ACTIVE SPEAKERS
Q ACOUSTICS ACTIVE 400
£2299 (pair) / qacoustics.co.uk
The classic image of the active speaker is a petite and stylish bookshelf unit. It makes sense. With built-in amps, these speakers cut out cables to keep your home looking slick – but the Q Acoustics Active 400s are something else.
These are 82.5cm-tall floorstanders, and look quite unlike any other hi-fi speakers. Space-age polished pods with only small visible drivers up front, they’re living-room statement pieces.
There’s also a lot more going on here than you can see. Two long-excursion bass drivers live on the back of each enclosure, and the two front drivers are BMRs. That stands for ‘balanced mode radiator’ – akind of speaker that spits out sound in a full 180°, meaning you can pretty much place these boxes wherever they’ll look good. Sweet spot begone.