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Review: $399 Beosound A1 Portable Speaker Shows Why Bang & Olufsen Commands a Premium
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You think a Bluetooth speaker with two drivers facing one direction will sound better than a WiFi HomePod with six drivers facing every direction?
If that’s the case B&O is doing something very impressive!
I'm very skeptical, too.
Really great sound - and for $800 (stereo) I'm expecting really, really great sound - requires a high quality sound source - at least 44.1kHz 16-bit CD "standard" or better, a way of getting that data into the device, surfaces sufficiently large to produce enough air movement to give truly good low frequency response, surfaces sufficiently small to produce the rapid movements needed to give truly good high frequency response, and somewhere where the acoustics are really good so that those air movements actually make it into your ears. And good ears.
Setting aside the ears and working backwards: if you're listening in the shower the acoustics are not going to be that great - so many reflections. So hi-fi in the shower? What's the point? Great that it's waterproof, but it's silly to suggest that the sound quality is going to be *that* good. And does it really have the surfaces needed to move the air? In a case that size? No. It clearly doesn't. Headphones can do it because they are clamped against your ears and almost directly inject the pressure waves into your ear canal. This thing is designed for room audio. It's just not big enough for very high quality sound. Some clever DSP trickery going on - no doubt - but I don't really want that, thanks. It would need to be larger to do the job properly.
Then there's the question of getting a high quality data source into the device. You cannot do that over BLE. The latest codecs are good, but they are not 44.1kHz 16-bit good. I've seen so many reports from respectable labs that have actually measured this and debunked it. They are good. Really good, but they are not better than CD standard and yes, you absolutely can hear the difference. This device can be connected to a sound source over USB and in that use case it certainly should be able to cope with CD standard data, or better. But then it's not portable. And there are so many better non-portable options for less than that money. But you'd need to plug in a pair of these over USB to get really high quality stereo.
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Other than the points made by others: Both those systems are made by Harman…
Some of the comments here are completely clueless. Even if technically possible, this product is not designed to be used in stereo, so saying it’s 800 dollars for stereo is ridiculous.
Bluetooth is also not a limitation at all - the compression is completely irrelevant in such a product. Someone needs to educate the general public that Bluetooth in a good speaker is much, much better than hi-res in a bad speaker.
This is a speaker you use in the hotel room while brushing your teeth. For that purpose, it is great to have a speaker that sounds somewhat natural, and not something that sounds like… Alexa. I’m sure people who have never worn a pair of shoes worth more than a hundred bucks will ever understand the concept of quality, and why 400 dollars is not actually that bad for what you get.
And I work for a competitor.
Bluetooth is also not a limitation at all - the compression is completely irrelevant in such a product. Someone needs to educate the general public that Bluetooth in a good speaker is much, much better than hi-res in a bad speaker.
This is a speaker you use in the hotel room while brushing your teeth. For that purpose, it is great to have a speaker that sounds somewhat natural, and not something that sounds like… Alexa. I’m sure people who have never worn a pair of shoes worth more than a hundred bucks will ever understand the concept of quality, and why 400 dollars is not actually that bad for what you get.
And I work for a competitor.
It's AirPlay that's the problem, not this speaker
I’m sure it’s nice, but I’m enjoying my $40 JBL Go 4 that sounds plenty good enough. I just can’t see spending $399 on this BO wireless portable.
Can anyone tell me how it compares to the sonos roam and Sonos era speakers?! Does it sound as good or better!? I’m looking for a small portable speak with that kind of clarity and base
They prominently feature the use of units in stereo mode on the product’s page.
"Connect across generations" same like HomePods 🤣
Crazy that it cost $399 now.
Not sure if it's worthy.
V1 was $250
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I’ve had one of the first gen A1 units since they came out. It’s traveled over a half million miles in my carryon, still sounds amazing and still has solid battery life. Having real music in the hotel room is incredibly nice. Highly recommended, and absolutely worth the price.
Oh, and yes, the stereo feature works (pair it with my wife's), and the sound is very impressive for a unit that size. Vastly better than the mbp speakers.
What is CRS? I love B&O but I think the money would be better used elsewhere.Currently have an offer on CSR, $160 off B&O; it would be $267... but do I need this?
I’m not trying to convince anyone, but I own a pair of A1 v1 speakers and, after auditioning many other brands, these gave me the sound I was looking for. With speakers, it’s less about which one is objectively “better” and more about which one you prefer in your own listening environment. The only way to know what works best for you is to set them up in your space and give them a proper listen.
For context, I also have a pair of Devialet Phantom II, a pair of HomePods, and a Naim Mu-so (v1). My main system is a pair of Genelecs (with sub) fed by a Chord Hugo TT2 in DAC mode. For headphones, I’ve fallen in love with the Dan Clark Audio Expanse paired with a Chord Mojo 2.
I’m not claiming these are the “best” choices for everyone—they’re simply the ones I’ve come to appreciate most after many years of trial and error. I mention my gear only to give some perspective on where my impressions are coming from.
For context, I also have a pair of Devialet Phantom II, a pair of HomePods, and a Naim Mu-so (v1). My main system is a pair of Genelecs (with sub) fed by a Chord Hugo TT2 in DAC mode. For headphones, I’ve fallen in love with the Dan Clark Audio Expanse paired with a Chord Mojo 2.
I’m not claiming these are the “best” choices for everyone—they’re simply the ones I’ve come to appreciate most after many years of trial and error. I mention my gear only to give some perspective on where my impressions are coming from.
These things are great. I had the older version (actually unclear on what this spec bump adds… a bit more battery?), impossibly good sound for a speaker that small.
One feature that gets swept under the carpet — you can use them as "wired" speakers via USB-C. I picked mine up for a “gamer PC” I had put together, it had the normal Bluetooth latency when run wireless, but no lag at all when plugged in, so plugged in it stayed.
Didn't need it once I switched to a Studio Display with built-in speakers, so passed it on to a lady friend who was ecstatic. “I love my hamburger speaker!”
One feature that gets swept under the carpet — you can use them as "wired" speakers via USB-C. I picked mine up for a “gamer PC” I had put together, it had the normal Bluetooth latency when run wireless, but no lag at all when plugged in, so plugged in it stayed.
Didn't need it once I switched to a Studio Display with built-in speakers, so passed it on to a lady friend who was ecstatic. “I love my hamburger speaker!”
In my opinion it is a lot better than Roam. The other Sonos models are a different class of product and not comparable. But personally, even though an Era 100 is much larger and plays louder, it sounds harsh and unnatural to me, and I’d rather listen to the B&O. (I have now angered every Sonos fan alive, and will be “schooled” about how their auto calibration ensures neutral sound…
)Everything is relative, but most compact speakers sound very unnatural, in the attempt at creating large sound from a small box. This speaker’s main feat of engineering is that it doesn’t sound outright annoying, like any other similarly sized speaker I can think of. But of course it doesn’t sound “good” in universal terms, like my 20.000USD hifi system.
It’s a quality product, at a premium price. Anyone who judges it without hearing it is missing the point.
(Sorry for flashing, but the argument requires it
My 20.000 USD hifi system also doesn’t have Airplay. Are you aware that Airplay 2 is 256kbit, which makes it no better than Bluetooth?My kitchen speaker, with Airplay, drops out all the time. If I use Bluetooth, it doesn’t. Airplay isn’t all that great, by any measure.
“Prominently”, halfway down the page, as one out of 12 selling points.
Fair argument about the price, but they are not the only company to raise prices on electronics. But yes, less of a good deal, but still without any direct competition on sound quality that I have listened to.
Sorry for flooding the thread, but I honestly think Bluetooth is better than Airplay for a product like this. But, everyone has their preferences.
I still have my first gen A1 and it still works, dings and blemishes from many travels. It’s just mono, just BT but still the most perfect speaker to grab and go, fill a small room with solid sound. It will not replace two Sonos Fives and a Sub, but that small metal puck still has not been replaced and not for my lack of trying to get something better. I know the second generation sounded worse (less bass) and wonder how the third iteration shapes up. The only downside are the most stupid buttons I have ever seen, impossible to use by touch.