mexican conflictual: B&O Play's BeoPlay A9 wireless speaker gets your classy party jumping for a cool $2,699 (eyes-on)

Friday, October 5, 2012

B&O Play's BeoPlay A9 wireless speaker gets your classy party jumping for a cool $2,699 (eyes-on)

B&O Play is at it again for the younger crowd with money to burn. With a TV, a hybrid iPad dock, an iPad friendly speaker system and a portable speaker already under its belt, Bang & Olufsen's spin-off brand is ready to really get the festivities going with its new BeoPlay A9. Starting at cool $2,799, this ~~satellite dish~~ circular eye-catcher also doubles as a full-on 2.1 speaker system. Simply put, we'd describe its looks as a super-sized half of the BeoPlay A8 speaker dock. We'd guess the A9 stands at roughly three feet tall (legs mounted) and three feet wide based on our quick in-person look. Behind its fabric grill you'll find a duo of three-quarter-inch tweeters and a pair of three-inch mid-range drivers, all of which get their power from independent 80-watt digital amps. Of course, the A9 brings the rumble as well, featuring an 8-inch "bass unit" that gets double the wattage of its drivers. Notably, AirPlay & DLNA are baked right in, ensuring you'll have access to WiFi streaming across whichever platforms you prefer.

You won't find any physical controls, but on the top-edge of its backside you'll notice a status light and a power button, both separated by a long touch-sensitive strip that lets you adjusts the volume, or mute it completely. Below that, a pop-off cap hides a USB port for docking and charging devices and a 3.5mm jack if wireless isn't an option, but it's also where an admittedly unsightly power cord plugs in as well. As you can see in the photo, the A9 can be supported by a trio of wooden legs, however, it can also be wall-mounted or hung from a ceiling like the BeoPlay V1 TV -- thankfully, it features three DSP presets to cope with however you'd decide to place it. As you might imagine, it's also incredibly loud -- just a duo of A9s were being used as the sound system at the large Penthouse party we were in. As such, it wasn't an ideal environment to comment much further on its audio performance.

If it's up your alley, expect the system to hit B&O and select Apple stores near the end of November, with your choice of a black, red, silver, green or white grill, and wooden legs in beech, oak or teak -- all of which can be purchased separately. For now, you can get your own eyes-on with it in the gallery below.

Gallery: B&O Play A9 wireless speaker system (eyes-on)