resulting in harsh-sounding highs and bass stops getting louder beyond this point, leading to a bright tonal balance.

For the best sound quality, we recommend keeping the speaker around 50-60% volume – when you have to push beyond this volume, there’s likely so much ambient noise that sound quality isn’t the first priority.

Like the previous Charge speakers, the Charge 5 is directional, with its tweeters and woofers behind the front of the speaker. This means don’t expect an enveloping 360-degree sound like you would from the JBL Pulse 4.

Should I buy the JBL Charge 5?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Don't miss our guide to the best wireless speakers

Tidal review

2:58 pm | April 8, 2021

Author: admin | Category: Audio Audio Streaming Computers Gadgets Tidal | Comments: Off

Tidal review: Two-minute review

Tidal is our top streaming service recommendation if you're after the best possible audio experience. Since it launched in 2014, Tidal has positioned itself as a solid rival to other platforms, with a strong commitment to prioritizing both artists and sound quality. In recent years, it has expanded its offering to include over 100 million tracks, mirroring Spotify's library size, and enhanced both its user interface and social sharing capabilities.

Despite the fact it looks similar to Spotify, Tidal sets itself apart in two significant ways. First, it ensures artists receive fairer compensation per stream compared to many competitors. Second, it provides listeners with exceptional CD-quality audio.

Tidal isn’t for casual listeners. But for those who take their audio experience seriously, Tidal offers a sonic paradise. Particularly for anyone who owns high-quality audio gear, like the best noise cancelling headphones or the best surround sound system, Tidal's lossless and high-resolution audio files are designed to complement sophisticated setups, deliver a rich and immersive listening experience. Not sure if this applies to you? Start with the 30-day free trial. You might not notice a difference between Tidal and your music streaming service of choice, but you might notice the difference immediately and realize what you’ve been missing out on.

While Tidal is a leading choice for high-fidelity music streaming, it’s not without competition. Deezer also caters to the high-resolution audio market, and both Amazon Music Unlimited and Qobuz offer CD-quality streams. However, Tidal's combination of a user-friendly interface, exclusive content and commitment to audio excellence secures its position as a top pick for audiophiles who prioritize quality and artist connection above all else.

Tidal review: Pricing and subscription

A promo shot for Tidal showing the app open on several devices. — Tidal might have the best design of all of the top music streaming services. (Image credit: Tidal)

Two options: Tidal HiFi and Tidal HiFi Plus
Subscription starts at $10.99 / £10.99 / $11.99 for Tidal HiFi
A 30-day free trial

You have two subscription options with Tidal, Tidal HiFi and Tidal HiFi Plus. Tidal HiFi costs $10.99 / £10.99 / AU$11.99 a month, while Tidal HiFi Plus costs $19.99 / £19.99 / AU$23.99 a month.

The difference between the two is that with Tidal HiFi you get great audio quality at 16-bit, 44.1 kHz in FLAC. But with Tidal HiFi Plus you get excellent audio quality up to 24-bit, 192 kHz, including HiRes FLAC, as well as immersive formats Dolby Atmos and Sony 360 Reality Audio.

Is there a free version of Tidal? That's a tricky question to answer. Sign-up for one of the two options above and you get a 30-day free trial before your subscription kicks in to check it's right for you.

Back in 2021, Tidal also announced it would be launching a Tidal Free plan in the US, a free version of the music streaming service. A number of people then signed up, but as far as we can tell, that option no longer exists and Tidal never made an official announcement saying it was no longer an option. Since then, users have posted to Reddit and other forums saying they were prompted to sign-up for a subscription after using Tidal Free.

Tidal review: Key specs

A promo image showing Tidal displayed on a smartphone. — (Image credit: Tidal)

Tidal review: Music library and content

A promo image for Tidal showing the app displayed on a smartphone — (Image credit: Tidal)

More than 100 million tracks
Over 650,000 videos
Limited number of podcasts

There are currently more than 100 million tracks on Tidal, which is the same amount you'll find on Spotify and Apple Music. There used to be a time when you’d need to check a music streaming service has your favorite artist before you sign up, but that’s no longer the case now. Although it’s worth mentioning you’re likely to find artists on Tidal who leave (or temporarily leave) Spotify over its various controversies.

Unlike many other music streaming services, Tidal also has a section specially for videos. Right now there are more than 650,000 videos on the platform. You can watch many full length shows and concerts, exclusive content, as well as some classic videos, either within the app or cast them to your TV. This is a cool addition, but you won’t find videos from all of your favorite artists here.

Tidal has added podcasts to its offering. Tidal says it has “curated a selection of podcast series that focus on intimate storytelling”, which means you’ll find a small library of shows that tend to focus on music, creativity and culture. This is a nice addition, but don’t expect the huge selection you’ll find on Spotify covering a range of subjects.

Tidal review: Apps and compatibility

A promo shot for Tidal, showing the Tidal app displayed on a range of devices. — (Image credit: Tidal)

Mobile and desktop app
Nice and slick experience
Tidal Connect for seamless streaming

Tidal has a mobile app and a desktop app, but you can also listen via a web player too. There are a few key sections in both apps. Home is where you’ll find lots of suggested mixes, artists and albums based on what you’ve listened to before. In Videos you’ll have access to video playlists, documentaries and live content. Go to Explore to search by genre, moods and activities or by quality categories, like HiRes and Dolby Atmos. My Activity is where your most streamed and played artists appear and Your Account is where you can access your collection of mixes, radio stations, playlists, albums, tracks, videos and artists.

In the desktop app the larger screen the menu is displayed down the left hand side and there you’ll also find all of your playlists. There are standard sharing features too, to Facebook, X and you can copy the track link or even an embed code. In the mobile app, you can share directly to Facebook Stories or Instagram Stories. Some people won’t care about this feature, others will love the Stories-worthy image Tidal creates for you out of the artwork for the track you’re listening to, which you can then share instantly.

The Tidal apps might be the nicest to use and best-looking compared to its rivals. The design is very similar to Spotify with a grid-like layout, but it feels a little cleaner and less cluttered to scroll through your options. I also like the simple black and gray color palette with bright turquoise accents, as well as the neat font.

Like Spotify, Tidal has a feature called Spotify Connect, which allows you to stream tracks straight from the cloud to a range of other devices, including Cambridge Audio and KEF sound systems, as well as within some cars thanks to Apple’s AirPlay and Android Auto. Simply find the little icon that looks like a speaker in the top right hand corner of whatever you’re playing and compatible devices will appear.

Tidal review: Playlists and recommendations

A promo shot for Tidal showing the app open on a smartphone showing playlists. — (Image credit: Tidal)

Great recommendations
Mixes are spot on
Tidal Rising is fun

Spotify is considered the king of playlists perfectly crafted for you, but Tidal clearly has a powerful algorithm working behind-the-scenes to make solid recommendations too. When you first sign up for the service, you’re encouraged to pick three of your favorite artists. This informs your first mix, called your Welcome Mix. Based on only three artists, I wasn't holding out much hope with this playlist, but it was spot on taste-wise and I listened to nothing else for the first morning I signed up.

The more you like and listen to music, the more Tidal will learn about your tastes and generate different playlists called mixes. Each is based on your listening and focuses on a different genre. These don’t update as regularly as Spotify’s, but tend to do a great job at predicting what users will like. Make sure to hit save if you like a particular mix, this way you can save it as a separate playlist before it gets refreshed.

The mix of playlist recommendations and updates doesn’t feel as expansive as what Spotify offers, there also aren’t as many fun themed playlists, like Spotify's Wrapped or Daylist, but it’s not too far off. And if you're the kind of person who just wants quality music and doesn't need the themed playlists, then you'll love it here at Tidal.

When it comes to recommendations, a great feature of Tidal’s service is Tidal Rising, which you can find in the explore tab. This is where Tidal spotlights up-and-coming artists from all over the world. It’s a fun way to stay ahead of trends and discover new talent. If you’re at all worried that services like Spotify might serve up the same kind of music and the same kind of artists over and over, Tidal Rising is a good antidote.

Unfortunately, you can’t add local music files to Tidal. This is a bit of a shame but shouldn’t be a dealbreaker for most people. If it is, look at Spotify or Deezer instead. However, you can transfer your music library and your playlists from other music streaming services to your Tidal library via third-party apps.

Tidal review: Audio quality

Screenshots of the Tidal music app — See the little yellow labels under the tracks? That's how you'll know which format you're listening in. (Image credit: Tidal)

Tidal HiFi offers 1411kbps or 16-bit/44.1kHz sound quality with FLAC
Tidal HiFi Plus offers up to 9,216kbps or 24-bit/192kHz with HiRes FLAC
You'll need good audio tech to make the most of Tidal HiFi Plus

You’ll get a great audio experience with Tidal. But there are a couple of things to note about differences between the quality of the two price plans and some of the audio technologies and terminology Tidal has changed since it first launched.

So the first thing to note is with Tidal HiFi you’ll get streaming at 1411kbps or 16-bit/44.1kHz sound quality with FLAC. FLAC is an audio format that offers a better way to stream music compared to most other streaming services, which use MP3 or other formats that remove aspects of the original recording to compress the file. This, as you might expect, means they don’t have the same high-res sound performance. Therefore, Tidal HiFi actually offers a similar listening experience to Apple Music and Amazon Music Unlimited.

Tidal HiFi Plus pushes things up a notch and offers music at a higher quality and fidelity streaming with a bitrate of up to 9,216kbps or 24-bit/192kHz with HiRes FLAC.

When you have Tidal HiFi Plus, you have three sound quality options to choose from, which you can manually select. Max is up to 9,216kbps or 24-bit/192kHz, which Tidal says is HiRes Free Lossless Audio Codec (HiRes FLAC). This is best if you’re on 5G or WiFi. High is up to 1411kbps or 16-bit/441.kHz, which Tidal calls “studio quality” in a FLAC format. And finally, Low 320kbps, which Tidal recommends if you have a weak signal. Low actually matches the bitrate on offer from Spotify. With Tidal HiFi, you’ll only get access to High and Low.

I spent a lot of time trialling both Tidal HiFi and Tidal HiFi Plus. With the right audio equipment (more on that soon), I could definitely tell a difference between the two options. In summary, Max was just so much better. With Max, tracks sounded clearer, more detailed and more expansive. This means if you really care about audiophile-grade sound, you’re going to love Tidal and you’d be better off choosing Tidal HiFi Plus.

A promo shot of Tidal on an Android device. — (Image credit: Tidal)

However, the quality of the sound you hear will depend on a couple of factors. The first is the format and quality of the track you’re playing. In 2023, Tidal made some changes to its service. Before then, it was really its Masters tracks. These had an MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) format. This claims to be a superior format, but not everyone is a fan and not all audio devices support MQA decoding. This could be why Tidal has since moved its focus away from MQA, and no longer seems to refer to tracks as Masters. It now instead calls these higher quality tracks Max tracks or just HiRes tracks.

Tidal says it now offers the best quality version of these tracks, which might be FLAC, or it might be MQA. These tracks are now labelled as HiRes in the Tidal app. Go to Explore and scroll down to HiRes to see them. What seems to be happening here is Tidal is migrating tracks to lossless hi-res audio in the open-source FLAC format. So now you’ll play a HiRes track and it might be MQA or not. Take a look at the image above and you’ll see that Water by Tyla has a small MQA label. Whereas Back on 74 by Jungle has a 24-bit, 44.1Hz FLAC label.

It’s also worth mentioning FLAC will never sound quite as good through an average mobile device's headphone jack as it does from a device with more competent audio hardware. That means you might want to upgrade your headphones or sound system to really make the most of Tidal HiFi Plus if you don’t have compatible tech already. If you don’t want to do that, definitely consider saving your money and settling for Tidal HiFi, or even opting for a cheaper streaming option instead, like Spotify.

With Tidal HiFi Plus, you’ll also get Dolby Atmos Music and Sony 360 Reality Audio. These are spatial sound formats that place sounds around, creating a more immersive experience. However, this isn’t new or unique to Tidal. Apple Music actually offers a similar experience and during testing I couldn’t tell that much of a difference between them in terms of how immersive they are – then again I’m not a huge fan of spatial sound and don’t think it always adds to the experience. That could be a personal preference, but it’s worth considering if you’re agonizing over whether to pick HiFi or HiFi Plus.

Which is the best music streaming service for you?

Pro-ject Debut Carbon Evo review

1:00 pm | October 24, 2020

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Hi-Fi Turntables | Comments: Off

Editor's Note

• Original review date: October 2020
• Launch price: $499 / £499 / AU$879
• Target price: As above

Update: February 2024. The Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo is an update to one of the best turntables available (the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon, which is itself based on the firm's original Debut, launched in 1999) and despite being a fair chunk of money more than its older 2017 sibling, this September 2020 looker is easily still worthy of a spot in our guide. It's devoid of preamp (so you're going to need one) and it's not the deck for your if you want Bluetooth connectivity (look to the Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2) or new-fangled Sonos connectivity (see the Victrola Stream Carbon) but what it does do exceptionally well is play your vinyl records, within a hi-fi system. And that is timeless – because vinyl is going nowhere. The day will likely come when a turntable arrives that can do this specific job marginally better for the same money. But Pro-Ject can rest assured that it still hasn't happened yet. The rest of this review remains as previously published.

Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo: Two-minute review

Pro-Ject introduced its first Debut turntable at the end of the last century, and it’s been refined, upgraded, and become increasingly expensive ever since. This Debut Carbon Evo is the most refined and upgraded model so far – and it’s also the most expensive.

In terms of specification, though, the Pro-Ject goes a long way towards justifying its price. The carbon fibre tonearm is supplied with a very capable Ortofon (or Sumika) cartridge. A new motor design, some damped and adjustable feet, and automatic speed change contribute no end to improved performance and improved ergonomics. And with a choice of nine finishes, including five very attractive new ‘satin’ options, there’s sure to be a Debut Carbon Evo to fit in with your interior decor choices.

Setting up is simple: attach the drive belt, put on the platter, and attach counter- and antiskate weights to that single-piece tonearm. Attach to your wider system with the high-quality phono leads that are included, plug into the mains, and you’re good to go.

record player — (Image credit: TechRadar)

And it doesn’t matter the sort of music you like to listen to – the Debut Carbon Evo laps it up. In every circumstance it’s a detailed and revealing listen, able to focus on the minutiae even as it describes the complete picture completely convincingly.

It has all the warmth and weight the vinyl format is famous for, but it’s not musclebound and it doesn’t get bogged down – instead it simply motors along in the most natural way imaginable. There’s a sort of instinctive correctness to the way the Pro-Ject makes music that goes a long way to explaining why vinyl has endured as a format all these many decades.

It’s not the last word in absolute precision, and there are other similarly priced turntables that offer a little more bite and aggression. But if you value a smooth, informative ride from a beautifully engineered and nice-looking record player, don’t spend any money until you’ve heard the Debut Carbon Evo.

Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo: Price and release date

Available now
$499 / £499 / AU$879

The Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo is on sale now, and priced at $499 / £449 / AU$879. That makes it far less of an entry-level proposition than 1999’s original Debut – but then Pro-Ject has covered off the entry level with its Elemental and Primary models, while the Debut Carbon Evo is a much better specified device than the original Debut could dream of being.

At this price, the Pro-Ject goes up against some very capable and very well-regarded alternatives. The likes of Rega (with its Planar 2) and Thorens (and its TD190-2) are ready to turn your head – but Pro-Ject’s reputation is the equal of that of any competitor, and the company is always an option at this sort of money.

Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo: Design

Carbon fibre tonearm
Ortofon 2M Red cartridge
Choice of nine (!) finishes

Nobody in their right mind messes with the design of a turntable, do they? Ever since the record player did away with the need for a trumpet horn, they’ve all looked the same (apart from those self-consciously ‘wacky’ designs that are odd for the sake of it). A record player is a rectangle with a circle on it – and, if you’re feeling adventurous, a plastic dust-cover on the top.

And that’s how it is with the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo. At a glance, it looks just like every other record player – certainly it looks enough like the original Debut Carbon from 2017 to make you wonder why the price has risen from the original’s $400 / £349 / AU$550. But like pretty much every record player, a lot of your money goes on the stuff you can’t see: the bearing, the motor, the damping and all the other necessities.

The Debut Carbon Evo has – ahem – evolved from the original Debut Carbon in a number of places. The new model features the same height-adjustable damped feet fitted to Pro-Ject’s $899 / £749 / AU$1190 X1 turntable, and a new motor design with some hefty decoupling incorporated – the motor’s now barely in contact with the main body of the turntable.

Its steel platter is now heavier, thanks to a thermoplastic ring on its inside edge – it’s a technique to reduce operation noise and was popularized by, among others, Technics. And there’s now a suggestion of convenience in the shape of a speed-change switch at the bottom of the plinth – previously you’d have to take off the platter and move the drive belt to change speeds, but now 33.3rpm can become 45rpm (or vice-versa) at a press. Of course, if you’re the hands-on type (and you own some properly elderly records) you can change the drive belt itself in order to play at 78rpm. Both belts are included in the package.

The one-piece tonearm is made of carbon fibre, and comes fitted with a very capable Ortofon 2M Red cartridge (except in America, where it features a Sumiko Ranier cartridge instead. Quite why the United States requires a different option is anyone’s guess). All that’s required is for the belt, platter counterweight and antiskating weight to be attached and the Debut Carbon Evo is ready to go.

Mind you, before you get to that point you’ll need to choose between the Pro-Ject’s numerous finishes. As well as the wood veneer and glossy white, red or black of the previous model, the Debut Carbon Evo is also available in five satin finishes: black, white, yellow, blue or green.

Our review sample is in Fir Green, and very nice it looks too. The finish is flawlessly smooth, and as reassuring as the build quality.

How to set up a turntable

Audio performance

Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo: Audio performance

Full-scale, nicely unified sound
Detailed and revealing
Warmth and weight to spare

Despite the only branding on the entire product being a discreet ‘Pro-Ject’ logo on the dust-cover, anyone who’s familiar with the Pro-Ject family sound will have no trouble picking out the Debut Carbon Evo as a bit more of the same. And that’s meant almost entirely positively.

The Debut Carbon Evo is a luxuriously full-bodied listen, but that’s not to say it’s in any way languid. It has plenty of the warmth and richness that’s so often held up as an unarguable vinyl virtue, but it doesn’t wallow or slur. It’s easy to listen to, but it’s not uninvolving.

And it’s nigh-on impossible to wrong-foot. From A Tribe Called Quest’s I Left My Wallet In El Segundo to Father John Misty’s Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings, from Leonard Bernstein’s Gee, Officer Krupke to Nina Simone’s Pirate Jenny, the Pro-Ject sounds both right at home and thoroughly engaged.

Like any worthwhile turntable, it’s very adept and tying everything together. There’s a tangible sense of performance from the Evo, even when it’s playing cut’n’paste collages from the likes of A Tribe Called Quest. The unity of a recording, the way the midrange rides on the low-frequency underpinnings, and the way the treble balances securely on the top, allows every record to sound coherent and convincing. Even with the most processed, machine-derived recordings, this Pro-Ject glides along with the sort of casual authority of sound that can only come from a well-sorted record player.

There’s heat in the low frequencies, certainly, but they’re not overcooked and it’s certainly not at the expense of detail or texture. There’s a similarly lavish amount of detail retrieved in the midrange – it reveals so much about the glee and malevolence Nina Simone imbues her performance with it’s almost hair-raising – and while the top end is rolled off just fractionally, it’s far from a blunt instrument.

The Pro-Ject handles tempos and rhythms with equal assurance. Oh, you’ll get a straighter edge and a more martial approach from a similarly priced Rega turntable, but the Evo counters (and strongly) with its unfussy nature and the almost ostentatious amount of detail it digs out.

It’s not lacking anything where dynamics, both great and small, are concerned either. The sparer and more low-key a recording, the more the Pro-Ject reveals about the harmonic details – and the more full-on and instrument-heavy a recording, the more the Pro-Ject enjoys giving every element full expression.

Should I buy the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo?

Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo: Should you buy it?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

First reviewed: October 2020

Looking for more? Check out the best turntables you can buy today

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom review

8:26 pm | October 1, 2020

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Hi-Fi Wireless & Bluetooth Speakers | Comments: Off

Editor's Note

• Original review date: September 2021
• Launch price: $399 / £359 / AU$599
• Offical price now: $449 / £409 / AU$599

Update: February 2024. Unlike most products that a few years old, the UE Hyperboom has resisted price cuts. As you can see above, it's official price has risen, though in practice you can usually find it for its original price, or a little less. Despite its stubbornness on cost, we do still rate it as one of the best Bluetooth speakers because it's just so powerful while still maintaining an air of good detail and balance, and without losing itself to distortion. This thing can fill any space that you need it to, and hasn't been clearly surpassed since its launch. The rest of this review remains as previously published.

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom: Two-minute review

The Ultimate Ears Hyperboom is a powerful party speaker that allows you to easily take your music from inside your home to the great outdoors.

Ultimate Ears is one of the market leaders in portable Bluetooth speakers, with models like the UE Boom 3 and the UE Wonderboom 2 making our list of the best Bluetooth speakers of 2020.

Until now, Ultimate Ears speakers have sported compact designs that are small enough to slip into a bag – not so with the new Hyperboom.

This is the largest speaker they have made so far by a good margin, and it’s designed to be used as an all-in-one party speaker that can keep the festivities going well into the night (and the morning, if the party’s really good).

In our experience, the Hyperboom certainly lives up to the reputation Ultimate Ears has established as a reliable maker of good Bluetooth speakers – in fact, it delivers better sound than many of the models we’ve tested before.

With the Hyperboom, you get a very well-balanced soundstage with powerful bass, it can reach high volumes without distorting the sound.

We also liked the multi-point pairing feature, and in practice it allows you to seamlessly switch between DJs at a party without your party being plagued by awkward silences.

Beyond that, the biggest problem with Hyperboom is that it is expensive, but if you are willing to pay (and to carry the 5.9kg / 12lbs speaker with you) then you get lots of great sound, portability, and connectivity for your money.

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom review: Price & availability

The Ultimate Ears Hyperboom is available to buy for $399.99 / £359.99 / AU$599.95.

It’s far pricier than any of Ultimate Ears’ previous speakers, as well as most of the Bluetooth speakers we’ve tested this year – aside from high-spec models like the Sonos Move and the Bose Home Portable Speaker.

UE Hyperboom — (Image credit: Truls Steinung)

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom review: Design

Ultimate Ears' speakers often boast a sporty design that is characterized by mesh fabric covers and plastic hardware, and the Hyperboom continues in this tradition. At the same time, Ultimate Ears has chosen to make the Hyperboom a little more discreet by opting for a black finish, rather than the many colorful options you can choose from when buying a Boom or Megaboom.

It also differs from similar party speakers from competitors such as JBL and Sony, which are often less subdued and sometimes come equipped with flashing lights in all the colors of the rainbow.

Another thing that distinguishes it from previous models is that it has a square shape. This was explained to us by UE's product manager, Doug Ebert, who said that the company wanted to “deliver the best possible listening experience with a proper stereo image”, rather than ensuring 360-degree sound with a cylindrical build.

The overall impression we get from the construction of the UE Hyperboom is that it’s very solid, and it will probably withstand being transported and used in different environments without being damaged. It also comes in handy that it has IPX4 water-resistance certification, which ensures that it can handle splashes from a pool, while a spilled drink shouldn’t end the party.

More details preserved from previous UE speakers are the large plus and minus signs that allow you to adjust the volume – but in this case these are located on the top, rather than the front of the speaker. There you will also find the on / off button and the controls for Bluetooth connectivity and switching between sources.

On the back is a large rubber handle equipped with an Ultimate Ears logo in capital letters, and below this is a rubber hatch that hides a 3.5mm audio input, an optical input, a USB port that can be used to charge your phone, and a charging port for the speaker itself. The inclusion of an optical input means you could use the Hyperboom in place of a soundbar to boost your TV’s audio.

bluetooth speaker — (Image credit: Truls Steinung)

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom review: Controls & connectivity

The controls for the UE Hyperboom are located on the top of the speaker, and the large plus and minus symbols that we have already mentioned, work well to adjust the volume. The rest of the operation consists of an on / off button and the four source buttons, which are placed in a circle with a play / pause button in the middle.

Connecting the speaker to your device wirelessly is made simple by holding down one of the Bluetooth buttons – and here we come to one of the unique functions of Hyperboom. It allows you to pair two Bluetooth devices at once and switch seamlessly between them, preventing awkward silences when one party DJ takes over from another.

When you switch to a new device, the previous music source is automatically faded out, while the new device starts playing from where it last left off.

It’s worth noting that Hyperboom is only equipped with Bluetooth and not WiFi connectivity. This may seem a little limited to some, but Ultimate Ears believes that Bluetooth is easier to use spontaneously at parties – and we tend to agree.

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom review: App and battery life

The associated Boom app contains a few more adjustment and control options. Here you get the opportunity to connect several UE speakers and use them together, switch the audio source, and adjust the volume, as well as presetting up to four different playlists in Amazon Music, Deezer or Spotify, which can be started by holding down the Play button for three seconds.

In addition, you also get a five-band EQ that allows you to adjust the sound, and the ability to turn on and off the Adaptive EQ function, which automatically adapts the sound to your surroundings.

When a loudspeaker is placed in a corner, the bass frequencies can sometimes become muddied due to the sound bouncing off of the walls, so the Hyperboom compensates for this by dampening the bass. Similarly, it will do the opposite if you place it in the middle of an open space, so that you don’t miss out on powerful bass frequencies. We found this to work very well, and it’s great to not have to think about where you're placing your speaker for optimum sound.

It’s worth mentioning that the 24-hour battery life is based on playing your music at 50% volume. Still, we expect the battery to last long enough to power your party, as long as you remember to charge the speaker before you leave home.

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom review: Audio performance

The most positive thing about the Ultimate Ears Hyperboom is that it boasts a strong audio performance. In fact, this speaker exceeds all expectations, especially considering that UE's speakers have previously delivered slightly harsh treble frequencies to our ears.

The Hyperboom really lives up to its name when it comes to volume level; it simply plays your music really loud, and has no problem filling a large living room or garden with party music.

It also delivers a very well-balanced soundstage. Here you never get the feeling that the bass is overwhelming the other elements of your music, and almost no matter what you listen to, you get an enjoyable, lively experience.

At the same time, there’s no shortage of bass on offer. As we blasted Billie Eilish's Bad Guy, we felt the sound was well-proportioned, with deep bass lines that didn’t muddy the other frequencies. The Weeknd's Blinding Lights also highlighted the great bass performance, with no signs of the lower frequencies bleeding into the other elements, while the 80s-inspired synths sounded clear without being overly sharp.

The Björk classic Army of Me, which also boasts a powerful bass line, leaves a similar impression; the Ultimate Ears Hyperboom capably conveyed the holistic soundscape with its industrial drums and soaring vocals, with no signs of distortion even when we turned the volume up high.

For those of you who like rock music, we can also state that Hyperboom copes well with the more tightly packed soundstage created by electric guitars, drums, and bass, without losing clarity or detail.

On the whole, we would say that most genres can be played adeptly on this speaker, so no matter what kind of musical taste you may have, the Hyperboom should ensure a party atmosphere.

One negative aspect of the audio quality is that the Hyperboom only really ‘opens up’ when you reach a certain sound level. It can therefore sound a touch restrained at a lower volume, but since this speaker was primarily made with a view to playing loudly at parties, it’s not a dealbreaker.

Should I buy the Ultimate Ears Hyperboom?

UE Hyperboom at party — (Image credit: Ultimate Ears)

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen) review

2:55 pm | July 2, 2020

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Hi-Fi Speakers | Comments: Off

Editor's Note

• Original review date: June 2020
• Launch price: $250 / £200 (approx. AU$360)
• Regular price now: $220 / £170

Update: February 2024. The Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 2 is still a hit with us on TechRadar despite its age – it's still the speaker I personally use and prefer among the best Bluetooth speakers. My strong recommendation for it comes partly because, even though it was pricey to start with and the official price has actually risen to $299 / £259 / AU$600, but it's regularly available for much less than that – it just won't always be discounted in every color. The quality of the sound balance and detail is a clear step up over the likes of the Sonos Roam, for not necessarily a lot more money – and the battery life is better, too. The sound is less bouncy and party-focused, so consider this the music-lover's choice, and it holds up in that regard to this day. The rest of this review remains as previously published.

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen): Two-minute review

Bang and Olufsen has a strong reputation, so much so that even those who don't know much about speakers know that it's a good brand to purchase from. Back in 2016, it launched its smallest and most affordable Bluetooth speaker, the Beosound A1, and now we've reached the second generation edition of the same speaker.

At a glance, you'd think you were holding the same portable speaker as before with only some minor visual changes, but underneath the hood, there are some hefty improvements that make this an appealing package for most.

Crucially, there's Alexa support here – something that's quite unusual for a Bluetooth only speaker. More on how that works without Wi-Fi later, but it's certainly an interesting twist on the smart speaker.

Elsewhere, one of the delights about the B&O Beosound A1 is its looks. It looks gorgeous and would easily slot into any home, while also being very easy to move between rooms because, ultimately, it's made to be moved around.

Fortunately, it's not style over substance either, with the B&O Beosound A1 delivering fantastic audio quality, with a consistently crisp sound. Whether you're listening to the latest from The Weeknd or Billie Eilish, or listening to some classical music, the Beosound A1 simply sounds great. You'll be impressed at how every instrument stands out, even if the soundstage of this mini speaker shines best in a smaller room than some beefier-looking specimens.

Ultimately, we were impressed with the B&O Beosound A1. A marked improvement over its predecessor, there's better battery life, and waterproofing, although we're not so sure how much we'd like to take it outside the home. Alexa support is a bit poor for reasons we'll go into in our full review below, but the Beosound A1 is still a fine example of why Bang & Olufsen's good reputation precedes it.

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen): Price & release date

Costs $250 / £200 (around AU$360)
Launched on May 14, 2020
Two colors available

Launched on May 14, 2020, the B&O Beosound A1 comes with a recommended retail price of $250 / £200. That works out at around AU$360, though we're still waiting on official Australian pricing.

Don't expect discounts just yet as it's a brand new device. Be careful to look out for whether you're buying a first or second generation unit as there are considerable discounts for the former now, but you'll miss out on some key features.

Two colors are available - Black Anthracite and Grey Mist. Both look pretty stylish and the kind of thing you could easily slip into your living room setup.

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen): Design

Stylish design
Waterproof
Awkward buttons

B&O usually do a good job of designing attractive speakers and that's certainly the case here. With a metallic casing, the B&O Beosound A1 is a circular disc of a device being a little slimmer and lighter than its first generation predecessor.

Attached to one side is a leather carrying strap with a Bang and Olufsen adorned toggle for adjustments. It makes it easy to grab as well as hook onto things for safety when on the move.

It all looks suitably classy, which means we would hate to chip it or damage it accidentally. While the IP67 certified waterproofing of the B&O Beosound A1 makes it suitable for outdoor use, we're not convinced we'd fancy its chances on a muddy hike. This is a waterproof speaker to leave by the pool rather than take anywhere off the beaten path.

All the controls are around the outside of the speaker. There are buttons for power, Bluetooth, microphone, as well as volume, along with a USB-C charging port too.

Annoyingly, the buttons aren't raised or tactile in any way. That means they look great but if you're fumbling in the dark to adjust something, you won't be able to see what you're doing.

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen): Audio performance

Crisp sound
Relatively small soundstage
Stereo pairing support

The revamped B&O Beosound A1 has a 3.5-inch woofer along with a 0.6-inch tweeter, and it's powered by two 30W Class D amplifiers. As well as that, the grille has a slightly different hole pattern to its predecessor.

OK, so we're not sure if that makes a huge difference to the sound, but the rest of the specs bode well for a strong audio performance. It also now supports Qualcomm's aptX Adaptive codec, although bear in mind that your smartphone might not.

Bang & Olufsen recommends the speaker for small social gatherings, offices or mid-sized rooms, and that sounds about right to us. Its soundstage is suitably impressive in a relatively small room, delivering the sense of 360 degrees of music. Go outside or into a much larger room however, and you'll realize that size does matter – or at least you'll wish you had two of these. Back to the living room and the B&O Beosound A1 sounds a delight.

It's consistently crisp. We found ourselves enjoying our favorite songs as if we were listening to them for the first time. Tracks like The Weeknd's Blinding Light sound exciting, punchy and energetic, with the likes of Childish Gambino's Feels Like Summer sounding smooth and detailed.

That trend continued with older hits like The Beach Boys' God Only Knows, with each instrument sounding distinctive and sharp. In reassuring contrast, Yaeji's Raingurl sounded surprisingly thumpy in the bass frequencies, but in a good way that makes you want to at least tap to the beat. Simply put, everything sounded devoid of grain or harshness, with a strong, powerful performance.

The soundstage could maybe feel a bit wider, but you'll only really notice this in a large space. In the bathroom, bedroom, or a medium sized living room, the B&O Beosound A1 easily captures your attention.

We can only imagine pairing it up with a second device for stereo sound would counteract these soundstage issues very well.

It's always satisfying feeling like you're rediscovering music with a new speaker and the B&O Beosound A1 has that sense of delight to it.

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen): Battery life & connectivity

18 hours of battery life
Bluetooth 5.1
USB-C charging

The B&O Beosound A1 supports Bluetooth 5.1 which is immediately welcome, thanks to further pairing distances, which are sure to come in handy if you've got a big room or outdoor space for using it in.

Bluetooth 5.1 also allows for better battery life with B&O claiming 18 hours of playback at a "typical" volume, with even more possible at a lower volume.

In our tests, we found that about right although mileage definitely varies when you increase the sound to very high levels. Still, that's not bad at all and it recharges quickly too, thanks to the USB-C connectivity.

Don't expect anything more complicated than the USB-C port. There's no place for a 3.5mm AUX-in port, for instance. That keeps the B&O Beosound A1 sleek and minimalist, but you might find yourself wishing for an extra option for connectivity, particularly if you prefer the stability of wired playback.

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen): Alexa support & app

Alexa depends on your smartphone's Wi-Fi
Can control your smart home devices
B&O app comes with an equalizer

Perhaps the biggest feature here is the aforementioned Alexa support, despite the Beosound A1 being a solely Bluetooth-connected speaker.

B&O states it's a world first for a Bluetooth speaker to offer Alexa without Wi-Fi support. Of course, it does still rely on Wi-Fi (rather than magic, we assume) but that comes via the smartphone that you have connected to the speaker.

It's simple enough to set up but it's flawed. Besides the obvious drawbacks to needing to keep the speaker within range of the phone (although Bluetooth 5.1 helps there), it's a little slower than a direct response.

We also found that despite the three-microphone array, the B&O Beosound A1 isn't always the most responsive to the 'Alexa' wake word. This isn't a speaker to buy if Alexa support is vital, but it's a neat bonus, and it means that it can double up as a smart speaker you can use to control your smart home devices.

The B&O Beosound A1 ties into the B&O app fairly well. You can adjust volume, switch Alexa support on or off, as well as tweak listening modes via an equalizer.

This means even if you're not technically minded, you can still immediately notice the difference between presets like Ambient, Party, and Speaker. It's possible to customize these too ,to get the sound just how you like it. There's also the option to pair two A1 speakers together for stereo sound, although you can't do this with an older first generation device, sadly.

Should I buy the Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen)

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

First reviewed: June 2020

Looking for more? Check out the best Bluetooth speakers of 2020

Audio-Technica AT-LP60XBT review

12:59 pm | May 1, 2019

Author: admin | Category: Audio Computers Gadgets Hi-Fi Turntables | Comments: Off

Editor's Note

• Original review date: May 2019
• Launch price: $149 / £179 / AU$299
• Target price: As above

Update: February 2024. If you're looking for one of the best turntables in the budget arena, you've found it. Yes, it's a few years old, but what of it? This is vinyl, and if it's new tech you seek, this spinner also offers Bluetooth 5.0 with aptX transmission – so you can send your LP music to your wireless headphones simply by putting them into pairing mode and pressing the button on the corner of the Audio-Technica AT-LP60XBT's plinth, so deck finds them and hooks up! The newer Lenco LS-410 has a Bluetooth speaker in its base, but that's a different perk entirely, because it means it'll accept and play the Spotify playlists stored on your phone (in addition to the vinyl spinning above it), but you cannot send that which is playing to headphones or other wireless speakers in your home, wirelessly. The also-newer Victrola Stream Carbon will work with your Sonos system, if you've got one, but at this price it would be churlish to ask much more of this plucky little AT deck. In the sound-per-pound stakes, it scores highly indeed… The rest of this review remains as previously published.

Audio-Technica boasts a long legacy of creating consumer turntables, but its latest models are looking to the future with the inclusion of wireless Bluetooth connectivity for cable-free listening.

The AT-LP60XBT, which “combines high-quality record playback with the convenience of wireless operation” according to the company, is a great example of how turntables are being refreshed for the age of wireless audio.

So, is the AT-LP60XBT as convenient to use as Audio-Technica says? We put the wallet-friendly automatic turntable to the test.

Need some speakers to go with your new turntable? Check out the best stereo speakers

Audio-Technica AT-LP60XBT review: Price and availability

The AT-LP60XBT is available to buy for $149 / £179 / AU$299, much cheaper than many of the best turntables, which tend to range in price between $200 and $1000.

It’s not the first time Audio-Technica has released such a budget-friendly deck; one of our favorite turntables is the AT-LP60, which originally retailed for $99 / £140 (around AU$140).

Audio-Technica AT-LP60XBT review: Design

Overall, the design of he AT-LP60XBT is both pleasing and functional with a matte black plinth and space-saving sleek build.

It’s also incredibly light, coming in at just 2.6kg, thanks to its extensive use of thin plastic. The downside to that is while its neat dimensions and lightness could be an attractive feature for those who are short on space, the AT-LP60XBT does feel slightly fragile.

That insubstantial feeling is also present in the dust cover, which is also made from clear plastic, and the turntable’s fragile-feeling tonearm; while testing the AT-LP60XBT we found ourselves worrying that it would break.

That’s not to say that the AT-LP60XBT is badly designed – all its components work very well – but the materials used here aren't as luxurious as you'd find elsewhere.

Audio-Technica AT-LP60XBT review: Features and performance

Setting up the AT-LP60XBT is fairly straightforward, but it does require some assembly before you can start spinning your records.

Firstly, you’ll need to place the platter (the part that turns the record) onto the spindle (the bit that sticks through the hole in the middle of your vinyl). Once you’ve done this, you can attach the belt to the motor pulley, and place the felt mat onto the platter.

Audio-Technica recommends that you then “rotate the platter 10 times” using your hands to reset the auto mechanism, get rid of any twists in the belt and make sure the belt “rides smoothly along the drive rim on the underside of the platter”.

You do get an instruction manual in the box, with helpful illustrations to guide you through this process, but if you’re unsure, you can also check out our guide on how to set up a turntable.

Once you’ve assembled the turntable, you can plug in the AC adapter, and you’re ready to go – pressing the start button will spin the platter and lift and lower the tonearm automatically, which is handy for beginners who are worried about breaking the delicate stylus or their precious records. You can maneuver the tonearm manually as well, if you wish.

It can be used with a wired connection to your speakers or headphones, or wirelessly via Bluetooth. With a built-in phono equalizer function, Audio-Technica says that you can use the AT-LP60XBT without a “phono amplifier or connectable equipment with a built-in phono amplifier”. You can also use it with your own external phono amplifier if you prefer.

We tested the AT-LP60XBT using wireless headphones connected via Bluetooth, and we found the pairing process to be totally seamless – you just need to put your Bluetooth headphones or speakers into pairing mode, and then hold down the Bluetooth button on the bottom left corner of the turntable’s plinth.

When it's in pairing mode, an LED light will rapidly flash blue and red, before settling on blue to indicate a successful connection.

We didn’t experience any connection dropouts while using this feature, and we loved the fact that we could combine the grainy analogue warmth of a vinyl with the modern convenience of wireless headphones.

While the calling card of the AT-LP60XBT is its support for wireless playback, you can of course connect your speaker setup with a wired connection, which audiophiles may prefer for a higher level of audio quality.

Saying that, as the turntable supports Bluetooth 5.0 aptX connectivity, the sound quality is still pretty impressive over a wireless connection.

To test the AT-LP60XBT, we played Sufjan Stevens’ Carrie and Lowell album – and it flowed beautifully, with interweaving guitar arpeggios sweetly accenting Stevens’ harmonized vocal melodies.

The soundstage is generally very warm, which isn’t unusual for vinyl; however, if you prefer your music to have a little more attack in the treble frequencies, you may find yourself craving a bit more crispness – it’s all a matter of taste.

Audio-Technica is known for producing high quality cartridges, and the one used on this turntable is no exception; the ATN3600L conical stylus fits perfectly into the grooves of the record and reveals details in songs you may have never noticed before – in short, it makes your music an absolute joy to listen to.

Audio-Technica AT-LP60XBT review: Final verdict

With a budget-friendly price, easy assembly, and the convenience of wireless playback, the AT-LP60XBT could make a fantastic first turntable for any fledgling vinyl enthusiast.

While the plinth does feel somewhat insubstantial, and the sound might not be detailed enough for some, it's brilliant price more than makes up for that – and the inclusion of Bluetooth connectivity makes the AT-LP6XBT feel like very good value for money.

Hardcore audiophiles may prefer the sound and look of Hi-Fi turntables like the $1700 / £1500 (around AU$2750) Cambridge Audio Alva TT, but if you’re looking for something super simple and not too pricey, the AT-LP60XBT might be your best bet.

First reviewed: May 2019

Read our round up of the best turntables for every budget

« Previous Page — Next Page »

Editor's Note

Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0: One-minute review

Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0 review: Price and availability

Design

Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0 review: Audio performance

Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0 review: Features

Should I buy the Lypertek PurePlay Z3 2.0?

Buy it if...

Don’t buy it if…

Editor's Note

Technics SL-1500C: one-minute review

Technics SL-1500C Turntable review: design

Technics SL-1500C Turntable review: Features

Technics SL-1500C Turntable review: Performance

Technics SL-1500C Turntable review: Final verdict

Deezer: Two-minute review

Deezer review: Pricing and subscription

Deezer review: Specs

Deezer review: Music library and content

Deezer review: Apps and compatibility

Deezer review: Playlists and recommendations

Deezer review: Audio quality

Should I subscribe to Deezer?

Subscribe if…

Don’t subscribe if…

Amazon Music Unlimited: Two-minute review

Amazon Music Unlimited review: Pricing and subscription

Amazon Music Unlimited review: Key specs

Amazon Music Unlimited review: Music library and content

Amazon Music Unlimited review: Apps and compatibility

Amazon Music Unlimited: Playlists and recommendations

Amazon Music Unlimited review: Audio quality

Should I subscribe to Amazon Music Unlimited?

Subscribe if...

Don't subscribe if...

Editor's Note

JBL Charge 5: One-minute review

JBL Charge 5 review: Price & availability

JBL Charge 5 review: Design

JBL Charge 5 review: Features

JBL Charge 5 review: Audio quality

Should I buy the JBL Charge 5?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Tidal review: Two-minute review

Tidal review: Pricing and subscription

Tidal review: Key specs

Tidal review: Music library and content

Tidal review: Apps and compatibility

Tidal review: Playlists and recommendations

Tidal review: Audio quality

Should I subscribe to Tidal?

Subscribe if…

Don’t subscribe if...

Editor's Note

Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo: Two-minute review

Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo: Price and release date

Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo: Design

Audio performance

Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo: Audio performance

Should I buy the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo?

Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo: Should you buy it?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Editor's Note

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom: Two-minute review

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom review: Price & availability

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom review: Design

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom review: Controls & connectivity

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom review: App and battery life

Ultimate Ears Hyperboom review: Audio performance

Should I buy the Ultimate Ears Hyperboom?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Editor's Note

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen): Two-minute review

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen): Price & release date

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen): Design

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen): Audio performance

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen): Battery life & connectivity