Access your digital library, listen
to thousands of internet radio stations, and beam content from a portable with
one of these clever boxes
Product of the year
Best streamer: $900 - $1,500
Cambridge Audio Stream Magic 6
Price: $1,050
With the ever-increasing popularity and
convenience of digital music, last year saw traditional hi-fi companies taking
a confident step towards network audio streamers. One of the brands leading the
pack was Cambridge Audio, whose offer of an affordable hi-fi streamer in the
shape of the entry level NP30 was so good we made our Product of the Year. So
how does Cambridge Audio follow that? Easy: do something even better.
The Stream Magic 6 ‘up sampling network
player’ is a talented and ultra-flexible streaming machine that also moonlights
as a DAC and a digital preamp. If you’ve got audio on a hard drive or a
UPnP-compatible NAS device, the Stream Magic can access it via Wi-Fi or
Ethernet.
It doesn’t end there: coaxial and optical
digital inputs let you connect products such as TVs, Blu-ray players, games
consoles, and improve their stereo sound by putting it through your existing
hi-fi system. There’s also optical apt-X Bluetooth streaming and, last but not
least, there’s access to a host of internet radio services and podcast too.
The ‘up sampling’ nature of the streamer
means that it scales all your music up to 24-bit/384kHz quality, in nearly all
popular file formats – FLAC, WAV, MP3 and AAC as well as supporting
high-resolution music, although it plays 24bit/ 192kHz only via the USB
asynchronous input.
Cambridge
Audio Stream Magic 6, the best streamer between: $900-$1,500
Scarily realistic sound
But what’s most admirable about the Stream
Magic 6 is its impressive handling of music, no matter what the file size or
quality. It delivers tracks with confidence and ease, and doesn’t shy away from
tackling even the more complicated arrangements. Crucially, it can start and
stop notes with precision which, combined with oodles of detail, openness and
power means it’s a captivating listen – especially with high-res files.
Of course, it also looks great with its
high quality finish, the display shows all track information, and the
iOS/Android app is a joy to use. This is a box that does everything you want it
to do and does it fantastically.
Best streamer up to $900
Pionner N-50
Price: $750
Pioneer has been taking its time observing
rival products and trends before releasing a storming debut of music streamer:
the N-50.
And that patience has paid off: if you want
one box that will play all the music that’s stored, on your computer, NAS
device, smartphone, MP3 player or TV or play online radio and other services
such as Spotify – this streamer has the UBS ports and digital inputs to do it.
Tonal shifts are conveyed with
remarkable ease, while vocals are expressive in a spacious and airy sound field
Pionner
N-50, the best streamer up to $900
Feature-packed
The N-50 can play uncompressed FLAC and WAV
files up to 24-bit/92kHz, along with standard AAV and WMA files, via the front
USB socket. It’s also Apple-friendly, so you can charge your iDevice while
streaming tracks, and AirPlay is supported too. The only minor inconvenience is
that it doesn’t have immediate wireless functionality, but plugging in Pioneer’s
AS-WL300 dongle ($105) takes care of that easily.
The N-50 also feels like a quality item:
its sturdy build coupled with the aluminum finish and minimalist fascia look
elegant and stylish. The high-contrast LCD display is easy to read, too, and
provides a wealth of information including album artwork, file format, sampling
rate and bitrate. And as for control, it’s up to you whether you use the
slender metal remote or the free Smartphone Control App both are easy to use.
Most importantly, the N-50’s sound is in
league with its list of features and functions. It’s got toe-tapping rhythmic
abilities, its dynamics are fluid and it packs in plenty of bite and
excitement. The top end is wonderfully controlled, never straying towards being
too bright, and bass notes are grounded with confidence and natural warmth.
Detail definition is impressive for a streamer at this kind of price too, with
subtle tonal shifts being conveyed with remarkable ease, while vocals are
expressive in a spacious and airy sound field.
Pioneer has struck gold with its first
network streamer at this competitive price point it’s a superb product in terms
of design, features and sonic performance.
Best streamer: $1,500 - $3,000
Naim NAC-N 172 XS
Price: $2,475
Naim has been an Awards staple in recent
years with its streaming products: its NDX and Uniti streamers each won an
Award last year.
So while it’s not surprising to see a Naim
product in this category, what is interesting is the type of product the
NAC-N172 XS is. This is Naim’s first streaming preamp, which combines the
features of its high-end streaming products with those of a traditional
preamplifier.
It’s a great sounding streamer: whether
you’re streaming compressed MP3 tracks or high-res 24-bit/192kHz files, the
Naim handles all formats with an even hand and no small amount of style. It has
a great sense of timing, presents dynamics in a nicely controlled yet engaging
way, even at higher volumes, and serves up heaps of captivating detail
The Naim foregoes outright transparence for
lively and smooth tone, which will serve you well if you have a library full of
varying music styles and file formats. You’ll have to look to something like
the Cyrus Stream XP2-Qx for the ultimate in detail definition and openness, but
the Naim delivers an exciting and involving performance that is more than worth
its asking price.
It has a great sense of timing
presenting dynamics in a nicely controlled yet engaging way, even at higher
volumes
Naim
NAC-N 172 XS, the best streamer between: $1,500 - $3,000
A pleasure to use
What’s more, the Naim is easy and unfussy
to use, thanks to the free n-Stream control app. It’s an intuitive design,
recognizes your sources inputs and all tracks and also displays handy in
formation such as the file size, as well offering a digital booklet for albums.
All in all, it’s a great user experience that makes the Naim all the more
enjoyable to use.
It’s a great, frontier-style time for
network streamers at the moment, and with such extensive features and
functionality, along with an excellent sonic performance for the money, this
stunning Naim preamp/streamer ticks all the right boxes.
