Soundfreaq Sound Stack review

Bluetooth wireless tech, but sound falls flat Tested at £300

What Hi-Fi? Verdict

Not bad in terms of functionality but the Sound Stack still sounds distinctly average

Pros

  • +

    Bluetooth works with Apple and other devices

  • +

    stable streaming

  • +

    remote control

Cons

  • -

    Treble lacks refinement

  • -

    coloured presentation lacks cohesiveness

Why you can trust What Hi-Fi? Our expert team reviews products in dedicated test rooms, to help you make the best choice for your budget. Find out more about how we test.

Any iPod speaker dock worth its salt now offers wireless streaming, so you can keep your device in your pocket as you listen. The 100W Soundfreaq Sound Stack uses Bluetooth, which opens it up to non-Apple devices.

Inside are twin mid/bass drivers and twin active subwoofers.

On the front is an array of nice-to-use, touch-sensitive buttons. There's a dinky remote, attaching magnetically to a small recess in the back.

There's also a free app, Soundfreaq Remote. This gives basic playback and playlist controls and is a neat idea, but it proved tricky to access the playlist on our office iPhone 4S.

The wireless connection is reliable, though, and our review sample didn't suffer form any dropout.

Docking is best for sound
From a musical point of view, though, there's no substitute for hooking up an iPhone or iPad to the 30pin dock connector. Doing this equips music with greater excitement, detail and punch, although it's still nowhere near the standard of the class-leaders at this price.

Spin Florence And The Machine's No Light, No Light and although the Sound Stack doesn't send you running for a set of earplugs, there's still a distinct lack of clarity and openness.

High frequencies sound unrefined and off-colour. If you want a broader soundstage, you can hit the UQ3 button on the front of the unit. This helps spread the sound, but the price is a slight loss focus.

There's a lot of serious competition around this price level but the Soundfreaq Sound Stack falls short of this standard.

It's a decent wireless speaker dock, but not the most desirable example we've seen – you can do much better for the money.

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What Hi-Fi?

What Hi-Fi?, founded in 1976, is the world's leading independent guide to buying and owning hi-fi and home entertainment products. Our comprehensive tests help you buy the very best for your money, with our advice sections giving you step-by-step information on how to get even more from your music and movies. Everything is tested by our dedicated team of in-house reviewers in our custom-built test rooms in London, Reading and Bath. Our coveted five-star rating and Awards are recognised all over the world as the ultimate seal of approval, so you can buy with absolute confidence.


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