Hi-Fi Choice

Yamaha’s MusicCast wireless multi-room speakers have undergone a refresh, with a series of streaming speakers, soundbars and a wireless subwoofer all set for release in September. First up is the MusicCast 20, which can be used as a standalone speaker, paired or as part of a surround setup. Equipped with wi-fi, AirPlay and Bluetooth (version 4. 2), it features a 30mm soft dome tweeter, 90mm mid/bass driver and pair of passive bass radiators.

Australian manufacturer Audeara is perhaps best known for its past in the medical realm. However, a recent Kickstarter campaign changed all of that when it launched the A-01 headphone, designednot only to protect the user’s ears, but also to deliver a sound specifically catered to them. The first time the user wears the A-01, they use the companion app to undergoa hearing test, the results of which are then stored bythe cans. Using this unique profile, the headphone then adjusts the sound signal (making changes to left and right channels) so that the sound is individually tailored to the listener, while monitoring their hearing over time.

Hot on the heels of the impressive floorstanding M-6 loudspeaker review in HFC 436, Danish manufacturer Scansonic has announced another addition toits speaker lineup, but this timein the more diminutive guiseof a standmount. The new MK-5 is a compact two-way bookshelf model, boasting the same ultra-light sealed ribbon planar magnetic tweeter that appears in the aforementioned M Series. Formed from a kapton-aluminium sandwich that’s claimed to be just 20µm thick, and boasting a mass that’s described as being as much as 50 times lower than conventional textile, ceramic, beryllium or diamond domes, the tweeter’s membrane is reputed to result in a performance with significantly higher resolution and less material colouration. Partnering the tweeter is a new 114mm Kevlar-coned mid/bass driver (which incidentally is where the K part of the MK-5’s name comes from).

Inside the June issue we take an exclusiveIn-depthlook at Cary Audio’s AiOS streaming music solution, whileExoticafeatures YBA’s CD100 CD player and 100A integrated amplifier combo and regular reviews looks at Elipson’s bargain Prestige Facet 14F floorstander, Pro-Ject’s Debut III S Audiophile turntable package, Cambridge’s CXN V2 network music streamer as well as AKG’s flagship N5005 in-ear headphone. Plus,Music Legendsbows to the multi-instrumentalist Wonder of Stevie and ourGroup Testlooks at six low-input phono stages from Dynavector, Exposure, Graham Slee, Pro-Ject, Rega and Sonneteer. Lee Dunkley, editor . .