SoundStage! Simplifi | SoundStageSimplifi.com

: Written by Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 March 2019

Last October, Lenbrook International announced a comprehensive upgrade of its Bluesound lineup of whole-house audio products. Bluesound’s 2i series offers such new features as Apple AirPlay 2 support, improved Bluetooth capability, Amazon Alexa voice control, and updated Wi-Fi connectivity.

: Written by Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 March 2019

Over the past several years, Ohio-based SVS has earned a reputation for making affordable, high-performance loudspeakers and subwoofers. Its subs, of course, are active, but until recently, all of its full-range speakers were passive designs. Last year, SVS introduced the fully active, two-way Prime Wireless speakers ($599.99/pair; all prices USD).

: Written by Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 January 2019

Despite what the illuminati say about our brave new world “moving at Internet speed,” sometimes we just have to hurry up and wait. This review is a case in point.

: Written by Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 February 2019

I’ve never thought of myself as having sharp elbows. But here I am, the new guy in the SoundStage! neighborhood, and I keep muscling in on my colleagues’ territories. For my first review on Simplifi, I tackled LG’s G7 ThinQ MQA-compatible smartphone, a product that would fit nicely on SoundStage! Solo. More recently, I opined that the Kii Audio Three DSP-controlled active speakers would be right at home on SoundStage! Hi-Fi or Ultra.

: Written by Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 January 2019

Most audiophiles know Pro-Ject Audio Systems as a maker of turntables. Indeed, more than any manufacturer, Vienna-based Pro-Ject is responsible for the vinyl revival.

: Written by Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 01 February 2019

KEF’s little LSX active speakers ($1099 USD per pair) would seem to contain everything you need for high-resolution stereo sound. Each enclosure houses a KEF Uni-Q driver array comprising a 0.75” aluminum-dome tweeter mounted at the acoustic center of a 4.5” magnesium-aluminum midrange-woofer, each powered by its own amplifier. The LSXes are small enough to virtually disappear into your room, but if you look their way they’ll grab your eye. They’re available in five colors: white, green, red, blue, and black. Speakers in all colors but white are covered on four sides with a matching industrial textile. The white version, which I reviewed, has a high-gloss finish on all surfaces, and the driver is in complementary silver-gray. It’s gorgeous. The red and blue models have drivers of the same color as the cabinet; the others have drivers of a complementary color.

Read more: KEF LSX Active Loudspeakers

: Written by Gordon Brockhouse; Created: 15 December 2018

Reviewers' Choice This corner of the SoundStage! Network is devoted to “convenient, lifestyle-oriented hi-fi,” to quote the blurb on the Network portal. To some diehards, the word lifestyle conveys a kind of superficiality, a lack of seriousness, but not to yours truly. As I wrote in my kick-off feature for SoundStage! Simplifi, there’s a lot to be said for integrating your hi-fi into your everyday life. Having your main music system in a living area, rather than hiding it away in an inner sanctum, means that everyone can enjoy it, not just the household high priest of audio.