Cambridge Audio L/R S vs Ruark Audio MR1 Mk3: which compact desktop speakers are best for you?

If you're looking for versatile desktop speakers that sound great as well as offering useful connectivity in an ultra-compact form, our advice for many years has been Ruark Audio's MR1 range of dinky, powered speakers.

The Ruark MR1 Mk3 is our current reigning champ in this field, but nipping at its heels is the Cambridge Audio L/R S, the first active speakers from the brand, offering a similarly compact form for the same price as the Ruarks.

For those who can't accommodate a full hi-fi system in their small spaces, or want to upgrade from a budget Bluetooth speaker for their home audio, these small-but-talented desktop speakers are an ideal solution. We've recently tested the new Cambridge L/R S and compared them with the Award-winning Ruarks to balance their strengths and weaknesses – let's find out which is the best pair for you.

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Cambridge L/R S vs Ruark MR1 Mk3: price

In the UK, it's a dead heat with the Cambridge L/R S and Ruark MR1 Mk3 both costing £399. There's a bit more variation if you're in the US or Australia, as the Cambridge speakers will cost you $549 / AU$949, while the Ruark pair is yours for $579 / AU$899.

The Ruarks are available in two finishes: the rich walnut veneer of our review sample, or a more modern charcoal lacquer, with no difference in cost.

Cambridge Audio offers more colourful options with six finishes in total: black, white, green, orange and blue, which all cost the same amount. But if you opt for the walnut veneer finish of our review sample, you'll have to cough up a little extra as they cost £449 / $599 / AU$1049 per pair.

**Winner: Ruark Audio MR1 Mk3**

Cambridge L/R S vs Ruark MR1 Mk3: Build & design

Both speakers are pleasingly compact, making them ideal for small spaces, such as placing on your desktop and on either side of your computer.

The Ruark MR1 Mk3 are smaller than the Cambridge L/R S – they're certainly shorter, with the L/R S barely 2cm deeper. They're the same width, though, which makes both of them very appealing for fitting into spaces where traditional hi-fi or bigger speakers simply won't get a look in.

We love the build quality of both speakers, which is of a high quality for this price. Which style you prefer is a matter of taste: the beautifully curved cabinet of the Ruark or the crisp, clean edges of the Cambridge? Do you prefer the woven fabric grille (which isn't removable) on the Ruark, or the stark, no-grille, minimal aesthetic of Cambridge?

We like the walnut veneer's texture and finer details on the Ruarks, and equally like the way the logo is printed on top of the Cambridge speaker. Both are smart-looking and offer a lifestyle-friendly aesthetic compared with traditional designs.

Apart from the looks, there are practical considerations when making your choice. There are no on-unit controls for input selection or volume on the Cambridge speakers at all, in keeping with its pared back design. A colour-changing LED underneath the primary speaker indicates the input chosen and status, but that's all the feedback you'll get when facing the speakers.

Ruark, conversely, has its trademark RotoDial controller on top of the primary speaker, which lets you select the input and change volume with ease. It's a more tactile interaction with your speaker, and especially handy if the speakers are within reach on your desk.

If your speakers are placed further away or are being used as TV speakers, then you'll be glad to hear both sets come with a slim remote control. It's particularly crucial for the Cambridge, so don't lose it.

These are two-way speakers, with the Cambridge L/R S featuring a 21mm aluminium tweeter and 7.6cm mid/bass driver, with a bass reflex slot situated at the back.

The Ruark MR1 Mk3 features a 20mm silk dome tweeter with a bigger 8.5cm mid/bass driver, with a downward-firing bass reflex port.

Both use Class D amplification for greater efficiency and control, with the Cambridge claiming the more powerful 50W per channel, while Ruark goes for half that figure at 25W per channel. Numbers, of course, only tell half the story.

Both units house the main power, amplifiers and connections in one "primary" unit, which then feeds signal to the secondary unit with an interlinking cable.

The supplied 2m cable for the Cambridge speakers features bespoke 4-pin conductors at either end, with a neat locking mechanism that keeps the connection secure.

The 3m cable connecting the Ruark speakers (3.5mm connectors at either end) is a nicely braided affair that's sturdy and looks good, too. We found the supplied cables long enough for desktop use, but both brands offer optional longer leads (5m) if required, at extra cost.

**Winner: Draw**

Cambridge L/R S vs Ruark MR1 Mk3: connectivity

Titchy as they are, the Ruark MR1 MK3 is loaded with a variety of connections. The big news is the inclusion of a built-in moving magnet phono stage, which makes it easier to plug in turntables – such as the Rega Planar 1 or Pro-Ject Primary E – for a neat, affordable vinyl system. You also get a USB-C input for plugging in your laptop, and a combined optical/3.5mm aux input for other sources, with the adapter for the digital optical socket included in the box.

Ruark says that its customers have been perfectly happy with the optical input when using the MR1 speakers with a TV, and adding an HDMI input would increase the cost beyond its asking price, which the brand didn't want to do.

Cambridge's speakers similarly omit the HDMI input and feature a USB-C input and separate optical input, and opt for a pair of RCA line level analogue inputs for connecting a variety of sources to the L/R S. There's no built-in phono stage here, which we feel is a bit of a miss, but you can plug in a turntable with an integrated phono preamp, such as the Sony PS-LX3BT, via RCA.

For easy streaming from your phone or laptop, both speakers offer Bluetooth, with up to the aptX HD codec supported. Pairing is swift and easy in both cases, and streaming music from Tidal or Apple Music is fuss free.

Ruark says its internal DAC can handle up to 24-bit/192kHz hi-res audio files, although the USB-C input’s limit is capped at 96kHz. With Cambridge, the optical and USB-C both support hi-res files up to 24-bit/96kHz, but the speakers’ DSP will automatically downsample all files to 48kHz.

At this level, we find that such differences in file resolution aren't particularly obvious, with CD quality sounding more than good enough for these speakers. Considering the intended audience for these affordable, desktop speakers – and with no networked streaming on board – we imagine not being able to play full-fat hi-res downloaded tracks won't be a high priority for most listeners.

And finally, you get a single subwoofer output with both speakers, should you require more bass oomph.

**Winner: Ruark Audio MR1 MK3**

Cambridge L/R S vs Ruark MR1 Mk3: features

Ruark keeps things simple with the MR1 Mk3's plug-and-play, accessible nature, and around the back of the main speaker you'll find the ability to change the gain level for each input (and reset them). That's it.

Cambridge offers a fair bit more customisation, with the engineers taking into consideration any adverse sonic effects that might happen depending your listening position and where you'll be placing the L/R S speakers.

You have three toggle switches at the back of the main unit: one to tell the speakers if they're placed on a desktop or not; one to tell the speakers if they are placed close to a back wall or in free space; and one to indicate whether the primary speaker (with the power cable) is the left or right channel.

These modes help to mitigate any booming you might get in the mid/bass when the speakers are backed up against a wall, reduce any unwanted reflections from the desk they are placed on, and to help with time alignment when your listening positioning is higher than the drivers' output when they're placed on a desk.

Cambridge also offers optional desk stands (£49 per pair) to help angle the speakers towards your listening position – we would recommend this for the clearest, most solid sound.

We would try all the different toggle modes to find out the best-balanced sound for your tastes and listening position, as some combinations might work better than you might initially think.

Did you remember to hold on to that remote control? Cambridge also offers three EQ modes – Normal, Voice and Movie – that you can choose using the remote. These are subtle effects worth experimenting with, although we preferred the balanced Normal mode overall with all kinds of media we played.

**Winner: Cambridge Audio L/R S**

Cambridge L/R S vs Ruark MR1 Mk3: sound

The Cambridge L/R S speakers offer a pleasing performance with their even-handed tone and refined way with detail.

Their smooth balance makes them easy to listen to for long hours, with no peakiness or hardness in the treble, nor any untoward flabbiness in the bass. Yes, we'd like to hear the lower frequencies plunge deeper and have more muscle, but they are otherwise taut and nimble.

There is a sense of orderliness to the way the L/R S delivers music, and we found during our review that there is "a good amount of detail on offer, thanks also in part to a clean, low-distortion background". Voices are nicely focused too.

That evenly balanced presentation is impressive, although it does mean some songs end up sounding quite cultured and reserved when they should be more gritty and brazen.

"On some tracks – such as on Eminem’s The Way I Am and Forget About Dre – we find ourselves willing the speakers on, to tackle the propulsive rhythm with more punch and panache," we said in our review.

These Cambridge speakers do spark into life with the volume turned up, and they can certainly go louder than you'd expect from their small stature. Just be aware that, as with most speakers, that lovely balance suffers at much higher volumes.

The Ruark MR1 Mk3 offer a more boisterous and more exciting presentation, with a more powerful, muscular bass that we wish was just a little more tuneful, but does dig impressively deep for such dinky speakers.

Even more impressive is how much bigger and more open they sound; they project sound into the room with greater power than the L/R S, and there is more space surrounding the instruments and voices.

Dynamic shifts are handled with greater authority and punch, and it's a more involving listen overall. "The speakers’ rhythmic drive remains excellent for such compact speakers," we said in the review. "They are full of propulsive momentum, grabbing us by the lapels with Eminem’s fierce delivery in Forget About Dre and delivering tracks from Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish and Macklemore with oodles of energy."

The Ruarks are still subtle and insightful enough when it comes to more delicate pieces of music, and voices are full of texture, nuance and personality. The MR1 Mk3 have traded a touch of their previous midrange sweetness for greater power in this third-generation model, but the mids are also clearer, more detailed and more expressive than the Cambridge L/R S.

Compared with the Ruarks, the Cambridge speakers sound a little muted when it comes to expressive voices, rhythmic punctuality and dynamic subtlety. There is what sounds like a "cloudy veil" over the midrange, whereas the Ruarks sound much freer, more confident and allow songs to luxuriate in a more layered soundstage.

The Ruarks' built-in phono stage is of a high quality too, and both sets of speakers have a consistent sonic character no matter which input you use.

**Winner: Ruark Audio MR1 Mk3**

Cambridge L/R S vs Ruark MR1 Mk3: verdict

There is plenty to like about the compact Cambridge L/R S speakers, from their crisp, clean aesthetic to the various modes that make them customisable to where you place them in the room. Their sound quality is easy to get along with, with a smooth, even tone across the frequencies.

But the Ruark speakers beat them for outright clarity, subtler insight and better dynamics. They offer a bigger scale of sound and simply sound more fun, even if the deeper low frequencies could be reined in a little. That built-in phono stage is a boon for first-time vinyl users, and using the MR1 Mk3 is just a little bit more convenient thanks to the handy, tactile on-unit controls.

For the same price, the petite Ruark speakers are the more entertaining and versatile pair. Our Award-winners keep their crown for another round.

**Overall winner: Ruark Audio MR1 Mk3**

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