There’s a war going on for your living room. The premium TV technology of choice of the last few years – OLED – is under attack from a new, stunningly bright and vibrant foe – RGB Mini LED.

Every major brand has either launched its first RGB Mini LED TVs or is about to. Hisense launched its first RGB Mini LED models last year, in fact, but those were gigantic, 100+ inch sets, so a long way from a serious proposition for most people.

Hisense is also the first brand to submit to us a proper, mainstream RGB Mini LED TV to review, though – the UR9.

RGB Mini LED TVs are pitched at different levels by different brands, but Hisense is absolutely pitching the UR9 as a rival to flagship OLEDs. The price confirms as much.

So, what better way to benchmark it than against our current favourite flagship OLED, the Sony Bravia 8 II.

That, then, is what we’ve done. Over several days, we’ve tested the Hisense UR9 and Sony Bravia 8 II side by side, feeding all of our favourite discs and streams into both simultaneously, and judging them on picture quality, sound quality, features, usability, design and price.

This might not be a full RGB Mini LED vs OLED battle – the Hisense UR9 doesn’t represent all RGB Mini LED TVs, after all – but it is the opening skirmish in the broader TV tech war. And it's an eye-opening one at that.

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: price

The Hisense UR9’s pricing is interesting to say the least. In the UK, the 65-inch model we tested is priced at £2999, which places it in the same price category as brand-new flagship OLEDs.

In Australia, meanwhile, the UR9’s price of AU$3999 makes it slightly more affordable by local standards.

In the US, though, the pre-launch price of $3500 had dropped vastly to just $2000 by the time the TV actually hit stores.

Things are much more straightforward with the Sony Bravia 8 II, the 65-inch version of which launched at £2999 / $4000 / AU$5295, but can now be bought for £2299 / $2798 / AU$4995.

The inconsistent international pricing of the Hisense UR9 makes it a little tricky to judge this round, but seeing as we’re a primarily UK publication, and that we reviewed a UK sample, we’re going to prioritise the UK pricing and call this it in favour of the Bravia 8 II.

WINNER: Sony Bravia 8 II

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: design

The Sony Bravia 8 II and Hisense UR9 are both smart-looking TVs, but they take rather different approaches to design.

Sony has essentially carried over the styling of the A95L, resulting in a TV that looks purposeful, premium and monolithic. While it lacks the ultra-thin glamour of some rival OLEDs, the Bravia 8 II still feels like a flagship product, with its clean lines and understated aesthetic giving it a suitably high-end appearance.

The feet can be installed in either a low-profile position that leaves the bottom edge of the screen sitting just millimetres above your furniture, or a raised position that creates space for a soundbar. The downside is that those feet can only be positioned at the furthest extremes of the chassis, meaning you'll need furniture that's at least as wide as the TV itself.

The Hisense UR9 is a more practical proposition. At 4.5cm thick, it's chunkier than the Sony and doesn't have quite the same premium flair, but it is solidly built and neatly finished, with slim bezels and a restrained dark metallic finish.

Hisense has also made a couple of sensible usability-focused decisions. The centrally mounted pedestal stand occupies a footprint of only around 42cm, making the TV much easier to place on narrower furniture, and it too offers two height positions so that a soundbar can be accommodated beneath the screen.

The UR9's integrated Devialet sound system is more visually obvious than Sony's Acoustic Surface Audio+ setup, with perforations running down the sides of the chassis and across the top edge to house the side- and up-firing speakers. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it does contribute to the TV's more functional, engineering-led appearance.

Ultimately, neither of these TVs is likely to be bought primarily for its styling, but the Bravia 8 II's cleaner, more premium design gives it the edge. The UR9 is practical and perfectly attractive in its own right, but it lacks the sense of sophistication that Sony's flagship delivers.

WINNER: Sony Bravia 8 II

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: features

The biggest difference between these two TVs is, of course, their panel technologies.

The Sony Bravia 8 II uses Samsung Display's latest QD-OLED panel, paired with Sony's XR processor and a custom heatsink. Because OLED technology is self-emissive, every pixel can be controlled independently, with no need for local dimming zones.

Sony doesn't publish specific brightness figures for its TVs, but the Bravia 8 II is estimated to hit around 1900 nits in small highlights, making it one of the brightest OLED TVs currently available.

The Hisense UR9, meanwhile, uses an RGB Mini LED backlight with 980 local dimming zones. Rather than relying on a conventional white backlight shining through colour filters, it uses separate red, green and blue Mini LEDs to generate colour directly. Hisense claims a peak brightness of up to 3500 nits for the 65-inch model we tested.

On paper, then, these TVs take radically different approaches to creating their images. We're not going to award points for one technology over the other here, though, because what ultimately matters is how those technologies perform in practice. We'll get to that in the picture quality section.

There are other differences in the feature sets of the two TVs worth highlighting, though.

Hardcore gamers are generally better served by the Hisense. All three of its HDMI sockets are full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 ports, with support for 4K/170Hz, 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM. It also features a DisplayPort connection, which remains extremely rare on TVs and could prove useful for committed PC gamers.

The Sony supports 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM, too, but still offers only two HDMI 2.1 sockets, one of which doubles as the eARC connection. That limitation remains one of our biggest frustrations with Sony's flagship TVs.

That said, we'd probably take the Sony's two HDMI 2.1 sockets and two additional standard HDMI inputs over the Hisense's three HDMI sockets and DisplayPort arrangement. The latter will be useful to a niche audience, but many buyers are more likely to benefit from having an extra ‘standard’ HDMI connection available.

HDR support favours the Hisense, though. The UR9 supports every major HDR format currently in use, including HLG, HDR10, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision. The Bravia 8 II supports Dolby Vision, HDR10 and HLG, but, as is customary for Sony TVs, HDR10+ is absent.

The Bravia 8 II fights back with Google TV, which remains one of the stronger smart TV platforms available and features excellent app support. The UR9's VIDAA operating system is fast and responsive, but there are some notable omissions.

Most significantly, while the Apple TV app is present, it lacks access to the Apple TV Store and users' purchased libraries. That's a genuine disappointment, as Apple's movie store remains the best pay-as-you-go film streaming service available, particularly for 4K HDR movies.

Sony also offers IMAX Enhanced certification, its Studio Calibrated Modes for services such as Netflix and Prime Video, and Sony Pictures Core integration.

Ultimately, neither TV completely dominates on features, but the Hisense's broader HDR support, extra HDMI 2.1 socket and more advanced gaming specification give it the edge overall.

WINNER: Hisense UR9

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: picture quality

This is, of course, the section that really matters.

The Hisense UR9 makes an immediately strong impression. Once switched into either Filmmaker Mode or IMAX Cinema, it produces a rich, vibrant and remarkably composed image that rarely behaves like a traditional backlit TV.

Perhaps the most impressive thing about the UR9 is how well controlled its RGB Mini LED backlight is. Throughout our testing, blooming is kept impressively in check, black levels are consistently strong and the TV almost entirely avoids the brightness pumping, flickering and shifting backlight behaviour that often gives Mini LED technology away.

Extra-bright HDR content is a particular strength. Movies such as Pan look spectacular on the UR9, with dazzling highlights and bold colours that comfortably outgun the Bravia 8 II for outright brightness. Sunlight bursting through clouds and glinting off fantasy scenery is delivered with real punch and intensity.

The UR9 is also a very accomplished motion performer, and it combines its brightness with rich colours, excellent shadow detail and a pleasingly cinematic warmth that stops the image from ever becoming gaudy or overblown.

In isolation, it's one of the best backlit TVs we have ever tested.

Direct comparison with the Bravia 8 II reveals why OLED remains the reference technology, though – at least for now.

Despite its impressive brightness and excellent local dimming, the Hisense simply can't match the Sony's pixel-level contrast control. Counterintuitively, some of the brightest highlights against the darkest backgrounds actually appear more impactful on the Bravia 8 II than on the much brighter Hisense, because the OLED can render them without any concern about blooming.

More significantly, the Sony produces a more solid and perceptually three-dimensional image. Objects and characters stand out from their surroundings with greater depth and dynamism, while subtle gradations within shadows, clouds and highlights appear more convincing and refined.

We've observed this extra solidity from OLED many times before, but the side-by-side comparison between these two TVs demonstrates it particularly clearly. Next to the Bravia 8 II, the UR9 simply looks a little flatter and less immersive.

The Sony also has the advantage when it comes to viewing angles. While the Hisense holds up better than many LCD-based rivals, the sweet spot in which it performs at its very best is still relatively narrow. Thanks to its OLED panel, the Bravia 8 II performs consistently from almost any angle.

And while blooming is rare on the UR9, it isn't entirely absent. Difficult scenes such as the bomb-test sequence in Oppenheimer or the opening starfield of Alien: Romulus reveal imperfections that even this highly accomplished RGB Mini LED set cannot completely escape.

The Bravia 8 II, meanwhile, is simply sensational. Its combination of dazzling brightness by OLED standards, vibrant colours, exceptional shadow detail and razor-sharp definition creates an image of astonishing depth and realism.

What impresses most isn't any single strength, but how naturally all of its strengths come together. The Bravia 8 II consistently delivers a picture that feels balanced, authentic and effortlessly cinematic, whether you're watching a pristine 4K Dolby Vision disc or a much more humble SDR stream.

The Hisense UR9 proves that RGB Mini LED can get surprisingly close to flagship OLED performance, and many viewers will adore its combination of brightness, richness and stability. But when viewed side by side, the Bravia 8 II remains the more complete and convincing picture performer.

WINNER: Sony Bravia 8 II

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: sound quality

Both the Sony Bravia 8 II and Hisense UR9 are unusually sonically accomplished by modern TV standards.

That's important, because while we always recommend pairing a premium TV with a dedicated sound system, for many buyers that’s either impractical or unpalatable.

The Hisense UR9 certainly doesn't disappoint. Its Devialet-tuned 4.1.2-channel sound system delivers a presentation that is impressively spacious and full-bodied, with particularly convincing width and height effects.

Dolby Atmos soundtracks benefit from a strong sense of scale, while bass is deeper and more substantial than most flatscreen TVs can manage. The overall character is smooth, rich and easy to listen to over extended viewing sessions.

The UR9's audio system isn't flawless, though. Dynamics can feel a little restrained during big action sequences, and dialogue doesn't always have the clarity and expressiveness we'd ideally like.

We also found ourselves preferring the Standard sound mode over the more expansive Theatre setting. While Theatre mode undoubtedly sounds bigger, it can introduce a slightly diffuse and faintly echoey quality to voices that makes dialogue seem less natural than it should.

The Sony Bravia 8 II takes a very different approach. Rather than relying on conventional speaker placement, its Acoustic Surface Audio+ system uses actuators to vibrate the screen itself, effectively turning the display into a speaker.

The result is one of the most cohesive and convincing audio performances we've heard from a TV.

Dialogue and effects are tied directly to the action on screen in a way that traditional TV speaker systems struggle to replicate, creating a stronger sense that sound is genuinely coming from the people and objects you're watching.

Like the Hisense, the Sony also sounds surprisingly spacious, with effects extending well beyond the edges of the screen. Detail levels are excellent, too, and the Bravia 8 II combines subtle dynamic nuance with enough punch to make action scenes engaging and exciting.

Bass depth isn't as generous as it is from the Hisense, but it's impressively controlled, and the overall tonal balance is exceptionally well judged.

Ultimately, these are two of the best-sounding TVs you can currently buy. The Hisense delivers scale, warmth and impressive Atmos effects, but the Sony's superior detail, greater dynamic expression and uniquely direct delivery give it the edge.

WINNER: Sony Bravia 8 II

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: verdict

The Hisense UR9 is a hugely important TV.

Not only is it the first mainstream RGB Mini LED TV we've fully reviewed, it's also the first serious attempt to take on flagship OLEDs with a fundamentally different display technology.

And the good news for RGB Mini LED fans is that, in some ways at least, it succeeds.

The UR9 is bright, vibrant and impressively refined. More importantly, it avoids many of the traditional pitfalls of backlit TVs, with excellent black levels, impressively restrained blooming and a consistency that often feels surprisingly OLED-like.

In several respects, it's one of the best backlit TVs we've ever tested.

But while the UR9 proves that RGB Mini LED is a genuinely exciting technology with enormous potential, it also demonstrates just how high the bar currently is at the top end of the OLED market.

Ultimately, picture quality remains the most important factor in any TV buying decision, and it's here that the Sony Bravia 8 II retains a clear advantage. The Hisense has the stronger gaming specification, broader HDR support and spectacular brightness, but the Sony's superior contrast control, greater three-dimensionality and more natural, cinematic image make it the more accomplished performer overall.

This isn't a verdict on RGB Mini LED versus OLED as technologies, and it certainly isn't the last battle in what is shaping up to be one of the most interesting periods in TV tech for years.

Instead, it’s the verdict on the very best OLED TV currently available versus the first mainstream RGB Mini LED model. And while the Hisense UR9 proves that RGB Mini LED is ready to compete with the very best, the Sony Bravia 8 II remains the TV to beat.

OVERALL WINNER: Sony Bravia 8 II

Here it is, folks: our first full review of an RGB Mini LED TV.

We have previously run extensive hands-on tests of a couple of RGB Mini LED TVs – most notably the huge Hisense 116UX – but, due to their astonishing sizes and prices, we’ve had to do the testing outside our own facilities. In our world, that’s not a full review, so those TVs haven’t received star ratings.

The 65-inch Hisense UR9 we have before us today is designed to address the size and price issues that have until now prevented more people from hopping on the RGB Mini LED bandwagon.

This set, then, is leading the mainstream RGB Mini LED charge. And, while it’s a fair way short of perfect, particularly next to a flagship OLED TV, the UR9 is an impressive TV in its own right and a tantalising glimpse at the technology’s long-term potential.

Price

Price is always a hugely important factor whenever we test a product, but it’s particularly crucial to how the Hisense UR9 will be viewed.

In the UK, the launch price of £2999 places the 65-inch UR9 in the same category as flagship OLED TVs such as the new LG G6 and last year’s Award-winning Sony Bravia 8 II.

In Australia, though, the AU$3999 price puts the Hisense UR9 up against step-down OLEDs such as the LG C6.

Most interestingly (and confusingly), while the announced launch price in the US was a super high-end $3500, when the TV actually arrived in shops, the tag was a vastly cheaper $2000, placing the UR9 in an entirely different category, below even step-down OLED models.

Essentially, then, this Hisense is a rather different proposition in each of those three regions. Seeing as we are UK-based and it’s a UK sample we’re reviewing, though, it’s the UK price that we are primarily working with here. And that means the UR9 is going to have to face off against the mighty Bravia 8 II QD-OLED.

Design

The Hisense UR9 is not one of those modern flagship TVs that disappears into your living room.

At 4.5cm thick, it’s decidedly chunky by current premium TV standards, particularly next to the impossibly slim OLED models with which it competes on price.

The rear panel is completely flat, though, which makes the UR9 fairly tidy for wall-mounting, and the overall build feels solid and substantial.

The TV’s general styling is perfectly pleasant, too, though it stops short of being genuinely luxurious. Bezels are slim enough, the dark metallic finish is smart, and the overall aesthetic is clean and restrained, but the UR9 lacks the slick elegance and premium flair of rivals such as the Sony Bravia 8 II and Samsung S99H/S95H.

Hisense has made some nice, practical decisions, though.

The centrally mounted pedestal stand has a relatively narrow footprint of around 42cm, making the UR9 easier to place on narrower furniture than many similarly sized rivals. It also offers two height positions, allowing you either to keep the screen sitting low and tidy or raise it slightly to create extra clearance for a soundbar.

Rows of tiny perforations run down both sides of the set, while larger openings line the top edge. These house the UR9’s side- and up-firing speakers, which form part of its integrated Devialet sound system.

Overall, then, the UR9 is more functional than fashionable – a practical, purposeful TV rather than a particularly glamorous one.

Features and specs

The headline feature here is, of course, the UR9’s RGB Mini LED backlight.

Unlike a conventional Mini LED TV, which uses a white backlight shining through a colour filter layer, the UR9 instead uses separate red, green and blue Mini LEDs to generate colour directly. In theory, this approach allows for both greater brightness and more precise colour reproduction.

Hisense claims peak brightness of up to 3500 nits for the 65-inch model we’re testing here, alongside 980 local dimming zones and a native 170Hz panel, all driven by the company’s Hi-View AI Engine RGB processor.

Gamers are generally very well served – with one unusual caveat. Unlike most premium TVs, which have four HDMI sockets, the UR9 has just three. These are accompanied by a PC-gaming-friendly DisplayPort connection – something that remains extremely rare on TVs.

Is a DisplayPort connection more valuable than a fourth HDMI socket? We have our doubts, but to a small number of very committed PC gamers, it may be very useful.

All three of the HDMI sockets are 2.1-specified, though, with support for 4K/170Hz (and the console-friendly 4K/120Hz), VRR and ALLM. Some brands, including Sony, still offer just two HDMI 2.1 sockets on their TVs.

The UR9’s input lag is decent rather than exceptional. We measured 32.5ms at 60Hz in the standard Game mode, though enabling the Refresh Rate setting reduces that figure to a more respectable, though far from groundbreaking, 24.6ms.

The UR9 supports every significant HDR format currently in use – HLG, HDR10, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision – plus the intelligent Dolby Vision IQ and HDR10+ Adaptive variants that respond to ambient room lighting conditions.

It is also IMAX Enhanced certified, and the UK version of the TV features an anti-reflective, anti-glare screen coating that proves fairly effective at combating bright-room reflections.

Audio specifications are unusually ambitious by TV standards, too. The UR9 features a Devialet-tuned 4.1.2-channel speaker system with dedicated up-firing drivers, plus support for both Dolby Atmos and DTS:X soundtracks.

In the UK and Australia, the UR9 runs Hisense’s own VIDAA smart platform, while the US version instead uses Google TV.

VIDAA still isn’t the prettiest smart system around, but it’s fast, responsive and logically laid out. App support is broadly very good, too, with all of the major streaming services and UK catch-up apps present and correctly supporting the relevant picture and sound formats.

There are, however, a few frustrating omissions. Most notably, the Apple TV app lacks access to the Apple TV store and users’ purchased libraries, so it can’t be used for movie purchases and rentals. That’s a real disappointment, as Apple’s pay-as-you-go store is the best around.

While far less important for a TV, it’s worth noting that music streaming support is sparse, too, with Spotify, Tidal, Apple Music and Qobuz all absent. There are no cloud gaming apps, either.

The inclusion of Freely is welcome, though, as it allows live TV channels to be streamed over the internet without an aerial connection.

Picture quality

The Hisense UR9 makes a superb first impression. In fact, perhaps the most impressive thing about it is just how rarely it behaves like a traditional backlit TV.

Before getting into that, though, some setup advice is required, because the TV’s default HDR settings do it few favours.

When first fed HDR10 content, the UR9 automatically switches into its HDR Energy Saving mode which, despite its name, is surprisingly aggressive. Colours skew cool and bluish, motion processing is overly intrusive, and the overall image looks unnatural and overcooked.

HDR Standard and HDR Dynamic are similarly best avoided, both pushing sharpness, brightness and processing much too hard.

Thankfully, Filmmaker Mode proves far more successful. It delivers the most accurate and balanced picture of the available presets, and it quickly becomes our preferred overall option.

Interestingly, though, IMAX Cinema is also unusually compelling. While its underlying settings appear almost identical to those of Filmmaker Mode, it consistently produces a noticeably brighter and punchier image without obviously compromising balance or naturalism.

As a result, we would stick with Filmmaker Mode for dark-room and purist viewing, but happily switch to IMAX Cinema during the daytime or whenever we fancy a little extra visual intensity.

Once properly configured, the UR9 is an extremely accomplished performer.

Play 1917 on 4K Blu-ray, and the opening logos immediately demonstrate just how well controlled the TV’s backlight system is. Blooming around the bright white text is minimal, black depth is strong, and colours look rich, warm and nicely cinematic.

More importantly, the local-dimming system generally goes about its business without drawing attention to itself. Throughout our testing, the UR9 almost never exhibits the flickering, brightness pumping or visibly shifting backlight behaviour that can make many Mini LED TVs distracting.

That consistency quickly emerges as the UR9’s defining strength. While many bright Mini LED TVs constantly remind you that they are dynamically manipulating a backlight behind the scenes, the Hisense instead achieves a broadly very composed, stable and natural delivery that often feels surprisingly OLED-like.

Blade Runner 2049 showcases this particularly well. Black depth is consistently strong, shadow detail is excellent and subtle blooming is tightly controlled. There’s also impressive richness and stability to colours, especially reds, which look wonderfully pure and saturated without drifting into pink or magenta tones.

Extra-bright HDR material suits the UR9 especially well, too. Pan looks spectacular here, with dazzling highlights and bold, vibrant colours that comfortably outgun the Sony Bravia 8 II for outright brightness in many scenes. Sunlight bursting through clouds and glinting off the fantasy scenery of Neverland is delivered with real punch and intensity.

Crucially, though, the UR9 generally achieves this brightness without sacrificing balance. Skin tones remain natural, and there’s a pleasing cinematic warmth to the image – and it doesn’t drift into gaudiness.

Motion handling is strong, too. The default Film setting is decent enough, but switching Motion Enhancement to Clear results in noticeably smoother pans without introducing the distracting soap-opera effect or processing artefacts that such systems often create.

The notoriously difficult Matera cemetery and chase sequence from No Time To Die is handled particularly well, with impressively little judder to the panning shots and clean rendering of drifting smoke and rapid camera movement.

Dropping down to standard-def and SDR, our Kiss Kiss Bang Bang DVD is reproduced with pleasing warmth, strong detail and impressively clean upscaling. Colours are arguably pushed a touch too hard at times, but the overall presentation remains highly enjoyable and consistently cinematic.

For all of the UR9’s strengths, though, direct comparisons with a top-tier OLED TV still reveal the limitations of even this undeniably refined RGB Mini LED model. Despite its impressive local-dimming system, the Hisense simply cannot match the pixel-level contrast control of the Sony Bravia 8 II.

Extremely bright highlights against deep black backgrounds are sometimes handled slightly conservatively, presumably to avoid blooming. Perhaps counterintuitively, those bright white logos against pitch-black backgrounds appear more intense and impactful on the Sony OLED than on the much brighter, on paper, Hisense.

More significantly, the OLED TV produces a more solid and perceptually three-dimensional image across the board. Objects and characters stand out from their surroundings with greater depth and dynamism, while subtle gradations within clouds, shadows and highlights appear more convincing and refined, creating a more rounded look.

This isn’t a new phenomenon: we have documented that extra solidity you get from OLED plenty of times previously, most notably when we used the Sony Bravia 8 OLED as a comparison in our Bravia 9 Mini LED review. But it bears repeating for those who are choosing between an OLED and a backlit TV.

Viewing angles are another clear OLED advantage. While the UR9’s picture performance doesn’t entirely fall off a cliff when you move off-axis, the sweet spot in which it performs at its very best is surprisingly narrow.

And while the UR9 usually keeps blooming impressively well controlled, especially for a backlit TV, particularly torturous scenes can still expose its limitations.

The bomb-test sequence in Oppenheimer is a great example. From the UR9, there’s a slight general greying to the image, plus some visible glow around isolated spotlights in the darkness. The opening starfield of Alien: Romulus, meanwhile, reveals that the UR9 cannot simultaneously maintain truly inky blacks and perfectly intense star highlights in the way an OLED can.

To be clear, the Hisense performs well in these scenes by LCD standards, and many owners may never notice such shortcomings during normal viewing. But they do prevent the UR9 from truly matching the effortless contrast precision and dimensionality of the best OLED TVs.

Sound quality

Developed in partnership with Devialet, the UR9’s 4.1.2-channel speaker system delivers a surprisingly expansive and full-bodied presentation by TV standards, with particularly impressive width and height effects.

The Theatre sound mode is the most immediately striking of the available presets, producing a presentation that extends well beyond the physical boundaries of the TV and creating a convincing sense of spaciousness with Dolby Atmos soundtracks.

There’s decent bass depth, too, and the UR9 maintains good composure at high volumes, avoiding the harshness and distortion that can afflict many flatscreen TVs when pushed hard.

The overall presentation is smooth and rich in character, which makes the UR9 an easy and enjoyable listen over long viewing sessions.

It isn’t perfect, though. Dynamics are a little stunted, and action scenes lack some of the punch and excitement they deserve, while dialogue could be projected with greater clarity and emotional expression.

The Theatre mode also slightly overplays its hand at times. While its extra spaciousness is undeniably appealing, it introduces a faintly diffuse and echoey quality to voices, along with a slight sense of delay that makes speech sound less natural than it should.

As a result, we find ourselves preferring the Standard sound mode for most content. It still sounds pleasantly spacious and open, but delivers dialogue with greater focus and cohesion while maintaining good weight and scale.

Ultimately, while even a modest dedicated soundbar will comfortably outperform it, the UR9’s audio system is better than that of most TVs, even at this lofty level.

Verdict

In several ways, the Hisense UR9 is one of the best backlit TVs we have ever tested.

Most of the time, you’re not even made aware that it is a backlit TV, so good are its black levels, its control of blooming and its consistent, flicker-free contrast.

While it is possible to trip up the backlight, it’s quite hard to do so, and many buyers may never see an unsightly bloom in their period of UR9 ownership.

But while this first mainstream RGB Mini LED TV is broadly mercifully free of the flaws that generally afflict backlit TVs, it still can’t match the overall picture quality of the best OLED models.

The pixel-level contrast control of OLED brings benefits in several areas. There are the notably brighter highlights on very dark backgrounds that even accomplished backlit sets, such as the UR9, are too cautious to go all guns blazing with for fear of blooming. There are the almost flawless viewing angles, too, which the UR9 is a long way from matching.

The biggest thing, though, is the generally more solid, more perceptually three-dimensional image that OLED provides. Next to the Bravia 8 II, the Hisense UR9 simply looks flatter, less dynamic and less impactful.

Ultimately, as enjoyable and technically impressive as the UR9 is, we can’t think of a good reason you would buy it over a flagship-grade OLED, and that’s the level at which Hisense is pitching it – at least in the UK.

Of course, if you are someone who has a flagship-level budget for their next TV and a general aversion to OLED, the Hisense UR9 should be right around the top of your list.

If you’re a UK buyer, it’s probably a good idea to wait and see if we get a massive US-style discount before placing an order, though.

SCORES

• Picture 4
• Sound 4
• Features 4

MORE:

Also consider the Sony Bravia 8 II, LG G6 and Sony Bravia 9

Here are all of the best TVs you can buy right now

Hisense wants to be the RGB Mini LED brand. It came out swinging with the 116-inch UXQ last year to kick off its new range with a bang, and now it's bringing a duo of more reasonably sized models with the next generation panel tech to the market.

The UR9 sits at the top of its conventional TV lineup, and it aims to offer movie fans a brighter panel and a better sound system, so you'd think that would be what caught my eye during a trip to Munich, Germany, with the brand. But, at the event I found myself gravitating towards the step-down model instead.

Upon announcing the new panel technology, I began gearing myself up to report on sky-high prices that echo the early days of OLED and QLED, and yet, Hisense is determined to bring this new panel tech to the masses, and I think the UR8 will be the TV to do just that.

The TV sits below the two flagship RGB Mini LEDs mentioned above, and yet it offers a lot of the same features and on-paper performance benefits. My brief run-in with the TV left a strong first impression, and while we'll need to test it in our dedicated AV testing facility to settle on a final verdict, I do have a few early thoughts to share.

Price

Pricing hasn't been revealed for the UR8 quite yet, but we're under the impression that it will be fairly competitive. Hisense promises that pricing information should come soon, and the TV itself is currently slated to launch in the first half of this year.

It'll be available in five sizes when it launches, including a few more "average" living room-friendly ones, such as 55- and 65-inches. XL TV fans are, of course, still catered for, with Hisense also offering this TV in 75-, 85- and 100-inch sizes.

In terms of competition, it looks as though the UR8 will be going up against Philips' new mid-range RGB Mini LED, the MLED981, and Samsung is slated to launch a step-down RGB Mini LED model later this year, too.

Build

The UR8 isn't the flashiest TV I've ever seen, but the build is solid, stylish and slender at just 58mm in width. That's fairly slick by backlit TV standards.

Furthermore, it features a centralised pedestal stand, meaning you won't have to worry about obtaining a wide media unit to accommodate this TV. We saw the UR8 in its 75-inch screen size, and it featured this style of stand; however the very largest screen sizes may differ.

Hisense has also bundled in its button-heavy solar-powered remote. While it may look a little old school next to the slick minimalist remotes included with most TVs these days, we actually appreciate that every function has a dedicated button rather than having to remember a bunch of short cuts and long presses to access simple things like the input menu.

Features

It should come as no surprise that the headlining feature of the UR8 is the new RGB Mini LED panel technology. Hisense says that it delivers purer and more vibrant colours, and the Chinese AV giant has even achieved certification from colour-validating powerhouse Pantone.

Brightness is also a key benefit of the RGB Mini LED panel technology, and Hisense claims that the UR8 can reach a peak brightness of 3500 nits. That's below the 4000 nit figure quoted by Hisense for the UR9 step-up model, but it's still an impressive figure.

This new panel is being driven by the company's HiView AI Engine RGB processor, which has been specifically designed with the RGB Mini LED panel technology in mind.

Furthermore, this has to be one of the best-equipped TVs for gamers that we've ever come across. The UR8 sports a 180Hz panel, which tops the 165Hz limit we've seen on recent sets from LG, Samsung and Philips. On top of that is the inclusion of four full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 sockets, all of which support VRR and ALLM, with one socket doubling as HDMI eARC.

Hisense hopes that you won't need to use that HDMI eARC socket, though, as the built-in 2.1.2 channel speaker system, which supports Dolby Atmos, has been tuned by Devialet to reportedly deliver punchy, immersive cinematic sound.

Vidaa remains on board for all of your streaming needs, and while this isn't our favourite operating system on the market, we find that it covers a majority of the available streaming apps, based on our experience from using it on other Hisense TVs and projectors.

Last, and by no means least, the UR8 will be among the first Hisense TVs to gain Dolby Vision 2 support. Despite being announced as a launch partner back at IFA 2025, Hisense doesn't seem entirely sure when Dolby Vision 2 is coming to its TVs; however, it insinuated that it will be added via an over-the-air update after the TV's launch. It will also support HDR10, HDR10+ and HLG.

Picture

Unfortunately, Hisense didn't demo any real-world content on the UR8, but we did see a looping demo in the TV's dynamic picture setting.

While that's not ideal for assessing what the TV is like when watching movies and TV shows, it did give us a good idea of what the RGB Mini LED panel technology is capable of.

Furthermore, the content shown seemed fairly low-resolution to my eyes, which introduced some unfair banding and haloing around bright and colourful content on black backgrounds.

I will therefore reiterate that these hands-on impressions won't reflect the verdict from our future full review of the UR8.

That all being said, Hisense seems to have delivered on its promise of delivering rich, pure and vibrant colours based on this early look, as every shade pops on this display.

Reds, blues, greens, yellows, pinks and purples all appear rich and vivid, and while this will likely be reining in for an authentic cinematic experience, it's an eye-catching demonstration of the capabilities of RGB Mini LED.

These look especially effective against dark backgrounds, as the UR8 seems to deliver some seriously convincing black levels for a backlit TV. This is thanks to the RGB Mini LED system's more advanced backlight control, which should address the my, and the wider What Hi-Fi? team's, biggest issue with "traditional" Mini LED sets.

I couldn't test other crucial picture performance aspects, especially including motion, during this session, so you'll have to wait until our full review to discover if the UR8 can nail the majour pillars of picture performance.

Sound

I'll keep this short and sweet. Despite highlighting the UR8's Devialet-tuned 2.1.2 channel sound system, Hisense didn't actually demo it during the event.

However, based on the team I's experiences with last year's U8Q, we have fairly high expectations. We found that the U8Q delivered a powerful, spacious and cinematic sound, and while the bass could have been a bit more controlled, we ultimately deemed it to be a rather impressive built-in sound system.

Early verdict

It's too early to decide on a verdict for the UR8, but this TV is certainly worth watching out for based on what I've seen so far, combined with the on-paper specs.

It touts the latest panel technology. superb gaming specs, a high-spec sound system and plenty of software smarts, so as long as Hisense can nail the price, it could be on to a winner.

As a team, we're eagerly awaiting both of Hisense's RGB Mini LED models to land in our home cinema testing room, so check back soon for a full review.

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Read our full Hisense U8Q review

RGB Mini LED: everything you need to know

Check out our picks for the best Mini LED TVs

Hisense has just officially confirmed its new TV range for 2026, and, in a surprise to no one, RGB Mini LED models are leading the line.

The Chinese brand was the first to launch an RGB Mini LED TV, in the gargantuan form of last year's 100- and 116-inch UX model. That continues in this year’s lineup, but it is joined by two much more mainstream models.

Those are the UR9S, which will be available in 65-, 75- and 85-inch sizes, and the step-down UR8S, which will come in 55-, 65-, 75-, 85- and 100-inch versions.

Both models of course feature RGB Mini LED backlights, and they are powered by Hisense's new Hi-View AI Engine RGB processor. They also boast an ‘Anti Reflection and Glare Free’ coating.

Hisense says that both of these TVs have a native refresh rate of 180Hz and will support 4K/180Hz gaming – though good luck building a PC powerful enough to take advantage of that.

The key difference flagged by Hisense is in peak brightness, with the U9S hitting a claimed 4000 nits and the UR8S limited to a (still very bright) 3500 nits.

We suspect there will be a difference in the number of dimming zones on each set, too, but this hasn’t yet been confirmed by Hisense.

As with the 116UX, the UR9S has three HDMI 2.1 sockets and a PC-friendly Display Port USB-C socket, whereas the UR8S has four HDMI 2.1 sockets.

Hisense’s partnership with Devialet continues with both TVs, but while the UR9S boasts a 4.1.2-channel sound system, the UR8S has a 2.1.2-channel solution.

One innovative new feature of both TVs is something Hisense is calling ‘KiDoodle’.

This is a second remote that comes in the box and can only be used to access family-friendly content, which seems like a very clever solution to parental controls.

The content that can be accessed via this remote will apparently be curated by real people, too, hopefully meaning that unsuitable stuff won’t sneak through.

Standard Mini LED models

Naturally, there are non-RGB Mini LED TVs below the UR9S and UR8S.

The first of those is the U8Q, which carries over from the 2025 range and received four-star review in our Hisense U8Q review.

Below that are the new U7S Pro and U7S, both available in sizes ranging from 50 to 100 inches.

The U7S Pro has a claimed peak-brightness of 3000 nits, a refresh rate of 165Hz, and the Anti Reflection and Glare Free coating, while the U7S is 1400 nits, 144Hz, and not ‘Glare Free’.

Devialet has also put its name to the U7S Pro’s 2.1.2-channel audio system, whereas the U7S’s 2.1-channel system appears to be Hisense’s own design.

The final model in Hisense’s 2026 range is the new E8S, which still boasts a Mini LED backlight and a 144Hz refresh rate, but is limited to a peak brightness of 600 nits on all versions except the 50-inch model, which, for some reason, can hit a claimed peak brightness of 1000 nits.

And that’s your lot! And it is a lot, isn't it?

What we don’t yet know is when these new models will be available or how much they will cost.

The latter will be particularly interesting to find out, as Hisense has tended towards relatively premium pricing in recent years, whereas arch-rival TCL has maintained its ultra-aggressive approach.

How will the two brands’ ranges line up in 2026? We shouldn’t have long to wait to find out.

More:

Check out our Hisense U8Q review and Hisense UX hands-on

Here are all of the best TVs you can buy right now

The Bristol Hi-Fi Show may not have "High End" in the title like a certain Munich-based event set to happen in May, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a wealth of awesome, premium audio hardware to check out at the expo.

In fact, myself and the wider team of top-end hi-fi hunters at What Hi-Fi? has already earmarked three Temptation level products set to appear at the show that we haven't had a chance to see or hear in the flesh yet.

Here’s what you need to know about them.

1. The Wilson Benesch Horizon

We first covered the Wilson Benesch Horizon floorstanding speakers in January, where they immediately caught many hi-fi fans' attention.

First, because they sit in the same Fibonacci Series of loudspeakers as the A.C.T. 3Zero and Discovery 3Zero, which both earned a perfect five-star rating from our testers when we got them in for the full What Hi-Fi? review treatment.

Second because they’re technically interesting beasts featuring a wealth of proprietary hardware, including Tactic 3.0 drivers and a Fibonacci Tweeter, which the company claims will let them deliver "extraordinary clarity, speed and detail across the frequency spectrum".

The Bristol Hi-Fi Show is the first time we’ll have the opportunity to check them out in the flesh, with the company running demos throughout the event.

2. The Devialet Astra

Devialet is an interesting company, with a strong record for creating beautiful looking and sounding high end hi-fi that started all the way back in 2012, when we tested its D-Premier amp and gleefully reported:

“It's like nothing we've seen before, but in terms of sonic ability, the Devialet D-Premier is an incredible performer”.

Which is why we’re super excited that we’ll get the chance to have a first look at its new Devialet Astra streaming amplifier at the Bristol Hi-Fi Show this year. Set to retail for $20,000 the unit boasts 600W of power and all the streaming support you’d expect in 2025.

We haven’t gotten full details what speakers the amp will be paired with at the demo, but we can’t wait to find out and get an early listen to the Astra at the show.

3. The Rotel Michi Q5 CD

Though it was announced all the way back in September last year, the Bristol Hi-Fi Show 2025 will be our first chance to see the Rotel Michi Q5 CD in the wild.

Rotel markets the unit as a “Transport DAC” but it’s essentially a CD player with digital inputs and high resolution file playback that sits in the same family as the X3 and X5 Series 2 integrated amplifiers, which first appeared in 2023.

The flexibility to play CDs, or high resolution files is awesome, but the unit also packs some impressive hardware under the hood. This is headlined by eight-channel ESS ES9028PRO DAC that’s been specially configured so that its channels are split equally between the left and right audio signal paths. This will apparently help it deliver "extraordinary detail retrieval" and a much wider soundstage.

We’ll be curious to check it out at Bristol where the £5499 / $6999 / €5999 spinner will be on show.

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Sky has lifted the lid on a new Glass Gen 2 TV, nearly three years after launching the original, an LED TV with Sky built-in and accessed via a broadband connection, thus removing the need for a satellite dish.

And there is plenty to get excited about with the new set, as you can read in our TV and AV editor's opening impressions of Sky Glass Gen 2 from his hands-on experience at the TV’s launch event.

The short version is that, while it doesn’t have a Mini LED, let alone OLED, panel, the set does appear to be a big step up on the entertainment giant’s first offering.

First off, there have been “optimisations” to its local dimming powers, designed to improve black levels, contrast and the Glass Gen 2’s general picture quality. But, more importantly, Sky has completely reworked the set’s speaker setup, loading it with a new 3.1.2 speaker configuration it claims will “remove the need for a dedicated soundbar”.

If, like me, your immediate reaction to that was a cathartic sigh and overt sense of déjà vu, there’s a reason for that. Numerous companies including Philips, Panasonic and more have been making similar claims for years. The only difference here is that Sky has loaded a speakerbar setup onto a cheaper TV than normal, with the new Glass Gen 2 set to retail for as little as £14 per month on a subscription model.

We haven’t tested the sound-system properly yet, so I can’t comment on quality. But after testing plenty of TVs with similar setups for more than a decade, I’m still yet to find one that beats a competent soundbar, let alone speaker package. There are a multitude of reasons for this, but the biggest comes down to the inherent compromises brought about by modern TVs’ dimensions; there’s only so much air that can be moved in such a slim space…

Which is why, while all this was going on, I had the synapses in my aging brain briefly flash back into life and remind me of another key bit of Sky tech I would love to see resurrected: the Sky Soundbox.

This was a short-lived soundbar that Sky built in partnership with French hi-fi brand Devialet, and which we originally reviewed in 2019. The idea was to offer buyers a cohesive soundbar that could elevate any Sky customer's home audio.

It didn’t quite achieve sonic home-cinema greatness, scoring a four-star rating when we reviewed it due to its slight lack of bass definition and the omission of Dolby Atmos audio support; but I still think the idea makes perfect sense, especially with a product such as Sky Glass.

For me, Glass’s appeal is simple: it’s an easy to understand subscription service that takes care of all your home entertainment needs. You pay your money to Sky and for that you get your streaming subscription (content) and hardware needs delivered in one neat package. And while I like the fact that Sky wants to keep it “affordable enough” for normal people, I can’t help but think it needs a more premium tier for more serious home cinema aficionados.

As I said in a previous opinion piece, on why Sky should offer an OLED Glass tier, there are plenty who can’t afford the up-front cost of a top-end TV and soundbar, who might still want something more premium than what Sky currently offers at a hardware level.

A part of this fictional tier for Glass should be a premium sound system that can match the best in the business. And, with a hardware spruce and some needed modernisations, including Dolby Atmos support, a new Soundbox could be that system.

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The reviewing team at What Hi-Fi? has just had the pleasure of yet another all-in-one (or should I say ‘all-in-two’) stereo speaker system in our test rooms, the KEF LSX II LT. Those of you acquainted with the company’s existing LSX II and the world’s more arcane acronyms may correctly guess that this newcomer is the “lite” version of the current system – think same sound but with fewer features and different finishes. Indeed, it offers a whole system – streaming platforms, amplification and speakers – in two compact boxes.

That isn’t a novel concept, of course. For the past eight or so years, such speaker systems have cropped up to offer consumers a more space-saving and convenient alternative to a separates hi-fi set-up (that is, one with components separately housed, all connected with cables and each requiring a solid support). But the new LSX II LT is one of a few examples of very affordable models that have arrived recently to offer proper – ‘hi-fi’ – stereo sound in what many people would quite rightly consider an attractively accommodating package. We’re talking as little as £700/$900 (Triangle AIO Twin) and £900/$1000 (KEF LSX II LT) and steadily pricier systems up to around five times that amount. And yes, it has me slightly worried about the entry-level hi-fi separates market.

After all, why invest in and have to accommodate four boxes and metres of cables when you can spend the same on two that don’t require cabling? There are reasons to, which I’ll go into shortly, but understandably they may not be obvious, or indeed significant enough, to many people.

I should say that this isn’t a downer on speaker systems. I’m a big advocator of them; their balance of sound maturity and convenience is admirable – sometimes surprisingly so – and they bring hi-fi to those who would be as likely to entertain a separates system in their living room as a hornet’s nest. But for those who are open to both, separates hi-fi still has its part to play.

If you are reading this screaming “separates sound better!”, you are right… to some extent. A comparison between the KEF LSX II LT and a similarly priced budget separates system – say, a Wiim Pro Plus streamer, Marantz PM6007 or Cambridge AXA35 amplifier and Elac Debut B5.2 or Dali Spektor 2 bookshelf speakers plus cables – isn't straightforward, just as comparisons higher up the market wouldn’t be entirely black and white either. The KEF all-in-one would excel in punch, power and deeper bass – to some degree due to their active, digital nature – though the separates would reply with greater subtlety and, in absolute terms, insight. Purely in sonic terms, I know I would be more satisfied with the separates over a longer period – but ultimately there aren’t acres of quality between them.

That this kind of system can pretty much stand toe to toe (or at least toe to tarsal!) with traditional separates is rather novel and a testament to their evolution in recent years. Budget separates, meanwhile, are evolving at a more modest pace. Anyone who keeps an eye on the What Hi-Fi? Awards may have clocked that many current winners in the entry-level speaker, turntable and amplifier market are multiple repeat winners – not because we haven’t been bothered to review any newcomers but because newcomers, let alone better ones, aren’t all that forthcoming these days. Onkyo used to make a decent budget stereo amplifier, but nowadays we can’t find one we can heartily recommend below £350/$400, and not for want of trying. WiiM's Pro Plus streamer is perhaps the exception, being pretty new, very affordable and a decent performer.

That relative lack of new competition and slow progress may be part of the problem. Are budget electronics no longer popular or feasible enough for manufacturers to focus their efforts on? More obvious snags are their inherent demands on space and plug sockets, not to mention their relatively traditional aesthetics compared with more lifestyle-orientated (colourful, compact, glossy…) systems. Sexy, budget hi-fi separates are not.

The happy medium that could well prosper more than either for sound quality-conscious consumers might very reasonably be the streaming amplifier with stereo speakers setup. Fine by me. But part of me does hope that traditional budget separates find a new lease of life and renewed relevance. 

From experience, I can say that the sonic satisfaction something gives you over a longer period is pretty important in owning and enjoying hi-fi and music. I have lived with streaming systems and would be lying if I said I hadn’t enjoyed their practicality and naturally synergistic (tight and integrated) presentation; but after a while something about them becomes disinteresting, whether that concerns dynamic expression or space between instruments, or simply that there’s not much to think about. System matching and, to a large degree, system set-up, which are the most tangible, hands-on parts of hi-fi, are moot.

A separates setup is, I think, more likely to prompt you to upgrade down the line to eke out more of what you have, too – detail, scale, bass extension or whatnot. And naturally upgrading a separates system can be much more incremental, involving, rewarding and less daunting – i.e. more enticing! – than having to swap out the whole thing in one go. If nothing else, the effort of building one against the pleasure of listening to one can tell you whether the hobby (and inherent upgrade path!) is worth pursuing or not.

The appeal of streaming stereo speaker systems is understandable, not only for casual listeners who want more than a single-box wireless speaker but also for those who consider themselves closer on the sound-savvy spectrum to ‘audiophile’. They are accessible, domesticated and the best sound pretty darn good. But I hope they sit beside separates rather than quash them, and for that to happen I feel there needs to be a budget component resurgence.

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Read the full KEF LSX II LT review

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The Devialet Gemini II wireless earbuds have landed, and they're as stylish and chic as you'd expect from the luxury French audio manufacturer. Promising better sound and enhanced features, including adaptive noise cancellation, the new Gemini II buds tease "extraordinary sound quality, high-end ergonomic design and impeccable usability" – plenty of big claims to challenge the best in this highly competitive category.

The premium Gemini II feature a brand-new custom 10mm titanium-coated driver while offering support for Qualcomm's aptX Bluetooth codec. That, plus a refined ergonomic design and better fit, should ensure sonic and usability improvements over the earlier generation. We judged the first Gemini model to be a competent debut, but found their heavy-handed sonic approach detracted from the overall experience, so here's hoping the second iteration learns from its predecessor's shortcomings.

Devialet's own ANC tech adjusts to the shape of your ear for a more personalised experience while also reducing audio artefacts and white noise. The ANC itself is supported by a hybrid dual-microphone structure and digital filters that use the brand's own Internal Delay Compensation (IDC), a clever system that compensates for the internal delay generated by a noise cancellation loop.

Further still, the earbuds use what they call "active wind reduction" technology, which seeks to reduce the intrusion and noise of blustery conditions, with each embedded mic surrounded by a layer of anti-wind material and cavity shields, along with a bone conduction sensor and beamforming microphones to further facilitate clearer voice calls.

As is becoming commonplace for earbuds at this price point, the Gemini II also include Bluetooth Multipoint so you can switch between two devices on the fly. If you're thinking of taking your new buds out and about, IPX4 splash resistance means you're fine to bring them out to the park or even to the gym if needed. Touch controls can be adjusted via the app, while battery life is quoted at five hours on a single charge and 22 hours in total with the charging case. That's not quite as class-leading as rivals from Bose, Apple or Sony, so that's one to think about if you rely on earbuds for a long commute.

With an eye-catching design (which looks rather like miniature version of the Phantom wireless speaker), the Gemini II earbuds are complemented by the voguish appearance of a thinner, leaner charging case. If you're keen to show off your sense of style (and have deep pockets), there's a special Opéra de Paris edition which celebrates Devialet's five-year partnership with the renowned French institution.

Like most Devialet products, these buds don't come cheap. The Devialet Gemini II wireless earbuds are available in black or white colourways for a rather steep £349 / $450 / AU$699 – that's a jump up in price from the first generation's £279 / $299 price tag, and even pricier than the priciest pairs we've tested this year, the premium Bowers & Wilkins Pi7 S2 buds (£349 / $399 / AU$700). The special Opéra de Paris edition, meanwhile, will set you back a whopping great £549 / $649 / AU$1099. Let's hope the sound quality and perceived value match up to that high asking price.

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Sharp is partnering with high-end audio manufacturer Devialet to launch a new portable Bluetooth speaker in a team-up that not many of us saw coming. The CP-LS100, colloquially known as the SumoBox, sports a large, weighty design, a removable battery pack and, according to Sharp, “a bass line that will hit you like a sumo wrestler”. There’s no indication that it comes fitted with its own loincloth, though.

The speaker itself features two 5cm (2-inch) tweeters and two 20cm (8-inch) woofers, outputting a claimed 120W of stereo sound. So how and why is Devialet involved? SumoBox is the first product to see Sharp partner with the French audio brand, using its patented Speaker Active Matching (SAM) technology which, alongside an unvented closed box design, should facilitate the production of a “rich, detailed and powerful bass with minimal audible distortion”.

Connectivity comes courtesy of three inputs (2x TRS/XLR combo, one aux in) and Bluetooth 5.0, all of which support independent volume level control. If you’re looking to boost your sound even further, the SumoBox can be linked with another model via Duo Mode to provide True Wireless Stereo playback, or you can use wires to connect multiple speakers together in a daisy chain. Best of all, you can plug a keyboard, microphone or guitar in to use as a rocking portable amp wherever you go.

Battery life is a key consideration for customers seeking a new Bluetooth boombox, so the SumoBox’s uniquely removable and rechargeable Lithium-ion battery pack, providing up to 10 hours of playtime, could be a real bonus. Want to keep playing without interruptions? Quickly swap out the battery pack for another, or else connect to the mains supply to recharge and keep the music going. 

Aesthetically, Sharp bills its SumoBox as being “functional and imposing” thanks to its industrial black steel grille design and hefty design. Silicone corner protectors are also included to protect the Box during transport and allow the speaker to be used as a monitor on its side. Additionally, three handles on the top and sides further facilitate the placement of the CP-LS100 in either upright or horizontal orientations, or when taking it into the garden.

In addition to the SumoBox, Sharp has announced the PS-949, AKA the XParty Street Beat for £269 / €279. With its LED wheel lights, strobe synchronisation and super-bass effect, the XParty is specially designed for rowdy raves and parties by the pool. 

Priced at the top end of the market at £399 / €399, the new Sharp CP-LS100 SumoBox has a tall task if it wants to compete with the best Bluetooth speakers around. Both new Sharp speakers are available now from Euronics with Amazon availability incoming, and while neither will be launched in Australia, we're currently waiting on US prices and availability.

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Devialet has unveiled its first ever portable speaker. The Devialet Mania promises "adaptive 360° stereo sound" and a suitably-luxurious design that references the pricier Devialet Phantom range.

The bowling ball-sized Mania packs a condensed version of the French firm's proprietary audio technology. Four full-range drivers – plus two subwoofers in a 'push' configuration to reduce distortion –  promise a frequency range as low as 30Hz and as high as 20,000Hz.

Active Stereo Calibration meanwhile uses four microphones to adapt the Devialet Mania's sound to its surroundings. Place the Mania in the centre of a room, for example, and the 360-degree stereo mode is automatically activated. Place it against a wall and the two full-range rear drivers up the ante to deliver a more expansive soundstage.

Battery life is a claimed 10 hours, which is a full 20 hours less than you'd get from the Award-winning Dali Katch G2, one of the best Bluetooth speakers we've tested so far. Then again, the Devialet Mania is rated IPX4 splash resistant – the Katch has no such indoor/outdoor protection.

Streamers can use the built-in Amazon Alexa voice assistant to listen to music via wi-fi, Bluetooth 5.0, AirPlay 2 and Spotify Connect. That's in addition to the dedicated Devialet App and the sprinkling of capacitive touch controls on the device itself.

Devialet describes the design as 'an ode to the Phantom', hence the spherical, polished ring surrounded by a luxe woven fabric. There's also a handle, so you can transport your 2.3kg audio baby from the living room to the garden and beyond.

The Devialet Mania comes in black and grey and is available now from Devialet's website. Both finishes are priced at £690 / $790 / AU$1400. The optional docking station for charging will set you back £69 / $80 / AU$140. 

Not enough bling? Why not consider the Paris Opéra edition, embellished with 24-carat moongold (gold that has a 'uniquely rich' tone, apparently). You'll have to pay a bit more, of course. The Paris Opéra edition goes for £890 / $990 / AU$1700.

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Unlike traditional hi-fi and home cinema systems, where costs range from entry-level to the-sky's-the-limit, soundbars typically occupy a much narrower range of prices for obvious reasons. A soundbar is usually a trade-off for those who don’t have the space or funds for full-sized speakers or the patience for the paraphernalia that accompanies them. And why would anyone want a luxury version of a compromised product?

But with its first-ever Dolby Atmos soundbar, the Dione, premium French audio brand Devialet is striking out, elevating the form with a lavish design and high-minded concept that endeavours to convince customers that just because they want a simple, single TV speaker doesn’t mean that they can’t do so in style.

Build

The Dione is a one-box Dolby Atmos soundbar with no options to add an external sub or rear speakers, instead relying on eight long-throw mid-woofers to deliver an impressively extended bass performance that reaches down to a claimed 24Hz, as well as two side-firing 41mm aluminium drivers for surround effects.

It’s not only internally where Devialet is doing things a bit differently. The Dione also has a distinct build quite unlike any soundbar we’ve ever seen before, primarily due to the presence of a separate, external 41mm aluminium drive unit in an orb that not only sits in a vortex-like trough in the centre of the speaker but can also manually rotate.

And why would you want to turn your new premium soundbar’s orb? Because the Dione is designed to operate in two orientations, horizontally on a flat surface or flipped around with its top panel facing outwards and hung on a wall. Hardware fixings are included in the box, as is a handy cardboard template.

At just 77mm tall (or deep in its wall positioning), the Dione is slim and smart with removable grey fabric grilles, capacitive playback controls, and a tactile anodised aluminium finish that slightly resembles the texture of a foot pumice. Unfortunately, the surface is easy to scuff, so we advise some restraint and care when touching the product, especially around the alluringly pivotable orb.

Features

To mitigate your home’s acoustic abnormalities, there is an onboard room calibration function that uses the Dione’s four onboard microphones (their only use, as there is no in-built voice control) to measure the response of your room. Still, it's pretty rudimentary, and in our listening room did not yield a significant change.

Disappointingly there is no option to change the EQ or volumes of specific channels. So if you wish to tweak the sound further, the only alternative is modes for Movie, Music and Dialogue, as well as a Spatial option that uses Devialet’s SPACE processing to up-mix non-Atmos content and make use of all available channels. While we typically avoid upmixing, surprisingly, the Spatial setting yields a solid presentation that doesn’t significantly deviate or add much colour and clutter to the original audio. 

Users can set a preference for which mode is used with each of the soundbar’s inputs. For such a high-end product, the Dione’s choice of sources is a little on the sparse side. Hardwired connections comprise a single eARC/ARC HDMI and an optical input in a recess at the rear alongside an ethernet port. And for streaming, there’s Bluetooth 5 and wi-fi for AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect and UPnP up to 24bit/96kHz.

In its tabletop position, the Dione’s 134mm, high-excursion woofers sit four a-piece on its long edges, while four 41mm aluminium drivers face upwards to bounce vertical height effects off your ceiling. As well as the surround speakers, a pair of 41mm drivers sit on the front left and right, joining the centre orb driver that is also augmented with two passive radiators to help widen its dispersion.

In total, there are nine 41mm aluminium drivers, and depending on your chosen orientation, you will either have five or three facing you, while the eight woofers will either point front and back or upward and downwards. But whichever way you spin it (and the in-built gyroscope will let you know), it’s always a 5.1.2 Dolby Atmos configuration.

Unlike a few other multi-positional soundbars that we’ve heard before, the Dione doesn't perform significantly better in one position over another. However, the placement of its drivers does mean that users should take into account the distance from the rear wall (as this affects bass output), as well as the thickness and proximity of the TV screen (which has an impact on projection of height effects).

Price

Priced at £1990 / $2399 / AU$3999, we can’t help but feel that the Dione is a little stingy with its feature set, especially compared with its only real competition at this end of the market, the single soundbar beast that is Sennheiser’s Ambeo. 

The What Hi-Fi? Award-winning Ambeo has been around a few years longer than the Dione and can sometimes be found for up to 10 per cent less than its launch price of £2200 / $2500 / AU$4000. It is similarly a solo prospect (though there is an analogue output to add a sub) but offers many features that the Dione lacks, including Chromecast, Tidal Connect and three additional HDMI inputs.

Another critical difference between these two is that while the Ambeo includes support for Dolby Atmos alternative DTS:X, the Dione does not. For some Blu-ray fans, that will seem like a significant omission. 

Confirmation of the type of decoded audio signal can be found on the Devialet app, along with playback and volume controls. The Dione doesn’t include a remote, but with HDMI-CEC, the expectation is that after set-up and sound mode allocation to each source, most users will use a TV remote for basic control.

What the Dione lacks in functionality, it perhaps tries to make up for in initialisms. Thanks to the inclusion of Devialet’s Intelligence Processor, the Dione also sports some of the technology found elsewhere in the company’s speaker range. This includes Analogue Digital Hybrid (ADH) amplification, which Devialet says merges digital and analogue amplification for a combination of power and precision, Speaker Active Matching technology (SAM) which prevents a driver from exceeding its limits by adjusting the output signal, and Adaptive Volume Level (AVL), a dynamic EQ designed to make sure no dialogue or small detail is missed.

Sound

There’s plenty to enjoy about the way Devialet’s approach enhances the Dione’s performance as we start our testing with the opening of Gravity in Dolby Atmos. While the astronauts’ voices ping-pong across the soundfield, the Dione has a firm grip, with an authoritative presentation and consistent tonality. There’s none of that spatial with a capital ‘S’ processing that many manufacturers favour, which overly relies on fizzy high frequencies to create a sense of a 3D soundstage. 

That said, while the Dione’s handling of Atmos is tasteful, as the ISS begins spinning in turmoil, the soundscape it produces is not particularly enveloping, with little forward, upward or sideward projection. Of course, a single soundbar reflecting sound off walls and ceilings will never be the same as direct surround sound, but the Sennheiser Ambeo is more convincing in this regard and better delivers on the promise of a true all-in-one system.

However, the Dione has crisp, detailed clarity that in some ways outshines the Ambeo. Switching to Blade Runner 2049, also in Atmos, we are made hyper-aware in a very granular way of minute fragments of the soundtrack that we often don’t notice, from dripping taps to crunchy footsteps. While initially very impressive, there is a hint of artifice and exaggeration in how the Dione presents the dynamics of both Atmos and standard content. It frequently appears as though subtle sounds are lifted above where they should sit, to the point that everything can feel a touch flat, particularly in busy, loud scenes or during crescendos, which conversely don’t seem to have much dynamic range. 

Instead, much of the impact is provided by low-frequency information. The Dione is confoundingly deep and weighty despite its size, and it handles the challenge of Blade Runner 2049’s undulating bass synths remarkably well. Despite this heft, it's quick and responsive, with impressive tonal transparency and minimal distortion across the frequency spectrum.

Dialogue is very present, though firmly anchored to the centre orb. Some scenes in which voices should sound as though they are far apart or in a different room, such as K’s baseline test, there is too little space or separation between them.

Switching to music, we stream Hit Or Miss by Odetta, and the snappy timing of the Dione helps it stand out where most other soundbars fail. This is a taut, rhythmic performance full of sizzling transients. Compared to the Ambeo, the slinky bass line is a touch overemphasised, and tonally there’s some colour added, with the hi-hat and snare hard to differentiate and the vocal given more weight, but the Dione’s clarity and crispness create an enjoyable listening experience overall, if still with a few compromises.

Verdict

Devialet has positioned the Dione as a hi-fi soundbar aimed at audiophiles and, in some ways, it achieves this. It's certainly a refreshingly simple and elegant Dolby Atmos speaker without any added physical or sonic clutter, and it produces strikingly crisp and clean audio that impresses, particularly upon first-listen.

However, all soundbars make concessions due to their size. For the Dione, the trade-off is a less immersive soundfield, a restricted dynamic range and some occasional embellishment. At this price point, we think that the expansive sound and comprehensive feature set of the Ambeo will make it a better choice for most people, although it's also fair to say that Sennheiser's soundbar does have its own set of concessions.

SCORES

• Build 5
• Sound 4
• Features 4

MORE:

Read our review of the Sennheiser Ambeo

Also consider the Sony HT-A7000

Read our Sonos Arc review

These are the best soundbars: budget to premium

French high-end audio specialist Devialet has always done things a little differently – which goes some way to explaining why the firm took a little while to release Gemini, its first-ever true wireless earbuds, initially announced in late 2020. 

Devialet has filed over 200 patents in the 15 years since it was founded in 2007 – and true to form, the Parisian outfit’s debut in-ears are protected by a trio of them: Pressure Balance Architecture, Internal Delay Compensation, and Ear Active Matching. (We’ll come to these later.) As usual, a cursory glance at the product is enough to reveal that Devialet takes design cues from no one other than itself. With the Gemini's slide-top case and black-only colourway, if Thor’s adopted brother Loki wore headphones, these are the ones the God of Mischief would choose. But how good are they? And at this premium level, are they worth their significant asking fee? Strap in, for we are burdened with glorious purpose. No need to ‘Get Help’ here, Marvel fans, we’re well-equipped to find out for ourselves. 

• Devialet Dione Dolby Atmos soundbar review

Price

Devialet has always come in at the more premium end of the market and, at £279, its debut true wireless in-ear proposition is no exception. This price-point puts the Gemini earbuds into direct competition with Sony’s class-leading WF-1000XM4 (£250, $280, AU$450 at launch, although they can now be found for less) and means that plenty of excellent wireless headphones can be snapped up for cheaper – the Panasonic RZ-S500W, Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2, Shure Aonic Free and Bose QuietComfort Earbuds, for starters. Even Apple’s ever-popular AirPods Pro launched for (slightly) less, so Devialet’s pricing strategy is confident, to say the least. 

Build and comfort

If Devialet’s design team were asked to make the Gemini look as different from Apple AirPods as humanly possible, they nailed the brief. True to form, Devialet has boldly gone its own way here. 

The Gemini’s black plastic case is about the size of a travel bar of soap and is therefore slightly larger and less pocketable than other competing buds (such as Sony’s XM4), but it slides open quite dramatically to reveal the earpieces inside. Said buds are pill-shaped to resemble mini versions of the firm’s Phantom wireless speakers from directly above, with a flat circular surface above the neck of the earbud, bearing the Devialet logo and a depressed crescent shape finishing the design. This circular flourish is the fingertip touch-capacitive button and, unlike some designs, it works reliably and without issue when handling playback of our music – unless you are wearing gloves. Sadly, it is not possible to alter volume on the units themselves, meaning you either have to ask your voice assistant to do it or dig out your device to do it manually. And if you do decide to opt for a double-tap to summon your voice assistant, you’ll have to forego track skips forward and back – these are the only two customisable preferences in terms of on-device control within the dedicated Devialet app. 

Although the case is nicely finished with a tactile detail to make sliding the lid open with your thumb feel intuitive, for this money we might reasonably expect a little more luxury. There’s a solo light on the front of the case, for example. It glows green for more than 50 per cent battery, orange when you have less than 50 per cent, red for low battery, and blinks white when pairing once you’ve pressed the button directly below it on first connecting them to your device. It’s a cost-effective solution, but these are hardly budget-conscious earbuds and a line of small LED lights (as seen on Cambridge Audio’s excellent Melomania 1 Plus, for example) to denote remaining battery life would offer a much clearer and more premium answer. 

Although a total of four oval eartip options are supplied (XS, S, L, and the prefitted M pair), they are quite thin and come only in translucent light grey silicon, which upsets the aesthetic somewhat. A few more premium memory foam options would certainly have felt more on-brand. Partly because of this and partly because the earpieces are quite deep, like rounded-off bricks rather than ergonomically shaped bulbs or teardrops, we find fitting them a challenge. The supporting Devialet Gemini app does have a tab entitled “Eartips: check if your earbuds are correctly placed”, but clicking through simply reveals a picture of the eartips supplied. We are told to select the best fit for our ears and are reassured that Devialet’s proprietary Ear Active Matching technology “will compensate any imperfect occlusions”. 

This new EAM tech boasts enhanced signal transmission by adjusting audio signal frequency ranges in real-time. The claim is an end to loss in sound quality when you turn your head suddenly – if one earbud moves slightly, the in-built microphones can apparently detect the change in frequency and adapt, tailoring the signal to the ear up to 10,000 times per second.

While all of this sounds impressive on paper, early press releases promised a five-second ear scan and, right now at least, we have no evidence to suggest that this has been delivered. In a bid to test the EAM claims, one member of the team tried repeatedly but could not turn their head suddenly without dislodging one earpiece to the point that it actually fell out. 

Under the casework, high-excursion 10mm Devialet drivers promise sensitivity and low distortion. Battery life is a claimed 24 hours of untethered playtime, with just upwards of 8 hours (or 6 hours with ANC activated) in every charge, and a further 3.5 full charges stored in the charging case. There's wireless Qi charging support, a USB-C charger, IPX4 water-resistance, Qualcomm aptX support. Refreshingly, Devialet claims that you'll also be able to buy a replacement charging case battery and spare parts for the left and right earbuds, should you ever need them. 

Features

The Devialet Gemini app is a slick experience, although it isn’t as robustly featured as certain class-leading buds at this level (there’s no 'speak to chat', as found on the XM4, for example; no option to prioritise sound over a stable connection, and very little in the way of on-device control customisation). The home screen reveals a picture of your earbuds and their remaining battery, with tabs for noise cancellation, neutral and transparency beneath them. Click on ‘Cancellation’ and you’re given the option of ‘low’, ‘high’ and ‘plane’. Here, we must commend Devialet: the level of effective noise cancellation on offer is excellent. 

The company’s proprietary new Pressure Balance Architecture involves "cascading decompression chambers inside the product" to ensure optimum inner pressure at all times, without impairing noise attenuation. Furthermore, each chamber is coated with a custom acoustic mesh to stop external noise from entering the system. This, coupled with Devialet’s new custom Internal Delay Compensation algorithm, which promises to compensate for the interior hold-up generated by a noise cancellation loop, promises significant gains in terms of noise cancellation. Whatever the firm has done to achieve it, it makes for a near noise-free experience on a busy street (with several buses and cars passing) when we deploy ‘plane’ – and without any nauseating vacuum or wind tunnel effects. 

Similarly, when we select the transparency mode in either low or high, extraneous noise is filtered in, at different volumes, but never with the unwanted addition of brightness or harshness to our music – an issue some in-ears can fall foul of. 

In the top right of the home screen is an equaliser tab, which is where you’ll also find options for auto-pause (to pause playback when an earbud is removed), a six-band equaliser tab with six presets or the option to create your own, and a balance slider if you’d like more volume from one bud than the other. 

Two separate microphones in each earbud handle the excellent ANC, while one dedicated microphone per earpiece enhances voice transmission. During our tests, calls are clear too, rarely suffering from wind interference even on a blustery day.

Sound

Setting all noise cancellation and EQ levels at neutral, we commence our listening with Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) by Eurythmics on Tidal Masters and are instantly aware that Devialet’s first true wireless in-ears serve up an unashamedly punchy, exuberant sound with oodles of bass clout, energy, clarity and sass. 

Sadly, over the course of our testing proper, this turns out to be the main problem. Here, Annie Lennox’s vocal should take centre stage, but the voracity of the synths and vocal trills mean this central strand is actually vying for our attention in a somewhat confusing mix that often sees our focus diverted elsewhere. 

Yes, it’s energetic, but we aren’t tapping our feet in time to the rhythm because, in this cacophonous soundstage, timing across the frequencies suffers. Musical passages are not being held in check particularly well and songs lose momentum. Switch to the Sony WF-1000XM4 and you get a much better sense of space around notes, detail, placement of instruments and dynamic build throughout the track. 

Listen to Africa by Toto and the initial laughter over in our left ear is stifled by the over-zealous drums and cowbell in our right. The treble too is a little forward, as if competing with other sonic articles that might detract from it. Switch to the Sony in-ears and it’s a different, altogether more cohesive and insightful story. 

Stream Debussy’s Clair de Lune with the Devialet in-ears and the keys dancing across our ears feel as if they’re being played with a little too much force, rather than with the emotional human touch – the rise and fall – afforded by a little more refinement and space. 

Verdict

We caveat this verdict with the statement that if effective noise cancellation in a true wireless design is your chief concern, Devialet’s Gemini should be on your list. During testing, these earbuds perform more cohesively and with a greater sense of rise and fall when we select the two higher ANC profiles. However, this is not the default listening mode for many and it is when we turn active noise cancellation off in favour of neutrality, detail, expansiveness (and to save on battery) that things start to go awry. 

Despite the omission of a few premium features (more varied on-device control options, speak-to-chat functionality and mic-mute, to name a few) compared to competing buds in this premium category, Devialet’s first shot at true wireless headphones bode well in terms of ambition, aptX support and the ability to cancel noise without issue. 

But bolder isn’t always better, and sonically the recipe is a little too heavy-handed. The result is a ballsy but confusing mix, where musical strands can feel as if they’re fighting – both amongst themselves and for your attention. 

SCORES

• Build 4
• Features 4
• Sound 3

MORE:

Read our review of the Sony WF-1000XM4

Also consider the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2

Then there's always these Shure Aonic Free earbuds

Not forgetting Apple's Airpods Pro

These are the best in-ear headphones: budget to premium

What is Roon? It's not the easiest music platform to explain. The fact that Roon Labs has its own, dedicated Roon Knowledge website is a testament to that. The shortest way to describe Roon is that it is a membership-based, multi-device, multi-room music software platform.

Roon organises your digital music library across various sources, cleans up your files and their metadata, and directs the music to your motley crew of Roon-compatible hi-fi kit, of which there is now a lot. A walled garden of hardware this is not. Roon aims to be a well-organised, carefully considered democratisation of multi-room – and succeeds in that.

Roon's goals are also supreme usability and super high-quality sound. The interface was designed to be richer than anything else and it "supports bit-perfect playback of lossless and lossy file formats, including high-resolution audio content like PCM and DSD, in both stereo and multichannel".

Hardware support is almost universal in the hi-fi space these days – and hey, it must be doing something right as Samsung-owned Harman International (which owns JBL, AKG, Mark Levinson et al) bought it in November 2023.

So if you want to know exactly what the Roon music server is before you sign up to become one of more than 100,000 Roon users worldwide, read on...

What is Roon?

At its core, Roon is a music management software that brings all your digital music and hardware into one place – your personal local and networked files, your subscribed-to streaming service libraries, and even internet radio. Roon is not a music streaming service in its own right; it does not offer access to any music service you are not already signed up to.

It then lets you easily stream that music to Roon-compatible ('Roon Ready') audio output devices in your home in a multi-room environment as you please. This is all controllable via Roon's desktop, smartphone and tablet apps. 

Essentially, it is the brain which tells your music what to do and where to do it – the policeman directing the traffic. It joins the disparate dots of your listening ecosystem, giving you a one-stop-shop to access, control and play everything. To do that, there are several key parts to Roon's structure: the Roon Core, the Roon app and the audio devices. Roon also has two servers/streamers called Nucleus. So let's look at all those individually...

What is a Roon Core?

Every Roon set-up requires a Roon Core. It's the conductor of your music-streaming orchestra. It centralises the Roon application, which is responsible for all the thinking your system needs to do. That way, you don't need to update all your bits and pieces of hi-fi every time Roon is fixed or upgraded.

Naturally, your Roon Core needs to be something with decent computational chops, so in most set-ups will likely to be a Mac or Windows PC. It could also be a NAS (Network Attached Storage) drive, installable with the Roon Core server software, or a dedicated music server such as Roon's own Roon Nucleus One ($500 / approx £400 / approx AU$780) or flagship Roon Nucleus Titan ($3699 / approx £2900 / approx AU$5600), which naturally have the software pre-installed. Here you can find a list of Roon partner products.

Music management
Wherever it sits, the Roon Core software will manage the music from all of your digital sources: Tidal, Qobuz, NAS, HDD, USB and radio. It builds an interconnected digital library, with cleaned-up, up-to-date metadata, which is then tucked up into one, tidy interface with all the rich content that Roon can muster.

Those extras include photos, bios, reviews, lyrics, and concert dates, and make connections between artists, composers, performers, conductors, and producers. The idea is to create a more searchable, magazine-type feel to your music, so you can not only play your music but also be invited to interact with and learn about it.

Music playback
As well as organising your collection, your Roon Core is responsible for music playback too, and it aims to take as much of the heavy lifting away from your playback devices as possible. It does all the audio stream conversion and volume levels the output. It controls your play queue, your output devices and the multi-room zoning as well. It also handles all the software updates.

Keeping all of those computational processes in one place means that the audio circuitry of your hi-fi equipment can be freer of noisy chips and components which may otherwise harm the quality of music playback. It also means that your hi-fi kit won't become outdated.

"AirPlay for audiophiles"
Roon Advanced Audio Transport (RAAT) is the technology that allows this all to work in a centralised way. Roon describes it as "AirPlay for audiophiles". It allows the Roon Core to do everything apart from acting as your remote control or the audio output device itself. Consequently, it promises fewer dropouts, lower latency and hi-res audio streams of up to 32-bit/768kHz PCM and DSD512.

• MP3, AAC, WAV, FLAC: all the audio file formats explained

What is the Roon Remote?

This one's easy. Roon Remote is the name of the Roon app on most app stores. It is a software remote control for your Roon service. It's not the core, it's not your library; it's simply the way you access what you've got and the way you ask your Roon Core to play music on your devices.

There are Roon Remote apps for iOS, Android, Windows and Mac OS to use on smartphones, tablets and computers. You use these to browse and play music with Roon apps – and each variant of the app has been created with a single code base to make sure that the experience is uniform and therefore familiar. You can install and use as many as you like, and all the data is kept synchronized in real-time, with Roon claiming that there's no lag and no stale data.

In February 2021, the 'Roon 1.8' update introduced new personalisation features. The service has always organised music into a searchable digital magazine, but version 1.8 took things up a notch by adding an individually personalised Home screen that boasts an ever-changing roster of artists based on your listening habits.

It improved the ability to draw on user metadata to more accurately tailor music recommendations. The spiffed-up Focus feature, for example, can now search anywhere in Roon, including Tidal and Qobuz, making it easier to explore hi-res tracks by your favourite artists, genres and composers. 

It also enabled users to dig down into each artist's influences and collaborations – Roon describes it as a "360-degree view" – and use the new quick links to ask the Roon community questions.

That gives you a window into the sort of features and user experience you can expect, although in 2022 Roon changed the game again by introducing Roon 2.0.

Arguably an even bigger deal than 1.8, Roon 2.0 introduces the Roon ARC app for iOS and Android. This mobile app lets you listen to your entire Roon library of tracks on your phone, so you don't have to rely on just what the current streaming services have to offer – a Godsend if you have a ton of rare music stashed away on a hard drive that you can't find on the likes of Spotify, Apple Music et al. You can download songs in their original format for offline listening too, and access the Tidal and Qobuz libraries directly from the Roon ARC app. It's dead-handy for on-the-go listening.

Device support: what hi-fi is 'Roon Ready'?

"Audio devices" are the final part of the chain. They receive the music and either send it along the hi-fi chain or output it itself. These might be networked speakers, music streamers, headphone amplifiers, DACs or even just a laptop.

Look out for 'Roon Ready' certification on your playback devices. This is the guarantee that they will support Roon's hi-res streaming RAAT technology. Roon will discover Roon Ready devices without a problem and automatically deliver the highest possible audio quality to them.

Roon has become seemingly ever-present on the spec sheets of streaming-savvy hi-fi kit. It claims it is compatible with over 1000 devices from nearly 200 audio brands, including – deep breath – Arcam, Audiolab, Astell & Kern, Bluesound, B&W, Cambridge Audio, Chord Electronics, Cyrus, dCS, Devialet, Denon, Elac, JBL, KEF, Linn, Marantz, McIntosh, Mark Levinson, Meridian, Moon, NAD, Naim, Onyko, Oppo, Pioneer, Pro-Ject, TEAC and more. Essentially, Roon support has become as prevalent in product specifications as AirPlay and Bluetooth.

Take a look at the full Roon Ready list to see every brand Roon has partnered with.

Device support: what is 'Roon Tested'?

'Roon Tested' is a second tier of hardware partner program used by Roon. They're not guaranteed for the highest levels of audio quality but all Roon Tested devices have been checked and profiled by Roon to make sure that the software is configured to help these endpoints work at their very best.

The idea is to give users the confidence that Roon Tested kit will slot into their system easily and work properly. Roon Tested devices include those made by Audioquest, Denon, Marantz, McIntosh and many more. Take a look at the full Roon Tested list for more details.

Fortunately, that's not quite the end of it for Roon audio devices. There are one or two more commonplace audio and streaming standards that also work with Roon...

Does Roon work with AirPlay devices?

Roon will support most AirPlay devices, whether Apple-made or third party, and you should see them picked up by the Roon Core on your apps. Go to the Audio tab on your Roon Remote and you'll find a list of all available AirPlay endpoints. If your AirPlay device is sleeping, Roon may miss it. Wake it up and try again, if needs be.

The maximum resolution for AirPlay is a 'CD quality' (16-bit/44.1kHz), though, so Roon will downgrade any audio streams to fit with playback at that level.

Does Roon support Sonos?

Interestingly, it does! Sonos kit is fully supported by Roon. The maximum quality audio Sonos hardware can receive is CD-quality-like 16-bit/48kHz but, as with AirPlay, the Roon Core will downsample higher bitrate streams automatically to fit.

Does Roon support Chromecast?

Yes again. Anything that you can plug a Google Chromecast dongle into can also become part of your Roon system because Roon fully supports Chromecast with music streams up to 24-bit/96kHz.

That works for legacy Chromecast devices including the Chromecast (Gen 1 and 2), Chromecast Audio, Chromecast Ultra, Chromecast with Google TV, Google Home, Google Home Mini and Google Home Max. Google's newer Nest speakers are compatible too, and we presume the all-new Google TV Streamer will be too. In fact, Roon says that most devices with “Chromecast Built-in” should also be detectable by your Roon Core. Head to 'Settings' and then 'Audio' on the Roon Remote to enable your Chromecast device.

You'll get streams of up to 24-bit/96kHz using Chromecast Audio. Other Chromecast devices will support sample frequencies of up to 48kHz. Any video-supporting Chromecast devices will also work as a display for Roon to show album artwork, artist photos, and track information, as well as the audio, with what's known as Roon Display.

Voice control and zone grouping will also work depending on your Chromecast devices.

What audio quality can Roon stream?

We covered this above but just in case you're skim reading (as if?), Roon Ready devices can receive streams of up to 32-bit/768kHz PCM and DSD512, or in other words: the majority of consumable files and streams out there.

Not all networked audio outputs can handle those bitrates, though, so a Roon Core automatically converts the audio streams to the optimal resolution for those other devices.

For details on the bitrates when using AirPlay devices, Sonos and Chromecast, see the relevant sections above.

When connected to a compatible HDMI device, Roon also provides multichannel playback for (FLAC, WAV, ALAC, AAC, AIDD, DFF and DSF) content for up to eight channels per device, so 7.1 configurations are supported.

Does Roon support MQA?

Roon and MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) technology are firm friends. This used to be handy if you had a Tidal HiFi subscription but your music streamer didn't play nice with the file unfolding of hi-res (MQA-encoded) Tidal Masters streams. You see, in a Roon set-up, it isn't the streamer that decodes the files but the Roon Core. So, you could use your Roon Core to decode your Tidal Masters stream, unpack the MQA audio and then send it over to your non-MQA-supporting streamer as a playback format which it can cope with.

The way that works is that the Roon Core decodes the MQA file into an MQA Core stream. That then produces a PCM stream at 88.2kHz or 96kHz which is passed on to your output device. That stream also happens to include further MQA information. So, if your player has an MQA-compatible DAC inside it, then it can do further unfolding of that stream to unlock more levels of MQA's audio potential.

As Tidal has now ditched the MQA format, however, this example is no longer relevant. That said, the relatively new owner of MQA, Lenbrook, has announced plans to launch a new MQA-toting streaming service with HDTracks. So perhaps MQA, and its relationship with partners such as Roon, will get a new lease of life in the near future.

What is MQA? Take a look at our guide to learn more about it.

What does Roon cost?

'Not cheap' is the easy answer, but the engineers at Roon Labs would doubtless say it is worth it. To throw in our two penneth, we have found it to be a highly intuitive music management tool and, indeed, a bit of a hi-fi luxury.

There's a lot of work that goes into usability, functionality, look, feel and everything else, and the upshot is that Roon currently costs $149.88/year for the standard membership if you pay annually. That works out as – quick maths – $12.49 per month. Alternatively, it is $14.99 per month if you want to pay monthly. That includes full Roon functionality for one Roon Core to manage your music library and unlimited remote devices.

The other option is to bet the house and go big. If you love Roon and think you will want to use it for more than five years, then a lifetime Roon membership costs $830 and makes sense. This is a good time to note that nothing from early statements around the Harman International takeover of Roon suggests that the platform won't stand the test of time. Roon Labs Founder Enno Vandermeer has reassured subscribers that "Roon will continue exactly as it is", with memberships and billing processes remaining without interruption, no change to device support (or customer support for that matter), and the community forum site set to continue.

And by the way, if you aren't a US resident, that's fine... but your purchase will be charged in US Dollars, with any currency conversions conducted by your bank.

Thankfully, you can try Roon before you buy: simply head over to the Roon website and sign up for a 14-day free trial.

MORE:

The best hi-fi systems you can buy 

Everything you need to know about high-resolution audio

Hi-res music streaming services compared: which should you sign up for?

Despite having welcomed many Devialet Phantom wireless speakers into our test rooms over the past few years, we still find ourselves struck by the beauty and bass reproduction of the latest iteration.

This new flagship Phantom I brings with it a simplification and expansion of the iconic, brand-defining line: the compact Phantom Reactor is now ‘Phantom II’ (in 95dB, 98dB and special-edition Opéra de Paris models), above which sits the ‘Phantom I’ (in 103dB, 108dB and Opéra de Paris variants). 

Devialet has now introduced a £349 ($350) Arch configurable connectivity hub for Phantom too, giving owners the option to add sources (including a turntable) either via its built-in phono stage and RCA line-level inputs, or alternatively two coaxial digital inputs.

Features

Without that accessory, the Phantom I is reliant upon a network, with support for AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect, UPnP and Roon (both up to 24-bit/96KHz) over ethernet or wi-fi, although there is Bluetooth onboard, as well as an optical input (up to 24-bit/96KHz) at the rear.

The decibel ratings attached to the names represent their maximum sound pressure level at one metre – something that sets Devialet Phantoms apart not only from one another but most of their competition, considering they can go between the approximate relative loudness of a lawnmower and a chainsaw. 

The sample on test here is the Phantom I 108 dB, which is available in dark chrome or white/gold finishes and covers a claimed frequency range of 14Hz to 27kHz. The Phantom I 103 dB, meanwhile, comes in light chrome or matte black and encompasses a slightly narrower bandwidth (16Hz to 25kHz).

Many of Devialet’s patented technologies are present in the new Phantom I, including its ADH (Analog Digital Hybrid) amplification, designed to combine the benefits of Class A analogue (high performance) and Class D (high efficiency and power) designs.

At the risk of using too many acronyms, HBI (Heart Bass Implosion) represents Devialet’s efforts to produce deep, impactful bass from the compact enclosure; its ACE (Active Cospherical Engine) design takes care of outputting sound evenly in various directions from the spherical chassis; and Speaker Active Matching (SAM) processing works to optimise the signal and performance in real-time. 

Such patented technologies have been part of the Phantom line-up from the start, but the new Phantom I aims to take performance further with a next-generation system-on-chip and improved thermal dissipation (it’s four times more energy-efficient than the previous model).

Build

The Phantom’s iconic, visually striking spherical design, which we’ve likened to an ‘Alien bug’ and ‘Storm Trooper’s lunchbox’ lives on, but not totally unchanged. It’s now like a miniature jet engine, with a matte finish, new signature side panels and LED status lights at the rear – it’s eye-catching in the best way possible.

The Phantom I comes with a new puck-like remote that’s as other-worldly and premium as the speaker aesthetic and price deserves, too. We like how you rotate the whole outer ring to change volume (you can also play/pause and skip tracks with the central touchpad), although ergonomically it doesn’t feel all that natural in the hand to do so.

The alternative is Devialet’s dedicated app, which provides similar playback functions, as well as settings such as ‘AV sync’ for reducing latency if you’re using the Phantom I with your TV via its optical input, and ‘Night mode’ for sucking some of the bass out of the performance (which it does effectively, too). 

Somewhat disappointingly, the app doesn’t also serve as a UPnP streaming controller, so those wanting to access local or networked files or music services will need to use the paid-for Roon platform (the Phantom I is Roon Ready), or download another third-party UPnP app such as BubbleUPnP (Android) and mconnect Player (Android, iOS), both of which are perfectly usable free apps. 

We’re also a little let down by the app’s imperfect multi-room and stereo pairing experience, which in our testing proves occasionally flaky by not displaying the connection, or doing so but not initiating through the speakers. If you’ve spent several thousands on a multi-room wireless speaker set-up, you are perhaps entitled to expect seamlessness.

Sound

You also expect a ‘wow’ performance, which in some areas the Phantom I delivers. This is one of the clearest, most bassy and broadest-sounding single-chassis wireless speakers we've come across since the previous full-sized Phantom we tested.

For a wireless speaker of its size, Devialet’s latest can, like the iterations before it, excavate a bass line. The jaunty electro-funk lows underpinning Childish Gambino’s 19:10 are deep and impactful – and visually represented by the enthusiastically pumping side-firing drivers. Play something denser such as 65daysofstatic's Retreat! Retreat!, and it’s not afraid to get down and dirty with the cacophony of drums and electrics while ensuring they don’t bog down the whole presentation. 

The Phantom I produces a broad, open soundstage that far belies its compactness. If you're looking for the biggest sonic footprint from a small physical one, a single Phantom I can output more than is necessary to fill most living rooms. But, while one of the Devialet’s unique selling points is its spectacular power output, the presentation ultimately becomes harsh and, consequently, less listenable when really pushed.

Such is the Devialet’s midrange clarity that upon hearing it for the first time, you’ll want to queue up songs by your favourite vocalists. We find ourselves doing just this; Nina Simone, Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, ANOHNI, and The Tallest Man on Earth’s Kristian Matsson come through with purity and polish. But it isn’t long before we realise that such tangibility isn’t complemented by the levels of transparency we’d expect at this price – and especially from a Phantom.

While the Phantom I can distinguish between a soprano and a piano, it’s only able to draw the silhouette of a vocal or instrument rather than reveal any of its colour or shading. It doesn’t rise and fall with Simone’s dynamic delivery, nor does it get under Matsson’s subtle inflections. 

We play Ludovico Einaudi’s piano-led Oltremare, and while the notes float across a soundstage that, if you closed your eyes, could pass for one from stereo speakers placed close together, there isn’t the dynamic insight or finesse necessary for you to thoroughly appreciate the variation in his masterstrokes. 

We find ourselves creeping the volume up in an effort to feel more involved in the piece – a sign of a performance that falls short of captivating. For the Devialet’s not insignificant asking price, we expect more in the way of sonic sophistication.

Verdict

Devialet’s original Phantom arrived at a time where wireless speakers were slowly but surely maturing into the high-end market. Today, that premium space is more competitive, and with it, the level of performance has improved too. 

You’ll struggle to find another that can fill a room or dig up a bass line quite like the Phantom I, but your search for a wireless solution – single-box or otherwise – capable of more insight for the money will be easier. The Phantom I remains a one-of-a-kind option with undisputed talents, but overall its performance leaves us a little cold.

SCORES

• Sound 3
• Features 4
• Build 4

MORE:

Read our guide to the best wireless speakers

Read our Devialet Gold Phantom review