It may be a Bank Holiday in Blighty, but that won’t stop us publishing a fresh entry into our weekly Rewind hi-fi and home cinema news digest.
It was another incredibly busy news week for our team of hi-fi and home cinema experts, with key releases from Bowers and Wilkins, Bluesound and more hitting the headlines.
Here’s what you need to know.
Bowers and Wilkins’ Pi8 wireless earbuds are its best to date
Ever heard the saying “third time’s a charm?” It’s a great summary of our experience with Bowers and Wilkins’ latest earbuds, the Pi8. The buds launched last week, and having put them through their paces, we can confirm they are superb. These earbuds are interesting as they’re a complete redesign and rethink of the firm’s flagship wireless earbud offering following their previous two flagship models (the Pi7 and Pi7 S2). The results are fantastic with the new model offering sonic excellence across the board, regardless of which test track we threw at them – to the point we’re listing them as one of the best sets to arrive this year.
Read our full Bowers & Wilkins Pi8 review
Bluesound launched not one, not two, but three new music streamers
Last week hi-fi house Blusound unveiled its new Node, Node Nano and Node Icon hi-res music streamers. The Nano is the firm’s new entry level streamer, while the new Node replaces the 2021 unit of the same name as its latest mid-range option. The Icon is a new premium option. With heavy competition from WiiM, Cambridge Audio and Naim, to name a few, at every price point Bluesound has loaded each with a competitive list of hardware. Highlights include support for all the major streaming platforms and support for hi-res files up to 24-bit/192kHz across the board. The Node and the Node Icon go further and also support DSD256 files.
Read the full story: Bluesound's trio of hi-res music streamers is bringing the fight to Sonos
Our team got funky
Funk is a diverse entertaining genre full of amazing tracks – and as an added bonus many of them are great for testing hi-fi. Whether it’s rhythmically complex slap bass sections, or screaming vocals, funk is a common genre you’ll hear emanating from our dedicated listening rooms. Here to help you get in on the fun-k, last week our team detailed the 13 of the best funk and soul test tracks we use while reviewing.
Read the full article: 13 of the best classic funk and soul tracks to test your system
We detailed why students should go for Tidal not Spotify
For years, despite its lower quality Spotify has been the most used streaming service for music. But in recent years it has become increasingly hard to recommend. This week our team penned a fresh feature detailing our three biggest beefs with the service and explained why students, and most people in general, would be better off with Tidal.
Read the full article: 3 reasons why students should choose Tidal over Spotify
And why they should buy a DAC…
On top of our plea to opt for Tidal, our team also dropped one other nugget of wisdom for students, and general newbies looking to take their first step into proper hi-fi. Specifically, if you’re keen for a cost-effective demo of the sonic benefits good hi-fi can bring, a portable DAC and a pair of wired, open-back headphones are a great option.
Read the full story: Forget AirPods, this is the hi-fi accessory every student should be taking to university
MORE:
These are the best music streamers we’ve reviewed
We rate the best wireless earbuds money can buy
Our pick of the best DACs
