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The Emerge is another Bang & Olufsen product with an emphasis on longevity. Thanks to a modular design, it’s possible to swap or upgrade parts should the need arise. There’s a replaceable connectivity module inside, and it features enough processing headroom to be ready to receive updates and/or fresh features for many a year. Stereo music sources can be upmixed to make full use of the expansive driver array, which is worth doing. With all cones at play, the soundstage is preternaturally wide and spacious. Significantly there’s no overt sweet spot – you won’t have to commandeer the prime spot on the sofa every time you want to listen to Tidal streams. Volume is prodigious too. There’s more than enough power on tap to pump the volume in a large listening space. Each was delivered with confidence and clarity, with no single frequency overpowering the other. I really wanted to find a chink in the Beosound A5’s beautiful armor, but it was to no avail. Everything and anything was belted out from the unassuming exterior in unison, resulting in a thoroughly enjoyable experience song after song.
One unintended consequence of the touch glass control up top is that it’s highly reflective, and always reflects what’s on the screen above. Depending on your angle, this could be a small frustration. Bang and Olufsen cites the Beosound Level as having a 16-hour battery life. Though, if you’re like us, you’ll just leave the thing plugged in rather than hunting around for a charging cable every 16 hours, especially since we noticed some battery drain issues when the speaker was off.
Delivery upon market launch
Beosound Level sounds great and is impressively versatile. If money isn’t an issue, you have the space and the style to do it justice you’ll be richly rewarded. The ability to upgrade should also mean less tech in landfill and a product offering a lifetime of loyal service. The price means it’s hard to compare to many rivals. Neither Sonos, Bowers and Wilkins nor Marshall have any similar products at this price point. That’s because the sound is by far one of the priciest Wi-Fi speakers on the market. Behind the grille are 12 speaker drivers: two 6.5-inch woofers and that coaxial centre, which comprises a 1-inch tweeter mounted in front of a 5.25-inch midranger. There’s also two 3-inch mid-range drivers, four 2.5-inch drivers and two 1-inch tweeters. The total power output for this array is 800W; 100 watts power the two bass drivers, with 60W going to each of the remaining 10 drivers. The whole point of a beautifully designed high-end wireless speaker such as the BeoSound 1 should be to stand out – visually and musically. The design idea of placing six CDs next to one another came from the challenge of knowing which CD was available and which was playing. Walking past a music store in London, David Lewis was inspired by a display of CD covers placed next to one other on a shelf in the window. This was a very elegant way of showcasing the CDs – placed next to one another behind a long glass lid. The six-CD changer was born.
Supplied with a wall mount, drill template and all necessary components for mounting, the Beosound Stage is ready for you to mount on the wall. No further accessories required.
Use and place anywhere at home
Another attention-grabbing element is that top dial. It doubles up as the volume dial and controller. There’s no dedicated remote control supplied in the box with the Beosound Theatre. Instead, you’re directed to the accompanying app. Some people are bound to love the fact you don't need to mess about with a remote, others might feel shortchanged for the price – this is the same deal as you get with Sonos soundbars, and we have no issue with it. The base and top plate are covered in rubberized polymer that contrasts beautifully with the cool metallic casework, and the top plate features the expected buttons for power, pairing, play/pause and volume adjustments, as well as a subtle power LED light. Beneath the fabric strap (it is a shame this strap is too small to slip over our wrist, as you can with the Beosound A1 2nd Gen, but that's a small issue) you'll find a USB-C port for charging, but there are no other ins or outs here. What I was particularly amazed by was just how controlled the sound was no matter the volume. Lower bass frequencies really do rumble and vocals in the higher frequency range cut through with clarity and precision. It’s an absolute joy to listen to.
From launch, BeoSound 4 could be wall mounted or positioned on a floor stand. The floor stand featured a turned stainless steel column which could not hide the connection cables. This solution was not a popular choice. BeoSound 4 – the new compact audio system, with a touch of magic But the bar is also capable of remarkable mid-range clarity. That center-mounted coaxial driver is beautifully articulate, not just with movie dialogue, which is always easy to follow no matter how busy the soundstage, but also music. Industrial design is outstanding. There’s not a millimeter of spare space beneath the hood (which goes some way to explaining its weight), yet an insistence on modular construction means it can always be repaired or upgraded. This isn’t so much a soundbar as an heirloom, if B&O lives up to the promise there. What is perhaps more interesting and impressive, is that B&O has designed the Beosound A5 so that it can be easily repaired – should it ever become necessary – and upgraded. This is thanks to what it calls the Mozart platform. This refers to both the modular and long-lasting design of the Beosound A5, and software updates that allow it to be future-proof. Mozart also, says B&O, helps to reduce the company's environmental impact. B&O says many of the elements of the A5 are replaceable by the user, such as the covers. For more intricate repairs or replacements, Bang & Olufsen is on hand to provide its services.Two things are immediately apparent when using a Nothing Phone (1) to deliver audio via Bluetooth. The first is that the smartphone steps down to the bog-standard SBC codec - which seems to confirm the A5 is compatible only with SBC and AAC rather than anything of greater quality. That is a disappointment, no two ways about it. Despite the price tag, this is not a replacement for a high-end AV receiver system. It’s something altogether different. Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the Theatre is its bass handling. This all-in-one slams like a battalion of subwoofers. It can drop seriously deep, and is capable of quite startling dynamics. Those two forward facing 6.5-inch woofers know how to pressure load a room. Despite being a wireless device, and having a handle, the Beosound Level certainly isn’t a portable speaker. It weighs 3.3kg and measures 34.8 x 23 x 6.6 cm – suffice to say you won’t be carrying this out on your picnics. The speaker features B&O’s Acoustic Lens Technology: a 4cm full-range driver housed in the top dial fires down into a precisely shaped guide to ensure the sound is spread out evenly in all directions. This means that all loudspeaker drivers are working together not only to produce sound, but to control its beam width and direction –essentially, it's, B&O's answer to Dolby Atmos in a solo product that sits under your TV.
This isn't B&O's first foray into sound for TVs though. Building on the Beam Width and Beam Direction Control developed for Bang & Olufsen’s flagship Beolab 90 speakers (and who could forget the stunning, butterfly-like Beovision Harmony TV and sound-system in one, or the opulent Beosound Edge?) and launched at IFA, Beosound Theatre introduces a new three-dimensional sound directivity, thanks to the patent-pending combination of the direct, side- and up-firing speakers. Most immediately impressive is the integration of the frequency range. A frequency response of 45Hz to 22kHz, provided by a trio of drivers, isn’t always a recipe for smooth integration – but the Emerge hides its crossover points well, and consequently there’s a unity and completeness to the Beosound’s presentation that’s in no way a given from products like this. It’s specified with longevity in mind. It’s built from high-quality materials to a very high standard indeed. Thanks to a brilliantly realised control app, it’s a model of ergonomic good sense. It has the battery life to last the whole day and the power to fill a room with sound. And most importantly of all, that sound is balanced, convincing and thoroughly engrossing. When you choose radio as your source, the radio will start playing on the station you last listened to. If you choose CD as your source, it is essential that a CD is first loaded. If you do not choose a source, the radio, by default, will be used for your Wake-up Timer. Beo4 operation It must also be said that it really is a phenomenal-sounding speaker, one that I wholeheartedly think deserves its price. When you factor in the sound quality, the beautiful design and the fact it has the Bang & Olufsen name attached, the price starts to become justified.
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As is standard operating practice for Bang & Olufsen, the Beosound A5 portable, battery-powered wireless speaker is a design-led, individualistic product with a considerable price attached. But despite the possibly rather frivolous nature of its looks, the A5 is all business. In late 2002, the monthly magazine Nikkei BP Design marked its 15th birthday by conferring gold, silver, bronze and special "Nikkei Design" awards. Bang & Olufsen won an impressive bronze award for BeoSound 1. In their citation, the judges emphasised the striking design and that Bang & Olufsen are challenging the market for portable music . They also emphasised that the relatively low price will appeal to young people, while the straightforward functionality will "appeal to the older generation". (From Beolink magazine 5, March 2003) As well as the spacious, 3-channel sound, the Beosound Stage also comes with four built-in woofers, meaning you don’t need a separate subwoofer for deep, powerful bass. Each woofer has its own amplifier, keeping a tight grip on the woofer for precise and accurate sound. The result is dynamic tension that keeps you on the edge of your seat during an action movie and the whole room entertained when partying.
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