Hi all. I'm looking for a one box hifi solution for my kitchen. It must be able to receive UK based radio stations especially Radio 4 and 5 without needing a separate feed from a mobile phone. Wifi or bluetooth would be useful so i can stream into it from my iphone. A battery pack would be good for wire free usage but not essential. Could something like the Amazon dot do all this, could i tell it to play radio 4 and it find it without needing a separate feed? Ideally it would have connections out so that i could plug it into my Naim amp to play the radio through there.
One Box solution for radio and streaming music
- Thread starter shep1968
- Start date
Blacksabbath25
Well-known member
have a look at this https://uk.yamaha.com/en/products/audio_visual/wireless_streaming_amplifiers/wxc-50/index.html I’ve got one it will do everything you have mentioned .shep1968 said:
looks great and as you say does everything but the speakers are separate by the looks of it. Ideally i want one box to include speakers
Macspur
Well-known member
Blacksabbath25
Well-known member
no it doesn’t come with speakers but you could buy speakers which would be a better optionshep1968 said:
Yamaha do the pre-amplifier version and a amplifier version the unit takes no room up you can have the unit stand on end or have it lay flat it also has a very good onboard Dac , internet radio world wide , Spotify , tidal , app for your phone or iPad or use the remote control ,use active speakers with it
its a great box of tricks for the money
jjbomber
Well-known member
shep1968 said:
If the Naim amp has party mode on it, such as the later Unitis, then just buy a Qube or Mu-so.
I have to admit you have me a bit confused. Part of the qustion wants interconnects out for the Naim amp, hence BS25 suggesting a perfect fit with the Yamaha. Then you say you want built in speakers? You can always use the headphone out to connect via RCA to the Naim.
Ideally it would be pluggable into the Naim but the most important thing is that it is small and discreet. No external speakers. Sorry if i havent explained myself very well. The Naim isnt in thekitchen, ideally whatever i get would be portable to plug into the Naim if i want to stream. The Naim doesnt have party mode on it. Amazon dot would be perfect if i could get radio on it which is the main consideration. I'd rather not spend the amount a Muso costs, am thinking £200 max really.
Blacksabbath25
Well-known member
what about connecting your phone or iPad to the Naim ? Because you can get a radio app for both phone and iPad as there is a bbc radio appshep1968 said:
if your got a iPhone or iPad you can connect with Bluetooth or a single phono jack so you could listen to music though the Naim ?
knaithrover
Well-known member
Macspur said:
+1
I've got a Play 5 in my kitchen, amazing functionality and sound for the money. V posh boombox.
johnnyboy1950
Well-known member
If its just a box for the kitchen I would recommend the roberts 93i. I have one. Its got FM, DAB, internet radio, DLNA capability, (streaming from a NAS or desktop PC) and spotify connect. Its mains only and has aux output and line in. Network connection is wifi or ethernet. 2 stereo inbuilt speakers and a bass woofer at the rear.
I think also WHF gave it 5 stars.
Also about £150
I think also WHF gave it 5 stars.
Also about £150
Al ears
Well-known member
knaithrover
Well-known member
The Roberts radio looks good. Certainly does everything i want it to do apart from probably attaching itself to the naim which isnt a deal breaker. I saw the amazon echo range recently. Would i be able to get national radio stations, mainly BBC ones, through that simply by saying play radio 5.
johnnyboy1950
Well-known member
The roberts has a line out and a headphone socket (both 3.5mm) so with the right lead you could connect to your Naim. *acute*
Well my new kitchen is coming in a couple of weeks so the need for a replacement for the mini hifi system that is currently in there has come. I've got a choice between the Roberts but now the 94i and an amazon echo or echo plus. I presume i can stream from my iphone into both via wifi, i know i can stream via bluetooth into the roberts. I dont have spotify but do have amazon music. Presumably i can stream that into both. I currently stream into an airport express via my itunes collection (ripped CD's only) on apple lossless using the remote app and home sharing, presume i can stream from this as well into both. All are within my price range and ease of use is important. The major rider is this though. In your opinions which will give the better sound quality both for spoken word from radios 4 and 5 and from streamed music?johnnyboy1950 said:
I have the Ruark R4 MKIII
in my kitchen.
This all in one box meets all your needs, 2.1 speaker system with integrated subwoofer, CD playback, DAB+/DAB/FM radio,
apt-X Bluetooth,
80W power output with
3D enhanced stereo,
MP3, WMA, AAC playback
via USB port, OLED display and RotoDial controller
which is very cool.
Very versatile, you could connect the Ruark to your TV and other devices via the digital outs. The overall sound is Rich and smooth and very easy going, you could listen to the Ruark
for days with no fatigue!
http://www.ruarkaudio.com/products/r4-integrated-music-system
in my kitchen.
This all in one box meets all your needs, 2.1 speaker system with integrated subwoofer, CD playback, DAB+/DAB/FM radio,
apt-X Bluetooth,
80W power output with
3D enhanced stereo,
MP3, WMA, AAC playback
via USB port, OLED display and RotoDial controller
which is very cool.
Very versatile, you could connect the Ruark to your TV and other devices via the digital outs. The overall sound is Rich and smooth and very easy going, you could listen to the Ruark
for days with no fatigue!
http://www.ruarkaudio.com/products/r4-integrated-music-system
WhatTheTech said:
very nice, now if you can tell us where we can get one for the 200 sheets that the op was after, I'm sure we'd all be interested
Al ears
Well-known member
cheeseboy said:WhatTheTech said:
very nice, now if you can tell us where we can get one for the 200 sheets that the op was after, I'm sure we'd all be interested
There's them that follow the thread and there's them that don't...... ;-)
jjbomber
Well-known member
No problem, thanks for reading it and offering a solution. It does look nice but more than i want to spend and probably too deep for where it will go. Just seen that which gave the 94i a poor review due to its sound. Cant understand that. I do presume that i can stream for music held on my iphone either wirelessly or via bluetooth to both the 94i and the echo. In peoples opinions which would have the better sound quality please?
Just to add to the mix, one more to consider is the Revo Superconnect.
I bought a manufacturer refurbished one that fits your budget, and am well chuffed with it - you would not be able to tell the difference between new/refurbed; perfect condition.
I won't do a review of it here, but I believe it has all you're looking for and then some, including line out (optical and RCA)
I bought a manufacturer refurbished one that fits your budget, and am well chuffed with it - you would not be able to tell the difference between new/refurbed; perfect condition.
I won't do a review of it here, but I believe it has all you're looking for and then some, including line out (optical and RCA)
johnnyboy1950
Well-known member
SQ really shoudn't be your priority in the kitchen. OK don't buy some cheapie generic box you know nothing about. The roberts will be fine. When I listen in the kitchen I am usually doing something else, cooking, chatting etc. What's important is connectivity, functionality etc. You don't want to be faffing about with the kit if you are sweating onions on the hob!
I could stretch to the rev supper connect if necessary but is it sufficiently better than the 94i for me to justify it? Appreciate sound quality isnt going to be the best, certainly not compared to the Naim, but would it be a step up from the 94 and are either significantly better than the amazon echo?
shep1968 said:
Not directly answering your question, but I have a couple of 2nd gen echos I bought to experiment with. One sits on the kitchen worktop next to a Sonos Play:5. Every now and then I forget the '...on kitchen' at the end of a command and the echo plays the track on itself, not the Sonos. Most times, at resonable volume in the kitchen I don't notice the difference. It is only when I press the mute on the Sonos to answer a phonecall - and the music keeps playing - that I realise it is coming out the echo. I wouldn't recommend it for 'serious listening', but in the kitchen, it is just fine.
I would guess that Amazon are heavily subsidising the echo as they fight Google and Apple for market share. I am not sure how important voice control is for you, but at £90 for a pretty good wireless streaming speaker, it is tough to find anything better for anywhere close to the price.
I have to admit, I do get a smile whenever I ask Alexa to 'beam me up' and I get 'aye, captain, but the engines 'l ne'er take it' It must be my inner Trekkie coming through.
Similar threads
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram