They are the newest rage in high-end audio, with several manufacturers joining the party. There are three broad categories into which the offerings fall: The partially self-powered speaker, the fully self-powered speaker, and the all-in-one speaker. Each of these share some similar advantages and disadvantages, and we will look briefly into these for help in understanding whether any of them belong in our quest for the best and most practical approach to great sound.
Partially Self-Powered Speaker
The partially self-powered speaker contains its own amplifier for driving the woofer only. This concept has considerable merit because it makes possible acoustic alignments and compensation that would otherwise require a dedicated woofer amplifier. One example of this is the infinite baffle (sealed enclosure), which has the distinct advantage of forbidding the rear radiations of the woofer driver(s) from reaching the listener through a duct or port, whereas in ported designs some of that energy invariably does reach the listener. One does not want to hear the sound that has bounced around inside the enclosure. Why does the infinite baffle like its own dedicated amplifier? Because an infinite baffle large enough to support frequencies down to 20 Hz is ordinarily quite large. A desirably small infinite baffle may go down only to 50 Hz or even higher. Furthermore, ordinary efforts to reduce the size of the woofer baffle while retaining reasonably low bass extension usually come at the cost of transient response, i.e., the box is small and the bass is low, but it is also muddy. But if fitted with a compensating filter, the dedicated amplifier can force the speaker to respond down to arbitrarily low frequencies so that the consequential link between size and frequency extension can be effectively broken. Admittedly, this requires considerable power. Moreover, the transient response can also be optimized so that you have the glorious combination of small size, together with deep, articulate bass.
All of this is made possible and practical with the advent of Class-D amplifier technology, which is efficient, small in size, and low in heat generation, even when high power levels are required. Some eyebrows raise at the mention of Class-D amplifiers, and truly they range widely in their sonic performance. That said, when confined to woofer duty only, what shortcomings they may be thought to have are confined to a frequency spectrum that is least revealing of those shortcomings. Many examples in the industry exist of this type of speaker, and some have emerged from very respectable manufacturers at that. Whether they are going to be in the final running for a purchase or not, they are at least worth a test drive.
Fully Self-Powered Speaker
The next category to come into view is the fully self-powered speaker. As its name implies, it contains one or more internal amplifiers that drive the entire speaker system over the full frequency range. Very usually, the internal amplifier(s) are also of the Class-D variety. One should expect all the advantages of the former speaker type to be present in this one as well, but now one needs no external amplifier at all, neither does he need speaker cables. What he does need is long interconnect cables from his preamplifier.
There are potentially some advantages to this arrangement, the most obvious of which are active crossovers, bi-amping and bi-wiring, or multi-amping and multi-wiring, as the case may be, all custom configured to the speaker drivers. These advantages, if such they be, come down to more accurate control of each speaker driver within the system. In effect, you can have what would be considered a very complex system of amplifiers, wires, and speakers, all fitted neatly together by a single manufacture. One may be tempted to rule the fully self-powered speaker out summarily because of a dislike for switching amplifiers, i.e., Class-D and the like, in general. However, they are probably worth at least a listen for their distinct potential advantages. Further, the very much lower power requirements in the midrange and treble give rise to the possibility of using more traditional Class-AB or even Class-A amplifiers for those drivers. One then has a hybrid design that uses the advantages of each amplifier type where it is best showcased. The author is not intimately familiar with all of the available offerings in this type of speaker, and so it is mentioned as a subject worth exploring for some, and it merits questions about internal design to those manufacturers whose product offerings are found to please the ears.
All-In-One Speaker
In this arrangement the entire audio system is replaced by the speakers alone. You simply place them, plug them in to the AC, connect them to the local Wi-Fi network, and run the system from your phone or tablet. These systems are designed for the minimalists who would prefer sound to simply emerge from empty space if it were possible. Other examples would be apartment dwellers or those otherwise confined to smaller living quarters. It may be the choice of many women – no bigotry intended – as the fairer sex is very often the one most acutely aware of décor and most naturally talented at achieving it. The striking absence of gobs of cables and tables of components is a refreshing return to physical simplicity and potential room aesthetics that both men and women can appreciate. More, the cost of all that is missing can be distributed between a better speaker system and a better lifestyle.
The all-in-one systems that are presently available deserve a listen, if for no other reason than to experience how well such a system can be made to work and at what cost savings. Certainly, the drawbacks are obvious. The only path to upgrade is to replace the entire system, provided that something better of the same type is available. This is an option for the once and done personality, the one who values closure and is in command of his own satisfaction. It also has a great deal of appeal to those who find equipment shopping and auditioning an awkward and repulsive task, one that takes too many days on the golf course away from him. For those who find the end of their rainbow in the all-in-one, they should thereafter stay away from audio shows and end their audiophile magazine subscriptions, because there is no way to change anything. It is reminiscent of the Apple and IBM camps that formed around the two computer manufacturers. The Apple products were self-contained and self-configured, a blessing for those who didn’t want to peek behind the curtain, let alone live behind it. But for the experts, their choice was IBM/Windows because everything was configurable, to their digital hearts content. They have each survived, and they continue each to have their own merit.
Since these technologies, particularly the all-in-one systems, are in their infancy, it is reasonable to expect continued improvements to them. For those who choose to buy such a system, yet still like to think that they have the courage to face and embrace change, they may find an occasional stroll through an audio show a fun experience, and perhaps one that leads to upgrading their whole system in one fell swoop.
The information contained herein is presented in good faith and with all hopes of helping the reader to find the best equipment for an audio system. Neither the author, nor Bella Sound LLC, assumes any responsibility or liability due to loss on the part of the reader, owing to or believed to be owing to the content of this article, or resulting from or believed to be resulting from an application of the information contained herein, regardless the level of expertise engaged thereto.
