Recommended Components

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Naim Mu-so 2nd Generation: $1799 with standard grille fabric
This slim, all-in-one, Roon Ready networked music system has a tweeter, a midrange unit, and an oval-shaped woofer for each channel, all powered by direct-digital, class-D amplification. The integral DSP offers three room compensation settings. There is also an alarm and a sleep timer. The major digital streaming services, including Spotify, Tidal, and Qobuz, are handled natively, and the Mu-so also offers AirPlay 2 (iTunes and Apple Music) and Chromecast. There are analog, S/PDIF, USB, Bluetooth, HDMI ARC, and wired and Wi-Fi network inputs, though other than the USB port, the physical inputs are inconveniently placed on the bottom of the chassis. The Mu-so can be controlled by a remote control, by its own touch controls, and by the Naim app for Apple iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, and Android devices. JMu was well-impressed by this app. She was also impressed by the sound, writing "a few sonic characteristics stood out: crisp clarity with more detail and dynamic output than I expected. Subjective impressions of bass extension seemed to exceed what's possible from small drivers within a smallish box." How did JMu conclude her review? "The musical Mu-so 2nd Generation offers serious sound and engineering from a respected maker, but it's also built for fun. I wanted to keep on listening, and that speaks volumes." Additional grille color options add $90 to price. (Vol.43 No.10 WWW)

Sonus Faber Omnia: $1999
RvB was impressed by the sound of this single-box, Bluetooth- and Wi-Fi–enabled, DSP-optimized, active stereo loudspeaker system. It uses a single 6.5" woofer, two 0.75" silk-dome tweeters, a pair of 3" midrange drivers, and two 1.75" drivers that fire to the sides to widen the soundstage. The Omnia includes an analog line input, a MM-compatible phono input, an HDMI ARC input, and an Ethernet port. While there is a remote control, the Omnia can also be controlled by a web page or by Roon. As you might expect from a 6.5" woofer in a small enclosure, the lowest octaves were restricted, though RvB found that definition and timbre were still quite good. "Most music I played had a proper foundation, with enough bass weight to satisfy, even seduce," he wrote. His conclusion: "The Omnia wireless speaker is beautifully designed, well built, and sonically gifted." (Vol.45 No.8 WWW)

Sony SA-Z1 desktop speaker system: $7999.99
This unique, active desktop system is intended to be listened to in the nearfield, with the close-spaced boundaries reinforcing the lower midrange and bass. Back-to-back 4" anodized-aluminum woofers minimize enclosure vibrations, and the primary tweeter is flanked by two smaller tweeters, one above and one below. The three tweeters use soft domes that have been sputtered with titanium and are mounted on a gantry in front of the front-firing woofer. All five drive-units are powered by PWM amplifier modules featuring gallium nitride transistors. The SA-Z1 makes abundant use of DSP to optimize its sound quality. The system has balanced and single-ended analog inputs and USB and Toslink digital inputs. According to Sony, the latter are preferred. Several DSP functions can be applied with the digital inputs, including adjusting the crossover between the front and rear woofers, changing the time alignment of the flanking tweeters, and upsampling to PCM or DSD. Setup is crucial, advised JVS, but once he was satisfied with the placement and had replaced his large computer monitor between the speakers with his smaller-screened laptop, he noted (using the USB input) that despite the small woofers' inability to reach as low as a mighty organ can go, "bass was otherwise tight and convincing, the midrange was warm, and highs were as rousing as one might wish for. Images weren't gigantic, but the way the soundstage expanded beyond and through the speakers was awe-inspiring." He concluded that "the SA-Z1 is capable of opening up entire new realms of personal listening." (Vol.44 No.3 WWW)

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Andover-One: $1999 with Songbird streamer
This single-box stereo system marries a Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Esprit SB belt-drive turntable fitted with an 8.6" carbon-fiber tonearm and an Ortofon 2M Silver moving magnet cartridge to 200W of class-D amplification, four small woofers, and two AMT tweeters in a rigidly constructed enclosure. The Model-One also offers DSP-implemented effects modes, optical and coaxial S/PDIF, Bluetooth aptX, mini-USB digital inputs, and an analog input (this converted to digital), as well as headphone, line-level, and subwoofer outputs. DSP is also used to minimize acoustic feedback from the woofers to the turntable. JMu found at normal volumes that there was a "good impression" of bass. She added that "in general, the system served the midrange well, with textural detail and, especially on recordings without modern mixing tricks and complications, sufficient image-placement cues to draw you in." The Model-One "could be a starter system for an apartment or a second system for an office or bedroom," concluded JMu. Matching subwoofer costs $799; modular stand, $299. Now includes an external Andover Songbird internet music streamer for the same price. (Vol.43 No.9 WWW)