I received the Definitive Technology W9 last week and right out of the
box I knew I was going to be expecting a lot when it came to great sound
and that's exactly what I got.
The W9 is in the premium range sounding wireless speaker offerings with
the B&W A7 and Sony SRSX99b, a self contained speaker unit that connects
to your Wi-Fi or Fixed network for the streaming of music.
Whilst all players have exceptional sound and and are stand-alone
powered speakers with wi-fi and Network conenctions its there the
similarities end as each speaker has differt protocols and functions
built-in for the management of your music collection and online
streaming services so perhaps we'll deal with that particular issue in
another discussion but for now the task was to get the W9 connected to
my Home Network in order to hear some music.
The easiest way to connect a W9 to a network is to use the WPS button to
allow connection to your network assuming of course your network is
based around a router with WPS push button connectivity.
WPS connection is incredibly easy for those without vision, hold the
Setup button found at the back of the W9 down until the unit beeps once,
release the button, press the WPS button on your router and wait for
around 3 minutes by which time a connection should be established
between your Router and the W9.
Its a shame the W9 doesn't beep to indicate that a connection has been
made and I can't see any reason why a simple firmware upgrade couldn't
address this.
So time to run the DTS Play-Fi App on my Android device to see what can
be found an sure enough the main screen indicated to me that a new
player had been connected to the system.
At this point the user can assign either a preset or custom name to the
W9 and after that one can just dive straight in to select the music
content played.
I selected music from my phone and was not disappointed at what I heard
though at first the volume was a little loud.
The W9 doesn't come with a remote control so its either control the
volume, source etch from a small control panel protruding from the front
right or use the App for all the control you're ever likely to need.
The W9 puts a total of 180 watts RMS power at your disposal and this
power is distributed amongst 6 drivers, two woofers, two tweeters and
two side firing mid range so if its sound you want - and very loud
distortion free sound - then its sound you're going to get from this
little baby.
The W9 has a toslink digital in as well as the standard Aux-In and I'm
absolutely delighted with the fact that the W9 can handle HD and High
Res up to 24 bit 192K so all those albums I've been collecting over a
period of time can be streamed straight from my Phone or my Media Server
using the Play-Fi app or sent straight to the Toslink port.
One could almost call the W9 a Soundbar but its a little small for that.
The W9 is built on a metal base - where all the electronics reside -
with the speakers in none resonant enclosures surrounded by cloth
sitting on the top.
The whole box is finished with a piano gloss top with the Definitive
Technology logo stamped in the middle.
The W9 could fit easily into a bookshelf in a lounge if required though
you'd want to be sure to leave room either side for the side firing
drivers and room at the back for ventilation as the W9 can get warm.
Prices for the W9 vary, in Australia it retails for around $1100 however
I bought my unit for $699 plust $20 for a next day delivery.
The W9 is possibly as good as you're going to get if audio quality is
what you're after in a Wireless speaker.
The Bose A7 and Sony SRSX99B are the only other spekaers that either
match or come close to what the W9 offers.
The B&W A7 sounds a little brighter in the top notes but the W9 doesn't
disappoint, everything's there to be heard.
--
**********
"Live each day as if you were goiing to die tomorrow, learn each day as if you were
going to live forever"
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