Pulse Plus ACTIVE40PRO-WH 5 Inches Active Speakers (Pair), 40W RMS, White

Product Information

With an effects loop, you can choose to connect your effect pedals and processors for a more professional and full band setup. The effect dial allows you to select which channel you want these effects to be present on. Setting the Pulse up for the first time is an object lesson in how this process should be done. You actually get excellent literature to help you but the process is so effortlessly straightforward, I would be amazed if anyone has ever had to read it. The apps are easy to find and both Android and iOS are excellent examples of the breed. It really is one of the very best operating systems going at the moment and it makes many rivals seem fiddly and unreliable by comparison. No less importantly is that it scales effortlessly as you add more devices. That’s just one of a number of inputs, with the Mu-so 2nd Gen also housing a 3.5mm analogue input, USB Type-A port and Optical SPDIF. Sonically, it’s a powerhouse across the frequency range and can reach extremely high levels of volume with no noticeable drop-off in quality or clarity. There’s no support for voice assistants but the Mu-so 2nd Gen is a room-filling wonder of a wireless speaker. Perhaps the most attractive aspect of Sonos speakers is the Sonos app, which supports a huge variety of streaming services and platforms. Most of these are fully integrated so there’s no need to go skipping around different apps as you play your tunes or listen to the radio. There’s no Google Cast support but both Spotify Connect and Apple AirPlay 2 work.

Key specs – Drivers: 2; Wireless: Wi-Fi, Apple AirPlay 2; Voice Assistant: No; Remote: No; Companion App: Yes; Dimensions: 406 x 60 x 559mm; Weight: 4kg For a product of this type, the all-in-one speakers ultimately carry most of the weight when it comes to performance. The fact that we would award none of the three Pulse speakers five stars means that overall, it cannot really be a five-star system. The 2021 Zeppelin propels its way onto this list with streaming options aplenty, exceptional sound quality and Alexa built-in. Apple AirPlay 2 and Spotify Connect are both supported, while the easy-to-use B&W Music app allows you to integrate subscriptions to Qobuz, Tidal and more. Audio Pro’s emergencein the multi-room market is a part of why Bluesound has lost a star overall. There are still reasons why you might be prepared to spend a good deal more to buy Bluesound, though. Internet radio, podcast player, TV soundbar and smart technology control hub are just some of the roles the best wireless speakers can play. All-in-one wireless speaker systems capable of all of that aren’t as cheap as a regular Bluetooth speaker but there are plenty of reasonably-priced, feature-rich options for those on a budget.The products Bluesound has altered least on paper are the ones that have seen the greatest upturn in their fortunes. The Node 2i (above) and Powernode 2i (below) are now simply the best performing products of their type available for the money. In many ways, the Ruark R5 is a blast from the past. It houses a CD player, a detachable DAB-FM antenna and a pair of phono inputs along with an integrated phono preamp for hooking up a turntable. The Pulse 2i’s more muscular character makes for a startling first impression. This isn’t a small unit by any stretch, but it belies its physical heft to deliver a weight and scale of sound that easily fills our listening room. It pulls no punches when it comes to its dramatic and impressively detailed low end.

This new generation also feels freer to reach into treble frequencies and deal them with the same even hand as they do the rest of the output, while the considerable weight afforded to the bass remains taut and pleasingly agile.

Scores

But the Pulse 2i now struggles to organise instrumental strands as its predecessor did, and it fails to inject them with the same life that saw it retain its five stars when all else in the range dropped theirs. This is evident not only when comparing with rival speakers, but even with those products across the rest of the Bluesound range. The best wireless speakers deliver exceptional audio quality in your lounge, kitchen or bedroom, and while playing music remains their primary function, the more advanced among them deliver an array of useful features. However, it blends these seamlessly with its more modern wireless and Bluetooth streaming features and is delightfully designed, borrowing heavily from the radiograms that were popular with affluent families in post-War Britain. The Pulse M is compatible with every worthwhile digital audio file type (MP3, WAV, FLAC, MQA and so on) as well as quite a few less worthy alternatives. The crucial digital-to-analogue conversion process is handled by a DAC chipset with 24bit/192kHz native resolution.