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The State of Streaming—2023

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 February 2023

Typically, articles predicting developments for the coming year come out in early January, or even late December. But here we are, two weeks into February, and Simplifi finally has a feature outlining what we can expect from music streaming in 2023. Do I feel badly about this delay? Not in the least. Because when it comes to lateness, I have nothing on Spotify and Apple Music. Those streaming giants have both missed self-imposed deadlines by well over a year. With that excuse out of the way, here are three streaming stories I’ll be watching in 2023.

Read more: The State of Streaming—2023

Bowers & Wilkins Panorama 3 Soundbar

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 February 2023

To purists and zealots, compromise is a dirty word; but for most of us, compromising is how we get along in life. This is as true of audio as any other pursuit. We can daydream about our ultimate systems, but we have to reconcile those dreams with reality—with our budgets, our living spaces, and the people who share those spaces.

Gordon's System, Re-Simplifi'd

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 January 2023

Sometime last spring, it became clear to me that I’d be upgrading my hi-fi setup before the year was out. Not that I was dissatisfied with the gear I already owned—quite the contrary. I loved listening to that system, which comprised an NAD C 658 streaming DAC-preamp ($1999, all prices in USD), a pair of Elac Navis ARF-51 active floorstanding speakers ($3999.96/pair), and an SVS Micro 3000 subwoofer ($899.99). That system has provided countless hours of listening pleasure for me, my music-loving missus, and visitors to our home.

JBL 4305P Active Loudspeaker System

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 January 2023

Inspired by a SoundStage! Audiophile Podcast episode, I posed a rhetorical question in a Simplifi feature published a few months ago: “Is Component Hi-Fi Dead?” During that podcast episode, Brent Butterworth, senior editor of SoundStage! Solo, had asked if we really need amplifiers anymore, given the growing acceptance of powered and active speakers with built-in amplification. “Amps are never going to die,” Brent opined, “but are amps kind of dead?” Dennis Burger, senior editor of SoundStage! Access, replied: “I don’t know if they’re dead. I just think they are unnecessary.”

Mix Master: PMC's Heff Moraes on Making Music in Atmos

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 December 2022

Since the 1970s, record labels and audio manufacturers have been trying to convince music lovers to move beyond two-channel stereo. Music doesn’t just happen in front of us, argue proponents of surround music; it happens all around us. We could get a better experience if we added speakers beside and/or behind the listening position.

Dynaudio Focus 30 Active Loudspeaker System

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 December 2022

Reviewers' Choice I’ve had a soft spot for Dynaudio for many years. For one thing, the Danish brand practically invented high-performance Simplifi’d hi-fi. When Dynaudio launched its Xeo range of active speakers in 2012, there were many excellent tabletop music systems on the market. But Dynaudio’s Xeo 3 standmount and Xeo 5 floorstanding speaker systems were different: they delivered real stereo from two discrete enclosures. Other than two-prong power inlets, the enclosures had no connectors of any kind. Instead, they received 16-bit/48kHz PCM audio from a companion wireless transmitter, which had mini-USB, optical (TosLink) S/PDIF, and line-level analog inputs (RCA and 3.5mm). The Xeo speaker systems made it possible to get serious stereo sound in multipurpose living spaces without cluttering them up with gear and cables.

Toronto Audiofest 2022, Simplifi’d

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 November 2022

How would you rather spend a glorious Canadian autumn weekend? Walking in the park? Taking a drive in the country? Raking the leaves? Or roaming the halls of a generic suburban hotel?

SVS Prime Wireless Pro Active Loudspeaker System

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 November 2022

Reviewers' Choice Quite often, when a manufacturer updates a popular product, the new model offers only incremental improvements over the one it replaces. But sometimes, the new product represents a major upgrade over the original; and that is the case with SVS’s Prime Wireless Pro active loudspeaker system ($899.99, all prices in USD). The Prime Wireless Pro costs 50% more than the company’s Prime Wireless active speaker system (discontinued, $599.99 when available), but it contains a host of improvements.

Totem Acoustic Kin Play Tower Powered Loudspeaker System

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 October 2022

This year, Canada’s Totem Acoustic celebrates its 35th anniversary. Since its founding in 1987, Totem has released an impressive range of passive loudspeakers, including standmount and floorstanding models, soundbars, on-wall speakers, and in-wall and in-ceiling speakers aimed at the custom integration channel.

System Audio Legend 7.2 Silverback Active On-Wall Speaker and Stereo Hub

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 October 2022

Life gets in the way of a lot of things, and sometimes it gets in the way of hi-fi. Audiophiles who have dedicated listening rooms are lucky in this respect; audiophiles who must set up their sound systems in multipurpose spaces can find their hobby conflicts with other activities that go on in those rooms. The speaker locations that might deliver the best tonal balance and soundstaging might be occupied by an armchair or end table. Freestanding speakers might present a tipping hazard for households with rambunctious toddlers or pets.

Roksan Attessa Streaming Integrated Amplifier

: Written by: Vince Hanada; Created: 15 September 2022

Note: for the full suite of measurements from the SoundStage! Audio-Electronics Lab, click this link.

It’s almost ten years since Lenbrook Industries launched its Bluesound range of multiroom audio components. At the heart of those products is the BluOS software platform, developed in-house by the Canadian company. Lenbrook, which also owns the NAD and PSB brands, later added BluOS streaming capability to several NAD components. More recently, Lenbrook has licensed BluOS technology to several third-party brands, including Cyrus Audio, DALI, Peachtree Audio, Monitor Audio, and Roksan.

JBL L75ms Integrated Music System

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 September 2022

Reviewers' Choice Nostalgia is huge in hi-fi right now. Just look at all those retro-styled speakers from brands like JBL, KLH, Klipsch, Mission, PSB, and Wharfedale. JBL, for instance, offers standmount speakers that evoke the legendary L100, which made its debut in 1970. Like the original L100, the L52 Classic ($1000/pair, all prices in USD unless noted otherwise), L82 Classic ($2750/pair), and L100 Classic ($4400/pair) all feature walnut veneer enclosures and JBL’s iconic Quadrex foam grilles.

The Great Debate: Is Component Hi-Fi Dead?

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 August 2022

Lately, I’ve been enjoying the SoundStage! Audiophile Podcast, which is hosted by Brent Butterworth, senior editor of SoundStage! Solo, and Dennis Burger, senior editor of SoundStage! Access. Brent and Dennis tackle a wide range of topics and do a ton of preparation for each episode. The production is polished, the discussions are well-informed and thought-provoking, and the presentation is casual and inviting.

KEF LS60 Wireless Active Speaker System

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 August 2022

Reviewers' Choice In 2012, to celebrate its 50th anniversary, KEF introduced the LS50 two-way minimonitor ($1499.99/pair at launch, all prices in USD), which went on to become one of the landmark audio products of the 2010s. When he reviewed the LS50 on SoundStage! Hi-Fi in 2013, Doug Schneider concluded: “The LS50 is nothing short of a masterpiece of a minimonitor, priced so that anyone serious about audio can buy a pair.” The LS50 later won a 2013 SoundStage! Network Product of the Year award. Four years later, KEF launched an active speaker employing the same Uni-Q driver array as its passive cousin. The LS50 Wireless ($2499.99/system at launch) was named a SoundStage! Network Product of the Year for 2017.

Evolving Hi-Fi: My Journey with a Fleet of Devialet Silver Phantoms

: Written by: Kurt Wetzel; Created: 15 July 2022

I never wanted to purchase new speakers. I never wanted to go digital. It all happened by accident.

Zidoo Neo S 4K UHD Media Player

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 July 2022

Note: for the full suite of measurements from the SoundStage! Audio-Electronics Lab, click this link.

With network entertainment now solidly in the mainstream, we’re seeing more and more products that depart from the traditional source-amp-speaker paradigm. We’ve reviewed scores of such products on Simplifi: active speaker systems with built-in network streamers such as KEF’s LS50 Wireless II and Bang & Olufsen’s Beolab 28, streaming DAC-preamps such as NAD’s C 658 and Bryston’s BR-20, and streaming integrated amplifiers such as Bluesound’s Powernode and Naim Audio’s Uniti Atom.

Simplifi'd Hi-Fi at Munich High End–and Elsewhere

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 June 2022

The greatest audio show on earth is back. After a two-year, pandemic-induced hiatus, the 2022 Munich High End show took place from May 19 to 22. The SoundStage! Network sent a four-person editorial team to Bavaria: founder and publisher Doug Schneider; editor-in-chief Jeff Fritz; Edward Kramer, editor of SoundStage! Australia; and Jonathan Gorse, a UK-based contributor to SoundStage! Ultra. Together, they filed 18 dispatches from Munich, which you can find on SoundStage! Global.

Q Acoustics M20 HD Powered Wireless Music System

: Written by: Kurt Wetzel; Created: 01 June 2022

Q Acoustics, founded in the UK in 2006, produces loudspeakers that range from the inexpensive 3010i compact bookshelf model ($299 per pair, all prices in USD) to the Concept 500 floorstander ($6499/pair), with a plethora of choices in between. These include a myriad of home-theater options, including several subwoofers and an active soundbar.

How We Listen

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 May 2022

When it comes to consuming music, you can split the SoundStage! team into a few broad categories: those who are big into physical media, those who have fully embraced streaming, those who rely on downloaded and ripped music, and those with feet in all these camps.

Sonus Faber Omnia Wireless Music System

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 May 2022

The Italian brand Sonus Faber is known for beautifully crafted passive loudspeakers that use luxurious materials, including exotic wood finishes and front baffles with leather inserts. Earlier this year, Sonus Faber announced its Omnia Wireless Music System ($1999, all prices in USD unless noted otherwise). With flowing lines, five-layer veneered walnut top panel, sculpted base, and textured fabric grilles, the Omnia shares the design aesthetic of Sonus Faber’s passive speakers.

Wayback Playback

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 April 2022

Across the SoundStage! Network, you’ll find coverage of all kinds of audio products: high-end gear on SoundStage! Ultra, affordable components on SoundStage! Access, headphones and accessories on SoundStage! Solo, lifestyle audio here on SoundStage! Simplifi, portable Bluetooth speakers on SoundStage! Xperience, news and events on SoundStage! Global, and all manner of gear on the mothership—SoundStage! Hi-Fi.

Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin Wireless Speaker

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 April 2022

If I had to name two products that laid the groundwork for Simplifi’d hi-fi, they’d be Apple’s iPod and Bowers & Wilkins’s Zeppelin iPod speaker. Before Apple launched the iPod in 2001, most people listened to their own music on physical media, one disc or tape at a time. The iPod let them store an entire music library on one pocketable device and play tracks at random.

NAD Masters M10 V2 Streaming Integrated Amplifier

: Written by: Vince Hanada; Created: 15 March 2022

Note: for the full suite of measurements from the SoundStage! Audio-Electronics Lab, click this link.

The original NAD Masters M10 streaming amplifier, introduced in January 2019, is a compact, versatile unit that can form the heart of a modern high-fidelity system. It has everything you can imagine you’d want in an integrated amplifier: NAD’s BluOS streaming function, a two-channel amplifier, Dirac Live room correction, a DAC, digital and analog inputs, and more. The M10 fits NAD’s “just add speakers” philosophy perfectly. Gordon Brockhouse reviewed the M10 on this site in May 2019—it received a Reviewers’ Choice award and was subsequently named a SoundStage! Network Product of the Year.

Listen While You Work

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 March 2022

One of the occupational hazards of writing for an audiophile website is a condition photography enthusiasts call GAS—Gear Acquisition Syndrome. After hearing about a new lens (or amplifier), you decide you really, really need this new toy, even though the gear you already own is more than adequate for your needs. During my adult life, I’ve experienced GAS hundreds—maybe thousands—of times, and succumbed to it more often than I care to admit.

Mission LX Connect Wireless Active Speakers and Hub

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 March 2022

The British hi-fi brand Mission is best known for its passive loudspeakers; but, late last year, the company introduced a lifestyle music system that combines a wireless hub with a pair of active bookshelf loudspeakers. Priced at $1699.99 (all prices in USD), the LX Connect was designed and engineered in the UK, with acoustic engineering by Mission and electronic design by its sister company Audiolab. Both brands are part of the International Audio Group (IAG), a Chinese company that also owns Castle Acoustics, Leak, Luxman, Quad, and Wharfedale.

The State of Streaming—2022

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 February 2022

Was 2021 the year that lossless and hi-rez music streaming became mainstream? Last year, Spotify promised it would start delivering lossless music, but failed to deliver. Three months later, Apple announced plans to offer lossless and hi-rez content, and started delivering shortly thereafter. Amazon Music HD had been offering lossless and hi-rez music since 2019; but following Apple’s move, Amazon reduced its price for the service. These aggressive moves by major providers like Apple and Amazon led several smaller streaming services to revamp their own pricing plans in 2021.

Read more: The State of Streaming—2022

Linn Series 3 Active Loudspeakers

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 February 2022

When Linn Products announced its Series 3 active loudspeaker in October 2019, the Scottish company called it “the world’s best-sounding wireless speaker.” Given that bold claim, Linn chose an appropriate launch venue for the speaker. For several months, the Series 3 was available exclusively at Linn’s flagship showroom in Harrods department store in London, England. In 2020, Linn rolled out the Series 3 to its worldwide dealer network.

Bang & Olufsen Beolab 28 Active Loudspeakers

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 January 2022

Reviewers' Choice Is there an audio manufacturer whose products exemplify Simplifi’d hi-fi more than Denmark’s Bang & Olufsen? I doubt it. Formed in 1925, B&O started offering “convenient, lifestyle-oriented hi-fi” components not long after the word “lifestyle” had been coined.

Why "Simplifi"—Five Years Later

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 January 2022

Today is Simplifi’s birthday. Five years ago, on New Year’s Day 2017, the SoundStage! Network launched a site dedicated to “convenient, lifestyle-oriented hi-fi” with a short feature by Al Griffin, entitled “Why Simplifi.”

KEF KC62 Powered Subwoofer

: Written by: Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 December 2021

Reviewers' Choice Here’s a bit of audio trivia for your holiday enjoyment: Who was J.A. Hofmann? If you’ve been into audio as long as I have, you’ll know him as the H in the loudspeaker brand KLH. Along with Henry Kloss and Malcolm S. Low, Hofmann was a founding partner of KLH Research and Development Corporation, which was formed in 1957, and has recently been revived as KLH Audio.