Audio Pro C10 MkII review: audio clout without the cost

It’s safe to say Audio Pro’s 21st century has been quite distinct from its 20th. The company saw the writing on the wall where portable/digital/wireless audio is concerned quite a bit earlier than many of its nominal rivals, and consequently has established quite a reputation – in particular where reasonably priced wireless multiroom speakers are concerned.

And thanks to its policy of constantly keening over its products, an Audio Pro speaker from a few years ago can be just as well-specified and just as competitive as something that launched in the last five minutes. Especially if it includes compatibility with one of the best streaming platforms around. Which brings us, not especially coincidentally, to the C10 MkII...

Price & Availability

The Audio Pro C10 MkII originally launched all the way back in 2022 (with 'Addon' as part of its name), but a series of improvements and upgrades – especially where smart features and streaming features are concerned – means this product has, if anything, become more competitive with time.

And the fact that the price of £329 at which it launched has now become an even-more-competitive £259, there’s never been a better time to find out exactly what the C10 MkII is made of. It's €299 in Europe, $360 in the USA, and good luck finding it in Australia.

Features & What's New?

The C10 MkII makes a gesture towards physical connectivity – there’s a pair of line-level RCA inputs operating at line level, and a pre-out for use with a powered subwoofer. But really, this Audio Pro is all about the wireless connectivity.

It uses Bluetooth 4.2 with SBC and AAC codec compatibility for the most convenient streaming, but set the C10 MkII on your local network using its dual-band Wi-Fi and it suddenly becomes a much more flexible device.

Audio Pro has folded the C10 MkII into the well-regarded WiiM streaming platform, and that’s an entirely beneficial thing. The control app allows integration of your favourite music streaming service (the list of possibilities is exhaustive, covering everything from Apple Music and Qobuz to Spotify and Tidal and plenty more besides, with iHeart Radio and vTuner thrown in for good measure), and it’s easy to set up a couple of speakers as a stereo pair or create a multi-room system here too. In addition, Apple AirPlay 2 and Google Chromecast mean the C10 MkII is about as versatile as these things ever get.

No matter which of the many available options you use to get your digital audio information on board the Audio Pro, it’s dealt with by a DAC chipset of 24bit/96kHz native resolution and then receives a total of 80 watts of Class D amplification. This drives a pair of 19mm tweeters (20 watts each) either side of a 133mm mid/bass driver that gets the other 40 watts. A rear-facing bass reflex port offers a bit of low-end reinforcement, and it’s possible to trim bass and treble response in the control app.

Performance

There’s a lot to like about the individual elements of the C10 MkII sound, but it’s the way it unifies all of these elements into a convincingly unified whole that’s perhaps the most impressive. This isn’t a perfect speaker in terms of sound, of course, but in the context of the asking price it gets a lot closer than many alternatives.

Its tonal balance is nicely judged, with just the merest hint of heat in the lowest frequencies preventing it from being entirely neutral. Frequency response is equally painstaking, with nothing from the respectably deep, politely punchy low-end to the crisp-but-well-behaved treble frequencies being over- or understated. And the integration between the two tweeters and the larger mid/bass driver is all-but-imperceptible.

Detail levels are high at every point, so, which means the Audio Pro gives every indication of handing over the complete picture. The bottom end is textured and tonally convincing, so there’s plenty of variation to go along with the outright heft. The top end has similar variation, and the C10 mkII reveals plenty of harmonic variation in treble sounds. And in between, the midrange is among the most eloquent and communicative this kind of money can buy if you’re spending it on a single wireless speaker.

Dynamic headroom is respectable too, so as well as being alive to the harmonic undulations of a recording, the Audio Pro is capable of making big shifts in the volume or intensity of that same recording absolutely apparent as well.

The control of low-frequency information is confident and straight-edged – so the C10 MkII has no problem describing rhythms and tempos in a nicely naturalistic manner.

Despite the obvious point-source of music that is inevitable when you’re listening to a single speaker, the C10 MkII sounds open and quite well-defined when it comes to a soundstage.

Really, the only little fly in what is a great big jar of ointment concerns ‘excitement’ – or, rather, the slight shortage of it that’s available here. For all of its enviable powers of detail retrieval, its ability to resolve even quite complicated recordings into a coherent whole, and its winning way with tonal response, the Audio Pro isn’t the most vigorous listen you’ve ever experienced.

Despite its ability with dynamics, there’s a slight reticence on the part of the C10 MkII to really properly sink its teeth into a recording. It’s too polite and even-handed for this sort of behaviour – which is not a terrible trait to have, but it can on occasion leave the speaker sounding a little too deferential for its own good.

Design & Usability

By the standards of wireless speakers costing this sort of money, the Audio Pro C10 MkII is both slightly larger and notably more upmarket in its finish, than is the norm.

At 165 x 320 x 185mm (HxWxD) it’s relatively space-hungry as a desktop option, and its 4.3kg cabinet doesn’t feature a handle – the vertical bass reflex port on the rear could do a job for you, but don’t tell anyone I suggested using it to pick the speaker up.

This comparative bulk is mitigated no end by the smooth, seamless way the cabinet is finished, though – no matter which of the non-more-Scandi selection of finishes you choose (black, white or grey are available), the standard of build and finish is impeccable.

The very slender grille attaches magnetically, so there are no lug-holes in the front baffle. The matte black of my review sample is keen to collect fingerprints, admittedly, but I guess you can’t have everything…

As far as usability is concerned, the C10 MkII similarly accomplished. A selection of physical controls embedded in a metal plate on the top of the device cover off the major controls of power, volume, input selection and so on, and also give access to half a dozen presets too.

You’ll define those presets, and do plenty more besides, in the control app – the functionality already discussed is very gratifying, but what’s just as pleasing in the long run is how stable and reliable the app is in use.

Audio Pro C10 MkII review: Verdict

Using WiiM power to include Apple AirPlay 2 and Google Cast to an already very accomplished product has done no harm to the C10 – this MkII model has more than enough going for it in sonic terms to make up for the fact that it no longer has a carry handle.

That an Audio Pro wireless speaker should turn out to be such an enjoyable listen and such decent value for money really shouldn’t come as a shock at this point. It sounds spectacular considering its price, so unless you absolutely crave sonic fireworks from your wireless speaker, this is a profoundly competitive device.

Also consider

If you’re already in the iOS ecosystem, the Apple HomePod (2nd Gen) is a very decent speaker from a brand that’s more hit-and-miss with its audio products than it really should be. And while the Bluesound Pulse Flex 2i is, in all honesty, far from the most exciting-looking wireless speaker around, it most certainly has it where it counts too.