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Streaming & Powered Speakers: A Review of the Dynaudio Music 7

I love Tidal, the "audiophile," MQA quality, music streaming service. There are others that cost less but, in my opinion, it is worth paying more for lossless quality. At any rate, I haven't used any other service for long. One of the great things about Tidal is that I am able to use it across different audio systems and this is made even easier by Roon's library management system.

Streaming audio has given rise to a wide range of new "powered speakers;" speakers that just need to be plugged into a power outlet, connected to your Wi-Fi, and linked to your Tidal account to be ready-to-go. After diddling around with a wide variety of component systems, I think that the Dynaudio Music 7 (or one of Dynaudio's other Music models) would be the best choice for most people who are willing to drop some money for good sound but don't want to break the bank. It would be especially ideal for those who are keen on preserving their space and wish to maintain a wire-free aesthetic. Indeed, the Music 7 looks very chic and has a wonderful design that would fit in any house. It comes in many different colors too.

Most importantly, it sounds fantastic and I can operate it using my smartphone. The device has some nifty technology that can read its surroundings-whether it is near an edge, for instance- and project music accordingly. The speaker is an all-in-one-system. When you buy different components, you have to make sure that they sound good together, which can be challenging. That is why I would recommend a system like this or an integrated amp and used speakers from a site like Audiogon.

In the audio world, you can save a lot of money by buying things used and the resale value of high-quality equipment holds nicely. I recommend using Hifishark.com, which allows you to perform meta-searches for current and past listings. Looking at historical sales is a great way to know what a reasonable price for any given product should be.

Back to the Music series, there are smaller devices, including a rechargeable Music 3. The Music 1 system differs from other members of the series in that it is a series small bookshelf speakers.

My one complaint, however, is that the Dynaudio music management software is sub-par compared to Tidal's native system. Its design is streamlined but its functionality is not. I get around that by using my Roon software to control it.

*These opinions are my own, not sponsored content, FYI.
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