JANUARY 2022 MACWORLD 101much bass butt on their own as the
3020i do when I have them augmented
by a big ol’ MB Quart subwoofer. Opting
for the more muscular model is like
getting a serious sub thrown in for a
Benjamin. You’ll be decluttering the
joint, too.
Q Acoustics specs the 3030i’s
frequency response as 46Hz-30kHz
(+3db, -6dB), whereas nothing stirs
below 64Hz in a 3020i. And with
sensitivity of 88dB, these puppies will
sound good with as little as 25 watts of
amplification (that’s all my ancient B&O
Beocenter 9000 can muster.) The 3030i
delivered a wallop with both of the
streamer/amps I also tested them with:
a Sonos Amp (fave.co/3lHbqcP) (billed as
125 watts per side into 8 ohms), and a
Bluesound PowerNode 2i (fave.
co/3IDXIkT). While the BlueSound
component has a lower power rating—60
watts per channel into 8 ohms—I
perceived its performance with the 3030i
to be both louder and sweeter sounding
than that of the Sonos.
READY TO PARTY HEARTY
After living with the 3030i for several
weeks—they do require about 50 hours of
break-in—I can testify to their versatility
under fire. They can handle whatever you
throw at them with aplomb, so long as you
set them up properly (cautionary tale below).
Liking to stay current, I’ve put these
things to the test with a variety of recent
releases streaming on the high-res
streaming services Qobuz and Tidal. Take
nuevo-punk rocker Machine Gun Kelly
(Tickets to My Downfall) and swirling
psychedelia from my Philly homies The
War on Drugs (Live Drugs), both good for
heady, out-of-body experiences.
While mowing down superfresh
acoustic bluegrass pickings from Sturgill
Simpson (Cuttin’ Grass—Vol. 1) and the
classical/folk-mashing Long Time Passing
set (celebrating Pete Seeger) by the
Kronos Quartet and vocalizing friends, I
scribbled the word “bristling” in my
reviewer’s notebook. Then I got jazzedThe rear speaker terminals are flush for banana
plug connections; plug-in extenders are provided
for bare wire or pin-type connections.