today's review is on the new audioengine a1 wireless bookshelf speaker
the audioengine a1 is a compact yet powerful all-in-one speaker system
that's outfitted with the latest and greatest bluetooth 5.0
and aptx you can also connect this with turntables
tvs and the subwoofer we can't wait to tell you more about how this performs
and as always if you want to read more about the audioengine a1 be sure to
click the link in the description to be taken to our full written review
on audioadvice.com along with this review you'll find hundreds of other reviews
comparisons buyers guides and so much more
now let's get started at audio advice we are big fans of audioengine and we've had the pleasure of reviewing
several of their products before they were released
the company was founded by two music fans who each have worked at companies
like apple gibson guitars alesis and harman
kardon with their deep knowledge of technology
and musical instruments the founders created
audioengine to help people discover more music and appreciate the best
sound quality today audioengine makes a complete line
of products that deliver professional studio monitor sound without the hassle
of big clunky multi-component stereo receivers
in today's review the audioengine a1 wireless
is one of the newest products from audioengine to deliver this
level of studio quality sound right onto your work desk
or your living room space our test unit arrived in a dark
matte gray color that will look great in a wide variety of workstations or
small open living spaces we like the studio monitor look of the new a1
without the grille but it does look really good with the
grille too with a turntable or computer positioned between this pair of speakers
we think you'll have a professional looking studio monitor setup
when you remove the grille the enclosure sands six inches tall
four inches wide and five and a quarter inches deep
there's a horizontal venting port on the lower facade just below the woofer
and similar to the more expensive a2 plus the new
a1 speaker houses custom designed components within a well-constructed
cabinet the speaker features a two and
three-quarter inch woofer complemented with a three-quarter inch
tweeter the internal dual-class d power amps are wrapped inside precision
tuned cabinets which audioengine designed in their own
facility based in austin texas the left speaker houses the amplifier
and all the output and input connections so it weighs about four pounds and the
right speaker weighs close to three pounds
we think the small compact size of this setup makes it the perfect go-to system
for a desk in your office a table top in your living room or even
in your bedroom in the box there's a male mini jack to
male rca adapter included this can be used with turntables that
have a built-in phono stage for anyone who's getting interested in
turntables this is a great addition on the back of the left speaker there's
a volume control knob a push button switch to toggle the bluetooth pairing
mode on or off a 3.5 mini plug input to
connect a laptop cell phone portable music player or a
turntable there's also an output for a subwoofer and a set of speaker
connections to wire up the right speaker no usb input needed here bluetooth
already takes care of things so once you get the left speaker all connected
you just run the speaker wire to the right speaker and you're ready to rock
and roll what really sets the new a1 apart is the
addition of bluetooth 5.0 which gives you a wireless operating
range of up to 100 feet if you pair the speaker system to your phone
not only will the a1 work much farther away from your audio source but
bluetooth 5.0 lets you stream the same audio
source to multiple bluetooth headphones or speakers at the same time bluetooth
5.0 is also more efficient so it will actually consume less battery
with any bluetooth devices you pair with this
audioengine didn't stop here when it built a wireless speaker with the latest
bluetooth iteration though so audioengine used qualcomm's
aptx bluetooth technology which is designed to sound substantially better
than standard bluetooth so think music that's more detailed with tighter bass
and clearer mid-range in terms of audio playback this also means you can
bluetooth music directly to the a1 wireless
from your phone or your laptop natively up to 16 bit
48 kilohertz which is higher than the cd quality
the only downside with aptx is that it requires a device that's compatible to
hear the full potential of aptx currently the iphone doesn't support
aptx but most android phones and tablets do
apple ios devices can still connect to this with regular bluetooth signal
at audio advice we find that most people use bookshelf and desktop speakers with
computer setups however we've noticed an uptick in
people using audioengine bookshelf speakers with entry-level turntables too
so i tested the new a1 wireless in a few different scenarios
first i allowed our test unit to break in with a stereo mini plug connected to
my laptop and i have to say i was impressed
especially with the stereo imaging next i tried the a1 as a wireless
speaker system in an open room setting and finally as a near
field setup stationed on my computer desk
for our open room tests i streamed high quality audio from an iphone to the a1
wireless over regular bluetooth overall the mids and highs shine clearly
and the soundstage filled my smaller room
with good quality sound that would be more than suitable for cooking
or any activity where music is playing in the background
next i wanted to test the sound of the aptx so i used a google pixel 3 to
stream qobuz directly to the a1 wireless this is where the clarity of details in
the a1's imaging really opened up further testing of the a1's
bluetooth capabilities called for the project
essential III bluetooth turntable as an audio source which is a great entry
level turntable that also supports aptx even though this digitized the analog
signal of the vinyl record we were all really impressed with the
quality of the experience if you have a smaller space we still
recommend using the 3.5 millimeter mini plug to rca adapter for the best sound
quality moving the speakers a little further
apart from each other will also help spread the stereo image to
sound better in a larger room as bookshelf speakers go
there's really no argument that these were designed to sound the best when
listening at close proximity in this scenario you'll want to form an
equilateral triangle with the speakers so you're at equal distance from the
speakers we also have a video that's going to guide you exactly how to
achieve the best sound with a computer setup so be sure to
check that out as a work from home setup we were
impressed with the a1 stereo imaging as near field monitors the a1 presented
a warm sound with clear mid-range and good musical low end energy that helped
me feel energized while working from my home details in
the top end extension were clear and they didn't sound overbearing or
harsh due to the small size of these speakers there's not a ton of bass
however the bass that does come out is very good for being such small
speakers the audioengine a1 wireless speakers are a great addition for almost
any setup for the size and the price similar to audioengine's more expensive
a2 plus the new a1 wireless is small and will benefit from adding a subwoofer
to present more bottom in weight we think the audioengine s8 sub is an
excellent addition for this system this is one of the best sounding entry
point options we've ever listened to at this
price for less than 200 dollars it's the perfect solution for someone getting
interested in vinyl or who wants the modern conveniences of bluetooth 5.0
with the quality of aptx if you have any questions on the a1 or
any other home audio or home theater gear be sure to give us a call
chat with one of our experts at audioadvice.com or stop into one of our
raleigh or charlotte north carolina showrooms
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and until then we'll see you next time