Wireless Multiroom Speaker Reviews

Another day, another wireless speaker, right? We're pretty much much drowning in post-docks here at S+V these days, and aside from preferred protocol (AirPlay, DLNA, Bluetooth, pick your poison), most of these little guys have started to seem just a tad samey-samey.

When we checked out Cambridge Audio's original Minx 5.1 setup just about two years back we plain loved the little things, which we felt represented about the best miniature speaker system to date, the bargain price notwithstanding. Cambridge hasn't rested on their laurels, and in the intervening years they've taken the Minx concept and have built a whole line of cool little (and not so little) lifestyle products - read small, portable, wireless systems - around it.

As a guy who spends a lot of his life on biztrips and bike tours, I find Apple’s AirPlay wireless audio technology to be almost useless. Give me Bluetooth, baby! Bluetooth lets me haul my Soundmatters FoxLv2 to exotic locales (Houston, Indianapolis, etc.), zap it with music or Internet radio from my Motorola Droid Pro or my iPod touch, and enjoy the same listening options on the road that I have at home—minus my vinyl collection and turntable, of course.

But the new Libratone Zipp makes AirPlay almost as convenient as Bluetooth.

I don’t want to call Paul Barton a brilliant speaker designer, because that might imply that he lucks into occasional flashes of inspiration. No, Barton — founder and chief engineer of PSB Speakers — succeeds because he does the complicated and time-consuming work of building his products using the best science and engineering available. He doesn’t base his design decisions on pet theories, casual observations, or the latest line of B.S. circulating among online audio forums. And to my knowledge, he’s never allowed market trends, cosmetics, or form factors to ruin the sound of his products.

This is why I was so excited to find out last year that Barton was designing a new iPhone/iPod Touch dock for NAD, PSB’s sister brand.

The CD is dying. iPod sales are declining. More and more, people are getting their music from … well, everywhere: MP3s stored on a hard drive, Internet radio and music services like MOG, Pandora and the recently hyped Spotify.

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Surprising upper bass accuracy
Bluetooth or Wi-Fi
Privacy controls
Minus
Minimal stereo Imaging
Compressed sound

THE VERDICT
Who says you can't improve on perfection? The Sonos Era 100 is the new replacement for the much heralded Sonos One speaker. Does it offer improvements? Absolutely! With Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connections, voice assist and extremely loud playback, the Era 100 lives up to the usual Sonos hype with sound that delivers.

Move over Sonos One—there’s a new kid on the block and its time has come. The Era 100 is one of two new products from Sonos, the other being the larger, pricier Era 300. The Era 100 boasts an array of features that address many complaints from earlier products.

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Fabulous sound quality
Replaceable battery
Supports Alexa and Google Assistant
Convenient charging base
Minus
Mono playback
Audio input limited to wireless
No phone capability

THE VERDICT
The waterproof/dustproof Move is one of the best-sounding and full-featured portables available. It may just be my new favorite speaker.

Sonos is no stranger to compact speakers that play without wires, but the new Move ($399) is the first truly portable, battery powered model to come from the company. The Move's connectivity options let you tote it around the house and even outside when using Wi-Fi; beyond that, as long as it's charged up, you can take it anywhere and stream music via Bluetooth. The Move comes with a dedicated (and dare we say, stylish) charging base that eliminates fumbling around with connecting cables, and it can also be charged via USB-C (cable not included).