Time and time again we crave for B&O products just because the heart wants one, ultimately the brain kicks to say no. Like the Q, this is yet another item we’ve acquired that has been in the market for some time. It’s admittedly not the smartest of choices but it must be pretty special for us to actually buy one, four years after its release.
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The Devialet Reactor 900 too has sci-fi looks, produces nine times more firepower yet costing less. Packaged in the most interesting manner possible for a speaker, there is little wonder why they are in favour. A Reactor is capable of filling an entire room with sounds that’s free from distortion and saturation, says Devialet. Lower down frequencies in my opinion are too generous so I took the BeoSound home.
PRO
Clarity
Out of space looks
Room filling
Finishing
CON
Powering off
SPECIFICATION
102 watt
Bluetooth 4.2
Chromecast, Airplay
33 - 23.400 Hz.
RM 10,999
A$ 3,300
Setting up was easier than expected unlike horror stories spread across forums. Just follow straightforward instructions on the B&O app and while doing so, Symphony No. 25 plays majestically in the background.
Some described the bass to be exaggerated, simply uncheck loudness in the app and it’ll sound a lot more natural than any speaker on sale today. The Beosound 2 does sound inferior by having a mere 102 watt of power but have a listen because it will quite happily fill a mid-size room.
The Beosound digs deep down low with control, vocals are kept crisp while highs do not get piercing until the highest of registers. It too responses to fast-paced melodies with no hesitation regardless of volume. Low frequencies will satisfy bass heads and require turning down if space lacks absorbent materials.
Changing the track from whichever direction you go at it is made possible with proximity sensors, turning the top wheel alters volume and touch to turn on, play or pause. In practice, those sensors are always confused by walls therefore left is to skip a track instead of right.
"THE BEOSOUND IS PRESUMABLY MEANT TO BLEND INTO A ROOM MYSTERIOUSLY PIPING SOUNDS INTO THE ATMOSPHERE BUT ITS PRESENCE CAN’T QUITE BE IGNORED"
Wireless setup was easy to do and if you like an immediate effect to things, have plugged it next to the router. What’s actually annoying with the Beosound 2 is to turn it off. Have it tilted awkwardly to the right to reach for a button on the bottom left. That aside, packaging can be a lot more plush to be taken seriously which B&O has with later models.
When venturing this far out, it’s a combination of qualities and sound that cannot quite be explained by numbers.
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Listen to: