Q Acoustics Q Active 200 Smart Bookshelf Speakers
ABOUT:
An entire high-resolution wireless audio system, delivering uncompromised hi-fi sound that fits conveniently and seamlessly into your lifestyle.
Uncompromised group up minimalist design created to look and sound spectacular
Dynamic Widescreen soundstage – from all sources, delivered via 6 digitally controlled amplifiers, results in perfect timing and frequency distribution across all 6 drivers
Innovative rear-firing concealed subwoofer delivers deep, powerful bass while making Q Active easy to position
High fidelity sound with true wireless connectivity from multiple streaming services including Apple AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect and UPnP. Q Active is also Roon Ready.
Discreet control hub means wireless access, enhanced performance and complete control of every source
Integrate your TV, Turntable, games console and more into your wireless, music streaming system
Voice control – Chromecast built in, Amazon Alexa or Apple Siri for easy voice control
What's In The Box
- 2 x Q Active 200 Speakers
- 1 x Q Active Hub
- 1 x Remote Control
- 1 x Manual
- Stands Sold Separately
Versatile.
Wireless Connectivity
Each Q Active system includes connectivity for Bluetooth 4.1, Apple AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect and UPnP. Q Active is also Roon Ready.
In addition, Q Active is designed to support your favourite streaming service’s native app - which means simple, straightforward access to the entire planet’s music. Q Active works with Amazon Music, Apple Music, Deezer, Qobuz, Spotify and Tidal.
The hub comes in two variants, Google "Chromecast built-in" or Amazon "Works with Alexa" enabled*.
Q Active Control
Available as a ‘Chromecast Built-In’ OR ‘Works with Alexa’ hub*.
Q Active’s hub is the heart of the system and also supports physical formats and converts them into a high resolutions 24bit/96kHz digital file. The hub then streams this high-resolution audio file to the speakers – so any format you want to listen to can be dealt with wirelessly by your Q Active system. Which means high-quality wireless audio performance no matter the source of your music.
Ethernet: Ethernet connectivity provides the option for a robust wired internet connection to Q Active.
TV Sound: HDMI Audio Return Channel (ARC) input on the hub - so any TV with a corresponding output can send audio information to the hub without affecting its picture performance. Want your TV sound to be part of your wireless audio system? With Q Active, it can be.
Digital Optical: Disc-players - no matter if it’s a CD player, a DVD player or a Blu-ray player will have a digital optical output. Almost every games console has one too. So there’s nothing to stop you getting any of these sources involved in your wireless high-resolution audio system as well.
Line Level: Use the stereo RCA analogue inputs at line level and plug in a cassette deck, a mixer or anything else with an analogue line-level output into the hub. From there it is transferred wirelessly to the speakers, where it is delivered as great-sounding high-resolution audio by the Q Active speakers.
Turn Table: The stereo RCA analogue inputs on the hub can be selected for use with a moving-magnet phono stage. So plugging in your record player means all of that lush vinyl sound can be transformed into a digital signal and streamed wirelessly to the Q Active speakers.
Sub Out: The Q Active system delivers plenty of deep, detailed bass. However the hub does offer a subwoofer pre-out for hooking up an additional stand-alone subwoofer.
Multiroom Audio Integration
Whether you choose Google "Chromecast built-in", Amazon "Works with Alexa" Multi- Room Music, Apple AirPlay 2, or Roon to organise your multiroom music system, Q Active can be seamlessly integrated into it.So no matter if you want the same song playing all over your home, or different music in different zones, or if you simply want your music to follow you as you move around your home, Q Active can be part of your experience.
Voice Control
If you have Google Home, Amazon Alexa or Apple Siri smart speakers on your home network, it’s easy to control the volume and playback selection of the Q Active system. Simply choose which of the formats you prefer - the control hub is available in a choice of either ‘Chromecast Built-In’ or ‘Works with Alexa’* – both can be used with Apple Siri, and then use these mic-equipped smart devices on your network to control your Q Active system. You can also use the Google Home, Alexa app on your mobile to control the Q Active system.
Your Choice Of Control
As well as your choice of Google “Chromecast built-in”, Amazon “Works with Alexa” or Apple voice control, Q Active can also be controlled using the app of your favourite streaming service. Or if the TV plugged into the HDMI ARC socket on the control hub is CEC-equipped, use the TV’s remote to control functions like ‘volume’ and ‘standby’. Alternatively use the cabinet mounted volume control features on each Q Active speaker.
Stunning High Resolution Sound
Audio can be described as “high resolution” if it consists of a digital audio format of greater than the CD-standard 16bit/44.1kHz. Q Active can support wireless streaming, whether from its control hub or via a smartphone, tablet or the like, at a huge native 24bit/96kHz. Q Active can also play 32bit/192kHz audio files from an appropriate source, downsampling them to its native 24bit/96kHz resolution before wirelessly delivering them to the speakers.
The result of all this painstaking and uncompromised engineering is extraordinary musical accuracy and amazing audio quality. Q Active delivers a sonic performance way beyond its price.
Active Amplification
In a traditional, passive audio system there is one amplifier. It drives two speakers, which will have a total of at least four drivers. In the Q Active system, each driver (there are three in each Q Active 200 speaker and four in each Q Active 400 speaker) is controlled by its own individual, specifically selected amplifier.
Using a total of six (or eight) discrete amplifiers, with a total of 280 (or 440) watts of power to drive the Q Active system means each individual driver receives its own carefully regulated amplification. As a result, Q Active is able to control each driver with accuracy and finesse which in short, means Q Active sounds bigger and more precise than you might think possible.
Dynamic Widescreen Sound
Q Active doesn't look unique simply for the sake of it. Q Acoustics wanted Q Active to deliver a widescreen sound with no compromise in stereo focus or soundstage, and specified Balanced Mode Radiators (BMRs).
BMRs allow Q Active to deliver outstanding sound quality across your entire listening area, rather than restricting it to the ‘sweet spot’ of more traditional driver arrangements. And, in addition to this widescreen presentation, BMRs deliver seamless midrange performance. Because they operate all the way down to 150Hz, where they hand over to Q Actives’ subwoofer driver, there is no midrange crossover distortion and, consequently, completely clean and uncoloured midrange performance.
Offsetting the BMRs in the Q Active cabinet serves a function, too. It allows for a degree of fine-tuning in your listening room, as it’s possible to position the BMRs to the inside or the outside of the cabinets.
Powerful, Controlled Bass
The back of an ordinary loudspeaker isn’t usually worthy of discussion. But, as is surely obvious by now, Q Active is far from an ordinary loudspeaker - and that goes for the rear of its cabinet too.
Q Active 200 features a rear-firing 114mm / (4.5in) subwoofer delivering fast, deep and beautifully organised bass. Q Active 400 features a pair of the subwoofers in order to double down on the low-frequency action. The reason these drivers are concealed, and the reason they are arranged in the way they are, is all to do with Q Acoustics’ determination to make Q Active easy to position and simple to live with, as well as helping the system sound brilliantly punchy and controlled.
There is a carefully designed fixed ‘Wave guide’ boundary for the subwoofer to fire onto, too, which means the dispersal characteristics of the bass frequencies are always exactly as Q Acoustics prefers. Because the subwoofers fire onto a fixed boundary (the inside of the rear panel), the bass response of Q Active is always ideal, always perfect - no matter where in your room you decide to position the speaker.
Stunning Ground-Up Design
Rather than attempt to fit one of its existing loudspeaker designs with electronics, Q Acoustics has designed Q Active from the ground up with the express intent of delivering an utterly uncompromised high-resolution audio system that looks as good as it sounds.
Unrivalled Acoustic Engineering
Meticulous attention to detail has produced a compact, high-performance system that makes a distinctive visual statement - but every element of Q Active has been engineered to deliver the best performance possible.
As well as the panoramic, widescreen sound delivered by the BMR arrangement and the deep, controlled bass served up by the carefully specified and positioned subwoofers, Q Acoustics has paid painstaking attention to the way the Q Active cabinet contributes to the system’s outstanding sonic performance.
Balance and Rigidity
‘Dart’ bracing is in both the Q Active 200 and Q Active 400 cabinets to provide essential stiffness to the cabinet and equally helpful mechanical stability to the rear-firing subwoofer units.
In Q Active 400, careful positioning of the two subwoofers means standing waves inside the cabinet that might color the sound are effectively neutralized to give a powerful linear bass response.
Tensegrity Stand
Q Active 200 can be specified with a bespoke stand. Inspired by the ground-breaking Tensegrity stand developed by Q Acoustics for its high- end Concept 300 loudspeaker, the Q Active 200 stand minimises resonance from the floor to the speaker cabinet (and vice-versa) thanks to its remarkable low-mass, low-reflectivity design. And in addition to its acoustic benefits, the stand’s minimal design is the perfect visual complement to Q Active 200’s unique looks.
Specifications:
Peak Power 280W
Max Source Resolution 32bit/192kHz
Sample Frequency 96kHz
Bit Depth 96kHz
Continuous Power 100W
Crossover Frequency 150Hz
Dimensions (Per Speaker) H x W x D: 284 x 170 x 290mm (11.2 x 6.7 x 11.4in) | (Speaker on Stand) H x W x D 922 x 286 x 338mm (36.3 x 11.3 x 13.3in)
Enclosure Type Reflex (ported)
Frequency Response 46Hz to 20kHz (-6dB)
Mid Bass / Driver 2 x BMR 58mm (2.25in)
Subwoofer 1 x 114mm (4.5in)
Weight Un-boxed weight (per speaker) 7.5kg
RESOURCES:
Brochure
White Paper
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