Libratone is back with another fabric-coated soundbar that has designs on Adrian Justins' living room. But can this app-controlled audio booster impress where it really matters?
If you're in the market for a soundbar you have a choice to make. You can accept a few sonic compromises and go for something slim and demure (and usually bargain-priced) or you can go for something with a bit more meat on it, something that’s more likely to deliver the sonic goods by virtue of having much larger drive units. And the latter option also offers up the possibility of discarding the otherwise essential requirement of a separate subwoofer.
Libratone has already gained a foothold in this market in the guise of its Lounge, a humongous slab of a thing, albeit one that’s stylishly dressed. Now the Danish manufacturer brings us the Diva, which is slightly smaller and a considerable £250 less expensive than the £900 Lounge, but happily not so different in terms of features.
In fact, the Diva soundbar has the same tweeters (two 1in ribbon types) as the Lounge, with other drive units smaller (a 5in woofer verses an 8in one and two 3in midranges against two 4in units). Its claimed power output is higher, though – some 225W compared with the Lounge’s 150W. This bodes well because the Lounge is an accomplished performer, especially with music, and despite the lack of HDMI inputs or Dolby/DTS decoding it does a blisteringly good job with movie fare as well as regular daytime TV watching.
Styled to succeed
A significant part of the enjoyment of owning the Diva will come from its design. When you scale things up in terms of size (the Diva is almost a metre wide), looks become ever more critical. The good news is that compared with the staid designs of models from the likes of Arcam, Bose and Sonos, the softedged, wool-covered Diva is as foxy as Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. And if you get bored with the standard grey fur coat you can always embrace your inner Richard Gere and splash out an extra £70 for a new one. Libratone offers a dizzying choice of 14 colours, ranging from sedate blues to garish pinks.
Connectivity is a slight improvement on that of the Lounge. There’s still no HDMI connectivity but you do now have a chargeonly USB socket along with the 3.5mm line in and optical jack. Use the latter to connect to your TV. On the wireless front, Libratone has also upped its game by adding Bluetooth (apt-X) with NFC pairing to AirPlay and DLNA (for Android devices and PCs) compatibility.
As before, you don’t get a remote control. You are expected to use an iOS or Android app to operate your new toy. However, you can use the Diva's built-in IR learning feature, so that its volume can be altered via your TV's remote. This should be quicker and easier (when using the optical connection) than using the app, and significant since many smartphones and tablets aren’t reserved exclusively for soundbar remote control duties whilst watching TV. One issue I had, however, is that my TV also received the IR command and put up an onscreen message saying the TV speakers weren't in use. A separate remote would be preferable, and frankly for the money you’d expect to have one.
Aggravating matters further is that the volume control disappears at times from the app (but I’d expect this to be fixed at some stage by Libratone).
All-holds barred
The Diva is supplied with a metal bar with supporting base that stops it from falling over on a tabletop. This stand can be inverted and used as a wall mount. Opt for this, though, and the position of the jack pack becomes less practical with a lack of space between the USB charge socket and wall. Cable management in general is a moderately tricky challenge.
There's a power/function button on the front of the bar, which gently pulses various colours according to its status. Two buttons are sited around the back for instigating an initial Bluetooth or network connection. Setting up requires the use of the aforementioned app and I found it straightforward enough. I soon had AirPlay up and running, for instance.
There’s no onscreen (TV) display but the app allows DSP adjustment of voicing (nine modes) and some positional calibration options (selection for shelf-mounting, etc) delivered via the brand's long-running FullRoom DSP technology.
Bear essentials
Libratone's literature suggests its soundbar reaches down to 40Hz. This is hardly best-inclass, but (and despite the lack of any porting for its woofer) low-frequency performance is decent. The roar of the nasty bear and sounds of thunder during the storms in Pixar's Brave (Blu-ray) were meaty and resonant enough to stop me hankering too much for a separate subwoofer.
Dialogue, from the youthful Merida and her parents (Emma Thompson and Billy Connolly) is clear and has a lovely, rich texture to it. Individual effects, such as birds singing and doors slamming in the castle are nicely picked out in the mix, whilst gentler sounds such as the hooves of a distant horse are still discernible. It's a very likeable performance.
The soundfield feels expansive and nicely balanced, too. Watching less nuanced daytime TV is still a sonically satisfying experience, with the over-excited screams of Jonathan Pearce’s football commentary, for example, blending well with the background of the murmuring, roaring and cheering of the crowd.
Musically, the Diva lives up to its name, delivering a clean, dynamic soundfield without colouration. The main theme from Jaws (a 24-bit/96kHz download streamed from iTunes on a Mac) is maybe a tad shrill at the highest frequencies but still has the power to scare when thrust into the room by the Diva's five-driver array. And the trumpets of Raiders of the Lost Ark are cleaner and more polished than Usain Bolt’s trophy cabinet.
Overall, the Diva is as easy on the ear as it is on the eye (if not exactly easy on the wallet) and certainly worth an audition. It can sometimes prove annoying to operate thanks to its reliance on an app rather than a proper handset, and HDMI connectivity would be handy, but this is capable of a smooth stereo performance.
Specifications
DRIVE UNITS: 1 x 5in woofer; 2 x 3in ceramic midrange drivers; 2 x 1in ribbon tweeters
AMPLIFICATION: 225W
CONNECTIONS: 3.5mm analogue line in; optical digital; USB charge socket
DOLBY TRUEHD/DTS-HD MA: No
SEPARATE SUB: No
REMOTE CONTROL: No (via app instead)
DIMENSIONS: 988(w) x 158(h) x 100(d)mm
WEIGHT: 5.5kg
FEATURES: Wall-mountable (bracket included); controllable using Libratone App for iOS and Android; AirPlay, apt-X Bluetooth 4.0 and DLNA audio streaming; 40Hz-20kHz frequency range; IR learning function; FullRoom acoustic setting (Neutral, Floor, Wall, Shelf positioning); nine DSP modes (Neutral, Easy Listening, Soft and Comfortable, Rock; Jazz, Movie, Live Concert, Classical, Speech); quiet mode; adjustable LED brightness; changeable wool cover