HomePod HomePod Mini - Burn-in period

[paulchiu]

My order for 4 HomePod Minis arrived back in April 2022, and these 2 sit on my KEF LS50 near-field monitors.
The KEFs are driven by an amplifier nearby and at first, I thought the HomePod would not compare well, and during the first days, they sounded pretty blah.

Then, after some time and some updates, namely 15.3 and 15.4, these stereo-pairs sounded damn good. With R&B, Jazz, vocals, and even classical.

BTW, adjust the Pods to your ear level, for the best imaging.

 

[daniiv]

I love your KEF's! I have the KFLS50 wireless, how do these compares to yours? Did you have the chance to compare them? What kind of amplifier do you use with it? Do you use an extra DAC from your amplifier to the KEF's?
Thinking about adding an DAC as well for my KEF's, not sure which one's the best for home purposes...


(btw beautiful pic's from your setup in the other topic about the airpods max!)

 

[paulchiu]

I love your KEF's! I have the KFLS50 wireless, how do these compares to yours? Did you have the chance to compare them? What kind of amplifier do you use with it? Do you use an extra DAC from your amplifier to the KEF's?
Thinking about adding an DAC as well for my KEF's, not sure which one's the best for home purposes...


(btw beautiful pic's from your setup in the other topic about the airpods max!)

The KEF wireless is great and nearly 98% of the wired version, in terms of musicality, bass, and stereo imaging. But, it is so much more flexible with them (wireless), as is with the Apple HomePod Minis.

I drive my KEF LS50 with a Cary 300B tube amplifier, the feed is either from the Nagra DAC or Chord DAVE DAC. The source is usually from the Roon Nucleus Core, which has an internal 4TB Samsung SSD. Roon subscription is highly valued and I recommend it.

If you're interested, tell me and I can send you a coupon.

 

[daniiv]

(

 

[mslilyelise]

I found mine remarkably reactive to it's environment. I have a Sansui 881 and floor standing early 80s Mirage speakers hooked up to an AirPort Express, and I can't expect that kind of performance from this little sphere, but it's remarkably potent and clean sounding. If I pick it up in my hand, the bass output shifts because my hand is soft, or if I put my hands behind it or to either side, you can hear the imaging shift, beyond the simple reflective effect of putting a hand in the way. Take my hand away, give it 10-15 seconds, and the sound returns to normal. And then of course the top light reacts to ambient light as well. It's a very "smart" speaker.

 

[w5jck]

As they say, "location, location, location"! My HomePod mini seems to sound best when placed on a hard flat surface like a desk or table. I've read quite a few reviews that state various stands sold for it by 3rd party vendors actually hamper the sound, and I can see why. The HomePod mini was designed to sit by itself without nearby obstructions that deflect and reflect sound. Covering parts of it up with a stand is going to change the sound. I do wish Apple would have given it a non-skid neoprene bottom plate though to keep it from sliding about so easily, and a longer cord too as 6 feet is barely enough for my living room.

I'm blown away by the quality of sound from such a tiny speaker, but it is best with the volume not set too high and when listening to jazz, classical, and less noisy music genres. Hard rock is a bit too much for it, especially if you turn the volume way up. It won't compete with stereo setups by any means, but it is better than any Amazon Echo model except for the Studio, which is in a different class of speakers altogether. It is definitely better than my Echo Plus 2 though.My biggest complaint is not the sound or speaker itself, it is Apple's absurd lack of features within the Home app as well as the sparse number of available HomeKit accessories that actually work with HomeKit.