Naim’s Uniti Atom is more sci-fi than hi-fi. It’s a beautiful black box that acts as a one-stop solution that will satisfy pretty much all of your musical desires. All you need to add is a pair of speakers – I chose a pair of Q Acoustics 3050i floorstanders, introduced one to the other with a set of QED Reference XT40 cables, stood back and listened…
The sound that emerged from the Q’s precision drivers left me speechless. If you’re looking for a set-up that has the “wow” factor, look no further. “A compact multi-source music player that will seduce you with its amazing quality and outstanding feature set,” is how Naim puts it. Rob Boffard on themasterswitch.com calls it a “wonder box” that “far surpasses streamers that cost more. Nothing can match the dynamism and electricity of the Uniti Atom.” I concur.
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What Hi-Fi gave it a five-star review, praising its class-leading sound clarity. The Atom has a coaster-sized volume control on top and a full-colour LCD front panel that displays the album artwork as it plays. Even the remote is unhappy to accept a mere bit part: it has a proximity-sensitive control and springs to life as your hand approaches the controls. “The Atom is a little like that annoyingly good-looking friend who commands all the attention,” says What Hi-Fi.
Naim Uniti Atom: 95mm x 245mm x 265mm; Airplay, Spotify and Tidal in-built; 40w RMS. Price: £2,249 sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk
Q Acoustics 3050i speakers: punching above their weight
Q Acoustics’ 3050i speakers are not the shy and retiring type. They have a commanding presence, and a sense of depth and dynamics that is as good as any you can get this side of a live concert. “The music instantly sprang to life,” says Mark Sparrow on forbes.com. “These speakers punch way above their weight and should be auditioned alongside speakers costing twice the price.”
“They never get flustered,” says Jay Garrett on stereonet.co.uk, keeping dynamic signatures in check and “shepherding overlapping instruments into a spacious soundstage”. Visually, they play nicely with your furniture, being available in arctic white, carbon black, graphite grey and English walnut.
This set-up makes for an aural marriage made in musical heaven and it may be the only system you will ever need.
Q Acoustics 3050i 2-way speakers, accept stereo amplifier input 25-100w; frequency 30-44kHz. Price: £645 See hifix.co.uk
This article was originally published in MoneyWeek
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