Best hi-fi systems 2025: CD, vinyl and streaming music players for the home
Music systems that strike the perfect balance between performance and convenience

- Quick list
- Best microsystem
- Best budget speaker system
- Best premium speaker system
- Best high-end speaker system
- Best budget streaming amp
- Best premium streaming amp
- Best turntable system
- Best radio system
- Best desktop system
- Best all-in-one system
- Also consider
- How to choose
- Recent updates
- How we test
- Today's best deals
It isn't necessarily easy to build a 'separates' hi-fi system, where every component (amplifier, speakers and at least one source) is housed in a separate box. You need space, a fair budget and the time to research what components go well together and how to best set them up. Understandably, it isn't for everyone! And that's where hi-fi systems come in.
These integrated multi-tasking music machines typically pack every job of a system into fewer boxes, making your journey to audio nirvana much more straightforward.
Such hi-fi systems vary wildly in form factor, feature set and, of course, price. You have all-in-one microsystems complete with speakers; pairs of streaming stereo speakers housing everything you need; or single boxes of streaming, CD- or vinyl-playing electronics to which stereo speakers must be added.
Each kind is covered here within our top 10 picks (and Also Consider alternatives), but they all share one thing in common: class-leading performance at their price. They combine best-in-class features and intuitive usability, too.
Our expert in-house reviews team tests hi-fi systems throughout the year and across the market, with each one benchmarked against its closest competitors. Naturally, only those that come out of our comprehensive testing criteria with flying colours make it into this definitive hi-fi system buying guide.
The quick list
The multi-Award-winning M41DAB is an awesome piece of kit at a fantastic price, boasting excellent sound quality and great flexibility.
In the market for a compact speaker system packed with streaming smarts? These surprisingly sophisticated entry-level KEFs should top your wishlist.
A multi-Award-winning streaming speaker system that is both innovative and entertaining, with clean, punchy sound and all-encompassing connectivity.
As mature as streaming stereo speakers come at this level, these Award-winning JBLs offer a thrill ride few of its all-in-one kind can offer.
The multi-Award-winning SA-C600 boasts entertaining sound, punchy dynamics and a strong feature set without costing you a fortune.
The highly insightful Atom earns its haul of What Hi-Fi? Awards thanks to its class-leading insight, precise timing and impressive looks.
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Want a great place to listen to your records without a fussy setup? If so, the System One is still the entry-level setup to beat.
The handsome, retro-modern all-in-one speaker system is feature-packed, super-sounding and a pleasure to use.
These Award-winning desktops are compact, elegant and versatile, all while offering enthusiastic and competent sound Highly recommended.
A flexible, function-rich and great-sounding system that somehow manages to be a good-looking piece of furniture at the same time.
Recent updates
February 2025: We had high hopes that the new Technics SC-CX700 would give the KEF LS50 Wireless II below a run for its money, but it has proven disappointing, receiving only three stars. Meanwhile, the stupendously high-end Focal Diva Utopia makes our Also Consider list.
I'm the managing editor of What Hi-Fi? and, with 11 years of experience in reviewing hi-fi, have seen first-hand the hi-fi system category evolve into what it is today. Now smarter than ever and with fewer compromises than before in the sound department, the integrated systems you see below are fantastic ways of obtaining proper hi-fi sound without needing to go the whole hog and set up a purist 'separates' system. Whether you simply want an easy vinyl playback solution or everything the streaming world offers, you can now get it from high-performing and space-efficient offerings that don't need to break the bank.
Best microsystem
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
The default budget all-in-one system choice for years, this Denon multi-Award winner is still at the top of its game, so much so we're yet to really find anything of its type that can outdo it at a similar price.
You can buy the D-M41DAB with or without Denon's own speakers. Without, the system is called RCD-M41DAB and can be found online for under £250 / $350 / AU$500. The speakers are dubbed SC-M41; put the two together and you have the D-M41DAB. Indeed, we'd happily recommend Denon's speakers if you don't have your own already.
The inclusion of Bluetooth (which can be turned on or off to avoid affecting the D-M41DAB’s overall performance) is cause for celebration, as is the superb sound quality. In terms of performance, this system could hold its own against groups of separates at a greater cost, with a graceful, insightful and expressive sound.
"The combination of low-end stability and dynamic sensibilities leaves us with a remarkably human performance for a hi-fi system at this price," our in-house experts penned in our D-M41DAB review.
Microsystems may seem like a dated concept nowadays, but this Denon proves that they can still be a perfect route to convenience and great-value sound; a way to get true stereo room-filling sound that a one-box system can't always deliver. A truly remarkable system for the money.
Read our full Denon D-M41DAB review
Best budget speaker system
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KEF’s LS50 Wireless II standmount speaker systems (below) and its more recently launched LS60 Wireless floorstanding speaker system have stolen a lot of headlines in recent years, but we shouldn’t forget there is actually a third and fourth member of KEF’s wireless speaker system family – the LSX II and, the cheapest and newest of them all, the LSX II LT we have here.
The LSX II arrived as essentially a more modest, miniature member of the clan, pretty much perfect for smaller rooms, and now this LT version has made it even more accessible by bringing the price down without cutting many corners. In 2023, the LSX II won the What Hi-Fi? Award as the 'Best speaker system' at its level, but in 2024 the LT version took its place as the better value of the two.
This stereo speaker system still delivers much of what has made the KEF LSX II a two-time What Hi-Fi? Award winner, including the very same musical, detailed sound (our expert reviewers said that it "shares the same sonic credentials as the LSX Il, with almost no sonic shortcomings when the two are directly compared side-by-side") and generous streaming features. It simply drops the option of a wireless link between the speakers, the aux input and a few colourway options, while lopping £300 / $400 / AU$500 off the price.
The KEF LSX II LT is therefore a fantastic value alternative to the more illustrious, expensive LSX II. By taking a great system and streamlining it without compromising the sound, KEF has nailed it once again.
Don't want to spend quite so much? The Triangle Twin AIO, found below, are a fantastic bargain desktop system at an extremely attractive price.
Read our full KEF LSX II LT review
Best premium speaker system
Specifications
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Premium versions of the LSX II LT above, KEF's sequel to its outstanding LS50 Wireless speakers improves on greatness – no easy feat, even for an audio brand as surefooted as KEF.
They sit below the JBL 4329P (below) as well as KEF's pricier LS60 Wireless offerings in the burgeoning market, in terms of both price and performance, but if the LS50 Wireless II suit your budget more, you won't be disappointed with this premium system.
Like their illustrious predecessors, the LS50 Wireless II serves as a superb all-in-one system (streaming and amplification are built-in) by dint of their advanced connectivity. Improvements include upgraded components and a new KEF Connect app where you can access the likes of Tidal, Qobuz, Amazon Music and Deezer. Not that you'll need to reach for any of the aforementioned apps; these speakers are capable of streaming via AirPlay 2, Google Chromecast and Bluetooth, and are also Roon Ready.
KEF's striking design is matched by stunning sonics, enhanced by refreshed Uni-Q drivers and KEF's all-new MAT absorption technology. The presentation is more refined and the addition of MAT can be heard in the treble and midrange, which our in-house experts described as "cleaner-cut". Our LS50 Wireless II review reads: "The whole presentation has been opened out, that extra room not only filled with subtler, more precise detail, but also allowing for greater instrument separation."
Quite simply, if you're in the market for a high-fidelity all-in-one system packed with streaming smarts, this sophisticated sequel should top your list.
Read our full KEF LS50 Wireless II review
Best high-end speaker system
Specifications
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It’s still the case today that all-in-one systems generally don’t tend to perform as well as the best separates systems totalling similar amounts. However, such space-efficient, convenient, do-it-all designs are improving sonically by the year and becoming all the more compelling for it. Case in point: the JBL 4329P Studio Monitor.
This system sounds more or less as it looks – immense. "They do everything to capture our attention as we play Pink Floyd’s Time," reads our 4329P review, "conveying the size and scale of the track’s atmospheric soundscape while ensuring every instrument has the room, clarity and texture needed for its role to be fully appreciated in the mix." Our in-house experts were also impressed with bass response, both in terms of quantity and quality, and while they sound captivatingly big and boisterous, detail and dynamic expression don't suffer because of that.
All you might want, this JBL system offers: AirPlay 2, Google Chromecast, DLNA, Bluetooth, plus physical connections that include XLR and a USB Type B that supports PCM files up to 192kHz.
That the JBL are so versatile, not only in terms of connectivity and positioning, while managing to sound so mature, is a testament to JBL’s persistent efforts in speaker design and electronics, and a milestone in all-in-one speaker systems of this kind and at this price. Will the sonic sacrifice inherent in choosing all-in-one designs over separates systems always exist? Probably, but the once-wide gap is certainly getting narrower. This is a great option if you want high-end performance from a convenient speaker setup.
After this concept but in a much higher-end proposition? Our Focal Diva Utopia review should be your next stop.
Read our full JBL 4329P Studio Monitor review
Best budget streaming amp
Specifications
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The SA-C600 really is a well-equipped streaming amplifier, to which you just need to add speakers. Technics has seen fit to include a CD player alongside the more usual network streaming capabilities with up to 32-bit/384kHz file compatibility.
There is support for Spotify Connect, Tidal, Deezer and Amazon Music, as well as DAB/DAB+ and FM radio. You also have a choice of Bluetooth, Chromecast and AirPlay 2 in addition to a raft of physical analogue (stereo RCA) and digital connections (USB Type A, USB Type B, coax and optical). Note that there is also a moving magnet phono stage allowing you to add a turntable – which makes sense given the brand’s strong connection to record player manufacturing.
Often, such systems are all about looks and features, but Technics has shown that it is possible to add great sound into the mix. "It’s an expressive and punchy performer that builds its performance around a solid framework of surefooted rhythmic drive and expressive dynamics," said our expert reviewers in our SA-C600 review. "Details levels are good, but it is the confident way this unit organises that information into a cohesive and musical whole that really impresses."
It's a really well-conceived product and fully deserves its What Hi-Fi? Award win, even with tough competition from the similarly outstanding Marantz PM700N (£999 / $999 AU$1999) and the Bluesound Powernode (£849 / $899 / AU$1599).
Highly recommended.
Read our full Technics SA-C600 review
Best premium streaming amp
Specifications
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To describe the multi-award-winning Uniti Atom as a streamer would be akin to describing Wagyu beef as sustenance. From the coffee-coaster volume dial on the roof – the pleasure of spinning it is almost enough in itself to justify buying this system – to its full-colour LCD front panel display exhibiting album art as it plays, Naim has nailed a gorgeous aesthetic for its premium streaming amplifier.
All you need do is add a pair of suitable hi-fi speakers – Naim promises 40W per channel at 8 ohms, so a pair of £1000/$1000/AU$2000 standmounters, say, would be ideal. Once you've soaked up the delicious design cues, you'll be wowed by the Atom's performance as well as its connectivity. Levels of clarity and insight are truly exceptional, as is the Atom's penchant for rhythms. "We make an attempt to wrong-foot the Uniti Atom with a grander arrangement, via Tidal, using Sergei Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No1 in F-Sharp Minor, but have about as much luck as a camel at a swimming gala," reads our Uniti Atom review.
Google Chromecast, Tidal, Spotify Connect and Internet radio are built-in, with further wireless connection available via AirPlay and Bluetooth aptX HD. You can also play music stored on a USB stick.
All in all, the talented Uniti Atom is everything we've come to expect from Naim. A superb blend of lifestyle product and premium hi-fi – as it's consecutive What Hi-Fi? Awards every year since 2017 go to show. For our money, the Uniti Atom remains the finest premium streaming amp at this level.
Read our full Naim Uniti Atom review
Best turntable system
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If you’re after a simple-to-use vinyl set-up that’s a great deal of fun to listen to, this Rega system is a great place to start.
The three-product turntable system under our noses here is the entry-level Rega System One, comprised of two What Hi-Fi? Award winners – namely Rega’s excellent Planar 1 turntable and integrated io amp – and the company's Kyte stereo speakers.
You can get a slightly more sonically transparent combination by swapping out the Kytes for something like the Dali Oberon 1, but that doesn't mean this all-in-one triple-threat option isn't a very good one. Its keen, zealous musical presentation especially makes it a great bet for those of us who like their music with plenty of vigour and spice. Like many of Rega's products, the System One, to borrow a quite from our review, "gets the basics of music reproduction spot-on, delivering musical cohesion and dynamic expression in a way that eludes most alternative set-ups".
Comprehensive, easy to set up and surprisingly compact in terms of what you actually get, too, this is a great way to get yourself a really solid vinyl setup without tearing your hair out in the process.
Read our full Rega System One review