The Bayan Audio Bayan 7 is a curious-looking speaker dock which looks more like an oven that slots into a wall than a high-end iOS speaker dock (a black version is also available). But on closer inspection, it soon reveals its true purpose.

Set into its clear acrylic facia is a hefty bass subwoofer that also acts as its stand. The rest of the sound is supplied by twin 5cm full-range speakers and two 2.5cm tweeters.

The Bayan 7 has two amplifiers, one for the bass and one for the middle and high-end sounds. Altogether, the five speakers deliver 120W of power, so it won't leave you short of volume. Its comprehensive collection of drivers also gives it a very wide frequency response.

Around the front there's two 30-pin dock connectors, which fit every compatible device except the iPad. You can charge an Apple tablet using the USB port on the back of the Bayan 7, and play its sounds by connecting the supplied 3.5mm AUX cable (which can also connect to your Mac or any audio device with a headphone socket). But you can't use the rather fussy remote's iPod controls when listening to an iPad.

The hand controller also lets you set the volume, adjust bass and treble independently and switch between Music Mode and Vocal Mode, which is well tuned for spoken word media such as audio books.

Bayan 7 is suited for most genres of music, but if you like intense, room-shaking bass, it might not be for you. Although deep, rich and natural, its bottom end won't drown the mix even when turned up to maximum.

Its excellent stereo separation belies the proximity of its speakers, though the sound isn't as three-dimensional as it might be. But where Bayan's high-end speaker dock really scores is in its crystal-clear reproduction.

The Bayan 7 is not a speaker dock that looks good in any room, but you can't fault the sound. Whether its rather idiosyncratic appearance is a good thing or a bad thing is very much a matter of taste.

Philips Fidelio AS851 review

The Philips Fidelio AS851 is the flagship model in Philips' new range of Android docks.

Featuring two 15W 3-inch speakers, a microUSB 'flexidock', Bluetooth connectivity, a slick design and a £199 price tag, it's a premium product for sure. But is it really the Android dock that users are looking for?

Whether you love, hate or stand indifferent on Apple's iOS devices, you have to admit that Apple makes it very easy for third parties to build peripherals.

Stick your iPhone in any dock and it'll immediately start playing music and system sounds through the speakers without needing to set anything else up - that's the kind of user experience Philips is up against here. It's a system so abundantly easy to use that even a lobotomised crab could use one. Or Brian Belo.

But sadly, Android simply isn't a platform that offers that level of ease. In fact, in this sense, Android cannot really be described as a platform at all. It's a piece of software that runs on all manner of different devices, and here lies the first problem...

While Android is the best-selling mobile phone platform in the world - there are now over 200 million Android phones out there already - there are too many differences between devices to make a dock that suits them all.

There's different sizes, different connection types, different connection placements and orientations, different software layers, different internal components - the list goes on. So making a 'dock' that works "for Android" in general is simply not possible - hence why most manufacturers concentrate on general Bluetooth systems.

For instance, if you try to dock your Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 to the Fidelio AS851 you'll find that the female proprietary connector is totally incompatible with the male microUSB phallus on offer.

So if you're thinking of buying this dock, you should first make sure that your device has a microUSB connector. If it doesn't, don't waste your money.

We tested the AS851 primarily with a brand new HTC Sensation, and we have to say we were not hugely impressed. The tiny nature of the microUSB connection makes the dock very fiddly to mate with your phone.

The male docking part itself is fairly clever in that it can be slid across the front of the dock and spun round, so depending on the orientation and position of the port on your phone, you'll be able to dock it and have it sit in the middle.

For phones such as the Samsung Galaxy S II which has its port on its base, right in the middle, the dock works fairly comfortably. But with our HTC and many other handset models, the phone needs to sit sideways which is a lot more fiddly to both dock and use.

We were using the Spotify app, for instance, which cannot rotate into landscape mode and so when docked we had to operate it sideways which was not fun.

Simply getting our HTC Sensation to mate with the dock was fiddly in itself, and making it stay on the dock while using the touchscreen was tricky too - it's extremely easy to knock off its perch because the microUSB port is so puny.

The handset itself is heavy, and so the flimsy connection does not offer enough support.

Assuming you can get your phone docked though, you'd assume that Android would then send its audio signal straight to the dock, right? Wrong. Android is not able to do this currently, which means your phone also has to pair with the Android dock via Bluetooth.

The Philips Fidelio app, which you must download from the Android Market, auto-launches when you dock and turns Bluetooth on and pairs for you so it's not a huge deal. But the app was continually flashing up "switching Bluetooth on" notifications while docked, which was irritating.

And the app actually launches whenever you plug the phone into any power source rather than just when you dock, which is another annoying feature – it's not clever enough to work out what it's plugged in to.

You can, at least, remove your phone from the dock without your music being interrupted, but if you want to do that why not just buy a standard Bluetooth system and use your charger?

Sound quality

And this leads us to sound quality. For a dock with a recommended price of £199 you'd expect some pretty amazing sound, but unfortunately we were left wanting more.

Anyone easily seduced by bass will be kept happy, with low and high end, too, coming through fairly well. But there's a huge, gaping, awful hole in the midrange which really knocked the stuffing out of all the music we put through it. This dock is a long way from being a match even for Philips' own high-end iPhone/iPad speaker dock, the DS9010.

It's a huge disappointment and so audiophiles or indeed anyone who thinks they'll notice sub-par sound quality should probably stay away – this is a very common issue with docking speakers, but this isn't a cheap product and that's why we're not letting it off the hook.

Verdict

If you need to pair via Bluetooth, why not just save some money and buy a standard Bluetooth speaker system? For £200 (ok, you can pick this up for £175 on Amazon, but still…) you can buy some really decent kit which sounds better. And that's what we'd recommend you do.

There are reasons why there aren't loads of Android docks out there to go with those 200 million phones, and anyone using this system will soon find out what those reasons are.

We're not going to tell you that the Creative ZiiSound D5x speaker dock system is cheap, but we will tell you that you're probably going to want it badly.

Let's explain the different bits of hardware above first. There are two ZiiSound D5x speaker docks and one ZiiSound DSx subwoofer.

The D5x is an updated version of the ZiiSound D5. Creative tells us the sound is better in the D5x than the D5, but even putting them side-by-side, we're hard-pushed to tell the difference. Happily, though, even the D5 sounded awesome, so you should be more than satisfied.

The bigger news with the D5x, and the reason there are two above, is that you can link them together wirelessly, and even add the DSx subwoofer – again wirelessly.

You could link two speaker docks wirelessly in two different rooms to stream to both at once. Or you could have one and link a subwoofer, tucked in a corner somewhere. Or you could, as we've done, link two D5xs and a DSx as a 2.1 system, telling one D5x to be the left channel and one to be the right channel (rather than a left-and-right plus a left-and-right).

As with a normal speaker dock, you can just set your iPhone or iPod touch down onto the dock connector at the middle back of each D5x; it plays and charges your device simultaneously.

Lift your device off, though, and a little dongle comes with it that connects your device over Bluetooth to the D5x. So, you're now streaming music wirelessly to a set of speakers that are themselves connected wirelessly. We're in the future now. (Actually, there are even more configuration options!)

There are caveats. It's expensive (though you could start small and grow) and a pain to set up. What's more, there are sometimes horrid jitters when you switch tracks, and if you're not used to so much bass, you might feel overwhelmed – there is at least an adjustment dial on the DSx.

Without the DSx, one or more D5x's still sounds good; the sub just adds real punch to the low end.

It's also a shame that it doesn't use Apple's AirPlay, because that way you wouldn't need the dongle, and it would add flexibility.

NAD seems to have stuck to its established tradition with the C446 network audio player (the C in the model signifies it being a member of the Classic range).

Like the pioneering 3020 amplifier of many years ago, it is outwardly a giant-killer, giving the sort of musical performance for which you would expect to pay a lot more money, but with an appearance that you might call utilitarian.

Highly revealing

If you are enthusiastic about terrestrial radio, the C446 is thoroughly well equipped to deliver these services. It even sounds palatable with bandwidth-limited DAB broadcasts, playing through a highly revealing system. The presentation has unusual, but welcome depth and presence and is far more engaging than any DAB radio has the right to be.

Naturally, the C446 makes an equally fine task of servicing internet radio. Note that selecting and adjusting all the available sources is accomplished through the fascia buttons and rotary control, with the supplied remote control handset, or with an iPhone/iPad app, an Android device or a PC that is running Windows 7.

Setting up favourites on the internet radio can be done through NAD's wi-fi radio portal at vtuner. nadelectronics.com. The C446 also comes fully prepared to play Last.fm, once, of course, you have paid your subscription to the service. You can also play music from a USB memory stick or hard disk connected to the front panel port.

If you do not have a compatible iPod dock, the cable supplied with an iPhone (USB to iPhone jack) does not perform its usual function, so better put £100 aside for a NAD IPD dock.

The C446 will deliver its output as an analogue signal, through RCA sockets, or digitally, through a TOSLINK connection. This discovery sent us rummaging through a pile of wires – or, more correctly the wires and fibre optic box – to find a suitable interconnect. We found that a Chord Company Optichord lead, provided a reliable and sturdy optical connection through this fragile medium.

Our primary interest, however, lay with the media player portion of the C446, which can be served either with a wi-fi input or through a wired Ethernet connection, which was the preferred option, so that its sound could be reliably compared to that of other streamers available to us.

In fairness, however, we have to say that the wi-fi connection seemed to work extremely well, with no suggestion of any flakiness. The sound has a remarkable sense of solidity and purpose.

Regardless, we connected it to a pair of NAS units on a GigaBit network: a VortexBox Appliance, running Twonky v5 and a self-built unit running Asset v3.

Porsche GT3

The C446 tops out below 24-bit/96kHz recordings, although the literature implies otherwise, with talk of a 24-bit/192kHz DAC. According to NAD, the C446 DAC can handle sampling frequencies up to 192kHz, but in reality that appears not to be the case. The most we were able to play were 24-bit/48kHz rips, which often sounded superior to 16-bit/44.1kHz material.

But if you frequently purchase high-resolution 24-bit/96kHz recordings from HDTracks.com, or a similar web store you will be disappointed and will need to look at another player, such as the Marantz NA7004, for example.

Effectively, NAD has built what looks to be a Porsche GT3, but equipped it with the engine from a 1970's 1200cc Volkswagen Beetle. It is disappointing for those who want to buy higher resolution downloads and anyone who transfers their vinyl onto hard disc: that transcription process is such a palaver that it is really not worth considering low bit and sample rates.

The unit is rather Spartan inside, with a noticeably compact power supply PCB, with a matchbox-sized transformer. There is certainly not the humungous, weighty toroidal transformer that one would expect inside a piece of equipment offering high-end performance. Regardless, we heard no signs of the power supply buckling under the pressure of playing music, so all appeared well.

Its performance on radio sources seemed rather outstanding, in particular the way it refused to sound ethereal or thin and wispy. Instead it sounds full-bodied and firmly rooted and renders voices with remarkable conviction. Performers on Radio 4 broadcasts sound appreciably 'real', three-dimensional and free from any coloration – no chestiness or adenoidal afflictions are evident.

CD-quality rips

The resolution restriction is unfortunate, because the C446 is otherwise a very fine-sounding network player. With music being supplied from a VortexBox Appliance NAS, through a NetGear GS108 Gigabit switch, the sound from the C446 instantly impresses with its rhythm, dynamism and natural sweetness.

Listening to CD-quality rips, it sounds thoroughly engaging and renders music in a wholly plausible fashion. It sounds smooth and composed, even on lively, maybe slightly over-enthusiastic, recordings.

For instance, on Licensed to Ill it makes the Beastie Boys sound like the middle class, Jewish preppies they were and not the hard-core gangsta rappers they seemed to want to be. The player seems to have the knack for digging out details that are musically relevant.

On the Tedeschi Trucks Band album Revelator, it has no trouble in letting the listener know which guitar is playing up front: Derek Trucks' Gibson SG, or Susan Tedeschi's trademark Fender Telecaster, or less frequently her solid-bodied D'Angelico. It finds no difficulty in rendering the timbre of the guitars accurately and easily conveys the player's attack on the strings and the tonal qualities they wrung from their instruments through their different approaches to playing (neither is a big fan of pedal-boards.)

The C446 was equally informative with vocal performances: it vividly differentiates the qualities of Susan Tedeschi and Sandy Denny's voices, revealing the latter to be finely honed, powerful and technically excellent, while Tedeschi's perhaps lacks that English refinement and polish, but more than makes up for it with soul, passion and emotive power.

Listening to The Allman Brothers Band playing In Memory of Elizabeth Reed on Live at Fillmore East, the interplay between Duane Allman and Dickey Betts' playing is nothing short of heart-aching and sublimely beautiful. Equally, Greg Allman's keyboards and the mighty, two drumkit and bass rhythm section provoke similar reactions, when you hear their playing unveiled and open to scrupulous, but effortless inspection.

Leading contender

There is no doubt that the C446 is a leading contender for anyone who is content listening to MP3s and CD rips, but if you demand higher resolution, then its restriction to 24-bit/48kHz recordings is too limiting in a world where 24-bit/96kHz downloads are fast becoming ubiquitous and the 'hi-res' norm.

Our only other concern is that you need an additional iPod dock to listen to tunes on your iPad, iPod, or iPhone. The Marantz NA7004, with Apple Airplay, allows no additional extra cost access to your iPod along with iTunes and as well as giving access to its internal DAC to other sources, makes the C446 look distinctly uncompetitive.

Sonos Play:3 - Overview and features

Sonos has been leading the wireless multi-room music revolution since before anyone really knew what wirelessly streaming music was.

The idea being that you can stick a speaker in every room and wirelessly play your digital music tracks on any or all of them at once.

The company's last wireless speaker unit, the Play:5, was an excellent piece of kit – we gave it 4.5 stars – but the one thing that the it lacked was an affordable price tag.

But, after a spot of rebranding, Sonos is back with the Play:3, a speaker set offering the same great functionality in a smaller, cheaper package.

Price drop

The lower price is big news - a single Sonos Play:3 will set you back £259 which may sound like a fair lump of cash, but it's a snip compared to the Play:5 units, which sell for around £100 more.

The beauty of the Sonos system is that you can start with one speaker attached wirelessly to the Sonos Bridge (which, in turn, is attached to your router by Ethernet cable), and later add more to the system in different rooms – as many speakers as you like up to 32 (in case you happen to live in a palace).

Once you have speakers all over you house, you can control them all from your PC desktop. The other option is to use the free controller app on an iOS or Android device; perfect if you don't fancy shelling out over £200 for Sonos' own touchscreen controller.

Unfortunately you do have to go through Sonos' proprietary software, which takes an image of all the music and playlists stored on your PC and allows you to create a queue of songs to be played.

But it also gives you the option of listening to the hundreds of digital and internet radio stations out there, or, wonderfully, hooking up to a premium Spotify account and a handful of other online music services.

The Play:3 comes with three speakers inside its plastic and mesh housing, where the Play:5 has five; this means you're looking at slightly less rich music playback – but we'll come back to that later.

It does all come in a smaller housing, though – about half the size of the S5, meaning its small enough to slot onto a bookshelf or into a kitchen nook, with feet on both sides so you can stand it either on its side or on its end.

There's also the wall mounting option, as the Play:3 comes with the necessary holes for a standard wall bracket (sold separately).

Sonos Play:3 - performance

Wireless multi-room music streaming may sound fairly daunting to a technophobe, but the Play:3 is very simple to set up. If you already have a Sonos system set up, it's a case of plug, pair and play, if not there are just a couple of extra steps to follow. Sonos really has made it incredibly easy.

For such a small speaker, the Play:3 manages to fill a good-sized room with sound, although it's worth thinking carefully about placement as the drop off as you move to the side or back of the unit is quite significant.

Music playback from both a Spotify account and your existing MP3s is very satisfying; the Play:3 handles bass better than we'd expected with just a hint of fuzziness, but its trebles are occasionally a bit tinny, especially at higher volumes.

Inside the Play:3, there are three dedicated amps that work with the three interior speakers; one tweeter, two mid-range drivers and a bass radiator. This means it's lacking one tweeter and one subwoofer driver compared to the Play:5.

So yes, there's a drop in sound quality – compared to the Play:5 you lose a that rich creamy quality to playback.

It's not the speaker for audiophiles who'll notice and hate that slight fuzz, who'll pick up on when distortion is that little bit too distorted and a bit jarring on the ear.

But there is the option to install two Play:3 units in one room for stereo playback, which should round the sound out. We haven't tried it yet, though; we're waiting on a second Play:3 unit to arrive, and will bring you our verdict on this next week.

Because you've got the option to turn the Play:3 on its side and slot it on to a shelf in portrait mode, you might think you're going to get unbalanced playback because the speakers are formatted for landscape – but you'd be wrong; there's an accelerometer inside the casing that detects when its turned on its side and adjusts the playback accordingly. It works really well; you'll notice the music shifting and the sound changing as you turn the speaker, and once its in place, there's minimal difference between the two.

On the software side of things, we're not in love with Sonos' proprietary player; although it has no trouble finding music folders and syncing existing playlists from iTunes and Spotify, the queuing system is a bit clunky and, at times, slow to respond.

However, the free Sonos iPhone app is excellent. Changes made to the volume and playlists are immediately reflected by the speaker and switching between playlists was straightforward.

The only problem we had with the app was with navigation; at times it's easy to get bogged down in a mire of now playing and the existing queue, and a little too difficult to get back to the main home screen.

Sonos Play:3 - Verdict

The Sonos wireless system is so easy to set up and use that it's difficult not to rave nonsensically about how wonderful it is; and despite the lower price tag, the Play:3 doesn't let it down.

We liked:

The easy set up, the wealth of music options (digital radio, MP3s, Spotify, Last.fm etc.) and the size of the Play:3 are all major positives.

Being able to slot the unit into a nook or cranny where, previously, we'd have had to make do with a low-quality wired speaker is brilliant, and we're absolutely in favour of the lower price point.

And despite that, you don't lose out much on sound quality with a full, filling sound that offers the depth and breadth of a larger system.

The free control apps for Android and iOS devices offer a brilliant remote control experience at no extra cost.

We didn't like:

We're still not massive fans of the price; for a system that is intended to be built up and added to, you're still looking at over £500 to kit out two rooms; and that's not even counting the premium Spotify account (£10/month) or any additional extras like the remote.

While the Play:3 is brilliant for incidental rooms, like the kitchen or the bedroom, you're not going to want to replace your high-end living room hi-fi system with the dinky little speaker, and audiophiles will no doubt notice the grating trebles and slightly hollow bass more than most.

We'd really like to see Sonos rethink its desktop software, which isn't very beautiful to look at and could be clearer to use.

Verdict:

The Play:3 is an excellent multi-room option and brings the Sonos system slightly closer to the realms of the common man's bank account; worth saving up for? We think so.

At Munich's High End 2010 show, Cambridge announced the NP30 network streamer. By the time the same event came around this year it had just about finished it.

Cambridge's excuse for this extraordinary tardiness is that network audio is a fast-moving business and things change every day; its engineers wanted to get the first streamer right and this took time.

Built into the half-width Sonata casework, the NP30 is a neat unit with a host of features and apps for large and small touchscreens, as well as a traditional remote. It offers the delights of several streaming services as well as Cambridge's own Uuvol net radio portal.

Man machine

One reason why the NP30 took so long is that Cambridge did a lot of the work in-house, which with streaming systems is pretty rare due to the man hours required in programming. The advantage is that it gives the company more control over the end product and allows it to make updates as and when they are required.

Perhaps this is why it had trouble in finalising the design; there's always another tweak!

The NP30 has ended up being a 24-bit/96kHz-capable player that will play all the key formats with the exception of iTunes' Apple Lossless and one particular flavour of FLAC. It has a wireless antenna, but you are encouraged to use the RJ45 socket for an Ethernet connection direct to your network.

Like the Cyrus Stream XP it's designed to be used with a UPnP NAS drive, but if you have Twonky Media on your computer it can play files from that source as well.

Its back panel is equipped with analogue and digital outputs, plus the Ethernet port and a USB input for 'local media' material stored on a USB drive, so long as it's a FAT-formatted drive (as per PC drives rather than Mac).

It's probably possible to get around your music collection using the front panel keys, but as these are duped and enhanced on the remote it's an unlikely pursuit. The display is big enough to be read a couple or so metres away and once you remember that you can't go back a page with the navigation ring but have to use the return button things get a bit easier.

The sexier option is the Uuvol app, which can be downloaded gratis onto your Apple touchscreen device. This is a lot easier to use and doesn't require any squinting, in fact in its Touch/iPhone form it's a very nice interface.

Scrolling through lists is initially jerky, but quickly smoothes out once it's got a grip on the full track listing. The app also lets you find radio shows both live and on-demand and gives you the option to save them to the list of 20 presets.

The BBC iPlayer is a treasure trove, but you have to delve down through no end of screens to get to the music. This is not entirely Cambridge's fault. It's also great to be able to find so much from the comfort of your armchair.

Its other streaming services consist of Aupeo, Live365 and MP3Tunes, but none of the bigger ones like Last.fm or Spotify. Aupeo is quite interesting, playing music like a radio station without the links you can select by genre and it displays artwork as well as bit rate in surprisingly specific terms.

Mystery control

Cambridge packs an awful lot of networking technology into the NP30 and at £400 you're never going to get fancy casework, rather you get solid build that's in much the same vein as the rest of Cambridge's dedicated audio products, except smaller.

The handset is a variation on the usual theme and works well enough, albeit with some counter-intuitive tendencies that become familiar fairly swiftly.

One thing that initially fooled us is the volume buttons, which had a distinct effect despite the unit supposedly having a fixed output. It turns out that the remote can also drive this aspect of our ATC preamp.

There is competition at this price level from Logitech's Squeezebox Touch and Duet network players, which can play a good range of formats including Apple Lossless and support 24-bit/96kHz streaming, but are less geared toward NAS drives, although some models do work.

There is also a well-priced network player from Marantz: the NA7004 has access to services including Napster and Last.fm and the Mac-friendly AirPlay facility. It also comes in a big box with a Marantz D/A convertor and output stage for under £600 if you shop around.

Scrolling away

Finding the tune of your choice on the NP30 is significantly easier using the app than with the remote and front panel display. This is because there is no means of jumping to songs or artists using an initial letter.

Something that the Squeezebox and Cyrus let you do, but what the latter can't do is to stream wirelessly up to CD's 16/44.1 bit rate and this makes a decent fist of the end result as well. We put it up against a Squeezebox Touch, via both digital and analogue outputs and in both instances the Cambridge made a strong case for the extra asking price with a rich, detailed and refined sound that makes the Touch sound basic, which it ain't.

Using its digital output, via the Resolution Audio Cantata DAC/preamp, reveals the NP30 to be a very capable and entertaining player with an appealingly open, detailed presentation that holds up to the exposure of a high-resolution system.

The 24-bit/96kHz version of Peter Gabriel's Boy in the Bubble is very strong on atmosphere, his voice seems present in the room but the space in the studio is clearly an alien construct. We had difficulty playing a favourite hi-res track however, because the unit's clocking system can't cope with 88.2kHz sampled material, such as you find on HDtracks.com.

Listening to internet radio proved most gratifying: Radio 3's high bit-rate AAC stream is particularly impressive, as is the ease with which you can track down on-demand programmes from the BBC. Aupeo is quite fun, too and we found at least one new artist that we'd like to hear more from on the jazz fusion stream. It seemed more like post-rock, but what do these names mean anyway!

Net radio

This new network player brings with it a lot of features and an open sound for a very competitive price. The interface using the front panel display has its limitations however; you really need the app and a suitable touchscreen device to be able to enjoy the product.

Wireless streaming is very effective, more so than both the Cyrus and Naim entry-level products, while set up of both web radio, streaming services and stored file access is pretty straight forward.

We particularly like the Uuvol net radio system because it gives so much information. All-in-all the NP30 looks like a bargain for those taking their first steps in high-quality streaming.

High-end audio tends to be a tad expensive. When a manufacturer sets out to employ specialised military-grade internal components that are large and massively over-specified, you can't expect prices to be low.

Nevertheless, some high-end manufacturers relish the challenge of designing products that deliver a taste of high-end performance at more wallet-friendly prices. After all, it's not easy to produce outstanding results within tight budget constraints, but Audio Note's Zero System aims to do just that.

It offers high-level performance at prices that are realistic. Individually, each item boasts sonically excellent results which compare favourably with similarly priced (and more expensive) competition. But, at the same time, there's the promise of something more: an overall result that's greater than the sum of the parts. And it's when you put the whole thing together that the magic begins.

Less is more

In keeping with the minimalist ethos of high end, each Zero System component is a simple no-frills design. Audio Note takes a less-ismore approach, so don't expect to find anything more than the absolute basics.

The IZero integrated amplifier offers four line-level inputs, plus a set of loudspeaker outputs. There's a volume control and an input selector, and that's it!

The Zero CD/II CD player is only a little less Spartan: you get the usual operational controls, a single set of unbalanced analogue outputs, plus a digital output. A remote handset is supplied with the CD player and there are buttons for direct track-selection and fast-search, a button to dim or turn off the illuminated display, plus buttons for repeat (one track or the whole disc), random track playback and time – either track elapsed time, remaining time (track or disc) and total elapsed time. There are additional buttons for volume and input selection that, unfortunately, have no effect on the IZero amplifier.

Both amp and CD player feature tubes. The amplifier employs four ECL82 output tubes (two per channel), run in Class A up to about 80 per cent of their power and then switched to Class A/B.

The CD player features a single 6111WA tube in the analogue output stage, with a Philips TDA 1543 filterless DAC used without up-sampling. The transport is a modified Philips L1210. The 6111WA tube is soldered in place and Audio Note claims its lifespan should exceed 100,000 hours.

Retro appearance

Audio Note offers its Zero electronics with a choice of fascia plates – silver alloy, or black acrylic. Our review samples came in the former and look understated, but smart.

There's nothing flashy about the build quality. Each item is nicely finished, but the plain somewhat 'boxy' styling means there's not much 'wow' factor. Both amplifier and CD player exude a distinct retro appearance and will appeal to those who prefer hi-fi with a traditional look.

The AZ Two loudspeakers can be obtained in black ash, rosewood, beech, or cherry veneers and again styling is fairly traditional. No grilles are supplied, but these can be bought as accessories for about £60.

Given all this, it's unlikely that anyone will choose the Zero system for 'battleship build quality' or stylish appearance. So, whether or not it offers good value is intimately related to how highly you rate its sound quality.

The CD/II and AZ-Two speakers are both very fine-sounding products that will easily stand comparison with comparably priced (and dearer) equivalents from other manufacturers.

The CD player is especially good, giving a rich warm, yet open tonality that is unusually 'analogue' in nature.

The amplifier is excellent too. While its lack of power makes it expensive on a pound-per-watt basis and limits its usage to efficient speakers only; it sounds absolutely gorgeous – the audio equivalent of smooth rich chocolate!

Lively and assertive

Since the IZero amplifier offers just eight watts per channel, power output could be an issue. Fortunately, the speakers offer reasonably high sensitivity (around 93dB) and make the most of the power available. They seem fairly easy to drive, too; our guess is they don't represent a nasty difficult load and this helps maximise the IZero's limited output.

The innate naturalness of the amplifer's ECL82 output tubes helps ensure a gorgeously smooth and richly detailed sound that has excellent clarity and definition. And, allthough 'only' eight watts, the sound has remarkable presence, plus surprising weight and drive, with impressively crisp transients.

When partnered with sensitive speakers, like the AZ-Twos, youu'd never suspect the IZero has so little power – it sounds unfeasibly immediate and assertive. If you push it past its power limits, the sound tends to compress slightly and maybe gets a wee-bit congested. But, on most music, most of the time, you can play as loudly as you like without obvious power-limitation problems.

The CD Zero/II provides a smooth, clean, refined-sounding source that combines dynamic presence with a rich, beguiling silky-liquidity. It really is a CD player for those who don't like CD.

The AZ-Two loudspeakers make the absolute most of what they're given, sounding lively and assertive, with lots of brilliance and detail. A slight forwardness in the upper midband, ensures the music projects into the room with plenty of authority and presence.

We used the Zero system in a fairly large room and found it able to fill the space with relative ease. It went as loud as we would ever want. Even on uncompressed recordings of vocal music (opera, choral, classical lieder), which normally test low-powered amps to destruction, the system covered its tracks. If the amp was under pressure, it hardly ever showed signs of distress.

We're not recommending this system for headbangers. But, although (on paper) somewhat challenged in the wattage stakes, lack of amplifier power is much less of an issue than you might think. On rock or classical, the sound is sharp, transparent; very clean and nicely balanced. It's subtle and delicate, yet suitably gutsy and immediate when the music demands muscle.

As previously mentioned, the tonal balance exhibits a mild degree of upper midband forwardness and this sometimes results in a sense of peakiness. However, after listening for a few minutes, this impression diminishes and one quickly adjusts to what's on offer.

The AZ-Two is very good at pitch differentiation and has excellent timing. You're literally drawn into the music. We found the Zero system very good at conveying the impression of people singing or playing in a unified coherent manner, so that the music (and performance) makes sense.

Our review samples had hemp-coned bass/mid drivers. What's more, the clarity and definition proved excellent, conveying a clear impression of forward momentum. Subjectively, the speakers produce nicely extended bass – the bottom end might not seem obviously 'full' or powerful, but it's clean and free from smearing.

Claimed low-frequency point is about 28Hz, but we found a reasonably healthy output down to 20Hz. Placing the speakers near to walls or corners will increase bass output.

A winning combination

Audio Note's Zero system is a great advertisement for the benefits of partnering a good low-powered amp with sensitive loudspeakers. It's a winning combination of cohesiveness and integration; brilliance and detail; dynamics and attack.

With each individual component being very well matched, the overall result is superb and, as we've already indicated, as separates they need no excuses making for them.

Obviously, the lack of power is a potential limitation that needs consideration. But, when partnered with an efficient loudspeaker like the AZ-Two, even this is hardly an issue. Indeed, if you play your Zero system at full tilt, you'll probably get complaints from your neighbours!

NAD has been at the forefront of entry-level hi-fi components for decades and still produces its famous battleship grey components at a variety of price points to suit most pockets. More recently, we have seen a move towards more – dare we say it – stylish components with the Masters series at higher price points and an entry into more lifestyle components with the VISO series.

Following on from the DVD-based VISO Two and Five systems, the new £750 VISO Three is the first two-channel audio member of the family. It's a stereo receiver, comprising an internal CD mechanism able to play the usual span of CD-based formats plus an FM/AM internal tuner.

Additionally, a front-mounted USB socket will replay audio from correctly formatted USB sticks Supplied with the system, but separate to the casework, is an iPod dock that can be controlled from the remote (as well as curiously being supplied with a small one of its own).

In markets with digital radio, the unit is available with the DB-2 DAB/DAB+ for an additional charge of £100.

Backed up by a 50-watt internal amplifier it's certainly up to the task of powering the majority of speakers that the VISO Three is likely to encounter. NAD has put some thought into the types of speaker systems likely to be used with the receiver and has fitted a subwoofer output to make connecting a sub, or satellite speaker systems relatively straightforward.

House style

Aesthetically, the VISO Three follows the house style of the other VISO components and this is no bad thing in our view. It's a handsome-looking piece of kit and manages to look more expensive than it actually is.

The gridiron metal top-plate that curves over to form part of the front panel is a distinctive and handsome feature and helps the NAD to look smaller than it is, which is a useful attribute. The fit and finish is generally good.

We like the clear and easy-to-read display and the standard of the paintwork and panel gaps is extremely high, as well. We are less sold on the volume control, which is a rotary encoder-type with no start and stop point. This is useful with very powerful pieces of equipment, but with the VISO Three, it means that it has to be rotated a fair distance to give an appreciable increase in volume.

The remote handset is also somewhat fussy. We appreciate that the given the amount of functions that the unit has, the remote will be relatively complex but it is still far from intuitive, more of which later.

Minor gripes aside, the VISO Three has to be considered good value for money. This is a well-specified device and being able to add DAB functionality – rather than paying for it outright – is a useful feature.

The feature set, coupled with the useful power output, makes the system a strong contender in the sub-£1,000 all-in-one category. An Ethernet-enabled version would be the icing on the cake – the big display makes browsing off USB simple enough for us to believe that browsing a network would be easy to do as well.

Balanced sound

We tested the VISO Three with Mordaunt Short Mezzo 1 and Audio Note AN-K loudspeakers.

Listening to CD first of all reveals many likeable traits. The overall impression is one of the classic NAD balanced sound – no one part of the frequency spectrum is accentuated or pushed forward to the detriment of other parts and it's easy to listen to for prolonged periods.

This can initially lead you to feel that the NAD is a little lacking in excitement, but more accurately the unit will not inject excitement into recordings where it is not present, although choosing more upfront speakers can change this.

We're particularly impressed with the soundstage the VISO Three presents; a believable three-dimensional space containing vocalists and instruments, whether that space be a tiny recording studio or open-air venue.

The internal tuner and external DAB module are both straightforward enough to tune to the stations we knew to be available in the area and the same neutral, but involving sound is present and the DAB section does a fine job of keeping more compressed stations listenable.

There was no DAB+ material to try the DAB module with, but the degree of future-proofing it offers is appreciated. The DAB module itself is not the smallest going, but seemed unaffected by being hidden at the back of a rack out of sight.

A fine line

Reading tracks over USB is simple enough and the NAD is a flattering source for compressed material. Our test range of MP3s (that vary from 320kbps/bit affairs to samples that would embarrass a ringtone) were largely left listenable by the VISO Three and it treads a fine line between revealing the detail in better recordings without mercilessly destroying poorer ones.

The iPod dock is less successful, however. Sonically, the dock is similar to most other analogue output-style docks we have seen, but it is hindered by fussy connections and a truly frustrating control interface. The dock needs power and a separate data connection to function and while all the cabling is supplied, the result is far from elegant.

The menu interface and options for controlling the iPod seem almost wilfully counter-intuitive and we were particularly unimpressed with the fact that iPhone and iPod Touch models are only able to output audio via their iPod functions rather than by third-party services, such as Spotify or last.fm – both of which would give the NAD an element of 'streaming on the cheap.'

Unflappable sound

The VISO Three impressed us generally, however, with an involving and detailed sound that is likeable and easy to listen to for long periods without ever becoming fatiguing or dull. The qualities of an engaging and unflappable sound are present and correct, and the fresh styling is a welcome departure from convention.

Where we are less convinced that the system is an unqualified success, is in the control and user interface. There are enough quirks, from the insensitive volume control to the truly clunky iPod interface for the NAD to never feel as integrated as the name might suggest.

Certainly, with the multiple connections for the iPod dock in place and the DAB module attached, the unit feels rather less like a cohesive all-in-one system and slightly more like an affiliation of the NAD parts bin in one (ish) box.

How much this will matter to you will largely come down to whether you intend to use the CD drive for the bulk of your listening or whether the iPod dock is going to be your primary source. If it is the former, the VISO Three is too strong a sonic performer to ignore.

Here's a genuinely tricky one: what do you call a bit of hi-fi that plays most of your digital sources? A hub? Maybe. Rotel calls its new RDG-1520 (Rotel Digital Gateway) a FM/DAB tuner with internet radio, but that's pure modesty.

For this convergence bit of tech is a tuner, streamer, iPod dock and DAC in one neat and very affordable (£795) box. It has been built in a similar vein to Marantz's NA7004 streamer, but also adds wireless ethernet.

Come together

Whatever you call it, the RDG-1520 is living proof of hi-fi convergence – sources coming together in a single place and in a reasonably user-friendly way.

Just exactly how user-friendly we'll come to in a minute, though it's worth mentioning at the outset that there is no one perfect solution, as people's expectations vary very widely. This unit has a simple text display and no video output.

Musical networking

So the RDG-1520 gives you the choice of radio stations and formats. It connects to your home network either wirelessly or via an Ethernet cable, accessing the internet through your router and it's a complete breeze to set up – all you need to know is which router is yours (unless your house is remote, a few neighbours' routers are likely to show up on the set up list too) and what its access key is.

And since it's connected to the network, it might as well be able to play music from the computer(s). This it will do if you have a suitable UPnP (Universal Plug 'n' Play) server. In most cases, this is simply a bit of software, quite possibly part of your computer's basic system though separate UPnP software is available.

The server needs to know where (in what folder) you keep you music, and the tracks are then searchable by the unit.

The good news at this point is that the Rotel has built-in support for uncompressed audio, right up to 96kHz sampling rate (though only 16 bit), in addition to all the usual lossy systems – MP3, AAC – WMA and lossless FLAC.

In principle, this should mean bit-perfect transmission, but we were unable to achieve that; most computers will resample by default and although the quality loss isn't huge (certainly nothing like lossy compression), it does typically introduce some artefacts and also limits effective sampling rate to 48kHz.

Add to all this a couple of handy wired inputs, one an A-type USB socket on the front for music players (including the iPod/iPhone family) and the other a regular S/PDIF digital input (both flavours, electrical and optical) at the rear, capable of handling sampling rates up to 192kHz, and you'll see why Rotel is proud of this baby. There's not much it won't handle.

Internally there's surprisingly little going on – or at least, there's little enough to see. That's a function of the high levels of integration, with FM and DAB reception being handled by a single small circuit board, for instance. A large mains transformer fronts a conventional linear power supply, while the DAC is from Wolfson and is followed by analogue stages using good-quality through-hole components, including very good op-amp chips. Rotel has clearly taken some trouble here.

Connections are much as one would expect, including separate DAB and FM antenna sockets. However, as these both connect to a single circuit internally, it is possible to set the tuner to use one or the other of these sockets for both DAB and FM. This works well enough if you have very good signal strength on at least one of the systems.

It's a little confusing to see what is patently a USB socket marked 'Ethernet' but this normally receives a wireless adaptor dongle. For wired Ethernet, a small separate adaptor is supplied.

As for the user interface, it's something of a matter of taste. We found it straightforward, though just occasionally it's not obvious which button one should press next. Operation is based on a simple menu structure, aided by the well-filled front panel (ditto remote) and the push/twist control.

Track names and so on show up just fine and we do particularly appreciate that file/stream type and bitrate are displayed. Incidentally, we're sure that on a couple of occasions we heard momentary dropouts from both wireless and wired (iPod) sources, which seems odd and we hope is not typical!

Tuning in

In a way, the obvious place to start on the sound is with the 'traditional' tuner functions. At least that means we can get them out of the way quickly, which is just as well really.

The FM performance is OK, but not great: there's reasonable clarity but everything seems a bit washed-out and grainy. By the standards of all-in-one DAB/FM tuner heads it's not bad, but if you want really class-leading FM you'll want an FM-only tuner, which will give better definition across the board.

As for DAB, it's fine – it sounds like DAB usually does – what else can we say? As good as any, but the format itself limits performance far more than the replay kit.

Internet radio is really the bright new dawn in more ways than one here. Ignoring the no-budget stations that put out something pathetic like 32kbps, results here can be very good indeed, certainly justifying taking a bit of trouble to decode and convert the bitstream as well as possible.

If you've explored internet radio on a computer, with typical attached computer speakers, you'll have little idea just how good some stations can sound. A product like the RDG-1520 is justifiable for any, but the most casual listening, giving as it does noticeably better resolution than lesser 'tuners'.

We found BBC Radio 3, for instance, to embody many of the best characteristics of FM and DAB without the drawbacks of either, while some German language classical music stations were nearly up to full CD-quality.

It also has a feature we haven't explicitly mentioned yet: internet radio. Rapidly approaching the 20,000-station mark, this is perhaps the biggest free music source yet. It also has some quite decent quality, thanks to high-data rates and better codecs than are used on DAB.

You can equally easily listen to mainstream stations from the UK and special-interest or mass-appeal stations from just about any country on the globe. The potential problem with such a wide choice is navigating it, and Rotel must be commended on neatly integrating this radio (and its other internet-enabled models) with the easy searching provided via a home computer.

Rotel's internet radio portal website allows you to register your RDG-1520 and store your choices against its serial number, thus creating a shortlist that's easily accessible via the unit. It's clever and effective, and we like it.

Listening to the stream

And, of course, music streaming from a local computer is full CD-quality if the tracks have been stored in such a format. In this case, the comparison between the RDG-1520 and a CD player is entirely fair and we tried it.

Indeed we tried a couple of decent players of recent vintage. We wouldn't say that the player completely walked it, but its sound held up well. It has good strong bass, with excellent extension and a satisfying degree of impact, allied to neutral midrange and treble that's just occasionally a touch dry but again well extended.

In terms of detail it's just a little behind the best, lacking a little precision and giving stereo images which are slightly compressed in both lateral and depth dimensions. It's a big advance on a lot of computer sound, just not quite the equal of good CD.

If we could find a bit-perfect UPnP server, performance in this area might be noticeably better.

Digital inputs, including USB (as always, for an uncompressed file), provide the ultimate test of the RDG-1520's internal hardware and the sound takes another step up. It's still not quite in competition with the best CD players and DACs, but there's a solidity to the sound which is most gratifying.

Even if there is still some work to be done to bring sound up to the level of the best 'traditional' hi-fi separates, units like this show that digital convergence need not be something for the audiophile to fear.

Why do so few iPod-compatible music centres incorporate a CD player? People still own CDs and many prefer to buy new music on disc and then rip it themselves rather than download through an online music store.

Vita Audio's R4i integrated music system could well tap into an under-served market, but given the price it will only be welcomed by hard-core audiophiles.

As well as a CD player and an iPod dock, the R4i includes FM and DAB radios, with five presets for each. There's no built-in internet radio, but if you have an iOS device you could use an app and play it through the iPod dock.

MP3 and WMA files can be played from CDs and USB sticks, but track, artist and album information aren't listed when doing so. It also has a clock with alarm functions, but given the size and weight of the unit, it won't find a natural home on your bedside table.

Indeed, the R4i's excessive bulk is its main drawback. It wouldn't even fit on most bedside tables, and at eight kilogrammes, it could prove too heavy for your shelves.

Its build quality and design are very good (the circular remote that sits in a caddy on the top of the unit is an excellent touch), but make sure you've enough space before investing in one.

Another drawback is that the R4i isn't shielded for the iPhone, so you might have to switch to airplane mode to prevent interference. This is a shocking omission given the price.

Thankfully, audio quality is far from shocking. In fact, it has one of the most complete sounds we've heard in an all-in-one system, with rich, strong bass, a well-defined midsection and a crisp, clear high end. Vocals are well realised, and there's no flabbiness or distortion anywhere. The sound is beautifully detailed, and its stereo effects are reasonable given the proximity of the speakers.

Although not exceptionally feature-rich, Vita Audio R4i gives a lot for your money. It has an impressive sound and performance, though we wish it wasn't so bulky.