I’m planning to buy a couple of these to use as rear channels, I don’t have enough room behind the sofa to place speaker stands so the picture frame is just what i’ve been looking for. Although I agree Ikea are asking a bit to much, £150 would be what I would have expected to pay.
Dayton audio has a range of flat speakers without cones. They don't need any enclosure and can pretty much be mounted anywhere They are square and only a couple of cm thick and have a 180 degree wide response. Those are perfect for rear speakers, you can mount them in the wall, make a nice wooden stand for them or whatever. Nice and descrete. And they are only like 25 bucks or something. Also work great as top speakers in the roof.
Yeah and with the natural recess on it that would have looked good! There’s not even usb in the back to power external ones if you wanted to retrofit it!
I was waiting for this review, and I wasn't disappointed. Really like the concept here, but at that price point and the lack of the artwork customisation, maybe one to consider later on down the line… Great review Stu 👍🏾
Cheers Roger... And yeah, I think its got potential to become something great... they could even update the pictures available each 'season' when they bring out new accessories. Lets see what they do in the next few years!
This to me feels more like something for ambient sound. Put it in a hallway or in the kitchen. Someplace where you're not "activly" listening to music but want something in the background that sounds better than a smartphone.
I got round to it in the end! I dont tend to get advanced previews of this stuff because im often far too honest for their PR department, so mine are always a few weeks later than others 😂
I so love that wall mounted picture speaker. The sound is amazing from such a small form factor. I would like to see an option that has LED mood lighting or flashing effects that can be set to light up certain parts of whatever is on certain canvas prints?
Potential & idea spot on. Like the idea of just placing it in on a unit rather than wall, just to hide cable. Great review! Im sure people on ETSY are making artwork customisation.
Judging by how thin it is, it's probably not using the same drivers used in the Play One or the normal Symphonsik, which are long throw drivers. These thin drivers have that really stiff looking type of throw, where the cone barely goes in and out, when playing, so the bass is going to be very limited. Adding another driver or a radiator doesn't fix this problem. Wouldn't be surprised if they are steeply rolling it off right around 100 Hz.
If they did custom designs, it would be up there with potential buys. Great review as always, Stu. Bought a Secret lads Titan (2021 model) based on your review. Keep up the good work and get yourself a whiskey for a job well done.
@@StusReviewsUK Owing to the pandemic, I've lost a year and realised I have the 2020 model 😂 (still based off your review of that model though). It is a great chair, spend 7 hours a day working from home on it 😜
Great review as usual!! Could you use them as a rear speakers with sonos beam/arc.. that will be an awesome integration. If you are able to try it. please make a review of it :). Great Job Stu
It’s typical IKEA … bring out a product with interchangeable fronts, but never have the fronts available. An A3 format with, as Stu said, a self printable front would be fantastic …. Even a rechargeable battery version to remove the cabling. I’d pay more for that later feature. It’s still quite pricey though … and no Bluetooth … which overall stops me from buying (I’ll buy a picture, hang it, then put a good portable Bluetooth speaker underneath 😀)
I mean, that empty void that is enough room for cabling, could also be enough room for a battery 🤔. I think they'll have them in eventually... just everything at the moment comes with delays as to be expected! Lets see what they come up over the next few months!
For me these are literally perfect as rear speakers for my playbase in the study to go over an IKEA sofa bed. Especially as they can daisy chain for power as that was an issue with play 1 for me along with sticking out.
Another excellent review Stu. I find my problem is I want it all, just because, the wife does not agree. Now she hates the look of the lamp - so that’s a no go, maybe when more customisable she will allow the picture frame in the house. Living in Norway I get a different perspective on Ikea. They are seen here as cheep and trendy for youngsters starting out. Maybe this is for ultra small apartments in Stockholm, which is a very trendy place. Much of their furniture is for small spaces - anyway a thought - now how to convince the wife I need more electronics and speakers…….?
Great review as always maybe this would ahve sounded beter with a stereo pair one on eitehr side of the room or cascaded together.. i could see this wouking well with the sound bar, and these either side of the TV or on the wall behind.. you to give better suround sound...
Intriguing review Stu. I must admit that the items that you get from IKEA last so their slightly higher price than other places is somewhat justified. I know it’s not electronics but I got the Äpplarö sun lounger finally after trying to get it for 6 months. Very comfortable.
i lament that none of the reviewers i’ve seem to get 2 of them or use them as an Apple and or TV speakers as the price in AUD is only $20 more than Apple’s little ones plus Sonos and bluetooth (so that covers all the music streaming solutions).
I would be curious how the it sounds on the other side of the wall? This could be a problem if you live in an apartment or townhome. Your neighbor's wall picture frames may start to shift from the vibration and the sound, especially bass, could create uninvited guest from the police. Otherwise, it's a mice product and great review.
Just a note here. you said its cheaper than the lamp but the lamp is currently £150 and it doesn't look like its on a sale. Great review though, think I still fancy getting the lamp. Not sure on this
my biggest problem is the price... if it would be 80 - 100 pound less then it would be interesting... but the fact that its 180 pounds its a bit too much... alternatives will offer more than this i could imagine
I like it as an option, but the other Sonos Ones or Symfonisk bookshelf speakers are so small and sound so great, I don’t really have the need for a picture frame speaker.
Tread carefully. Connecting modern wireless speakers to the TV can be a Lag nightmare. I don't think these support bluetooth and the only successful connection I've had is with aptx which the tv needs as well as the receiving device. I got Google speakers and their wifi is very laggy. Last Sonas speakers i had the way they work is terrible and very dated and cause network loopbacks in my router which is a joke. There architecture is old with a 2000's network design.
Actually I have to disagree .. the other sympho speakers similar to sonos one appears to distort sound and music quite a bit ,. This one on the other hand seems to reduce that distortion.
WOAHWOAHWOAH, careful now tom! I cover this at the end, but unfortunately they aren't bluetooth - only wifi... and unfortunately the whole symfonisk lineup can only be connected this way.
I thought the same thing, could these pair with a Sonos beam to make a surround system like you can with Sonos ones? That would be better for smaller spaces
It’s possible! There’s a few ways it could be done (none super straightforward), but the simplest method would be if you’re using an Apple TV… you’d be able to airplay the sound to them.
Good review but next time please remove the knife from the table before juggling things on it, haha. It's also a pretty clever design for bass lovers because obviously having a speaker flat up against your wall will make the entire wall propagate bass waves. Your room is doing the heavy lifting in that department, not the speaker.
The pattern is ugly, but the idea is good. I will wait for more interesting designs or maybe ideally a service where we could order out custom pictures.
As a uni student who is going to be living in a dorm with thousands of other people sharing the same WiFi password I am in a bit of a bind. Either I get this and wait to use it, or get it and wake up to loud Russian techno music that a guy three doors down has decided to blast through my speaker. Also the same reason I will only be getting Bluetooth smart lights. I do not want that same fella to turn my hue bulbs into a strobe fest to accompany the music.
I hadn't thought of that Martin! I don't have neighbours, so it often skips my mind, but yes... put this on a wall adjoining a neighbours house and you're going to have some arguments to say the least!
Uh mannnn.. What a wasted opportunity for maximizing the cool factor. I THOUGHT it was gonna be one of those transducer modules that can turn hard surfaces into speakers.. Its just a very ordinary speaker jammed into a small-ish space. With some acoustic shroud to presumably help with bass n stuff. It could be 1/3 to 1/2 the thickness if they went with that transducer approach. Gets a meh from me.. I dont hate it, but I wouldnt buy it Review was good tho :) 💪
Sonos do great speakers, but my god their software is absolutely, disgustingly useless. DO NOT BUY THIS. You will constantly get disconnected and the app won't see your speaker. It's why I sold my Sonos setup - just constantly failing to see its' own hardware over and over.
