Naim Uniti: If you want a compact system, there's hardly any way around Naim's all-rounder at the highest level. The Uniti combines Naim's sound virtues with absolutely ingenious possibilities.
Few others offer a CD player, network streamer, radio, and amplifier in one outstanding-sounding device. Additionally, USB sticks or Apple devices can be connected directly to the front USB interface. Control via an iPod or iPad app is also possible and practical. You can also see possible more affordable alternatives in the picture: The Arcam Solo Neo and the Rotel RSX-1500 don't play as confidently as the Uniti, but they also cost significantly less.
In our setup, the Uniti drives the brand-new B&W PM1 – these beautiful and compact loudspeakers target the segment between B&W's CM and 800 series. The tuning is oriented more towards the clarity and precision of the 805 Diamond than towards the warm, relaxed reproduction of the CM5.
Since the PM1 plays down to 48Hz (-3dB), many people like this combination so much that no deep bass support is needed. If you want more "bottom end" or simply want to drive higher volumes, you should definitely listen to one of the excellent Velodyne-SPL subwoofers. Thanks to the ingenious auto-calibration and the various stored sound settings (Movie, Rock, Jazz, Games), these woofers can be adapted to any application at the touch of a button. Due to their sealed design, they play absolutely precisely, but thanks to a 1200-watt amplifier combined with a stiffly suspended driver, truly deep and, if necessary, very powerful and loud basses can also be reproduced effortlessly. In small rooms up to 25m² and for pure music playback, the smallest woofer in the series, the SPL-800, should always be sufficient. If you also want to experience movies via the 2.1 setup or have a very large room, you should rather work with the SPL-1000 (in the photo), which has a larger driver and produces noticeably more pressure.
Ingenious: Thanks to the Uniti's setting options to crossover the speakers at 40Hz, you achieve – despite very small speakers – enormously high volumes without ever sounding strained. Connections for TVs or Blu-ray players are also provided, as the Uniti has digital inputs for this purpose.
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