Stuff - UK (2020-02)

3

TESTED TRANSPARENT SPEAKER

3

2

GOOD

MEH

EVIL

Design is

incredible

to behold

Cool

modular

philosophy

It’s a pretty

expensive

speaker

Nicely

balanced

sound

No built-in

voice

control

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A see-through Scandi supermodel breaks through

the glass ceiling of Bluetooth speakers... but how

can something so stark-looking sound so lush?

According to Scandinavian design

principles, products should sit in

harmony with their environment

and be built to last. A noble idea,

even if – in a region with some of

the world’s highest tax rates – it

can make things rather expensive.

Take anything ever made by Bang

& Olufsen, for example: you might

not immediately realise you’ve

remortgaged your house for

an iconic TV, but 20 years later

when it’s still going and still the

centrepiece of your living room,

it’ll hit home.

Swedish company Transparent

Sound doesn’t deal in the

conventional either, offering

Bluetooth speakers made from

materials like stoneware and

glass that push the boundaries

of hi-fi design. Its Transparent

Speaker is undeniably striking,

with flawless build quality and

materials made to last a lifetime...

which is entirely the point, except

that here you’ll also find some

modular magic at play to ensure

the tech stays up to date.

£900 / stuff.tv/Transparent

Loud and clear

A Class D amp and digital signal

processor feed two 3in drivers

and a 6.5in subwoofer (2) for a

maximum 100W stereo output.

It sounds fantastic, overcoming

any acoustic doubts about its

glass build to provide a warm,

natural tone that’s finely balanced

and never overbearing.

Clear and present dangler

This speaker includes instructions

on how to disassemble it. Rather

than a gimmick to get audio nerds

salivating, the idea is it’ll become

better over time by swapping out

components for new tech. It also

allows for plug-in upgrades like a

Chromecast dongle or an Amazon

Echo Input for Alexa voice control.

See your way clear

The control module includes an

on/off switch, knobs for volume,

bass and treble, and a 3.5mm

line input (3). On the rear there’s

another line-in, a line-out and

a USB power socket, plus cryptic

wording pointing to the ‘Tinker

Tool’ – this is where the unit’s

modular chops come into effect.

A good clearout

Out of the box, this is a basic

Bluetooth speaker in every sense

of the word, with no AirPlay 2, no

Chromecast, no built-in streaming

services, not even an app. Some

will find the lack of features

baffling; others will thrive on the

blank canvas for adding the latest

connected components.

Clear a space

This gorgeous creation is built

from an aluminium uniframe and

tempered glass (1). The size of

a small briefcase and 11kg, it’s far

from portable – so decide where

you want it and leave it there (it

can also be wall-mounted). White

gloves come bundled in the box

for keeping grubby mitts at bay.

No built-in

multiroom

smarts