Harman Kardon has launched what could be the slimmest floor-standing stereo audio system we have ever seen – and regardless of their slight frames, the wi-fi audio system include some beefy audio options that might make them the proper additions to your own home cinema setup.
The Harman Kardon Radiance 2400 wi-fi house audio system includes the aforementioned audio system, together with a subwoofer and a digital hub that you may hook up with your TV.
The brand new audio system boast a moderately breathtaking design, standing at 1.8 meters whereas solely being 51mm broad and 58mm deep.
A lot of the tech is packed into their round bases, which comprise the wi-fi parts and digital amplifiers for the system.
Skinny minnies
Usually, the bigger a speaker is, the extra highly effective it should sound. Nevertheless, by choosing an extended, skinny design, we’re hoping that Harman Kardon has discovered as option to ship a powerful audio efficiency with out sacrificing treasured flooring house.
With every speaker containing 24 1.25-inch transducers, the corporate says that they will ship “superior sound protection from nook to nook”. So, you’ll be able to count on a reasonably broad soundstage, then.
Additionally they include the corporate’s Digital Loop Amplifier know-how, which is designed to appropriate distortion and errors related to digital amplification, restoring the audio high quality.
Taking good care of the bass is the 200W 10-inch subwoofer, which additionally comes with a wi-fi design – so you will not have a number of cables snaking round your lounge.
The included digital hub comes with an LCD contact display, permitting you to regulate your music playback – or there is a Bluetooth distant management when you do not wish to hold getting as much as alter the quantity.
This digital hub might be related to your TV, which suggests you may use the Radiance 2400 system as a house cinema setup, rather than a soundbar or wired multi-channel speaker system. It may also be hooked as much as video games consoles and different AV units.
Because the system comes with Wi-Fi connectivity, you’ll be able to stream your music in excessive definition via the built-in Chromecast know-how, or by way of Apple AirPlay.
Each Chromecast and AirPlay permits for a multi-room setup all through your own home, so you may mix the Radiance 2400 system with different suitable audio system, such because the Harman Kardon Quotation sequence.
As you might have already guessed, the wi-fi audio system will price you a reasonably penny. That can be purchased from October this yr, you are taking a look at a £3999.99 price ticket for all that multi-room audio tech. Whereas international pricing is but to be introduced, that works out at round $5,500 / AU$7,400 – ouch.
Evaluation: the newest in an extended line of bizarre designs
Harman Kardon is not any stranger to experimenting with uncommon speaker designs – its Quotation sequence is proof of that.
The vary consists of countertop audio system, a soundbar, a subwoofer, and a pair of tower audio system all out there in grey or black wool cloth. The tower audio system are essentially the most eye-catching of the bunch, wanting like elongated pyramids – or maybe extra precisely, the cooling towers from a nuclear energy plant.
In 2020, the corporate expanded the vary with a beside speaker that options an alarm clock, in addition to a transportable sensible speaker (the Quotation 200) – each of which continued the sequence’ architectural aesthetic.
Sadly, the Harman Kardon transportable speaker did not fairly stay as much as our expectations. For starters, the onboard Google Assistant solely works if you’re related to the Wi-Fi, so you’ll be able to neglect any goals you had of utilizing it to show in your sensible thermostat on the park earlier than you get house.
We additionally discovered the bass to be overpowering, usually muddying the opposite frequencies – although the corporate has since launched a software program replace that lets you tweak the EQ settings of the sensible speaker.
In any case, we had been extra enamored with the Quotation Towers, which, as floorstanding audio system, will most likely provide a greater preview of what the brand new Radiance 2400 system will sound like.
Like every hefty stereo audio system, we discovered the Quotation Towers want positioning sympathetically. They’re not phobic about being in a nook, however they’re far happier out in a bit free house – say 12 inches from a rear wall at least.
That is one thing to keep in mind when you’re considering of shopping for the Radiance 2400 as an area saving measure – although we’ll have an interest to see if the lengthy, skinny design will affect the place the audio system might be positioned.
We just like the sound of the Quotation Towers, although – and if the Radiance 2400 sound something like them, you’ll be able to count on a well-balanced audio efficiency with a large, spacious soundstage. We simply cannot wait to listen to them for ourselves.
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