CD players are having a bit of a comeback, and Syitren's latest is clearly not interested in pretending it's a piece of invisible hi-fi. The RM1 makes the mechanics of playing a CD part of the experience, turning the physical appeal into something you can actually see.

The RM1 sandwiches its electronics and disc mechanism between two transparent acrylic panels, giving you an unobstructed view of what's happening inside. That includes the CD itself, making the act of putting an album on feel considerably more tactile than tapping a playlist in a streaming app.

The player can be positioned in three ways. You can lay it flat on a surface, stand it upright or mount it on a wall, so it can become part of your room rather than something that gets hidden away beside the TV.

There's more to look at than the spinning disc, too. The exposed mainboard includes a yellow LED matrix that displays information such as the track number, volume and battery level, alongside small animations.

It gives the RM1 a distinctly retro-futuristic look while also making the electronics part of the design. Instead of hiding the technology behind a plastic shell, Syitren has essentially made the circuitry part of the album artwork.

The RM1 isn't trying to replace a full hi-fi system. It doesn't have built-in speakers, but instead offers a 3.5mm AUX output for wired setups and Bluetooth 5.3 for wireless speakers or headphones.

Playback is controlled using a separate remote, keeping the front of the player clean and uncluttered. You get the usual playback controls along with repeat, sequential playback and shuffle modes.

The rechargeable player is rated for around six to eight hours of continuous playback, making it portable enough to move around the house even if its wall-mounting option makes it tempting to leave it on display.

And the price makes the concept even more interesting. The RM1 is currently available to pre-order through Kickstarter from $89 (£66), putting it firmly into impulse-buy territory for anyone who wants to get back into CDs without buying another anonymous black box.

Physical music doesn't have to mean going completely old-school. The RM1 keeps the CD, but turns the player itself into something you'd actually want to look at.

More than just a Bluetooth speaker, and with the talents and chutzpah of a soundbar, the Music Studio 7 (officially the HW-LS70H if you enjoy a codename) smart speaker sits at the top of Samsung’s new Music Studio family.

Its stablemate is the related but less well-endowed Music Studio 5. Both models share a similar aesthetic, but the flagship boasts a far more ambitious acoustic architecture, with Dolby Atmos support, HDMI eARC connectivity and Q-Symphony compliance.

The brief may be a little confusing, but there’s no doubt this is one of the more intriguing premium wireless speakers to find its way onto the T3 test bench in 2026.

Price & Availability

You can pick up a Samsung Music Studio 7 in the UK right now, priced at £499 in the UK. It sells for $499 in the United States, and is AU$599 in Australia.

These tickets place it firmly in the premium wireless speaker category, which could be considered a little rich, until you factor in its Dolby Atmos and HDMI functionality.

Features & What's New?

There’s quite a party going on inside the Music Studio 7.

Samsung has crowbarred in a five-driver array for 3.1.1 Dolby Atmos playback.

Samsung kettles these front, side and upward-firing drivers with proprietary Pattern Control Technology, designed to minimise acoustic interference between drivers and improve directional accuracy.

A dedicated Super Tweeter extends frequency response to 35kHz, allowing support for 24-bit/96kHz Hi-Res Audio, if you have the source material. Power comes from a 150W Class D amplifier.

Alongside the Dolby Atmos there’s support for Eclipsa Audio, making this one of the first standalone wireless speakers ready for Samsung and Google's emerging immersive audio format. This may or may not prove significant, but time will tell.

Artificial intelligence (AI) also features prominently, selectable from the Samsung Sound app.

SpaceFit Sound Pro employs an onboard microphone to calibrate the speaker automatically to its surroundings. This happens in the background, optimising playback without requiring manual intervention. I’m not too convinced of its impact either way, but left it on for the bulk of this audition.

Active Voice Amplifier Pro uses AI processing to improve dialogue intelligibility when background noise rises. Not an issue in my case, so not routinely used.

Sound Quality

The Music Studio 7 has been voiced with entertainment in mind.

As a music speaker it produces an impressively large soundstage for its size. Those side-firing and upward-firing drivers extend well beyond the cabinet.

Samsung has always been good at needling out fine detail, and has produced an impressive line of low-cost, high-performance super tweeters over the years. That lineage continues here.

Bass is plentiful. Sometimes very plentiful. This low frequency bloom is more noticeable on some content than others. On piano recordings, low frequencies can become more dominant than ideal. Jon Batiste's meditative Always Know is robbed of its delicacy, sounding heavier and thicker than intended.

Modern pop and rock are much more natural companions. My Chemical Romance's pacey anthem Na Na Na arrives with tremendous energy, the speaker maintaining composure even at enthusiastic listening levels.

Film scores also play to its strengths. Hans Zimmer's Stay, from the movie Interstellar, benefits from the Music Studio 7's generous low-frequency extension. The ominous bass foundation and swelling organ notes create a genuinely cinematic sense of atmosphere.

Switching from streams to HDMI transforms the speaker's character again. With a Dolby Atmos bitstream, bass becomes noticeably tighter and more disciplined. Channel steering snaps into focus. Effects spread wide, while the up-firing driver introduces a tangible sense of height.

Is the Music Studio 7 a realistic alternative to a soundbar? I’d say conclusively it is. Helpfully, the speaker has a very wide sweet spot. That patented Wave Guide does a great job filling the room, making it ideal for a family audience.

The opening introduction to Stranger Things (season 1), on Netflix, is particularly immersive. The soundtrack's unsettling groans, distant rumbles and pulsing score are not squandered.

Dolby Atmos-encoded music proves equally rewarding. The spatial mix of Elton John’s Rocket Man, streaming from Amazon Music over HDMI, is fresh and airy, while Pink Floyd's Time alarm clocks are distinct and separate, before the track digs into David Gilmour’s opening vocal.

Design & Usability

The Music Studio 7’s distinctive Dot Design is the work of Erwan Bouroullec. He’s one half of the Paris-based Bouroullec brothers, who were also responsible for the look of Samsung’s The Frame and Serif lifestyle TVs.

Available in either black or white, the cabinet combines gently curved surfaces with perforated metal grilles. I like it, but can see it might prove divisive with bookshelf speaker traditionalists.

Build quality is reassuringly solid: at 5.6kg, the speaker feels substantial. A recessed carry handle at the rear helps to manoeuvre it around. The footprint is a tidy 185 x 269 x 190.5mm.

Controls line up across the top, including volume adjustment, microphone muting and a programmable shortcut button. Spotify Tap support allows users to launch personalised playlists with a simple double press.

Placement obviously deserves some consideration, and is a key part of the soundbar replacement debate, since much of the speaker's spacious presentation depends upon its side-firing and upward-firing drivers. These therefore need to remain unobstructed for the soundstage to work.

Connectivity is comprehensive. HDMI eARC allows direct TV integration, with optical digital audio as a legacy set backup. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 6.0 provide flexibility for music streaming. HDMI eARC is particularly welcome, not least because it allows volume adjustment via a TV remote.

Owners of compatible Samsung televisions also gain access to Q-Symphony, allowing the Music Studio 7 to work alongside compatible Samsung soundbars and TV speakers as part of a larger sound system. Great for additional height to the front soundstage.

Software setup involves Samsung's Sound app alongside SmartThings, and feels slightly less streamlined than it should be. Once configured, daily operation is relatively straightforward though.

Apple AirPlay, Google Cast, Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect, Roon Ready certification all get Hall Passes, as does Alexa, which is built in. Samsung's own smart assistant, Bixby, is notably absent (he’s been playing truant quite a lot lately).

Samsung Music Studio 7 review: Verdict

The Music Studio 7 is an excellent wireless music speaker. Bouroullec's industrial design is nothing if not elegant.

It’s also a capable TV sound upgrade and a foundation for Samsung's wider Q-Symphony ecosystem. Few rivals can multi-task so convincingly.

Its sonic personality isn’t without foibles, though. Bass can dominate more delicate recordings, yet this same authority becomes an advantage when watching a movie, or grooving with your mates.

If your listening habits span albums, streaming services and blockbuster movies in equal measure, the Music Studio 7 is well worthy of consideration. Just don’t park it on a crowded bookshelf.

Also Consider

If you like the idea of a versatile all-in-one, the Denon Home 400 is a strong alternative. It also looks great and supports Dolby Atmos. There's no HDMI though.

Another contender is the Sonos Era 300. This also delivers excellent spatial audio, and has top-notch multiroom capabilities, but once again it lacks HDMI eARC.

Victrola has brought its Wave Bluetooth turntable to the UK, Europe and the US, with a matching Soundstage all-in-one speaker also set for release.

The Wave features a low-resonance MDF plinth and an aluminium platter. It also comes with an aluminium tonearm and the Ortofon OM 5E moving magnet cartridge.

This makes it great for beginners setting out on their vinyl journey, especially when you consider that the deck also supports Auracast Broadcast Audio and Bluetooth transmission, with aptX Adaptive and aptX HD support.

That means you can stream vinyl playback wirelessly to a Bluetooth speaker or audio setup for close to lossless listening.

There's a switchable phono preamp built into the player too, so you can connect the Wave directly to powered speaker. RCA outputs are also on board to hook it up to amplifiers and hi-fi systems.

That includes the other product also announced by Victrola – its matching Soundstage.

The Soundstage is an all-in-one speaker system that comprises front-facing radiators for "stereo dispersion" and a down-firing Symmetric Drive Woofer to provide that extra oomph.

The cabinet is vibration-isolated, so you can place a Victrola Wave on top – or any other turntable – and the woofer shouldn't affect vinyl playback or the sound signature.

It's available in walnut, like the Wave, or black and also supports Bluetooth, RCA, USB-C and 3.5mm AUX for wireless and wired connections.

It is also worth noting that the Bluetooth in the Wave turntable can also be used to connect a separate audio source, such as your iPhone or Android device, and play music through any connected speakers.

The Victrola Wave Bluetooth turntable is priced at £349 / €399 / $499 and is available across regions now. The Victrola Soundstage will follow on 1 October in the UK and Europe for £299 / €329. It's already available in the US, at $349.

A special edition version of the Victrola Wave is also available. Made in collaboration with Third Man Records in the US, it features the brand's distinctive black and yellow colourway and a custom slipmat.

It's not only a decent laptop that you need for your next year going to university or college – a decent pair of headphones can, for many people, really help to focus in and crack on with work.

Other times it's just great to have a pair of earbuds or headphones that you can use in your personal time to skip on the distractions – without disturbing any of your cohabiting colleagues.

As a student, of course, budget is a major consideration. So in this round-up –where I'll dig into three top audio picks – I'm selecting a cheapy pair of earbuds, a more premium pair of noise-cancelling over-ears that'll serve their worth for years to come, and a pair of over-ears that won't break the bank.

If you're more explicitly looking for workout headphones for running and exercise, take a look at our Running Headphones Guide instead, as I won't be delving into a sports-based outlook here otherwise.

T3's Top 3

Pricing

As you can see from my selection of top headphones picks, I've selected a pair that'll cost you pocket money, versus some top-tier over-ears that are 10x the price, with the fancy AirPods option sitting in between the lot. The three aren't therefore directly comparable.

You do, however, get what you pay for. The Bose are the nicest made, best-sounding, and most feature-laden of the lot, as you'd expect for the price. Apple's option is just plastic, so there's a premium on the features – but they'll still ideal for most people. Sony, meanwhile, has pulled off magic in offering over-ears at such a lean price, with such bold sound.

As you can see from the best-price shopping widgets attached to each of the products above, the price variance across this range of options is fairly significant.

Beginning at £30 / $38 for the alternative suggestion Sony over-ears, and rising to £299 / £359 for the top-tier Bose headphones, budget may be a big part of what dictates your purchase.

You'll need to pay more for active noise-cancelling (ANC), inevitably, so if that's a must-have then you can rule out anything in the double digits – unless you get very lucky with a Soundcore Q45 deal anyway.

Personally I wouldn't want headphones without ANC – the quiet they can bring, that escape from noise and distraction, will bring worth to your life for years to come. So spending a little more now is a better economy.

Alternatives?

There are good and bad reasons to buy any one pair of headphones. From features you don't need, to pricing that's out of whack with your budget, or just a design difference – the fit, for example – that won't agree with you.

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3

If you want materials and comfort that are second to none, plus some decent ANC that doesn't feel like your head's in a vacuum, then Bowers & Wilkins makes superb headphones.

They're expensive, mind, so might not be the most obvious go-to for students. But these Px7 S3 cans will last the test of time – and were a T3 Awards 2026 winner.

Sennheiser Momentum 5 Wireless

Another super strong ANC pair of over-ears that often gets overlooked is from Sennheiser, whose latest Momentum 5 Wireless cans are an easy 5-star product.

These are all about a neutral yet impressive soundscape, so you can immerse yourself in your music, paired with some great control refinements that make using them a breeze.

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While we've got the Pro version of Apple's in-ears as our go-to pick, if you don't want the ANC and don't want to spend as much, then the step-down AirPods 4 (Without ANC) are a great pick.

This is all about balancing the budget sheet, really, as while the ANC is missed, the sound quality is still on point. They're even IP54 rated, so you could use them for sports and fitness, not just in class or when doing out-of-hours work.

The Winner Is

You'll have personal preference whether it's in-ear, on-ear or over-ear that most suits – but for a more relaxed fit that gives your ear canals a break, I'd suggest over-ears.

Of the lot, it's Bose's lightweight, comfortable, yet well-designed QC Headphones 2 that take the prize. Yes, they're more expensive – but the advanced features here will last for years and are worth the investment.

That's because the new-and-improved ANC is impressive, as is the inherent sound quality – with a great dollop of bass to keep everything sounding its fullest.

Need a lower-price alternative? Glance back over our other top suggestions and their budget alternatives, as each are a quality, viable option – it just depends how much you've got to spend and whether in-ear or over-ear best suits your needs.

Bose makes some of the best noise-cancelling (ANC) headphones on the planet – as the QuietComfort Ultra Headphones make abundantly clear.

The New York-based company also makes step-down over-ears as part of its line-up, dropping the 'Ultra' for the QuietComfort Headphones namesake.

Now, Bose has revealed its updated take, in the aptly named QuietComfort Headphones 2nd Gen, which add a variety of design changes and feature updates.

QuietComfort Headphones 2nd Gen: What's New?

• Updated design with adjustable sliders and faux-leather cushioning
• Addition of Bose's TrueSpatial technology (Still, Motion, Cinema)
• ANC renamed as QuietControl, improved performance
• Lossless playback via wired USB-C (to 24-bit/48kHz)
• Battery life reduction (24h / 18h with Immersive)
• New colourways and two-tone design

The 2nd Gen version of Bose's QuietComfort Headphones aren't akin to the originals with new colourways – although the addition of new colour options is part of the latest.

Instead, Bose has redesigned the QuietComfort Headphones 2nd Gen with new materials for greater comfort, plus updated adjustable sliders for the headband fit.

The active noise-cancelling (ANC) technology has been renamed QuietControl – presumably a staple for Bose products moving forward? – and brings some enhancements for poor fit.

Bose specifically cites its improvement for glasses wearers, where an imperfect seal due to glasses stems can be optimised for, still offering great ANC results.

A feature previously reserved for the Ultra model also trickles down to this new 2nd Gen Headphones: the TrueSpatial technology brings a trio of motion controls – Still, Motion, Cinema – that adapt to the wearer's head movements, depending on the desired effect.

However, the quoted battery life is now lower as result of these design changes. It's still good, though, with up to 24 hours per charge, or a maximum of 18 hours with the Immersion mode of ANC activated.

If you're keen to keep the cord and ditch wireless mode, then the QuietComfort Headphones 2 also introduce a lossless playback via wired USB-C, for 24-bit/48kHz audio.

Or simply you want the ability to handily use a cable, should you want to plug into, say, an in-flight entertainment (IFE) system on your travels.

The Bose QuietComfort Headphones 2nd Gen are available for pre-order right now (you'll need to sign up to MyBose for early access), with an on-sale date set for 13 August. They're priced at £299.95 in the UK, with other regional pricing to be confirmed.

The price remains the same irrelevant of which colour you pick, too. The staple Black and White Smoke duo return, but there's also a trio of new additions: Eucalyptus Green, Dewdrop Mint, Rosewood Mauve. These seem to embody a 90s nostalgic movement.

Nothing has been teasing a new CMF product for over a week and now we know exactly what it is. The CMF brand has its own open-ear earbuds – Clip Pro.

Supporting Hi-Res Audio and with an ergonomic 3-point clip design to fit around your lobe, the CMF Clip Pro buds further the trend of open-ear audio that seems popular right now.

They are designed to provide a solid, rounded audio experience but without fully drowning out external noise. That means they especially suit runners and wearers who want to move around a city while remaining aware of their surroundings.

Each ear contains a custom-tuned 10.8mm dynamic driver, with CMF's own Ultra Bass technology that enhances lower frequencies.

The buds support LDAC, AAC and SBC playback, while the lack of active noise cancellation has the added benefit of up to 10 hours battery life in the buds. This extends to 32.5 hours with the included charging case.

A 10-minute fast charge will provide up to four hours of listening time, so they'll pretty much always be ready for you.

The charging case can also be used to manage playback and change volume remotely, as well as answer calls, with a smart dial on the lid. This matches other CMF product design.

Bluetooth 5.4 is on board, along with a low latency mode so they're suitable for gaming too. IP54 protection means they're also sweat and rain resistant.

Nothing has, of course, already got a pair of open-ear buds in its lineup – the Ear (open) – but the CMF pair are more compact and come in at a reduced price point.

You'll be able to order the CMF Clip Pro buds for £79 / $99 in the UK, US and Japan from 15 August in dark grey, light grey and coral colourways. They'll also be available in other regions across Europe and the rest of the world from 15 September.

Is your desk setup is looking a little too serious? This clever 3D printing project could be just the inspiration you need. South Korean creator Momandeum has recreated Gary the Snail from SpongeBob SquarePants as a functional Bluetooth speaker, using recycled electronics hidden inside a custom 3D-printed shell.

Instead of building the speaker from scratch, the project begins by dismantling an old alarm clock. The internal components are carefully measured before a digital model of Gary's body is designed around them. Once printed, the individual parts are trimmed, sanded, primed and painted to recreate the cartoon character's distinctive look.

The result is more than just a novelty ornament. Gary's shell houses the speaker hardware, while the turntable-inspired base conceals the original circuitry, wiring and charging components.

Magnets are used throughout the build so sections can be removed without visible screws, helping preserve the clean cartoon aesthetic. When powered on, the first sound it plays is Gary's famous "meow".

Projects like this show how far home 3D printing has come. No longer are makers simply creating decorative models. Now they're designing functional enclosures that breathe new life into ageing electronics. It's a fun way to reduce waste while ending up with something far more personal than another black plastic speaker.

While there's no indication this Gary speaker will ever be sold commercially, it's exactly the sort of project that makes you want to dust off a 3D printer. Whether you're a SpongeBob fan or simply like the idea of giving forgotten gadgets a fresh purpose, it's a reminder that a little imagination can completely transform yesterday's tech.

Sonos is planning a "product launch event" for September the company has revealed via its third quarter results. While Sonos CEO Tom Conrad didn't reveal exactly what that would be, he then went on to talk about "conversational computing and predictive intelligence".

That's right, it looks like Sonos is going to be moving its platform in the direction of AI, with Conrad going on to address the debate about which is the "best" AI model and how Sonos might put AI to best use in the home environment.

"The lasting value is going to be in what surrounds the model in a real home: the hardware that can converse with quality across every room, the system that already knows the shape of a home and the way a family lives in it, the connectivity to reach the speakers, services, and devices that turn a request into coordinated action."

Sonos shot to fame more than a decade ago, thanks to enabling multi-room audio. With a central controller, multiple Sonos speakers could be grouped and controlled, making streaming a much better experience across the home.

That was followed by a deliberate focus on quality, looking to appeal to more aspiring customers, while devices like the Amazon Echo offered rival connected streaming skills at much lower prices. Sonos' audio devices are still highly prised however, with a reinforcement of its soundbar offering over recent years.

Amazon's latest move for its Echo devices was to boost Alexa's performance using AI - called Alexa+ - although Sonos' own Voice Control system is rather basic by comparison, focusing mostly on music control.

Sonos has, in the past, supported other brands' voice control systems, but with the rapid acceleration of AI, the sort of voice models that Amazon and Google have offered over the last decade are probably easier to develop.

Exactly what Sonos will offer and how it will implemented remains to be seen. However the company is no stranger to riling its user base with changes, having struggled to put a new app in place and facing criticism for dropping support for a number of legacy devices.

Whether Sonos' current line-up have the processing power to handle AI functions is unknown, although the company might hand it off to the cloud for processing, so that older devices remain supported.

With September just around the corner, it won't be long until Sonos' plans are revealed in full.

When you've spent as much time as I have testing speakers, you also tend to collect a range of experience checking out audio brands' home turf. Whether it's a factory or HQ visit, or a peek behind the curtain at what they're working on, brands are often interested in letting you have a nose around at their storied histories.

While these previews often offer a great big chunk of context on a new speaker or about a brand's priorities moving forward, they can also be interesting for the older tech that you get to glimpse. I've found it consistently intriguing to note that audio teams are always eager to refer back to the work that preceded them.

Sometimes this involves direct generational moves – like when I visited Bowers & Wilkins' "secret" R&D base in the UK to check out its newest 800 Series Diamond D5 speakers. Bowers was confident enough in the changes to let me compare their audio directly against the previous generation (D4), and that obviously meant it needed one of each of those older speakers to be wheeled in.

Elsewhere in the building, though, I could see far older speakers, including some that have lasted decades. I asked Bowers what its oldest piece was, and was told: "We have a pair of the very first Bowers & Wilkins speakers, the P2H. We started making this model in 1966. The pair we have in our archive were made in 1968".

Its team even found a scan of the original brochure for the speakers, an impressively technical breakdown of their strengths that really does underline how things haven't changed as much as you might think. After all, Bowers still largely makes speakers where "cost is secondary to performance", even all these years later.

When I asked why Bowers goes to such lengths to maintain an archive of older speakers, rather than simply keeping them in storage, the response was clear, too: "It’s a reference and visual reminder for all of our team of the great heritage and consistent, excellent engineering work from the first days of the brand all the way up to today's range".

Andy Kerr, B&W's director of product marketing and communications, went on: "You can draw a direct link from some of the ideas we had back in the mid-1970s to the way Bowers & Wilkins works today".

Of course, Bowers can perhaps more easily prove this more than some others, since it quickly adopted the separate tweeter that made its speakers iconic, and has never abandoned that design note. It's not the only one that can draw a direct line, though.

Visual identities maintained

A few months ago, I was at Marshall's office in Sweden, where I was checking out the Milton ANC headphones before they were officially announced. As a bit of a cultural extra after some presentations and hands-on time, though, we headed up into a testing space in the loft to find a raft of vintage Marshall amps from down the years.

With metal band Opeth's Fredrik Åkesson on hand to run us through them with some guitar solos, we got an amazing showcase of the sonic differences between older amps, a sonic journey through time that made it surprisingly easy to see how artists' demands and sensibilities changed how amps were tuned over the years.

You only have to look at Marshall's recently announced Billie Joe Armstrong limited edition amp to see that its core design ideas have stayed true to those old amps in the decades since the first ones were built in West London.

Marshall told me at the time that reacquiring some of the older models and keeping them working was not a simple task (nor a cheap one), but it's clearly considered worth it.

More than just speakers

It's not just speakers that audio brands hold onto, either. In late 2024, I visited Technics in Kyoto for a thoroughly interesting showcase of its then-new earbuds, the supreme EAH-AZ100. While Technics is now getting more well-known for such earbuds, for a long time it has been associated far more tightly with turntables.

On that trip I got to see a lineup of Technics' turntables going back down the years, and when I reached out to Technics to ask about those samples, two years later, it was happy to explain them.

Per Tadayoshi Okuda, Technics chief engineer: "The oldest turntable in the Technics collection is the SP-10, released in 1970. Released as the world's first direct-drive turntable, it was widely adopted by broadcasters and professional users.

"Its technology became the foundation of future Technics turntables and continues to influence our products today."

Technics debuted the direct-drive system in the SP-10, and that system can indeed be traced all the way to its most recent turntables, so the continuity is hard to argue with.

I didn't see them in Kyoto, but Okuda also explained that Technics has plenty of old speakers of its own in its archive, too: "One of the oldest speakers in the Technics collection is the Technics 1, released in 1965." When I asked him why these devices are useful, he was effusive.

"These products are more than historical exhibits. They serve as valuable references that allow us to compare today's products with decades of Technics engineering and sound design.

"They also help pass on our brand heritage and development philosophy to the next generation of engineers, ensuring that the Technics identity continues into the future."

That last point is the one that interests me most – new engineers learning from tech that has technically been superseded and rendered obsolete. Those lessons might be technical, but they can also be almost philosophical.

A maintenance puzzle

Get any amount of tech from the 1960s and 1970s out for testing, though, and you're likely to hit challenges in maintaining them. When I asked Bowers & Wilkins if it's hard to keep its older speakers working, Kerr stressed that it's an ongoing system: "We keep a good selection of spares for all of our products and have kept the engineering schematics for every product all the way back to the start. We also have a team of dedicated engineers who can refurbish any of our products".

Being able to call on those schematics is doubtless key, but you have to assume that the challenge of retaining spares (or making them) will only escalate over time.

Technics' explanation saw Okuda return to the theme of generational lessons: "Like all electronic and mechanical products, the components used in these systems inevitably age over time, making it challenging to preserve exactly the same performance they delivered when first released. For that reason, we carefully preserve these products as important historical and technical assets, treating them with great respect so that their value can be passed on to future generations."

Hybrid theory

That last quote from Technics opens up a fascinating possibility. When Okuda says that it's "challenging to preserve exactly the same performance they delivered when first released", he acknowledges the possibility that these vintage speakers and turntables don't sound the same as they did when first made.

If you square that with the fact that these speakers nonetheless continue to influence designs being made now, then it could be that this takes us into entirely new territory. We could be getting speakers influenced by the interesting new characteristics of old speakers, worked on by engineers who only know those older versions from what they can now test on-site.

That's not a bad thing, to be clear; in fact, I think it's really exciting. It's intangible, too, in the way that all the best audiophile theories often are – we might not know exactly how a Bowers speaker from the late 1960s "should sound" in a totally perfect scenario, just as we might not be able to totally quantify how a Technics one from 1970 ought to either.

Instead, we can work with how they sound now – to come up with new acoustics that meet the needs of our times, while using what came before to ensure a continuity and continuation of important history-making.

While retro-inspired gadgets are hot property right now, wired headphones (which could be labelled as vintage, due to their lack of modern features like wireless chips) have never really gone away.

Case in point: most high-end headphones have always featured a cable, because it just sounds better that way.

And Apple has never stopped selling its simple EarPods, though they're just more inclusive these days: 3.5mm, Lightning, and USB-C. They also cost just £19, so you can join the anti-wireless revolution without having to take out a bank loan.

SENNHEISER HD 620S

Until now, Sennheiser's ‘600' range of over-ear headphones have been open-backed – they sound great but leak sound, to the annoyance of anyone nearby. The HD 620S are closed-back, and so nothing like as anti-social in this regard – but Sennheiser has somehow managed to retain the sense of air and space that's the hallmark of its open-backed designs.

£299.99, sennheiser-hearing.com

MEZE AUDIO 99 CLASSICS (2ND GEN)

By combining balanced and insightful sound with an excellent build and finish, and throwing in a USB-C DAC dongle, Meze Audio has made the second generation of its 99 Classics very easy to admire. Smaller-headed listeners should try before they buy, though…

£319, mezeaudio.com

CAMPFIRE AUDIO ALIEN BRAIN

Given the name that's on them, let's not pretend to be surprised by the way these earbuds look or the price they carry. Almost as predictable is the stunningly direct, positive and controlled sound the Alien Brain earphones serve up – must be something to do with those five (five!) drivers per bud…

£999, campfireaudio.com

MARSHALL MODE USB-C

They're necessarily small, of course, but the rock 'n' roll credentials are clear from the way they sound. The presentation has punch and drive, with a combination of detail and energy that turns the excitement in a recording all the way up.

£45, marshall.com

APPLE EARPODS

The lack of eartips remains a weird idea, but in every other respect the Earpods are a tremendously competitive product and arguably the best value item in the entire Apple line-up. Big, confident sound, sleek design and the usual pride of ownership that comes free with every Apple product makes these the best affordable wired headphones around.

£19, apple.com

SHURE SE215

The SE215 have the usual Shure benefits of sky-high comfort levels, impressive scale and prodigious bass power – but what really sets these wired earbuds apart is the level of passive noise isolation that's provided by their carefully designed ergonomic shape and super-snug eartips. Which means you're able to listen to your tunes in peace, freed from most external distractions.

£109, shure.com

GRADO S750 SIGNATURE

The broad design of Grado's products doesn't seem to have changed much since the early '60s. And neither does the effortlessly dynamic, tonally convincing and beautifully poised sound that's the calling-card of the company's wired over-ear headphones, either.

£1,695, grado.co.uk

FOCAL HADENYS

Lighter than they look and every bit as comfortable as they appear, the Focal Hadenys present a warm, informative and welcoming sound that's the aural equivalent of a cuddle. These tasteful open-backed charmers are the complete package.

£599, focal.com

London is home to some of the best listening rooms in the UK, with every type of music and experience pretty much catered for.

The idea of a listening room is a simple one: it’s the optimum space to have a shared listening experience of music. The ideal place to do this is one that’s been sonically supercharged for such an event. It doesn’t have to be an intimate room, it can be a bar or a venue but what has to be right is the sound system playing back the music.

It’s sometimes an unnerving thing, sitting still in a room with other people all focused on one record. But it’s an experience that, when done right, offers immeasurable joy for the thing you are listening to.

These spaces are not new, far from it – Japan has had them for 100 years now. They all take a leaf out of the popularity of those listening bars, where a culture of music aficionados was born out of shared gramophone listening in the ‘20s, when classical music was popular. This eventually shifted to the Jazz kissa era, cafes where music fans could get to listen to their favourite music on high-end kit with maybe a whisky or two in hand.

While custom tube amplifiers may have made way for custom Atmos set-ups, the spirit of shared listening is not just still there, it’s thriving.

If you are ever in the Big Smoke, then here are three listening rooms we recommend – and below this, we go behind the scenes, exploring the tech and logistics involved in creating a premium listening space…

1. Spiritland

• Located in: Kings Cross, London

In an interview with The Guardian, Paul Noble record producer and creator of Spiritland said he was inspired to set up Spiritland thanks to Japan’s love of the listening bar and its “deep, beautiful, reverential approach to listening to music”. This can also be found in Spiritland – which is a café, bar and radio studio that all take advantage of an entirely bespoke audio setup, created and built by high-end audio manufacturer Living Voice.

According to Spiritland, their setup also includes “a two Isonoe-modified Technics 1200 turntables with a variety of cartridges including Audio-Technica AT-XP7 Dual Moving Magnet Stereo Cartridges, a Tascam DA-3000 Hi-Res Recorder, Revox B77 Tape Recorder, two Pioneer CDJ-2000NXS2 CD players, a Studer A730 CD Player and more”. Oof.

For more information, head to: https://spiritland.com

2. Brilliant Corners

• Located in: Dalston, London

Brilliant Corners wears its ode to Japan on its sleeve, with a Japanese inspired menu and an audio set up that would surely get the nod of approval.

While at time of going to print it was closed for a refurb, when normal service resumes, sometime in mid-August, expect an intimate restaurant setting with some superb music that’s played back on some modified Technics turntables, controlled by an Isonoe Electronics built custom valve mixer. Also in the setup are two Mcintosh tube amps power, some 1970s Klipschorn speakers. If you are waiting impatiently for the venue to re-open, then there’s always “Mu” just around the corner – another aural delight that’s been created by the team behind Brilliant Corners.

For more information, head to: https://brilliantcornerslondon.co.uk

Jazu

• Located in: Deptford, London

Jazu is a fantastic listening bar, with the emphasis on both those words. The setup there is superb, with a bespoke sound system created by South London audio engineer Bosco Taylor. There’s a 3,000-strong collection of vinyl to gawp at, while the food is a Mexican-based treat. Interestingly, even though the name riffs off of the aforementioned Japanese Jazz kissa scene, this bar was inspired, like the food, by the listening bars of Mexico.

For more information, head to: https://www.jazudrinks.com.

Behind the scenes of a listening room

The KEF Music Gallery in London is an incredible place for music fans. Situated slap bang in the hustle and bustle of Great Portland Street, its TARDIS like in its size. From the street it looks initially like a KEF product showcase but inside it’s an audiophile's dream – with some 5,000sq feet of area, over two floors, to play some serious sounds.

This experience centre opened in 2024 and serves as a multifunctional space for events, training, and product demonstrations. The reason for T3’s visit, however, is because it hosts a multitude of audio goodies, including DJ nights, album launches, and immersive sound experiences.

On the day I was there, they were preparing for an intimate listening-room experience exploring Lauryn Hill’s two fantastic albums: ‘The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’ and ‘MTV Unplugged No. 2.0’, all played back through KEF’s LS60 Wireless speaker range.

A lot goes on in the Kef Music Gallery and that’s because the space is flexible in its design. It includes a cafe and podcast studio, and there’s even a table made of 900-year-old Kentish oak hidden underground in The Hub – one of the many beautifully specced out rooms on the lower ground floor.

“There are not too many cafes with a Dolby Atmos 10.8.8 immersive system that I'm aware of,” says Geoff Loveday, KEF’s technical sales director, pointing out the huge sound system that’s situated on the first floor of the gallery. It’s here that many a DJ night has taken place, each with their own sound requirements.

Having that much audio power in one place is jaw-dropping but not all of it is needed at once, it depends on the type of show they are running. Thankfully Loveday notes that they have tried to make everything as simple as possible to run.

“The whole building runs on a Crestron smart home system. That system is great because it gives us complete flexibility and control of not just the audiovisual but aircon, the network, lighting, CCTV – it's all on there,” he explains.

While upstairs there are a number of listening areas, where you can test some of the speakers on show, it’s the main system I am really interested in.

“We’ve got our uber house system, which includes our LS50s that are dotted around the ceiling, in conjunction with a bunch of our architectural in-ceiling speakers, and some subwoofers, which aren't just decorative or on display, they're part of that system,” notes Loveday, pointing to an array of them on the floor.

“This makes up one big immersive 10.8.8 Atmos system that's driven by a very sophisticated Trinnov Altitude 32 processor. So we can orientate in various different ways.”

Loveday continues: “For example, if we're doing an event where we might need something centered in a certain part of the room, we can configure the system by just selecting one preset where three speakers become our left, centre, and right speakers, and then all the others accordingly surround left, surround right… And that's done simply by selecting a preset on that processor, which makes life infinitely easier.”

This would be impressive on its own, but a level below this KEF has created a number of areas for intimate audio demos, including a space affectionately called The Living Room and the absolutely without hyperbole, The Ultimate Experience Room.

I head downstairs, admire the oak table and am taken to a room that hasn’t been given the same sound-proofing treatment as the others – the echo reminds me just how much work has gone into making this place an, er, sound investment.

A tour of the living room setup shows a place packed with speakers from KEF’s sprawling range.

“We get everything from seasoned audiophiles that know all their stuff and really want to quiz you, right through to people that are taking their first steps into good hi-fi and don't really know how to achieve this or what they'd like," explains Loveday.

"There’s a bit of handholding through the whole experience, but we can adapt to whatever kind of person's here. And what's nice with the way we've got things is: we can control that experience.”

Speaking of experience, it’s the Ultimate Experience Room that is a must visit. The room is a stunning audio showcase, packed with some of the most impressive audio tech in the capital, including a pair speakers that stand tall like an art installation.

“They were conceived in 2007 as a a very special audio project,” says Loveday pointing at the KEF MUON speaker setup.

“The designer is a well-known sculptural artist called Ross Lovegrove. He's famous for his hourglass, spherical, no straight edges kind of design.

"He's actually designed a couple of other products for us as well, but there are only 100 pairs of these that are ever going to be built. We're on pair 90 something, so you need to be quick if you want to reserve a pair. There are not many places in the world where you can see those, let alone hear them,” Loveday notes.

A quick Google shows that the speakers are worth £190,000. I decide not to phone my bank manager on this occassion.

“This is very much our flag waving exercise,” says Loveday about the room. “It is the best of everything we do.”

In the room there is a two-channel setup using the incredible MUON speakers plus a 9.14 configuration. That’s not a typo, there’s actually 14 subs in the space.

“There’s a reason for 14, it's not just a sort of random number that we just happened upon or figured out we could squeeze 14 subs in here," says Loveday.

"The Trinnov processor I mentioned that's running upstairs, well we have a second one running this room. It's a 32 channel Atmos processor, and we're showcasing their new wave-forming technology, which is bass management technology, which, in very very simple terms, works with two identical arrays of subwoofers. So you have an array at the front and an array at the back.”

The idea is this setup eliminates the need for a sweet spot in the room, so theoretically you can sit anywhere and enjoy an incredible sound.

A demo of Elton John’s Rocketman, mastered in Dolby Atmos, proves this – I’ve never heard the song in this way before, soaring through the speakers and searing itself on to my ears. I found new in the old again and it was a life-affirming experience.

As I walk out of the KEF Music Gallery the sound of the street hits me, as the dampening used in the gallery gives way to the outside world. It got me thinking: to create a truly unique listening room and, in turn, listening experience takes huge dedication.

You can see that with what KEF is doing, with what Spiritland's Paul Noble is doing and what every other listening room across the country is also trying to do.

The key ingredient, other than the music, though, is you. You being there, you experiencing music with others and maybe, just maybe, you hearing something new in something old again.

Head to KEF's official site to book yourself a demo at the KEF Music Gallery. Or just drop in for a coffee.

• "The Brits do it best": How KEF's new LS Luxe speakers reinforce a changing hi-fi trend for the better

If you've ever looked at a friend's fancy extension and wished you had hidden ceiling speakers, then this could be the answer. Flexson - known for its Sonos accessories - has an in-ceiling mount for Sonos speakers, so you can do it yourself.

The mounts support the Sonos Era 100 / SL, Era 100 Pro or older Sonos One models, allowing you to install those like a professional, hidden from sight.

The advantage of using existing Sonos speakers is, firstly, you don't have to buy ceiling speakers, you can just use the units you already have. Secondly, you don't need an amp or to run cables to power these speakers, because they are self contained.

That's a great starting point from a simplicity point of view, allowing you to continue to use the Sonos app that you already have.

From a DIY point of view you will need a degree of competence. Firstly, you'll have to cut a hole in your ceiling and secure the mount in place, which is fairly straightforward. The second stage, however, could be the stumbling block.

You'll have to power the speaker using a standard plug like you normally would, so you'll have to get a socket into the ceiling space. That's not impossible, but depends on the construction of your house. If you can lift floorboards it's easy, but if you're looking for a dedicated mains extension you might need an electrician.

What happens when something goes wrong and you need to restart the Sonos speaker? Well, you might consider a remote switch to power cycle the speaker so you're not scrabbling around in the ceiling trying to get to it.

But once that's done, you just clip the Sonos speaker into the cradle and clip it into the mount. There are round and square grilles to suit the design of the room, and the grille can be painted.

The price for the mount is £150 / $170 / €170 but you'll have to provide the speaker yourself.

If you've been thinking about investing in a pair of floorstanding speakers but have often baulked at the sheer cost of such setups, then Q Acoustics' latest ought to catch your eye.

The British audio stalwart has just revealed its new Compact 3040c mid-priced floorstanding speakers, available in four finishes – Pin Oak, Satin White, Claro Walnut or Satin Black, as pictured above.

The 3040c marks a step up from bookshelf speakers – although the brand will happily provide you with myriad options of those if preferred – designed for moderately sized living spaces.

The price is also moderately sized, being a big part of the 3040c's appeal. You can pick up a pair for £599 / $1,099 / AU$TBC in any of those four finishes right now.

Do keep in mind that you'll need to factor in a separate amplifier, of course, with a minimum 25W and maximum 120W recommended by Q Acoustics.

That's less this particular brand's forte, mind, but if you want to keep it affordable and also British, then Cambridge Audio makes a bunch of budget options that'll fit the bill.

That'll drive each speaker's dual 4.75in "C³" mid/bass cones and single 0.9in tweeter, delivering across a large portion of the frequency range, from 43Hz to 30kHz. That's plenty of low-end without the need to add a subwoofer.

The 3040c is inspired by the brand's flagship range, with a "floating" design on distinctive aluminium feet – the rears with "wings" – and no visible screws on the cabinets, for a finessed finish.

Wondering if a pair will fit perfectly into your living space? Each speaker is 94.2cm tall (and around 28cm wide/deep), so will certainly have a presence. That's around 11-inches across, so not far off your treasured vinyl collection.

Speaking of which, wouldn't a pair of Compact C3040c look lovely with a nice record player setup alongside? Well, quit waiting – these speakers are available to purchase right now.

Just a few weeks ago, in the middle of July and amid an ongoing UK summer heatwave, I visited KEF's London-based headquarters to sink into not only delightful air-conditioning, but a world of delightful sound beneath the capital's busy streets.

Ahead of its official reveal, I was treated to a private listening experience of the storied British brand's latest powered speaker, the LS Luxe, which is designed to fill a gap in the current line-up. As the product name asserts: a luxury gap.

Earlier this year, I had written about 2026's biggest hi-fi trend being powered bookshelf speakers, which are captivating buyers to move away from traditional separates purchases. KEF has been ahead of that curve to date, however, with its LSX II speakers released just over four years ago – and to critical acclaim.

Brits do it the best

While many other brands are only just presenting their latest equivalents – from Cambridge Audio to Yamaha – KEF is upping the ante in its LS Luxe. These speakers, designed in collaboration with British designer Ross Lovegrove, aren't mere boring boxes, but rather contemporary design – as much objects for the eyes as a sound system to please the ears.

I spoke in detail with KEF representatives, learning of the brand's now 65-year history, and how it remains based in a town in Kent – the very same town in which I was born, by happenstance – where some of the highest-end products, such as the Blade freestanding speakers, are still hand-crafted, one by one.

The LS Luxe are designed and engineered in the UK, showing that the Brits still do it the best when it comes to audio mastery. KEF isn't the only brand, though: Bowers & Wilkins is also based in the country's south – and a colleague recently visited a top-secret audio lab for the first time, to get a sneak peek behind the curtain.

Industrial design

Before I even get to how the LS Luxe actually sound, though, the most immediate feature is the way these speakers appear. Their rounded sculptural form is all curves, no visible breaks to the cabinet's smooth surface.

Lovegrove designed the speakers wanting that pure, unbroken appearance – paramount to his design language. No screw holes are visible. You'd never know that the enclosure is made of two BMC halves, compressed together with a resin that's then sanded and finished to aesthetic perfection.

Even the principal LS Luxe's rear marries form and function: the die-cast aluminium heat-sync on its rear has playful swirls, an opening for the flared port needed for low-turbulence bass output, with each of those flanges maximising heat dissipation. The second speaker of the pair – which can be connected by wire or wirelessly – has a simpler, pared-back visual.

Each is finished in a choice of Eclipse Black, Dusk Titanium, or Mineral White. The S-Luxe stands are sold separately, while an optional KW1 wireless subwoofer can complement the package – but I tested without this as part of the setup, for isolated testing.

Sensational sound

Last year, KEF began to deploy some of its newest technologies. The XIO soundbar – pronounced as "zee-oh" or even "shee-oh", not as a three-letter acronym – was the first to utilise the brand's patent-pending Velocity Control (VECO) technology, which uses a motion sensor to measure distortion and counter it in an instant as part of a feedback loop.

The LS Luxe deploys 100W Class AB and 280W Class D current-drive amplification, meaning a high output without fluctuations, providing direct control in how the 6.5-inch aluminium cone driver moves. Which is all well and good – except for the direct distortion that such a system can create.

This is where VECO technology comes to the fore, measuring coil motion and offsetting that measurement in a feedback loop. As there's no differential voltage, the sound is therefore consistent, controlled and clean throughout its considerable 35Hz to 47kHz frequency response.

Worth the cash?

The result is every bit as wonderful as it sounds. If wired, then a 192kHz/24bit output is possible, with the KEF Connect app handling sending your output to the LS Luxe. The sound is big, rounded and able to fill large spaces eloquently.

There's an abundance of connections, too, should you want to use HDMI or optical for a TV connection, AUX or COAX for a CD player or turntable input, Ethernet network connection for a NAS or other cloud source, or simply use Bluetooth/Wi-Fi. There's AirPlay, Chromecast, or direct Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect and Qobuz Connection options.

Think of the LS Luxe as positioned a step up from the LS50 Wireless II, but a notch down from the floorstanding LS60 Wireless II. The price fits in between those two products too, with a pair set at £3,500 / $4,000 / AU$6375. Availability is from right now for MyKEF users, while general release is from 13 August.

If you know your electronic music history, you'll know the Casio SK-1. Released in 1985, it became a cult classic thanks to its crunchy sampling and affordable price, finding its way into the hands of everyone from bedroom producers to professional musicians.

Now Casio has taken that icon and given it a modern makeover. The new SXC-1 portable sampler borrows plenty of visual cues from the SK-1, but this is a much more capable bit of kit, designed for today's music makers. It's compact enough to throw into a bag, yet packs the sort of features you'd expect from much larger desktop hardware.

Rather than recreating the SK-1, Casio has leaned into its heritage. The SXC-1 comes pre-loaded with more than 80 sample banks taken from classic Casio instruments, including the SK-1 itself, the SK-5, CZ-101 and MT-40, while also letting people record their own sounds using the built-in microphone, external inputs or USB-C. I think it's one of the best-looking pieces of music hardware I've seen this year.

The design immediately grabs my attention. It manages to feel nostalgic without looking dated, mixing chunky physical controls with a bright pad layout and compact footprint that feels more like modern portable samplers than vintage keyboards.

Those 16 RGB performance pads are backed up by onboard sequencing, sample editing and a selection of creative effects including filters, flanger, phaser and bitcrusher.

Add battery power and a built-in speaker, and it looks like the sort of gadget that's designed to be used anywhere inspiration strikes, rather than sitting permanently in a home studio.

While there's no shortage of portable samplers these days, most lean towards minimalist industrial design. The SXC-1 feels like the opposite as playful, colourful and unmistakably Casio.

The bad news? You can't buy one here... yet

For now, the SXC-1 has only been announced for Japan, where it'll cost ¥39,930 – roughly £220 before local taxes and pricing. Casio hasn't confirmed an international launch, although given the affection the original SK-1 still enjoys around the world, it would be surprising if this remained a Japan-exclusive for long.

And if it does arrive in the UK at around the £250 mark, I suspect it'll sell out rather quickly.

Majority has expanded its turntable offering with the introduction of the Stylo and the Folio, aimed at newcomers to vinyl who want pop colours and useful connected features.

The Stylo at £160 is a great starting point, offering a turntable that's approachable so it's easy to get started. Core to the offering is the integrated pre-amp, so it will work with Bluetooth speakers or systems connected via RCA or phono.

There's support for 33 and 45 RPM, with an aluminium platter, carbon fibre tone arm and an Audio-Technica AT3600L moving magnet cartridge.

But perhaps more importantly, the Stylo comes in Blackout, Sol Yellow, British Racing Green, Blue Steel and Oxblood colours - so you don't have to settle for a boring black turntable, you can have something that adds to your home décor.

Priced at £159.99, it's already available from a range of retailers such as Amazon.

While the Stylo will cater to those looking to get started quickly, the Folio is a slightly different proposition as an all-in-one player.

The Folio was originally launched in 2025, but there are now more colours to choose from.

That sees built-in stereo speakers in the base of this turntable, making for a slightly more beefy design. However, those speakers mean that this turntable will support additional inputs such as Bluetooth and USB, so it will handle all your music needs.

Conversely, those Bluetooth and USB connections are also outputs, so that gives great flexibility, supporting USB recording to digitise that rare collection you might have.

There are additional physical connections including RCA, a headphone connection and AUX input, so the Folio is a really adaptable choice.

Again there's an Audio-Technica AT3500L cartridge, with an S-shaped tone arm, aluminium platter and built-in pre-amp.

The great colours that the Stylo offers are also available for the Folio, so if you don't want black, you have the choice of yellow, green, blue or red. There's another option, however, and that's for Plywood, which gives a nice neutral deck, perfect for your beach house or Swedish loft apartment.

The Folio is priced at £169.95, so you're getting quite a lot more for your money, and it's available from retailers including Richer Sounds, right now.

Nothing's affordable arm, CMF, is teasing the launch of a new product, taking to social channels to get fans excited ahead of the big reveal.

That's seen Igglybuff shared, as CMF and Nothing love to use Pokémon for product codenames and teases, while Akis Evangelidis, co-founder of Nothing and CMF, said that it was a "new product category".

While that might set the mind spinning, it's thought that it could be the CMF Clip Pro, an open ear style headphone like the Nothing Ear (Open).

CMF recently announced that there would be no new phones for 2026, while existing phones have been removed from some stores like the UK. That sees CMF looking more like an accessory brand, offering a range of headphones and an affordable watch.

The suggestion of a new product category could be a distraction: Akis has subsequently shared a speaker emoji confirming that's it's an audio device, while CMF's official channel then went on to share what looks like a speaker grille of some sort.

But the biggest hint comes from an established leaker Yogesh Brar, commenting on the post of Igglybuff, simply saying "Ear Clip…" That's what leads us to thinking it’s the CMF Clip Pro.

Fortunately, the CMF Clip Pro naming was previously confirmed with a listing on Singapore's IMDA certification database, revealing that this is a product that's in development and preparing for launch.

However, while that seems like the simple solution, we're also treated to a product number - B189. That doesn't correspond to Igglybuff who is 174. That would have been poetic - some Nothing device product numbers have matched exactly to their Pokémon codename numbers - but CMF doesn't always do this.

Arguably, this isn't a new product category, but could result in an affordable open ear style headphone, perfect for those who want to listen to music while staying aware of what's happening around them.

That could be why CMF said "built for what's coming" in one of the teases. It's a headphone that let's you hear what's coming.

It's not every day that Bowers & Wilkins refreshes its most storied and sought-after speaker lineup, and it's also not every day that you get to hear it in the best possible setting. When Bowers announced the 800 Series Diamond D5, we knew that it was likely to sound fairly phenomenal.

I got the chance to verify that, though, when I visited the British audio brand's secluded R&D base near Horsham in early July – a visit that very (very) few audio journalists have ever been treated to before. I've already written this week about the sheer engineering scale of the listening room that I had my session in, but that piece might have left readers wondering about the actual sound of these new high-end speakers.

If you're going to spend £250,000 on building a listening room suspended within an existing room, it follows that you're not going to fill it with subpar components. When I totted up the audio equipment backing up the speakers I listened to (and there were many speakers), online retail links suggested that it was comfortably another £250,000 worth of kit.

That was comprised of a pair of Gryphon Apex mono power amps (just under £200,000), a Gryphon Commander preamp (another £65,000) and a lovely Denon DP-S1 CD transport (a totally reasonable £3,000 used).

Added to this were, of course, the actual new speakers, in a carefully calibrated ladder. Over the course of a couple of hours, I got to go through a host of comparisons. First, Bowers would give me some samples from the old version of the 800 series – so, the 805 D4, for instance. Then they'd swap it out for the newer version: the 805 D5.

After that we'd go back to the D4 range for the next step up: the 804 D4. Then to the newer equivalent, the 804 D5, and so on, until by the end we finished with the top-of-the-line 801 D5, the latest and greatest. At a cool £43,000 for a pair, they bring the total setup to eye-watering levels, but it's easy to throw stones until you step into the glass house and actually listen to them.

A new world of sound

I heard the same three tracks through ten different sets of speakers, each one picked to showcase a different characteristic. There was Phoebe Bridgers' DVD Menu into Garden Song, for its weird spatial elements and underrated bass; then Agnes Obel's The Curse, even more precise and pinpoint in its arrangement; and finally, Harry Belafonte's A Fool For You, the perfect way to check the warmth and tonality, all acoustic and live.

I'll be honest – even the very first speaker, the last-gen 805 D4s, had me immediately remembering how jealous I am of those who can afford this sort of setup or anything like it. The amount of detail, and the degree of separation, was just astonishing – and at that point I'd have told you I doubted that spending five times the money for the 801 D5s could possibly be sensible.

That's still a complicated topic, but as we stepped up through that ladder of sound, it was fascinating to be able to pick out differences and hear near-perfect sound get a little better. The biggest changes, I'd say, came in Belafonte's song, where the amount of warmth really did bump up on the newer speakers, the richness of his curiously-octaved voice getting all the more present in the room.

As you'll see in the images above, changing from one speaker to the next was no small job, especially once the bigger ones were on the agenda, and that weight served as a decent reminder that these are super-premium products for those who really do want professional-level sound at home.

A subtle evolution

It's hard for me to visualise ever having a space that could actually house them, let alone being able to crank them up to the volumes I enjoyed at Bowers' HQ – my neighbours would rightly have thoughts on that. Still, seeing the new speakers up close was a great way to appreciate some of the design changes.

Side by side, the D4 and D5 series are obviously from a shared template, but the tweaks that have been made are noticeable. That iconic turbine head always had a separate tweeter atop it, but the separation is even more intense now – it practically wobbles if you touch it. The grille on that tweeter's front is also redesigned for more airflow, and is quite beautiful in its lattice-work.

Behind the scenes, new designs for the acoustic chamber are tweaked in ways that you'd have to see a breakdown to fully appreciate, but help to give that extra warmth that I've spotlit. Bowers admitted that it now thinks it might have gone a little too analytical last time out (though some will have appreciated that), so this is a clear course-correction.

Part of what's so mad about high-end audio, though, is that you do quite quickly get into the realms of taste. Bowers & Wilkins is far from the only brand making very expensive speakers that sound terrific, after all, but its sound signature is clearly popular in mixing studios and with artists.

Having now had the opportunity to luxuriate in it myself, I can see why – if I had £50,000 to lob on a couple of floor-standing speakers, I'd have them high up my list moving forward. That said, I'd be curious to hear them without the enormous additional setup behind them, or at least with a more deliberately realistic one. At this grade of audiophilia, part of the fun is in trying to work out which components are having an impact on which elements of your sound, after all.

The cadence of Bowers & Wilkins' speaker updates means that the D5 range should now set its standard for a good few years, and it'll be fascinating to see how its arrival is greeted once people get their hands on them for more long-term testing. Having had my own session, I'll be grabbing any further opportunities to listen again.

Forget Spotify and its perpetual music recommendation engine, the people have spoken and physical media is making one heluvah comeback. And we’re not just talking about vinyl, the sales of which have been on the rise for some 19 years now. Both CD and cassette are seeing surges in popularity as the world decides to press pause on streaming and get back to actually owning music again.

According to MusicWeek, the sales of vinyl are set to surpass CDs in the UK by the end of 2026. Now, this is an interesting stat as vinyl sales have easily passed CDs the last four years in a row. However, CD is having its own resurgence thanks to K-Pop: the popularity of BTS’ ARIRANG on CD has meant that vinyl has a real physical rival again. Couple this with Taylor Swift using the format to her advantage, releasing four CD editions of The Life of a Showgirl in 2025, and those digital discs are very much back in business.

The key here is the demographic that are buying up these albums. It’s clear that there is something about collecting music that has really caught the attention of Gen Z – those born between 1997 and 2009, who are classed as the first digital native generation – and Gen A, who were born from 2010 onwards.

In 2024, Key Production found that the age group that was listening to physical music (vinyl, cassette and CDs) the most was those aged 18 to 24. Skip to 2026 and nearly half (46 per cent) of Generation Alpha are preferring to listen to physical music.

While the rise of these older formats may prompt some parents to head into the loft and dust of their old hi-fi separates, there are a number of brands that are helping physical media fans listen to the music the way they want to.

Seasoned record enthusiasts will wince at the amount of suitcase record players on sale on the high street. But it’s clear these are skewed to a younger generation. Thankfully, there are some trusted brands that have released budget players that sound and look great (one of which we speak to after the jump).

Here are our picks:

Record Players

CD Players

Cassette Players

To get an understanding of what it’s like to be on the forefront of this retro renaissance, T3 spoke exclusively to the co-founder of We Are Rewind, Romain Boudruche, about embracing the physical world and just why people are choosing tape over streams.

We Are Rewind are at the forefront of the physical media comeback, offering gadgets that don't just play your cassettes but look and sound fantastic while doing so. Its latest release is a limited edition collaboration with Pink Floyd, which celebrates The Dark Side of the Moon with an exclusive Bluetooth Cassette Player inspired by the album's iconic artwork. Here we speak to Boudruche about the rise of cassette listening and just why we are all feeling a tinge of nostalgia for all things physical right now...

T3: The shift toward physical media has grown from what seemed like a brief nostalgic trend into a massive, multi-billion-dollar cultural movement. What do you think is driving this and is there a particular demographic you are seeing buying We Are Rewind products?

Romain Boudruche: I think people are looking for a more intentional relationship with music. Streaming gives us access to almost everything, but sometimes that abundance makes listening feel disposable. Physical formats slow things down and actually "own" something. They encourage you to choose an album, spend time with it and create memories around it. That's something many people have been missing.

What is particularly interesting for us is that our audience is incredibly diverse. While we certainly have customers who grew up with cassettes, we are also seeing a surprisingly large number of people in their twenties discovering the format for the very first time. For them, it is not about nostalgia; it is a completely new, tactile, and refreshing experience making them nostalgic of a time they never knew.

T3: We all seem to be going through a ‘digital fatigue’ right now. But do you think there is an us vs them mentality when it comes to the physical/streaming debate, or do you think both can co-exist happily?

RB: I do not see them as competing worlds. Streaming is an incredible discovery tool that I use every day. However, when I truly love an album, I want to own it physically. They are simply different experiences. Listening to a cassette is much more intentional. You do not skip tracks every thirty seconds; instead, you listen to the album the way the artist intended to tell their story. I think that is why physical media feels so rewarding today.

T3: How do you balance nostalgia and new technology when creating We Are Rewind products?

RB: That is one of our biggest challenges. We are not interested in simply making replicas of vintage products. We want to preserve what made them emotionally special while removing the technical frustrations. That is why our cassette players feature Bluetooth, rechargeable batteries, and modern electronics, while still keeping the authentic mechanics and analog sound of the cassette. We respect the past without being trapped by it.

T3: How important do you think is the physical act of choosing a cassette in the music listening experience?

RB: I think it is essential; it is part of the ritual. When you pick up a cassette, you are making a conscious decision and committing to an album rather than an endless feed of songs. There is also something special about holding the artwork, reading the lyrics, and hearing the mechanical click when you press "play". All of these small details become an integral part of the listening experience.

T3: Congratulations on the Pink Floyd X We Are Rewind release. This marks another fantastic band partnership — how do these come about? Do you have a wishlist of people to work with and how much are these things collaborative?

RB: Thank you! For us, collaborations only make sense when there is genuine creative alignment. We do not simply add a logo to one of our products; we try to create an object that feels like it belongs to the artist's universe. With Pink Floyd, for example, every design decision and creative asset we developed was inspired by the Dark Side of the Moon universe. That is what makes these projects so exciting. As for a wishlist, there are plenty of artists we would love to work with, but we always prioritize collaborations where music, design, and storytelling come together naturally.

T3: Is there a particular music memory you have that has stayed with you? Maybe the first cassette you bought, or the first time you saw a particular band live?

RB: Being born in 1988, I belong more to the CD generation. However, before I got my first CD player, I clearly remember borrowing my older brother's cassette player to listen to his mixtapes. He is a musician and used to record a lot of Beatles and David Bowie covers, as well as the Starmania rock opera. I would sit alone in my bedroom, listening to those cassettes over and over again.

T3: Vinyl has made a comeback, tape has made a comeback — the next step is a Minidisc resurgence, surely? In all seriousness, is there a format from the past that you would like to see get more attention?

RB: Who knows! The Minidisc did not quite achieve the success we thought it would at the time, so perhaps its moment has come. Ultimately, I think every format has its own story and emotional value. For me, cassettes remain unique because they are not just a playback format, but a creative one. You can record, exchange, and make mixtapes, which makes the experience highly personal.

That spirit of creativity and sharing is timeless, and I think that is why the cassette continues to resonate with so many people today.

The world's biggest audio brands might love to shout about their newest speakers, but they're rarely keen to let people into their research and development hubs to see how those speakers were actually made.

It's not that they're ashamed of the work (far from it), but more that there are a heap of risks attached, not least that journalists could get peeks at still long-distant projects that aren't yet ready for the limelight.

So, when Bowers & Wilkins, one of the UK's most lauded audio houses (and a T3 Award winner for Best Headphones in 2026), invited T3 to check out its R&D facility near Horsham, in West Sussex, we leapt at the chance.

This sort of tour is a proper first – Bowers & Wilkins was at pains to underline that it had never before let the media into this facility.

Inside, I got to spend a good few hours embedded in a couple of Bowers' custom-built listening rooms, and while the new 800 Series Diamond D5 speakers I heard blew me away, the intricacy of those rooms took me by surprise and really stuck in my mind.

Behind the curtain

When you hear "listening room", it's easy to imagine a normal room with some sound-proofing panels, and then an extremely expensive setup of audio gear.

In truth, that's probably what many wealthy individuals get in their homes when they commission audio rooms, since the results are acoustically impressive while concentrating the cost on that audio gear.

Bowers, though, is swimming in different waters; it doesn't want great sound – it wants perfect sound. Rather than outfitting a room with soundproofing, this means literally building a soundproof room within a room. Bowers has a few of these in its R&D facility, and we used the biggest of them for the afternoon.

You immediately get a sense of the room's scale when you step in, because it has two doors. Between the outer and inner doors there's about a foot of space, effectively a sound-dampening vacuum, and it illustrates how the room is built. I was told about spring systems underneath it to keep it elevated above the original floor, and an estimate that the room itself weighs 12 tonnes.

The photo below is of the window in the room (something Bowers' engineers reportedly requested for their own wellbeing when it was being built). It shows you the air gap and the thickness of the walls.

A pretty penny

When I asked Bowers & Wilkins about how much this might cost to build, I was told: "When we built that room – around £250,000. That’s the room, not the components inside the room." Anyone who's following tech knows that inflation is a real thing, though, so it's no surprise that a follow-up clarified: "Today, probably more like £300,000."

Those responses came from Andy Kerr, the brand's director of product marketing and communications, and he was effusive about what that sizeable investment has brought to Bowers. Its previous R&D facility was storied but cramped, and when Bowers moved to its new location a few years ago, getting more listening rooms was one of its main priorities.

Neutrality at its purest

Needless to say, these rooms aren't for pleasure listening (although I'm sure they get their share of after-hours use). The idea is that this sort of pristine environment gives B&W's engineers total neutrality in which to assess their in-progress speakers' sound, and to hear the results of their tuning changes.

When I asked how often each room was in use, Kerr told me that the location "is an engineering facility, and the main listening room has been created with a specific function in mind, which leads to the room being pretty much in continuous use."

With a couple of other, smaller listening rooms also available, that spells out just how important these pristine environments are for audio development.

That's before you start to even discuss the equipment within these rooms. Some quick maths on the setup I was listening to by the end of the afternoon has its value sitting at around £300,000.

God-tier audio

The acoustics are, indeed, completely mad. Bowers staff had to come in to swap out heavy speakers every few minutes, and it was crazy how easily you could tell when the inner door was closing – the ambient noise of the world just sort of sucked away into nothing.

Once the music started, it didn't take long to realise just how impactful such a perfect environment can be. I remember as a teenager visiting an ancient Greek amphitheatre, at Epidauros, and being blown away by how its design carried sound around a huge open space. This was like the reverse – a space that felt like there was no sound, until it was completely filled by whichever speaker we had turned to.

To be clear, though, I'm not done writing up my visit to Bowers & Wilkins – I've concentrated here on the practical side of its listening room setup, but the sound is something I'm saving for another write-up this week. In that, you'll get to hear what I thought of Bowers & Wilkins' newest generation 800 series, the Diamond D5.

To celebrate the release of their 25th studio album, Foreign Tongues, The Rolling Stones have teamed with Technics for a limited edition version of the EAH-AZ100 earbuds.

We awarded the standard variant five-stars in our review last summer, saying that they "sound excellent" and improve on their predecessor in every way possible. Clearly Mick and the gang agree, as they've allowed Technics to release the buds in a special edition collector's case.

The rubberised shell features the band's Lips & Tongue logo, with each version sold also engraved with an individual serial number from 1 to 5,000. That gives you an idea of how limited these could be, with just 5,000 pairs being available worldwide.

They are priced the same as the original version though (pre-discounts), so you'll have to be quick if this is the model you fancy. You can find them on the Technics website now for £259 / €299.

What do the Technics EAH-AZ100 offer?

A true step up from the AZ80 wireless earbuds release before, the EAH-AZ100 buds feature adaptive noise cancellation and excellent battery life. They can be charged from flat to full in around two hours, but last up to 10 hours with noise cancellation switched on.

The case can expand that to 28 hours with ANC on.

Each bud sports a proprietary 10mm Magnetic Fluid Driver, which promises low distortion and accurate bass. They support spatial audio for Dolby Atmos playback, as well as Dolby Head Tracking, and you get multipoint connectivity for up to three devices with seamless switching.

Bluetooth 5.3 is on board for wireless hook-up to your phone or another device, and there's IPX4 weather and sweat proofing, so you could wear them in the gym or on a run.

The Rolling Stones x Technics buds are available now.

Cambridge Audio has announced that its L/R X bookshelf speakers are now on sale, marking the availability of one cool retro-infused speaker set up.

T3 has been (im)patiently waiting for these to launch – and for good reason. When we reviewed its smaller bedfellow Cambridge Audio L/R S range back in March of this year, we gave them five stars, earning a coveted Platinum Award. We said at the time that it’s a speaker range that “absolutely demands your attention.”

The S range also won a coveted T3 Award this year.

But while we've yet to get this larger variant into our testing lab, there’s no reason why the X line can’t join that range in the top spot. Beneath the retro looks – this could easily have been a model that took pride and place in a conversation pit in the ‘60s – there’s a lot of modern tech packed in.

Stream dream

For those who prefer their music streamed, the Cambridge Audio L/R X offers access to your poison of choice – Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect, Qobuz, Amazon Music, AirPlay, Cast… you name it.

There’s also multi-room support, 64-bit audio processing and a number of ports, including: HDMI eARC for TV, moving magnet phono stage for vinyl and Bluetooth.

Cambridge graduate, with hons

As for the audio, this is pumped out through 800W of total system power. Dual 5-inch woofers. 28mm torus-chambered tweeters and dual 6-inch force-cancelling passive radiators are on board, which negate the need for a subwoofer and make sure the sound is wider than Spain’s collective grin this World Cup.

There’s a choice of six colours and finishes, complete with LED underlighting and this all comes at a price of £1799 / $2299 / €1999 (add another £100 if you fancy the walnut finishing).

Head to Cambridge Audio now for more details.

Samsung has built an enviable reputation among the best soundbars, with its increasingly impressive Q-Series models, complete with wireless subwoofers and optional rears. For many, they’ve completely replaced separate amp-and-speakers setups.

The HW-QS90 cuts the clutter even more. It’s an all-in-one design, engineered to deliver a convincing Dolby Atmos from a single enclosure. Typically, the province of entry-level soundbars, here Samsung has packed the QS90H with high-end drivers in a 7.1.2-channel configuration, driven by top-notch processing.

Is it really possible to deliver uncompromising home cinema audio from a single slab? Let’s find out...

Price & Availability

The HW-QS90H is priced at £899 in the UK – a tag that places it firmly in premium territory. That'll drop over time, though, if you're prepared to wait.

Given that you can currently pick up 2025’s HW-Q930F, a more ambitious 9.1.4 package with wireless sub and wireless rears for just £699, this looks a tad toppy.

There again, it’s a positive steal if you compare it to Samsung’s latest HW-Q990H flagship, an 11.2.4 offering, which comes with all the trimmings, including a hefty £1,599 price tag.

The QS90H sells for $999.99 in the United States. It’s also supposedly heading for Australia, although its price is still yet to be confirmed.

This soundbar is also available in Germany, as the differently-named HW‑QS95GH (€949), where it comes with a ‘Made for Germany’ designation.

Features & What's New?

The feature attraction here has to be the space-saving, all-in-one, 7.1.2 Dolby Atmos configuration.

Samsung has managed to cram in three front firing drivers in a left / centre / right orientation, two upfiring drivers for atmospheric height effects, plus two side/wide firing drivers positioned at either end, plus four integrated woofers tasked with lower-frequency duties.

You’re well covered for audio formats too. The bar supports Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and the new Eclipsa 3D audio standard (IAMF decoding), as developed between Samsung and Google (for YouTube).

For Samsung TV owners, there’s also Q-Symphony support, a nifty wheeze that allows the soundbar to work in tandem with compatible TV speakers, effectively creating a wall of sound.

Samsung’s familiar AI suite is present and correct. Active Voice Amplifier Pro enhances dialogue clarity by reacting to ambient noise – useful if you have a noisy living room – while AI Dynamic Bass Control is a DSP (digital signal processing) mode to bolster low-end impact. There’s also Auto Volume control, which goes some way to smoothing out level jumps between sources.

Connectivity comprises two HDMI inputs (obviously one with eARC), as well as an optical digital audio input, plus Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Unfortunately, HDMI video passthrough is limited to 60Hz, not 120Hz, which will be a bit of a negative for gamers who want to preserve high-framerate sources (they’ll have to connect consoles directly to their TV, and bitstream audio out).

Sound Quality

I was expecting the HW-QS90H to be good. But it actually sounds great.

This is a bold, expansive performer with a wide soundstage that pushes well beyond the physical confines of the 'bar itself. There’s real scale here, a sonic illusion created by that combination of forward, side and upfiring drivers – and it’s quickly evident that Samsung’s LA-based audio lab has done a great job with the tuning.

Height effects are particularly convincing. With spatial content, there’s a noticeable lift to the presentation, adding air and dimensionality. Watching Brad Pitt’s F1 on Apple TV, the roar of engines and the mechanical snarl of gear changes create a genuinely exciting sense of motion.

Clarity is another strong point. Dialogue sits cleanly in the mix, aided by the soundbar’s detailed midrange and the clever post-processing. Even in busy scenes, voices remain intelligible without sounding artificially pushed forward.

Bass performance is where the QS90H seals the deal. This is where the wheels could fall off Sonny Haye’s F1 racing car – thankfully, they don’t. The integrated woofers deliver a low-frequency response which I measured down to around 50Hz, but psycho-acoustically they sound like they drop even lower.

Sure, the bass has a slightly processed character. It’s not quite as tactile or visceral as a dedicated subwoofer might provide, but for a single chassis design it’s remarkably convincing. Rich and full, action movies land with authority, while music carries a pleasing beat.

In terms of presentation, I noticed a subtle change when the soundbar receives Dolby Atmos information compared to stereo or 5.1 channel sources. There’s maybe a touch more finesse and detail.

As for Eclipsa spatial audio, there’s not actually a great deal that I could find on YouTube to sample, but the official demo clip, with a variety of outdoor sports sequences, does play with impressive separation. The future-proofing is welcome – but we'll have to see how far Eclipsa adoption is driven yet.

There are limitations, though. Without rear speakers, there’s no genuine front-to-back movement. Audio effects don’t travel behind you in the way a full surround system would allow. The Q990H can deliver this, but you need to spend more and then position additional speakers in your room – which not everyone wants or can even accommodate.

Just after Tom Hardy stomps the two-headed lizard during the opening sequence of Mad Max Fury Road, the pursuing War Boys don't crash the soundstage from rear to the front, as originally designed, rather they parachute in from on high. I suspect for many, that’s probably an easy compromise to live with.

With music, the soundbar is less about fidelity and more about presence. The 'bar plays loud, soundstage spread wide. Stereo tracks like Shaggy’s Boombastic bounce along, while more intricate recordings reveal good spatial detail, if not audiophile subtlety. The presentation is confrontational, in a good way. As for multichannel music, K-Pop Demon Hunters (Netflix, Dolby Atmos), sounds, well, golden.

Design & Usability

Let’s not mince words. This is a big beast. If your TV is smaller than 65-inches, this 'bar is going to look silly in your lounge. Measuring over 1.3 metres and weighing close to 9kg, it’s best partnered with lots of glass and some robust furniture.

The design is sterotypically ‘Samsung soundbar’ – that’s to say, it’s a minimalist black slab wrapped in a perforated metal grille. There’s no fabric to soften the look. Functional rather than decorative, fashionistas might want to swipe left.

However, usability is fine. If you need them, on-body controls include Volume, Microphone and a Multi button, which handles power and source switching.

Most will probably rely on the supplied remote control, or the Samsung SmartThings app, which allows you to manage volume, select sound modes and adjust EQ.

The HW-QS90H can sit either flat, or on edge, depending on how you want to install it. A built-in gyroscope detects whether the bar is wall-mounted or placed on furniture, and adjusts its output accordingly.

Room calibration comes via SpaceFit, which uses onboard microphones to tailor sound to your viewing environment. You can run the system with or without SpaceFit engaged, and frankly I don’t think it makes much difference.

On the 'bar, there’s no text display, instead feedback is provided via LED indicators and voice prompts.

The included zapper is straightforward, but notably not solar-powered like some of Samsung’s similar-looking TV handsets. In the dark, it’s easily confused with a Fire TV remote. Or maybe that’s just me.

Verdict

Soundbars are easy to love, but partnering wireless subwoofers less so, particularly when floor space is at a premium. If this rings true for you, but you don’t want to compromise on spatial performance, the HW-QS90 is a compelling proposition.

It may be a single enclosure, but this soundbar offers an expansive soundstage with satisfying levels of subtlety and slam. It may be on the pricey side, but it’s definitely one to audition – and easily one of the best soundbars for Samsung TVs (65-inch+) if you don't want multiple speakers cluttering your setup.

Also Consider

If the form factor is right, but the price is wrong, take a look at the Sony HT-S2000, which is about a third of the price. It's a single box that offers 3.1 Dolby Atmos audio, powered by proprietary S-Force Pro Front Surround digital processing. Front facing X-Balanced speakers are helped by dual woofers – and you can always upgrade to wireless rears and a subwoofer at a later date.

Alternatively, take a gander at the Sonos Beam (Gen 2), which, at about half of the Samsung's price, is a popular Dolby Atmos 'bar with five internal speakers. It can be paired with other wireless Sonos speakers, which may further appeal. And it's far smaller, so a better match for those 55- and 50-inch TVs.

Nothing has built a reputation on making everyday tech look genuinely exciting. Transparent earbuds, phones with glowing Glyph lights and a design language that's instantly recognisable have helped the company stand out in a world of lookalike gadgets.

Now fans have started imagining where the brand could go next. One of the most convincing concepts yet comes from industrial design student Sungwoo Choi, who asked a simple question: what if Nothing made a turntable? The answer is the beautifully realised Turntable (1), and honestly, I'd buy one in a heartbeat.

Choi has thought carefully about how Nothing's design philosophy could translate into an analogue music player. The result feels like something that could genuinely sit alongside the Phone (4b) and Ear (3a) without looking out of place.

The concept keeps the company's signature mix of exposed elements, white finishes and transparent materials, while introducing plenty of practical touches that make it feel more than just a pretty render.

The tonearm, platter and controls are all clearly defined, giving the mechanical parts of the player room to shine. There's even a built-in dot matrix display, integrated speakers and what appears to be a Glyph-inspired lighting interface. That adds a modern layer of interaction without distracting from the ritual of playing records.

Of course, this remains an unofficial concept, with no indication that Nothing has plans to enter the world of hi-fi. But if the overwhelmingly enthusiastic reaction from the Nothing community is anything to go by, there's certainly an audience waiting. Comments range from "Shut up and take my money" to requests for additional visualisers and equaliser features.

Vinyl has enjoyed a huge resurgence over the past decade, yet many turntables still lean heavily into retro styling. Nothing's minimalist, transparent approach could offer something genuinely fresh in a market that doesn't often see bold industrial design.

Whether it ever becomes reality is another matter entirely. But if this is what a modern Nothing turntable could look like, I'd happily clear a space on my hi-fi rack today.

When you think about noise-cancelling headphones, there are a couple of brands that will spring to mind. Sony is one, Apple and Bowers & Wilkins are also likely to be considered, but Bose most definitely will be. Now there's another to add to the list.

Skullcandy has partnered with Bose for its Crusher 1080 ANC headphones, pulling off something no other headphone brand has managed before: getting Bose to hand over its prized noise cancellation tech for a pair of over-ears that aren’t Bose-badged.

What's so special about the Skullcandy Crusher 1080 ANC?

The Crusher 1080 ANC headphones marry Skullcandy's signature bass technology with a full suite of Bose audio smarts, including its adaptive noise cancellation, spatial sound and voice-clarity features.

It's the first time Bose has allowed another headphone manufacturer to integrate the full suite of Premium Sound by Bose audio technologies into a single product.

For anyone who's tried Skullcandy's Crusher line before, the idea is simple: turn a physical haptic bass dial on the earcup (or open the accompanying app) and adjust the sensory "rattle" of your bass from normal and balanced sound to a rumble you can basically feel.

That sensation is built on a dual-driver setup, and Skullcandy says the version in the 1080 ANC is its most refined yet, with sharper detail and separation than previous Crusher models.

Layered on top is Bose's contribution: QuietControl adaptive noise cancellation with Quiet, Aware, and Off modes, TrueSpatial 3D audio with head tracking, and the WaveForm audio engine to keep sound balanced at any volume.

There's also SpeechClarity for calls, so background noise doesn't drown out your voice.

Battery life is claimed to be 60 hours with ANC off, or 50 hours with it switched on, plus a 10-minute rapid charge that delivers four hours of playback.

Other useful extras include multipoint pairing, wear detection, a low-latency mode for gaming and video, and Bluetooth 5.3 with LE Audio and Auracast support.

Skullcandy CEO Brian Garofalow calls it an attempt to build "the world's greatest headphone" by combining the two companies' strengths, while Bose's Nick Smith frames it as a chance to reach new listeners through Skullcandy's playful, sensory-first approach.

The Skullcandy Crusher 1080 ANC headphones are now available for £219.99 in Black, Candy, Primer, and Cement colourways through Skullcandy.co.uk and select UK retailers.

We Are Rewind is a master of nostalgia, having brought the humble cassette player kicking and screaming into the 21st Century. It’s no stranger to collaborations, either, already releasing a Duran Duran and Elvis version of its WE-001 cassette player.

But its latest collab is its best yet. Originally teased back in February, it has teamed up with Pink Floyd to create a cassette player that pays homage to The Dark Side Of The Moon, complete with Storm Thorgerson inspired prism artwork.

Not only that, this edition comes equipped with a newly remastered version of The Dark Side Of The Moon on tape. You know, that album that went 14x platinum and spent a cool 741 consecutive weeks on the Billboard 200 – some 15 in years in the charts!

Bang on the Money

Speaking about the link-up, Nick Mason of Pink Floyd said: "I still have enormous affection for the cassette. It really was a major breakthrough – not only with the Sony Walkman but with some of the more up-market recorders.

"I still have my Nakamichi on the shelf and look forward to testing it with the new The Dark Side of the Moon cassette.

“Am I correct in assuming that the next major issue will be The Dark Side of the Moon in a large package consisting of the album divided up into 78 RPM discs?"

That we would love to see but, for now, this is the only cassette version of the 50th anniversary remaster of The Dark Side of the Moon, so a must for collectors.

Say Hello to the new We Are Rewind

As for the WE-001 itself, it may be a retro delight but it has some very modern features. Including Bluetooth 5.1, a built-in rechargeable battery with up to 12 hours of playback, High-fidelity sound reproduction and line-in recording so you can make your own mixtapes.

This Pink Floyd edition of the classic We Are Rewind WE-001 cassette player, complete with limited edition cassette of The Dark Side Of The Moon, is available now, priced £159/€179/$199.

Head to We are Rewind for more details.

If there's one thing that Sonos knows right now, it's that it absolutely cannot mess up another app update. The debacle of its new app still haunts the audio brand a couple of years on, which explains why its latest big update has been more carefully tested and deliberately launched than any other I can remember.

If you're on the latest version of the Sonos app you can now test it out before it goes live for everyone at some point down the line, and I activated it to see what it offers up. The option is called "Enable Improved Navigation" in the Settings menu if you're keen to see it for yourself.

There are indeed subtle tweaks to a lot the navigation methods through the app, with more pages now letting you swipe them down or backwards to return to previous screens, which should make things more intuitive.

I really like that I can now sort my systems and order them as I like, rather than just in the order they were set up, and being able to mark my TV system as a favourite to pin it to the top is also a nice time saver.

Impressively, though, it's an incredibly tiny change that I'm loving the most, because I know I'll be glad of it every day from now on. For a long while, adjusting the volume of my TV system during playback has been a bit imprecise – the volume line in the app spans a huge range of noise levels and can be hard to tweak super precisely.

I often have the TV on really low volumes, and that's been particularly the case with some of the recent late-night World Cup games, and it's been fiddly to get right. With this update, though, whenever you use that volume dial you'll now see a "+" and "-" sign on either side of it, letting you go up or down in the smallest possible increments.

This makes it far easier to quickly get to the exact level I want, and Sonos says that another must-have feature is also on the way – lock screen controls. That'll be another major quality of life win for me, as a daily user.

Sonos says that all these changes have been tested with community members in recent months, and that this opt-in test is the latest phase before it all properly launches. That shows it's learned the lesson from its previous app mistakes, but we'll see what sort of feedback it gets in the coming weeks.

Huawei has unveiled a premium new version of its FreeClip 2 open-ear earbuds.

The Chinese tech giant teamed up with French jewellery brand Les Néréides in a bid to make wearable audio as much a fashion statement as a tech accessory.

The FreeClip 2 S Signature Edition retains the open-ear earbuds design of the standard model while adding metallic finishes, exclusive clip-on accessories and a more luxurious aesthetic.

Huawei says the Signature Edition is designed around a "luminous aesthetics" philosophy, introducing new Deepsea Blue and Space Silver finishes alongside a range of decorative accessories created by Les Néréides.

The charging case has also been redesigned using more than 100 manufacturing steps, with Huawei claiming the internal storage space has increased by 20% while keeping the case compact enough for everyday use.

Each earbud weighs just 5.1g, matching the lightweight comfort that helped make the original FreeClip stand out in the increasingly crowded open-ear category.

More than just a pretty face

The FreeClip 2 S Signature Edition uses a new third-generation audio chip and an AI-powered adaptive volume system that automatically adjusts playback based on your surroundings.

Adaptive voice enhancement aims to improve clarity for calls, podcasts and audiobooks, while dual-diaphragm drivers promise richer vocals and more impactful bass.

Like the standard FreeClip 2, the earbuds work with both Android and iOS devices and feature Huawei's interchangeable left and right design, meaning either earbud can be worn in either ear.

They're also IP57-rated for dust and water, while battery life is up to 9 hours per charge or 38 hours with the charging case.

The FreeClip 2 S Signature Edition is available from today in the UK from Huawei with an RRP of £199.99 (~$267 / €234 / AU$385), although Huawei is offering an introductory price of £169.99 (~$227 / €199 / AU$327) until 17 August.

A limited-edition bundle including a pair of Les Néréides accessories is also available for £199.99 during the launch promotion.

Marshall amplifiers are some of the best in the business, used by some of the biggest names in pop, rock and punk. Green Day's frontman, Billie Joe Armstrong, used a 1959 100W Plexi amp head to create the distinctive tone that brought them so many hits.

To celebrate, Marshall has created a signature version of this amp head with a "Dookie Mod" finished in baby blue, in tribute to Billie's first guitar, Blue. It was actually teased during Green Day's 2026 Super Bowl performance, as it was used on stage, but it's now finally official.

Unlike the latest range of Marshall Bluetooth speakers, this model is designed exclusively for guitar use. The custom amp features increased gain and tighter lows to deliver that punchy punk sound that Green Day is known for.

This is the first time Marshall has released an artist signature amp in 14 years, and so it's a big deal for Marshall fans. The 1959BJA model is based on the handwired 1959HW amp and is made in the UK. Sold as just the amplifier head, it can be paired with any of Marshall's speaker cabinets.

However, pictures suggest that there will be a matching baby-blue model for those who want to coordinate. The 1959BJA Billie Joe Armstrong Artist Signature amp head goes on sale on 21 July 2026 on the Marshall website and at major retailers, priced £3,099.99 / $3,999.99 / €3,699.

If you thought portable CD players disappeared along with flip phones, think again. Audiophile brand Cayin has unveiled the CP6, a portable CD player that doesn't just embrace physical media but celebrates it with vacuum tubes, Class A amplification and enough premium audio tech to make streaming feel positively bland.

At first glance it looks like an upscale Discman, but the similarities end there. Inside are a pair of military-grade Raytheon JAN6418 vacuum tubes, allowing listeners to switch between three different sound profiles. You can choose a classic warm tube sound, a cleaner modern tube tuning or a solid-state transistor mode, depending on your music or mood.

There's plenty here for headphone enthusiasts too. The CP6 includes both 3.5mm single-ended and 4.4mm balanced outputs, with a fully balanced Class A headphone amplifier built in.

It also houses a high-resolution DAC capable of handling digital audio from external devices, effectively doubling as a premium desktop DAC when you're not spinning discs.

Modern touches haven't been forgotten either. Bluetooth 5.4 works both ways, meaning you can stream music to wireless headphones or use the player as a Bluetooth DAC for your phone. There's also optical and coaxial digital output if you'd rather hook it into a full hi-fi setup.

Weighing around 850g, this is more luxury transportable than genuinely portable, and its premium aluminium chassis makes no attempt to hide that fact. But that's the point. The CP6 is designed for listeners who still enjoy the ritual of choosing an album, opening the jewel case and pressing play.

At around $899 (roughly £660), it's a niche product. Yet with CD sales continuing to stabilise and collectors rediscovering physical media alongside vinyl, the CP6 feels surprisingly well timed.

It may not replace Spotify for your morning commute, but it makes a strong case for compact discs having plenty of life left in them.

If you're a fan of hi-fi audio equipment, you're probably also used to seeing extortionate price tags. It's not uncommon for speakers and other gear to run into several thousands, and going down the route of separates can see you spend four- or five-figure sums on pieces of kit which don't even have a direct effect on sound.

Fortunately, it's not all expensive. While the shiny end of the spectrum is packed with pricey gear, there's also a range of more affordable kit which will make enjoying killer audio easier on the wallet.

Here are three I've tested which I cannot live without.

1. Audio Technica AT-LP70XBT

I've collected records for years now, and I love nothing more than sitting down to spin a disc and relax into the lovely, analogue warmth. When my old turntable bit the dust earlier this year, I opted to snag this Audio Technica model, and I've loved every second of using it.

The automatic, belt-driven operation might not win favour with cork sniffers, but it's more than enough for my needs and makes the process totally simple. Not only that, it looks great, and gives me the opportunity to switch out the cartridge further down the line, which means I can upgrade without switching out the whole unit.

2. Majority Audio D70X

Of course, a great turntable needs to be paired with a pair of great speakers. Those can quickly mount up in terms of cost, and while there's a lot to be said for spending here – they are the rubber meets road component, after all – I was convinced that there was a more cost-conscious option.

The Majority Audio D70X offers exactly that, costing just £70 (approx. €82 / US$95 / AU$135) for the pair. Audio quality is better than I'd anticipated too, offering more than enough fidelity to make the most of an untreated room.

3. Activo Scoop IEMs

Arguably saving the best for last, meet the IEMs which have replaced all of my other earbuds and headphones. Sure, anything wireless is more convenient, but I just love the fidelity offered by these. Sonically, they blow earbuds worth two or three times as much out of the water.

What's also handy is the design, which allows the user to switch out the connection in under a minute. That makes them perfect for using with multiple devices – I routinely swap between the 3.5mm and USB-C jacks for trading between my phone and my Gadhouse Miko cassette player, and always have the option of 4.4mm for other devices when the need calls.

It's also hard to ignore just how stylish and on-trend you look with a pair of wired headphones, too. If it's good enough for Harry Styles and Zendaya, it's good enough for me.

There's a renewed passion for retro these days, not only in gaming but audio. Vinyl continues to be on the rise, CDs are making a comeback, and even cassettes are proving popular once more.

However, there's one category of old school music tech that is really trending right now – the humble iPod. While our phones have the ability to stream millions of songs at the tap of an app, a growing number of music lovers are turning to more basic devices.

Shanling is certainly tapping into this with its latest Hi-Res Audio player. Although it has the ability to play high-resolution tracks (PCM) at up to 32-bit/384kHz, it just so happens to look just like a 6th gen iPod nano.

The M0 Pura even comes in different colours, while the 1.54-inch colour touchscreen keeps things simple. It also weighs just 35.8g, so is about as pocketable as they come.

Another handy added feature is that is can double as a USB DAC when connected to a smartphone and wired headphones through the 3.5mm jack, allowing iPhone owners to eke more from their handsets. And as it also supports Bluetooth 5.0, it can be linked to wireless headphones and speakers, too.

That includes operating as a Bluetooth receiver, so you can stream music to it from your phone, then listen using wired headphones at the other end – again making use of the internal dual Cirrus Logic CS43131 DACs.

You'll have to provide your own storage if you want to house tracks on the M0 Pura itself, but microSD cards up to 2TB are supported, so that should be easy enough to sort. File formats accepted include FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF, APE, MP3, AAC, OGG and DSD.

Available now from the likes of Amazon, the Shanling M0 Pura costs £129 / $129 / €129.

Audio is integral to so many people's lives – and 2026 has seen the ways in which you can source your favourite music, in particular, look as much forward as back. From the vinyl and CD resurgence to the proliferation of powered bookshelf speakers – a new category in this year's Awards – there are more ways to engage than ever.

This category also houses many staples in the audio market, whether picking the best headphones to pipe your favourite tunes into your ears, or opting for a more classic plug-in wireless speaker to fulfil Hi-Res over your home Wi-Fi network. There's something for everyone here.

The T3 Awards 2026 celebrate our brand's core areas of coverage – across Tech, Active and Home pillars – and the quality over the past 12 months has been undeniable. In addition to this Best Audio and Headphones page, do also check out the Best Tech and Best TVs Awards features.

Picking each of the winners from our broad range of reviews from the last year was no easy task, of course, but there can only be one winner per category. So without further ado, let's get to it: here are the T3 Awards 2026 winners across Audio and Headphones.

Best Headphones

Bowers & Wilkins Px8 S2

In a market with so many competing for this title, you have to be something particularly special to earn the crown.

Which is exactly what Bowers & Wilkins' second-gen PX8 headphones represent. They're a class act, with second-to-none sound quality and an exuberant finish.

The design details, material choices and pristine finish really set them apart. There's stronger active noise-cancelling (ANC) elsewhere on the market, it's true, but the goal here is for all-round quality, comfort and home-listening appeal.

These are the business class of headphones – and once you've settled in, you won't ever want to downgrade again.

Highly commended: Sony WH-1000X The Collexion

Best Travel Headphones

Sony WH-1000XM6

Despite such considerable competition, Sony has managed to maintain its firm grip on producing the best headphones that you'll want to take on your travels.

The XM6 has been joined by a new, higher-end model this year – The Collexion – but it's the folding design of this established older model that maintains it as the clear winner in this category.

With active noise-cancelling (ANC) that's the very best money can buy, plus superb sound quality, and a lovely carry case included, there's no stone unturned in these headphones' quest to be your perfect travel companion.

Highly commended: Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones 2

Best Earbuds

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen)

While the second-gen version of Bose's QC Ultra Earbuds doesn't bring huge additions over the first model, that doesn't detract from what are the best active noise-cancelling (ANC) earbuds that money can buy.

The slight improvements generation on generation – wireless charging and software tweaks to the ANC's operation – further improve what was about as close to perfection as you could obtain just a couple of years back.

While these new earbuds may appear physically large, when in the ears they feel so well-considered and lightweight to wear that you'll barely notice them – even for extended periods.

Highly commended: Apple AirPods Pro 3

Best Wired Headphones

Meze Audio Poet

For the ultimate audiophile experience, high-end headphones that only deliver a hard-wired experience are a real luxury experience. That plugged-into-quality-source listening experience can bring out-of-this-world quality that wireless just cannot.

The best wired headphones are quite often eye-wateringly expensive, though, as they're often crafted from luxurious materials and feature drivers of a build and size that you won't find in cheaper and more transportable models.

Embodying all of that (in the best of ways) is this year's winner, the Meze Audio Poet. Delivering a "direct, confident and impressively musical listen," these beautifully constructed headphones are simply sensational.

Highly commended: Meze Audio Liric (2nd Generation)

Best Gaming Headset

SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Omni

We loved last year's Arctis Nova Elite, but its price tag was hard to swallow – by contrast, the Arctis Nova Pro Omni is a headset with no asterisks attached, which makes it one of the clearest award winners in any category this year.

The headset doesn't rip up the excellent design work that SteelSeries has done in recent years, using a design that's basically identical to previous versions, but the improvements are clear. Its swappable batteries will last longer and its sound is subtly better too.

The biggest upgrade, however, is a base station transmitter that now works with all consoles (including Xbox) in one version, letting you even mix between sources. This makes the Omni a powerhouse for those with multiple devices that they use for gaming. The fact that it's also a dream to wear for hours at a time is a lovely bonus.

Highly commended: SteelSeries Arctis Nova Elite

Best Powered Bookshelf Speakers

Cambridge Audio L/R S

A major new category for this year's T3 Awards, but no surprise given that 'The biggest new hi-fi trend of 2026 is powered wireless speakers – as buyers pivot from traditional separates setups'.

The number of brands entering this market is increasing at pace, but Cambridge Audio's established quality has seen its L/R system deliver a rare 5-star first attempt – and in strong style, too.

This is the small version – hence 'S' model in the range, with the 'M' and 'X' medium and large models delivering bigger, pricier and more advanced options – but its sound and quality is quite the opposite.

Highly commended: Ruark MR1 Mk3

Best Wireless Speaker

Sonos Play

We feel like we waited years for Sonos to make exactly this speaker, but it was worth the patience. The Play puts the multiroom experience into a genuinely convenient portable option, much like a more sensibly sized Sonos Move 2.

The Play sounds excellent and compares pretty well to an Era 100 fixed speaker, but it sits on a charging dock, ready to be lifted out and carried around as and when you need it.

With sound that can adapt to the open air when outside, and a design that's durable enough to be fine in bad weather (hot or cold), the Play is just wildly convenient to use as a home speaker that you can cart around the house.

For those who like the idea of speakers that can work equally well when home or away, this is Sonos' most flexible product to date. It stands apart from the more permanently fixed speakers that are also part of this category, but if that's your want then Focal's runner-up position is a solid alternative.

Highly commended: Focal Naim Mu-so Hekla

Best Portable Speaker

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Gen 3

Bang & Olufsen's smallest speaker has been a long-time favourite among the best portable Bluetooth speakers thanks to its sheer quality of design and sound.

Now in its third generation, the latest model enhances the looks, the bass output, and extends the battery life. That's a win-win in all departments, then, which ensures its place at the top in this already saturated market.

This speaker is so exceptionally well-made and delivers audio that's a level well beyond what its scale suggests, so you'll barely believe the results. You'll have to pay for the privilege – but it'll reward you handsomely for your investment.

Highly commended: JBL Xtreme 5

I've said it before, and I'll say it again – Marshall makes the best physical controls in the mainstream audio world. Even when it comes to the best soundbars, thanks to its Heston 120.

It's proving that once again with the release of its newest home speakers. I've had the Acton IV with me for a couple of weeks to see how it stacks up in daily use, with all of its brassy buttons and knobs.

Tactility isn't enough to make a speaker worth it on its own, though, so the latest Acton has plenty of proving itself to do. This is a speaker that asks you to put up a fair whack of cash, after all, so I've been interested to see if it can make that price feel worthy.

Price and Availability

Having just been launched by Marshall this July, the Acton IV is available to order right now. It's priced at the exact same point as its predecessor here in the UK. That means it comes in at £259.99, while in the US it's $299.99 and Australia asks AU$499.

All of that means that the Acton IV falls into an interesting part of the market – at this price point, many of its competitors also offer Wi-Fi connectivity to enable the likes of Apple AirPlay 2 and Spotify Connect, so it's quite a punchy ask in 2026.

That said, to go four years between speaker versions without a price rise is also fairly rare, and therefore worth mentioning.

Design and Features

The Acton IV is anything but a revolution when it comes to the design language that has made Marshall such a cult choice in the audio world. It brings a look and feel that's really similar to its predecessor in most meaningful ways, but there are tweaks if you look really closely.

This speaker is simple and rectangular in shape, with a clear and obvious front and back, thanks to the brassy Marshall logo on the front side. That front is covered in a durable mesh, which is edged with more brass. The rest of the speaker is covered in a faux-leather textured finish.

On top of the Acton IV there's a cutout within that surface, hiding all of the speaker's physical controls. You get a 3.5mm jack for wired audio, next to a button to swap between sources (with indicator lights to tell you which is selected). Then there are three dials – a master volume, a bass tuner, and a treble adjuster.

On the right of these there are two buttons – a rocker-style one for play/pause and track skipping, and a multi-function Marshall button that can be held down for speaker pairing using Auracast.

Finally, the far right-hand side has the MVP of it all – the most satisfying power switch you'll ever interact with. Seriously, after unboxing the Acton IV I spent about 10 minutes just flicking it back and forth.

The speaker sits on four rubber feet for stability, and underneath it you'll see a woofer but also the ports for the speaker's power cable and a pair of RCA cable ports for wired audio if you need it.

This all adds up to a really gorgeous-looking speaker in my opinion – one that has the rare distinction of fitting in with either an eclectic old-school rock aesthetic, or a cleaner modern one, depending on what you pair it with.

On the features side, the main addition here is Auracast, which signals that we're on a newer version of Bluetooth compared to the last product – though Marshall isn't saying exactly which version. This keeps it really simple from a connectivity point of view, since you can basically choose between Bluetooth or wired audio.

That said, I'm also always a fan of speakers that give you flexibility, so including Wi-Fi would have been a clear win in my opinion. Given that this is a powered speaker designed to stay in your home, it would simply open up more options for connections, and feels like a miss in my use – much as I can understand its absence from a cost implication perspective.

The Marshall app has some customisation options for the Acton IV if you don't want to use the physical knobs, too. It's slick and easy to use, and being able to tweak how the "M" button works is a great little option for those who have something more specific in mind.

Sound and Performance

If you're going to stick to Bluetooth only, then, you'd better make that Bluetooth rock solid. True to expectations, I never had any issues using the Acton IV during my couple of weeks of use. Its connectivity has been decent.

I spent most review time getting to grips with this speaker's sound. Marshall says the biggest benefit of the new version is a wider soundstage – and the Acton IV does indeed punch above its weight class given its size. It's a surprisingly powerful speaker and really can act as a one-stop solution for a small or medium-sized room that you'd like to fill with music.

Listening to acoustic material like Django Django's new song Cameos, I was impressed by the warmth and clarity that the speaker could get across. That remained just as true when diving into some older Ultimate Painting material.

However, Marshall has long prided itself on loudness and the way it can bring more brash material to life, so my old standbys of Queens of the Stone Age and Justice came out to play really impressively, too. In both cases, the rawness and dirtiness of some of their grittier production style was great.

I'm not always the type to play with EQ (equaliser) settings, either, but the way Marshall integrates them into its physical controls makes it really quite fun to sit and dial the treble up or the bass down while listening. The glide of those knobs really is superbly built, and their impact on sound immediately obvious.

There are other small details to appreciate, too. The volume dial has way more gradations than the treble and bass ones, for example. Each of its lights has multiple states of brightness, so that as you crank it up or down you actually have a huge amount of control over exactly where it lands.

This all means that the Acton IV fulfils its brief impressively, for all that it also limits its brief quite carefully. You get Bluetooth that really does sound impressively wide-ranging and powerful. Nonetheless, in part I do wish it were a little more ambitious.

Verdict

The Acton IV is another great speaker release from Marshall, which really is in a great place in terms of consistency right now. The brand has figured out a great formula for its speakers' sound profiles, while the design of its hardware is always a delight.

The only downside to the Acton IV is that it doesn't aim slightly higher – as Wi-Fi connectivity would be a great new direction to start off in, for my money.

Nonetheless, I really like the Acton IV, as it makes a great Bluetooth speaker, but in a world where some others permit you to rove around your home more easily, or offer different ways to connect, it's a blast of simplicity that you'll either respect or resent.

Also Consider

The Sonos Play is more expensive, but not by much. This is my pick for a home speaker that offers more of the flexibility I've discussed above. It has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, a built-in battery, and while its sound isn't as powerful as the bigger Acton, I think it's more adaptable.

If you want something more permanent in terms of its placement, then the Denon Home 400 is an interesting upgrade. Again, it brings Wi-Fi and multi-room potential to the table, but crucially it's a very different flavour aesthetically, which could make it work better for you.

Marshall has announced updates to its Acton and Stanmore speakers bringing improvements to the sound quality and the design to make a better all-round home speaker.

While Marshall's Bluetooth speakers are popular, like the Kilburn III I recently reviewed, the company has a range of home speakers too. These don't include a battery, so that space is given over to boosting the audio performance.

We were impressed with the Acton III and Stanmore III when we reviewed them, but the updated Acton IV and Stanmore IV have a little more sound to offer.

Key to these updates is the boost in sound quality, with wider tweeters and waveguides, while there's a new bass port too. That not only widens the soundstage, but delivers cleaner bass while doing so.

At the same time, Dynamic Loudness ensures that the balance of the music remains regardless of the volume.

As these are home speakers, they are equipped with a cable and plug which attaches on the bottom of the cabinet, so the speaker can be pushed right up against the wall without having to deal with a cable sticking out of the back. This adds convenience when placing these speakers.

The Acton IV is the smaller of the pair, but the main difference (apart from size) between these speakers is that the Stanmore has a 5-inch woofer, expanding the frequency range slightly and offering increased volume.

But both offer a 60W Class D woofer combined with two 25W Class D tweeter amplifiers. And each sport a pair of 0.75-inch tweeters, while the Acton IV has a 4-inch woofer.

Both exhibit distinctive Marshall design with a faux leather wrapped body and a brass top plate housing the controls. That also houses the M button that can be customised to switch EQs, or to activate Spotify Tap. Customisation for the M button can be found in the companion Marshall app on your smartphone.

There are RCA connections for those wanting to hook up a turntable, as well as AUX, while they support Bluetooth including Auracast to sync across multiple speakers.

The Marshall Acton IV will retail at £259.99 in the UK and the Stanmore IV will be £349.99. Both will be available in black and cream colours.

After telling the whole world what it was working on, Nothing has now properly unveiled its latest earbuds – the entry-level Ear (3a), with perhaps the biggest news being some absolutely wild colour options.

There will be four variants of the Ear (3a), including standard white and black options, but also a bright yellow one and a neon pink variant, the latter two of which are undeniably different looking compared to your averages set of 'buds.

Of course, this being Nothing, these aren't just a tiny update to the Ear (a). Nothing is also making another bold play when it comes to audio recording tech. The pricier Ear (3) changed things up by having a microphone built into the case for better audio when recording content. Now, the Ear (3a) has actual built-in storage in the earbuds themselves, to let you make recordings without needing your phone.

As Nothing explained to me in a briefing, the Ear (3a) comes with 32 MB of built-in flash storage, powering a new feature it's calling Audio Snapshot. This will let you clip whatever audio you're listening to through the earbuds, whether it's a phone call with a friend or a video you're watching.

The feature is activated by pinching both earbuds at the same time and captures a little audio before and after the trigger to make sure it doesn't miss the moment. When you connect to your phone, these recordings will port over to the Nothing X app for you to review and share as you like.

Similarly, you can also record entire calls (up to that 32MB limit) right on the earbuds, so you could get around two hours of recorded audio on the go. Thankfully, there will be a privacy announcement when you activate the setting, so the other party always knows you're recording.

In terms of the actual audio quality of the earbuds themselves, Nothing says the Ear (3a) have new 12mm dynamic drivers that allow them to boast Hi-Res Audio Wireless certification, which is a nice metric for wireless quality. Noise cancelling has also been improved, along with quite big steps in the transparency mode, apparently.

Finally, the earbuds get 10 hours of use on a charge, and the case has just over three more charges in it, giving you about 42 hours without needing a power cable, which is very decent.

All of this comes at a price of just $99 / £99 / €99, so Nothing's entry-level tech remains very impressive from a value point of view. You should be able to order them today from Nothing's own store, and they'll doubtless spread to other retailers soon, too.

Crafted from aluminium by the artisans at Bang & Olufsen’s legendary Factory 5 metalworks in Struer, Denmark, the Beosound Premiere is a premium Dolby Atmos sound system that combines serious sonic intent with striking style.

The good news is that beauty isn’t skin deep. A 10-driver array coupled to Wide Stage beam-forming technology hints at a (literally) elevated listening experience in an undeniably luxury package. So does the Premiere have it all, or is there any compromise?

Price & Availability

Positioned somewhere between the more affordable Beosound Stage (a snip at £/$1800 / AU$3850) and the flagship Beosound Theatre (a more reassuring £5590 / $6890 / AU$11,860), the Premiere is available now for £3100 / $5800 / AU$9400.

While it’s tempting to label the Premiere as a soundbar, the term is really a misnomer. What we have here is a (adopts a pretentious tone) high-end home entertainment solution. Okay, so it’s a soundbar... with bells on.

Features & What’s New?

The headline innovation here is Bang & Olufsen’s Wide Stage technology, which employs a combination of beam-forming and careful driver steering to create a soundstage that appears larger than the relatively compact dimensions of the Premiere might suggest.

The enclosure accommodates four 3-inch racetrack drivers, two 2-inch forward facing left/right cones, and a fascinating central assemblage comprising a pair of side-angled 2-inch drivers, one tweeter and a full-range upfirer. A bit of an Easter Egg, the latter has 1925 holes milled into its surface, as homage to B&O’s founding year.

Powered up, there’s no menu display, either on the device or via the screen. Instead the Premiere communicates via lighting effects and a few beeps – but you do have support for Beolink Surround, which enables compatible B&O speakers to integrate into a larger whole home wireless surround system.

Format support covers Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, PCM 7.1 and MPEG audio, but doesn’t extend bitstream DTS:X (although fewer titles seem to be using this these days anyway).

Sound Quality

From the first few moments of Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight, it’s clear this is an enclosure engineered with cinematic scale in mind. The Hans Zimmer score starts slowly, the Premiere ratcheting up tension with pinpoint placement as the Joker and his goons set about their bank robbery.

The dynamics of the system are evidenced by the shotgun retort of the bank manager as he takes on the clowns; the transient is sharp and dramatic, but precisely controlled.

Dialogue clarity is exceptional. Even during chaotic action scenes, voices remain clean and focused. And then there’s the bass. When Batman’s Tumbler roars into action, to confront the Scarecrow, the system digs impressively deep.

Similarly, Ghostbusters Frozen Empire opens with a couple of almighty thundercracks. These are delivered with scary intent, with next to no overhang.

But it’s not just the big noises that impress. When the firefighters arrive at the Manhattan Adventurers Club, and break into the frozen room, the crunch of their boots in the frost is crisp and clean.

There’s plenty of power on tap too. Under the hood, 10 power amplifiers are locked and loaded, with four 70 watt amps assigned to the woofers, 50W reserved for the tweeter, and five more 50W power modules for the remaining left/right/up firing/side firing cones.

The Beosound app offers a number of sound modes. These comprise Night, Game, Music, Movies and Speech. Movies and Game modes are cut from much the same cloth, and contribute a full-bodied sound stage, while Music has a lighter touch.

Speech is primarily useful for those who need greater clarity when it comes to following dialogue. The Night mode is compressed and should be avoided when possible.

What the Premiere doesn’t provide, at least on its own, is rear surround immersion. Dolby Atmos height effects are appreciable, but sound never fully wraps around the listening position.

Bang & Olufsen’s solution is straightforward: add compatible rear speakers using Beolink Surround. Pairing the Premiere with Beolab 8 or Beosound Emerge speakers would undoubtedly create a formidable system – but also seriously jack up the price. And I’m not sure I’d pay up.

Musical Clarity

Beethoven or box set? I’m not sure which best shows off this system’s talents. Normally, soundbars need to compromise when it comes to musical playback, but that’s certainly not the case here.

Indeed, music playback – no rear speakers required – could actually be the Premiere’s strongest suit.

Billie Eilish’s Bad Guy arrives with thunderous low-frequency energy. Bass feels deep, dense and almost tactile – and that tune’s big drop sounds phenomenal. The system’s claimed 34Hz low-end extension seems entirely believable.

Electronic music in particular benefits from the Premiere’s brawny presentation. I soon found myself down an EDM rabbit hole, just to see how low the Premiere goes. The more I played, the deeper it dug.

Yet the bar is equally adept with delicate instrumentation. ODESZA’s A Moment Apart sounds expansive and filmic, while the finger-picked textures within Taalbi Brothers’ Freestyle dance with remarkable clarity.

Perhaps the most impressive takeaway is the system’s transparency. The piano notes that open Kanye West’s Runaway ring out with striking realism and decay, while Singing Bones by The Handsome Family demonstrates astonishing spatial depth.

Design & Usability

As an example of industrial design, the Beosound Premiere is remarkable. Available in Natural Aluminium, Gold Tone and Anthracite Black finishes, the system oozes luxury.

My review sample came in Natural Aluminium, and looked spectacular. Not only is the profile unlike anything else in its class, the small touches, like the subtle illumination emanating around the stand and through the B&O logo, are a constant delight.

Adjust volume, and there’s a sliding light of confirmation. It's very clever.

Optional slatted covers in Oak, Grey Melange or Dark Oak can further tailor the appearance, but with one of these the system price rises yet again.

At 932mm wide and weighing 8.5kg, the Premiere will match TVs 55-inches or larger. It can be wall-mounted or positioned on its supplied pedestal stand.

Usability is fairly straightforward. Setup involves a brief automatic room calibration sweep, while subsequent functionality is controlled through Bang & Olufsen’s companion app, which offers access sound modes, source selection and multiroom features.

There’s no supplied remote control, although television remotes handle basic volume duties via HDMI eARC. The system is also compatible with the brand’s optional Beoremote One BT.

Connectivity reflects the system’s custom installation aspirations. Behind a removable rear cover sit three Ethernet ports, a single HDMI eARC connection and USB. There’s Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.4, alongside Apple AirPlay, Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect, Deezer and QPlay 2.0 compatibility.

The solitary HDMI input is a little disappointing, not least because it removes a good deal of system expandability. All HDMI source devices have to connect directly to your TV, so that audio can then be routed back over eARC. The provision of three Ethernet ports would seem to be indicative of the Premiere’s aspirations as part of a broader AV ecosystem, rather than an all-in-one switching hub.

Beosound Premiere review: Verdict

The Bang & Olufsen Beosound Premiere is one of the most visually distinctive TV sound systems currently available - and more importantly, has the sonic chops to justify its outré appearance.

With movies, it delivers scale, precision and drama in abundance. Dolby Atmos movie content is wide and engaging, while dialogue clarityshines. Music fans may love it even more. There’s nothing in this class able to combine muscular low-end authority, with this degree of finesse and transparency.

Any limitations are largely practical. The single HDMI connection restricts system building, and buyers seeking truly enveloping surround sound will eventually want additional speakers - and the price is already pretty rich.

Yet the Premiere is a triumph regardless. It’s technically ambitious, beautiful to look at, and an absolute thrill to listen to.

Also Consider

If the Beosound Premiere isn’t quite your style, consider the Samsung Q990H soundbar, a more conventional design with 300W wireless subwoofer and multi-directional rear speakers. This 11.1.4 sound system, compatible with Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, features 23 drivers for a fully immersive listening experience.

Alternatively, Sony may tempt with the Bravia Theatre Trio. This three-part system comprises a centre enclosure plus a left/right array. Proprietary 360 Spatial Sound Mapping technology then generates up to 24 phantom speakers, to create a cinematic soundfield.

There's no shortage of headphone brands out there, so when a new one turns up out of nowhere it needs to stand out. Enter Daisy Sound, a new audio company coming out of California, with a natty pair of headphones with a design which will go toe-to-toe with the AirPods Max.

That comparison comes thanks to the aluminium outer shell, which gives the model a really premium look. At the base of one of the earcups is a knurled aluminium dial, complete with a daisy motif on the outer edge.

Inside, magnetic ear cushions are employed, to make it easier than ever to remove and clean the contact point of your headphones. They're also made with memory foam cushioning, to make sure your ears stay comfortable as possible in use.

Each of the cups houses a 35mm dynamic driver, which should be capable of delivering impressive sound. In particular, the low-end is optimised with the brand's own proprietary algorithm.

Elsewhere, you'll find a hybrid, adaptive ANC, a natural transparency mode and a noise filtering algorithm with voice isolation. It's an impressive suite of tech focussed features, and should be enough to let the Daisy One keep up with the best on the market right now.

In terms of battery life, you can expect 35 hours with the ANC engaged, or 45 hours with the ANC off. That's pretty decent, and is made even more impressive with the quick charging feature, which delivers two and a half hours of listening time from a three minute charge.

Another peculiar feature is still mode. That sees a range of five immersive tracks recorded in the California wilderness embedded directly onto the device, meaning you can listen to a range of relaxation tracks without needing to pair to your phone.

The other bright point is the price. At £365 / US$399 (approx. €426 / AU$705), these sit beneath a lot of the established competition, which should make them an attractive prospect. I'll reserve further judgement until they've been tested, but it's certainly an attractive option.

If you're in the market for high-end hi-fi speakers, a respected brand like Focal is always worth considering. With decades of experience, you know you're buying into something trustworthy and quality.

Now, the brand has unveiled a new set of luxurious floorstanding speakers. Called the Scala Utopia Evo M, these units are delectably designed with more than a hint of seventies charm.

The new model takes the foundations provided by the original Scala Utopia, including a three-way architecture. However, these new units adopt the M-profile midrange from the Utopia Main range of pro-grade speakers, offering a midrange response which is much more transparent and natural sounding.

It's not the only tech which is borrowed in the new design. It also takes the PRISM tweeter from the recent Diva Alta Utopia model, which uses a multi-material design.

The result offers a higher level of rigidity than beryllium, and maintains a healthy balance between being lightweight and offering suitable damping. That means you can expect incredible purity in the high-end of your sound.

All of that is added to a platform with improvements to the phase crossover system, which allows users to precisely adjust the bass and treble response to suit the listening environment. Additional Gamma and Focus Time technologies ensure consistency and stability in the operation, too.

Now, if you're thinking that all of that tech can't come cheap... you're exactly right. Priced at €40,000 / US$46,000 (approx. £34,400 / AU$66,000) per pair, these aren't even in the same postcode as cheap.

This end of the luxury speaker market is hotly contested, with many major brands offering premium, stylish floor standing speakers at similarly eye-watering prices. You could probably make a case for any one of them, but if you're in a position to buy, these new Focal units should definitely have a spot on your "must try" list.

Nothing is far from done with product launches for the year. Having already released the Nothing (4a) phone series earlier this year, alongside the new Headphone (a) over-ears, it will soon introduce a budget phone – the Nothing Phone (4b) – and new earbuds.

Indeed, the latter have now been confirmed, with a full launch planned for next Tuesday, 7 July. Called the Nothing Ear (3a) they will be the latest in the brand's affordable audio range, and we've just received a teaser in preparation.

We don't know a whole lot about the new buds yet, save for the fact you can sign up for a launch notification on the Nothing website. But interestingly, the teaser video doesn't only have music connotations (with a vinyl deck displaying a zoetropic animation), it effectively gives us the colour options that will be available – white, black, yellow and pink.

Oh, and it just so happens to have been shot using the camera on the forthcoming new phone – the Nothing Phone (4b).

Other than that, the rest is guess work for now. That includes price, although we wouldn't be surprised if the Nothing Ear (3a) replace the current Ear (a) pair. That would put them around £79 a pair at launch.

The flagship buds – the Nothing Ear (3) – are currently £149, so these new additions will be cheaper than those, for sure.

It's hard to say what features you might get – active noise cancelling and Hi-Res Audio support are likely. Although we doubt there'll be the Super Mic case, as found on the more expensive devices.

You won't have too long to wait to find out, although it's also worth considering that if you are in the market for budget earbuds at a decent price, the Nothing Ear (a) are currently down to £49 – probably in anticipation of this latest launch.

They're very decent for that price.

The BBC has officially switched off its long wave radio service in the UK. The Wychbold masts started broadcasting in 1934, with the location near Droitwich designed to cover all of the UK, but as of 27 June 2026, the BBC Radio 4 broadcasts on the platform have been switched off.

On 30 June 2026, the long wave platform will be closed, marking an end to an interesting 92 years of history for radio transmissions in the UK.

With listeners adopting FM and DAB, and the BBC outlining a digital strategy in 2022, the switch-off was expected. For many, this will be an irrelevance, for others, it will be greeted with sadness as the groundbreaking service comes to an end.

When the BBC started broadcasting from Wychbold in 1934, it was a unifying service, covering the whole of the UK and avoiding the need for numerous local transmission masts. That saw the birth of true national radio for news and entertainment, where previously the BBC operated a highly regionalised service.

That enabled moments like the transmission of Neville Chamberlain's declaration of war in 1939, through to the Shipping Forecast and Test Match Special, with ball-by-ball commentary of the cricket.

More recently, BBC Radio 4 has been resident on long wave, providing a mix of entertainment and news – as well as outstanding 6:30pm comedy – across the UK and beyond.

The Beeb says that 99.5% of UK households can receive FM broadcasts, but I can't imagine what it must be like if you're in that 0.5% for whom your radio signal just went silent. Well, if you're one of those people and you're reading this, it's time to move to BBC Sounds.

Long wave radio played an important role in other areas, used during the Second World War to broadcast across Europe and communicate with the French resistance. It's also said that nuclear submarines used it as a proof of survival for the UK, according to the Radio Society of Great Britain.

While digital services offer higher quality (it's stereo for starters), the updating of broadcasting services has been met with resistance every step of the way. DAB faced a hard time on introduction, because unlike FM where weak signal would give a hiss, DAB suffers from dropouts and horrible noises when the signal gets weaker.

Many people have since evolved beyond DAB to internet radio, but there are still areas where neither are available. There are still some MW services – BBC Radio 5 Live – but medium wave transmitters have also been slowly turned off.

It's the end of an era, but arguably, continually updating a service that's now not widely used by listeners wouldn't be seen as a good use of licence payers' money.

Camera-equipped AirPods sound familiar? That's because this is far from the first time the idea has surfaced.

T3 previously reported on claims that Apple was exploring AirPods with built-in cameras, and multiple reports since then have suggested the project has moved from experimentation to active development.

Now Bloomberg's Mark Gurman says the earbuds are being lined up for a late-2027 launch alongside Apple's foldable iPhone and 20th-anniversary iPhone.

The latest report suggests Apple sees the earbuds as one of its first true AI-era wearables. According to Gurman, the devices would include tiny cameras embedded in the stems, allowing Siri to understand what's happening around you in real time.

That might sound invasive, but the cameras reportedly aren't designed for taking photos or recording video. Instead, they're expected to act as sensors that feed visual information into Apple's Visual Intelligence system, helping Siri identify objects, answer contextual questions and provide more useful assistance without needing you to point an iPhone camera at something first.

The bigger picture is that Apple appears to be building an entire ecosystem of AI hardware. Recent reports suggest the company is simultaneously working on smart glasses, camera-enabled AirPods and other wearable devices that use visual context to make Siri more aware of the world around you.

Rather than relying solely on a phone screen, future Apple devices could continuously gather information about your surroundings and provide assistance when needed.

The AirPods can make more sense than smart glasses in one way: hundreds of millions of people already wear earbuds every day. Adding visual intelligence to an existing product category may prove easier than convincing consumers to adopt an entirely new form factor.

There's even academic research demonstrating that low-power camera-equipped earbuds can provide surprisingly effective environmental awareness for AI systems.

There's still no word on pricing, and Apple hasn't confirmed any of the rumours. But after multiple reports over the past two years – and claims that the hardware has reached advanced testing – AirPods with cameras are starting to look less like a strange experiment and more like a product that's genuinely on the way.

The latest audio gadget to catch my eye doesn't have a touchscreen, voice assistant or AI playlist generator. Instead, the Atonemo NTS Radio Player is built around a simple idea: press a button, turn a dial and discover something new.

Developed in partnership with London-based NTS Radio, the compact Wi-Fi streamer connects to almost any amplifier or powered speaker and gives you instant access to the station's human-curated broadcasts and themed "Infinite Mixtapes".

Two dedicated buttons jump straight to NTS 1 and NTS 2, while a chunky rotary dial lets you browse through 16 continuous music streams covering different moods and genres. The idea is to spend less time choosing what to listen to and more time actually listening.

Despite its retro-inspired approach, the NTS Radio Player is thoroughly modern under the hood. It supports AirPlay 2, Google Cast, Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect and Qobuz Connect.

There's also a built-in DAC that handles audio up to 24-bit/192kHz. Connection is via a 3.5mm output, with an RCA adapter included for older stereo systems.

Measuring just 105 x 70 x 23mm, the device is small enough to disappear into most setups, but its physical controls are clearly the main attraction. As smart homes become increasingly screen-filled, there's something appealing about a music player that asks you to do less rather than more.

The Atonemo NTS Radio Player is available now for £129 / $179 / AU$250.

Most speakers disappear into the background. The SonicGlass A1 does the opposite. Created by audio startup MorningBlues, the hi-fi speaker combines a transparent acoustic driver with a 21.5-inch transparent display, turning every song into a visual experience.

The speaker's glass front panel has more than 90% light transmission, allowing you to see both the display and the hardware behind it.

MoodLyric is a really fun feature. As music plays, song lyrics are animated on-screen in styles designed to match the rhythm and mood of each track. MorningBlues says the system has been trained using data from hundreds of millions of music playbacks, while lyrics are licenced through LyricFind.

There's also an AI-powered SceneSync mode that generates genre-specific visuals in real time, creating different effects for pop, rock, hip-hop and R&B tracks.

Using the MorningBlues app, you can upload a photo and have AI place you inside a music video that plays on the speaker's screen. It can also display your own photos and videos when music isn't playing, effectively doubling as a digital display.

Other features include a karaoke mode with synchronised lyrics, ambient display modes, clock faces and an ASMR sleep mode. A dedicated Music Hub controller can also be used for phone-free playback control.

The SonicGlass A1 is currently available through Kickstarter, down from $999 to $649, where MorningBlues is pitching it as the world's first transparent lyric speaker. Whether the concept catches on remains to be seen, but it's certainly one of the most unusual audio products we've seen this year.

The mystery surrounding Beats' next pair of over-ear headphones is disappearing one teaser at a time.

The latest clue comes from long-time Beats ambassador LeBron James, who shared a series of Instagram Stories showing himself at a golf driving range wearing what appear to be the unreleased headphones.

More importantly, the clips seem to demonstrate one of the rumoured new features borrowed from the Apple AirPods Max 2: magnetic, swappable ear cushions.

Accompanied only by a string of emojis – a golfer, golf flag, padlock and headphones – James removes the ear cushions, replaces them with another set and carries on hitting balls.

The padlock emoji appears to be a playful nod to the fact that the product is still under wraps.

At this point, it's becoming increasingly difficult to believe these sightings are accidental.

Over the past few months, the headphones have appeared on the heads of several high-profile athletes and celebrities, including Lamine Yamal and Kobbie Mainoo.

The first time we learned about the potential swappability of the ear cushions was in a social media post from South Korean football player Lee Kang-in, who teased the upcoming cans just a couple of weeks ago.

Following a familiar playbook

James is by far the biggest name to tease the mystery over-ears and has played a key role in Beats' launches in the past, across both guerrilla and standard marketing channels.

A couple of years ago, he helped tease the return of the Beats Pill speaker before its official unveiling, and he's also fronted campaigns including Beats' first collaboration with Nike.

Using one of the company's most recognisable ambassadors – who has 154 million followers on Instagram alone – to showcase an unreleased product on their social media channels fits neatly into the company's established marketing strategy.

The biggest takeaway from James' latest appearance is that he appears to be highlighting their modular design.

Previous leaks have pointed towards removable magnetic ear cushions, and this is the clearest public demonstration of that feature so far.

Beats has yet to officially acknowledge the headphones or announce a launch date, but the steady stream of carefully choreographed sightings suggests the reveal can't be too far away.

If anything, LeBron's latest tease feels less like another leak and more like the next chapter in a marketing campaign that's already well underway.

The fact that the DX3000CL are the most affordable model – as well as the first closed-back model – in Final Audio’s ‘DX’ range is not the same as saying they represent any sort of bargain.

Final Audio's DX6000 flagship costs approaching four times the price – at nearly £1900 / $2000, after all – so everything is relative. However, the DX3000CL could conceivably represent great value for money if you're looking for a wired closed-back over-ears.

Price & Availability

The Final Audio DX3000CL have been on sale since late 2025. In the United Kingdom they sell for £549. You’re looking at $599 in the United States. And it's around the AU$1099 mark in Australia.

This is affordable by the standards of Final Audio’s ‘DX’ range, sure – but this is still a fairly pricey pair of headphones, one that faces plenty of competition from plenty of equally credible brands among the best wired headphones.

Features & What's New?

Some cable and some drivers – that’s generally it for ‘features’ where passive hard-wired headphones are concerned. And Final Audio is not the sort of company that will pile on the fripperies just for the sake of it. What you get here are the essentials.

Which means a 2m length of oxygen-free copper cable in a flexible polymer sheath, with a 4.4mm balanced termination at the business end and a chunky unbalanced 6.3mm adapter too. The other end of the cable divides into two 3.5mm terminations, as each earcup needs to be wired.

The cable sends analogue information to a pair of 40mm free-edge dynamic drivers, designed and engineered in house by Final Audio in Japan, and which feature a paper/carbon composite diaphragm.

The company is claiming a frequency response of 10Hz - 40kHz, and given that sensitivity is quoted at 96dB and impedance at 37Ω, the DX3000CL shouldn’t be any kind of hardship to drive.

Sound Performance

Being a specialist is not automatically a bad thing – it means that people know where to come when they need something specific done to a very high standard.

But when you’re spending this sort of money on a pair of headphones, you’re entitled to expect a level of across-the-board competence that the Final Audio DX3000CL don’t seem capable of mustering.

To be fair, the things the DX3000CL are good at outweigh the things they’re not quite so good at to quite a degree – and at their best, the Final Audio are among the very best around. Certainly when you consider ‘detail retrieval’ and ‘insight’ as disciplines, off the top of my head I can’t think of a more effective way at this price point.

In the simplest terms, the Final Audio know everything about the recording you’re listening to. There isn’t an aspect of it that’s too minor, too deep in the mix or too transient to escape their notice – and once they’ve identified a particular detail, they have absolutely no problem in putting it into context with just the right amount of weighting.

They’re analytical in the least pejorative sense, because they don’t make teasing out the most fleeting details in your favourite recordings the whole point. They simply want to give you as complete a picture as possible.

The fact these headphones are capable of mustering a large, well-defined and very spacious soundstage helps no end when it comes to revealing all these fine details, too.

The DX3000CL give the participants in even the most complex recordings all the space they need to express themselves – but they also ensure a performance is knitted together convincingly at the same time.

There’s a togetherness and a singularity about the way these headphones present music that might seem at odds with the sheer scale of their staging – but only until you hear them in action.

They are very well judged where tonality is concerned, too, with just the tiniest hint of heat at the bottom of the frequency range making them less than utterly neutral.

Frequency response is similarly judicious: low frequencies hit with determination, and are controlled to the point that rhythm expression is very assured, but they’re never overstated.

The same is true of the midrange, and the brightly substantial top-end of the frequency range too. The amount of weight each area receives is entirely appropriate in every circumstance.

What’s lacking in the way the Final Audio present music is a convincing sense of drive or dynamic impetus. Some recordings simmer along at a consistent level of volume and intensity, and in these circumstances the DX3000CL are perfectly happy.

But those recordings that indulge in big shifts where volume or intensity are concerned – or, even more problematically, both – will expose a lack of willingness on the part of the Final Audio to properly dig in and attack these fluctuations with anything approaching conviction. It makes for an overly 'polite' listen – and that’s not always what’s required.

Design & Usability

Unusually, the DX3000CL earcups move up and down on a slender length of shaped steel in order to adjust the fit of the headphones – it’s more common in over-ear headphones to find the earcups are fixed and the headband has some adjustment.

But that’s it as far as esoteric design choices go – in every other respect, the Final Audio adhere closely to the long-established ‘over-ear headphones’ template.

The earcups are made from a resin that’s reinforced with glass-fibre, and a couple of pronounced circular grooves in the material constitute a design flourish.

The earpads are of synthetic leather, and they’re padded with quite a lot of medium-density memory foam – so be prepared for these headphones to make your head quite a lot wider than many alternative designs insist on.

There’s more synthetic leather on the outside of memory foam for the inside of the headband, too – although thankfully a slightly more manageable amount.

The total weight (with cable) is 410g – which looks like more than it feels like, thanks to a judicious hanger arrangement and some carefully judged clamping force.

It’s worth mentioning that Final Audio uses no adhesives in the DX3000CL's construction – instead, a combination of precision screws and ‘O’-rings are used, and the result is exemplary build quality. Plus, of course, the headphones are much easier to disassemble and repair or renew, and are more sustainable as a result.

Final Audio DX3000CL review: Verdict

If the DX3000CL could attack a recording with as much conviction as they extract all of the information from it, they’d be a shoo-in for that fifth star and be real wired contenders. As it is, they have a remarkably specific skillset that is bound to delight as many listeners as it frustrates.

Also Consider

The best wired over-ear headphones we’ve heard at this sort of money aren’t, strictly speaking, alternatives for the Final Audio DX3000CL at all.

The FiiO FT5 are a tremendous pair of headphones, and at the money are about the most affordable taste of planar magnetic driver technology around – but they’re open-backed, and so nothing like as realistic a proposition for listening to when in company.

The same is true of the Sennheiser HD 660 S2 – outstanding sound quality from a company that is as credible as they come, but from an open-backed design that leaks sound quite readily.

So unless you’re prepared to spend quite a lot more than DX3000CL money, or to spend less and compromise on sound quality, the Final Audio have a little part of the market all to themselves.

I've been testing the Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro – aptly, given the product's name – for four months now. I've tested using the Galaxy S26 Ultra and a bunch of the year's other best Android phones – including Oppo Find X9 Ultra and more.

During my time reviewing these earbuds, I've jostled between a batch of other review units – Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds 2nd Gen included – and have also seen various software updates further finesse the Samsung's already solid offering.

Compared to previous generations, the Buds 4 Pro up the comfort and noise-cancelling ante. But in a field that's already full of big-hitters, do Samsung's flagship earbuds stand out? If you've got a flagship Galaxy phone to match then the ecosystem tie-in may well be reason enough.

Price & Availability

The Galaxy Buds 4 Pro launched in tandem with the Galaxy S26 phone series earlier this year. The initial on-sale price was £219 / £249 / AU$399 – which represented a like-for-like price position per their predecessors.

Since the launch date, however, the price has dipped a bit – as you can see in the live shopping widget above. However, the earlier Galaxy Buds 3 Pro are far cheaper still, if price is your main purchase incentive.

Buds Pro 3 vs 4: What's New?

Paying the extra may well be worth it, however, as the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro bring some tasty extras over the previous model.

Design is the most considerable shift, with the 'Blade lights' of the older model – yes, there were actual lights on the stems – banished from the Buds 4 Pro.

The new model's stems are now finished with a brushed metal, providing a different aesthetic that helps stand them apart from looking like "yet another AirPods replica".

Sound has also been revised, with the 10mm woofer of the previous model upped to an 11mm version. The separate 5.5mm tweeter has also been retuned in balance with that upgrade.

In addition to the promise of better sound, Samsung has also revised the active noise-cancelling (ANC) for greater aspirations, too, with less "hiss" and greater reduction of ambient sounds.

The latest Bluetooth standard and better wide-band call quality are also added to the Buds 4 Pro.

Comfort & Setup

For years I've been an advocate of the best over-ear headphones, but recent years have shown me that in-ear 'buds have come a long way – this Samsung pair very much included.

That's because the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro have been created following "10,000 simulations with global ear data points", Samsung tells me, to create a 'master' average that's more likely to be comfortable for more people.

It's worked a treat for my ears, as even after all these months of on-and-off wearing, from the very first time I put the 'buds into my ears through until now, I've felt largely satisfied with the comfort.

There's no real stress or sensation of pressure, although this can build to some degree after longer periods of wear. I find the Bose QC Ultra Earbuds 2 feel nicer, even if their far larger design might seem at odds with such a statement.

How the 'buds will actually look in your ears is another matter, of course, and this will come down to personal preference. White is the review model I possess, when I'd pick the Black finish all day long – or there's also a Pink Gold, if that's more to your tastes.

But I'm getting ahead of myself here: as setting up the Buds 4 Pro is the first thing that you'll have to perform after taking the earbuds out of their box and, indeed, the included charging case.

Pairing via Bluetooth is easy: simply place the earbuds into that case, with the lid open, then perform a typical Bluetooth pairing function. That's the most basic connection established, but for fuller functionality you'll need Samsung's Galaxy Wearable app to handle everything.

The app is an important aspect of setting up the finer details, as the Buds 4 Pro can do a lot more than just deliver audio straight to your ears. They can read notifications from specific apps, for example – a feature that I found nothing but infuriating in disrupting my music flow (and which took ages to locate and fully disable – a 'do not disturb' override would be lovely).

Other features include a 'fit test' for how well the 'buds sit into your ears; pinch and voice control settings; a fully adjustable graphic equaliser (EQ) with preset options available; 'Adaptive' automated adjustment between noise-cancelling and ambient modes; plus various tutorials.

Sound & ANC

Samsung's hardware upgrades have worked some audio magic, as the Buds 4 Pro sound spectacular right off the bat. Make some EQ tweaks and they'll only sound better, in my view – avoiding distortion and delivering more personalised audio.

While the abundance of bass is the obvious takeaway from these earbuds, the rest of the frequency range is well handled, too, with higher frequencies nicely separated thanks to that dual-driver design. It's a very clean, wide and enveloping listen – which is just what you want from a pair of earbuds.

This sound profile can take on the best of them, plus those with a Samsung Galaxy phone can benefit from even better audio thanks to SSC (UHQ) codec support – that's Samsung Seamless Codec (Ultra High Quality – designed for connection stability with up to 24-bit/96kHz hi-res audio sources. There's also Seamless Earbud Connection to flit between Galaxy ecosystem devices with ease.

If you don't have another Galaxy device, however, then no need to fret – the audio quality remains top-notch, as I've experienced on my various test devices, from Google to Oppo and Honor to OnePlus. From a sound perspective, therefore, there's little to criticise about Samsung's top-end earbuds.

The active noise-cancelling (ANC) has also shown generational improvements, seeing it do a great job at keeping ambient sounds further at bay. You can adjust the degree of ANC through five levels within the app.

You can also permit some 'ambient sound', i.e. the amount of surrounding sounds that can pass through, again on a five-level slider control. This doesn't have to be done manually, though, as Adaptive mode can take control based on your scenario.

Adaptive can be set to maximise ambient sound when there's voice or sirens detected, or during calls, for example. Call quality is very good, by the way, with microphone improvements making a big difference in clarity – whether or not you have Adaptive switched on.

Personally, I'm all about ANC being on and set to its maximum. Even at this setting, however, the Buds 4 Pro can't blot out some 'clickier' high-frequency sounds – which will continue to pass through. So Samsung's ANC solution isn't the best on market for my money – close as it gets.

It's still very good in most scenarios, though. Whether you're surrounded by road traffic or noisy air-conditioning fans, or on an aeroplane where the background "hiss" is abundant – all of which are effectively muted through this ANC system. It just needs a few tweaks to be 100% effective.

Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro review: Verdict

If you're looking for comfortable earbuds for your Samsung Galaxy phone that offer big bass, a broad soundstage, and decent active noise-cancelling, then the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro are an all-round success.

Even if you've got another type of Android phone, while you'll lose the Samsung-specific audio codec and some baked-in operating system controls, these earbuds deliver features to take on the best of the competition.

Indeed, it's only really the ANC allowing some ambient sounds to cut through that hold these 'buds back from near perfection. Battery life is also beaten by Apple's key competitor, at a maximum of 6 hours per charge – but the case will deliver three further full charges.

All in all, though, Samsung's flagship earbuds deliver a raft of improvements in a better-looking and better-sounding design than it's ever managed before. I'm still wearing them months on from acquiring a pair – and will continue to do so.

Also Consider

If you want the best-of-best in ANC, however, then Bose's QC Ultra Earbuds are a winner – and the 2nd Gen is preferable, should the price be on point.

Otherwise, Apple's AirPods Pro 3 do make a strong case for themselves – albeit more for iPhone users. Indeed, Samsung's efforts are the equivalent tie-in for a Galaxy ecosystem.

Teenage Engineering is the company that convinced musicians they needed brightly coloured pocket synths. It was also behind a futuristic field recorder and a computer case that looked like it belonged in a design museum. But the new APC-2 might be its boldest move yet.

At first glance it looks more like industrial machinery than consumer tech. That's because it basically is. The APC-2 is a professional record-cutting system designed to create playable vinyl records directly from audio, in real time. Ideal if you've already invested in one of the best record players.

Rather than pressing records in a factory, the machine physically cuts grooves into discs as the audio is being recorded. Teenage Engineering describes it as a professional audio disc recording system.

This is a world away from the company's earlier PO-80 Record Factory, which was more like an enthusiast's toy for creating novelty records at home.

The APC-2 is aimed at studios, labels and specialist audio producers, with only a limited number reportedly built so far. Pricing hasn't been shared publicly, which is usually a sign that this isn't something destined for a spare bedroom setup.

The APC-2 feels like Teenage Engineering has stepped its game up seriously. The machine incorporates precision cutting, heating, vacuum and motor systems to achieve the accuracy needed for high-quality vinyl production.

It has reportedly been developed alongside Austrian analogue media specialists Supersense, meaning this should be more than just another design-led experiment.

Of course, being Teenage Engineering, it still looks impossibly cool. The towering black machine has the same minimalist aesthetic that has made the brand so stand-out, only scaled up to workshop size. At roughly 140kg this is one Teenage Engineering product you'll need to find a pretty permanent home for.

Whether the APC-2 becomes a genuine industry tool or simply another wonderfully eccentric chapter in Teenage Engineering's history remains to be seen. Either way, it's refreshing to see a company known for playful gadgets producing something with genuinely serious audio ambitions.

Apple's unannounced Beats headphones have surfaced once again, this time on England midfielder Kobbie Mainoo, suggesting the long-rumoured over-ear cans could be nearing an official reveal.

The latest sighting comes via a comparatively small Instagram post from Manchester United fan account united.core, showing Mainoo wearing a pair of previously unseen Beats headphones alongside teammate Marcus Rashford.

Curiously, I was unable to trace the image back to an original source.

A reverse-image search using TinEye returned no matches, indicating the photograph has yet to appear elsewhere online.

That could mean this is one of the earliest public appearances of the mystery headphones to date.

The design matches earlier leaks but appears in a new colourway, featuring white earcups paired with dark blue ear cushions.

It's the third public appearance of the mystery headphones in recent weeks.

Previous sightings included Spanish footballer Lamine Yamal and South Korean star Lee Kang-in, with each athlete wearing a different colour combination.

That growing collection of finishes hints that Beats could be planning an unusually broad colour lineup at launch.

More than just another leak?

The repeated football connections are particularly notable, with every major sighting so far involving players competing at or associated with the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

This suggests Beats may be using elite athletes as part of a coordinated teaser campaign, which is not uncommon for the brand.

There's also a possibility that the contrasting colours point to some form of customisation.

While there's no evidence that ear cushions or other components are interchangeable, the different combinations seen so far have sparked speculation that Beats could be experimenting with a more modular design.

For now, though, Apple and Beats remain tight-lipped about what could become the company's first major over-ear headphone release since the Beats Studio Pro launched in 2023.

The 'open-ear' market is going from strength to strength this year, with many additional brands having entered the 'not-in-your-ears' earbuds market – with Sennheiser also adding to your choices with the all-new Accentum Clip.

That's hot on the heels of Shokz's latest, the OpenDots 2, and follows the likes of Bose, which released its Ultra Open Earbuds more than two years ago. Other big names in this space include Huawei.

There are different types of open-ear 'buds with different intents and target users, of course, to which Sennheiser is no stranger – having launched the Accentum Open last year. The focus of this product was to always permit ambient sound to enter your ears for awareness.

The new Clip, however, is as its name describes: a clip-on design that suits a wider range of use-cases, given the assurance of it remaining in place. So whether you want it for the office, or when out running, there's greater versatility.

Sennheiser has long been in the audio business, with over 80 years of expertise. That's one of its big upsells with the Accentum Clip, which promise to deliver audio quality first and foremost – something that many open-ears are criticised for, in offering 'thin' sound.

The Accentum Clip use 12mm drivers to deliver their sound, which can easily be from multiple sources thanks to Bluetooth 6.0 multipoint connectivity. There's LDAC streaming offered for higher-fidelity audio sources, too.

Design-wise the Clip 'buds are super-lightweight for comfort, offering an IP54 rating to ensure resistance to water splashes – a feature that'll be a must-have for sports users.

The battery life is quoted at 9 hours per charge, with a further three charges in the case bringing that up to 36 hours in total. A 10-minute charge delivers 2 hours of playback, should you come up short.

Sennheiser's Accentum Clip go on sale from 23rd July – so you've got almost a month to wait at the time of writing – with pre-orders at uk.sennheiser-hearing.com available now. There are Black, Cream and Ice Blue variants, priced at £149 / AU$289.95 each.