Elipson's Death Star-shaped speaker promises out-of-this-world sound
Elipson has announced its latest speaker in the (spherical) shape of the W35 Xi. Arriving as an evolution of the original W35, the W35 Xi wireless multi-room speaker promises improved audio fidelity alongside a host of new streaming and connectivity features.
The French audio brand has promised significant improvements in the W35 Xi's acoustic design to bring "clearer and more precise high and midrange tones". The W35 Xi sports the same driver layout as the classic W35, with a 16cm woofer and 2.5cm tweeter on either side of the speaker. Amplification, meanwhile, comes from a Class-D amp capable of providing up to 350W.
Elipson is making a big thing of the W35 Xi's wireless capabilities, with the new model now bringing in Chromecast and AirPlay 2 as standard. There's also Bluetooth support (including aptX HD codec), and while mainstream music platforms such as Qobuz, Spotify, Tidal, Deezer and internet radio are available, you can stream your music straight from stored files on your network if you so choose. You can control all of these features, such as source selection playback and multi-room functionalities, using the Elipson Control App.
For the traditionalists among us, the Death Star-shaped orb has the same physical connection capabilities as the classic W35 unit, sporting a digital optical input and a 3.5mm aux input, plus an RJ45 ethernet socket for wired network connection. If you're interested in stereo sound, two W35 Xi speakers can be paired together, and you can achieve stereo imaging by dedicating one audio channel to each speaker.
We reviewed the original Elipson W35 back in 2020, and while we were impressed with how it looked, not to mention the wireless features it provided, its sound left us feeling rather cold. Elipson has promised that the new W35 Xi's enhanced acoustic design will rectify some of these issues, which could see the new model adding proper substance to its considerable levels of style.
Finished in black, the Elipson W35 Xi speaker is available now for ￡699 / €699. A tripod stand can be bought for ￡149, with additional flexible mounting options also available.
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