Article: Apple HomePod Review - An Audiophile Perspective

[DarwinOSX]

21 hours ago, Booster MPS said:

@The Computer Audiophile  Big fan of the new site, Superhonica!!  

 

(Does my comedy win me a HomePod????)

That’s wasn’t a review. 

Also Airplay 2 will pull from the cloud. 

[DarwinOSX]

You pretty much said in the beginning you planned to slam the HomePod before you had one or heard it.

Incredibly obvious and I wonder why because it sounds very much like you have an axe to grind.  I've never seen any of your other articles like this.

Comparing it to your reference system speaks for itself.

Consumer Reports has little credibility any more especially on Apple stuff.  They are looking for the same thing as many publications these days which is controversy leading to hits and page views.

The Google Max is terrible and nowhere near a HomePod.  Poor detail, boomy bass, not a hint of an attempt at stereo separation. This can be found in many reviews before anyone even heard a HomePod.  Not to mention no way am I having a Google microphone at home.

My HomePod replaced two stereo paired Sonos Ones.  Alexa is garbage on those and they sound OK until you turn the volume past 30 or 40 percent then they fall apart.

My main speakers are Kef LS50W and I welcome moving on from the traditional audiophile setups.  I think a lot of audiophiles are enraged by the HomePod because they don't feel special anymore knowing all the arcana.  Or because it's from Apple.  Or because it's new.  Get off my lawn is pretty prevalent in this hobby.  

I'm looking forward to two HomePods in a stereo pair and that capability is imminent.  They are bedroom speakers to me.  I did have two Vanatoo 1's with an Apple TV connected by optical for airplay, then two Sonos One's.  There was a detail drop off going from the Vanatoo's to the Sonos but I was trying to minimize.  The Songs One's were sold on CL the day after I got the HomePod.

My HomePod opinion right now is they have great clear detail, the bass is a little boomier than I would like, and Siri is working well with HomeKit for lights etc.  Better than Alexa in fact as it's faster and more reliable.  The HomePod microphones are incredibly sensitive to commands as many people have noted.  You can be playing at max volume and barely whisper Hey Siri and it hears you.

The HomePod and Siri are going to improve by a lot as they add features.  There will be some announcements at WWDC this year that reflect this.

I pay for Tidal, Pandora, and Apple Music.  I dumped Spotify awhile ago.   I never liked it's interface or all the junk tribute band content.  Apple Music interface was completely overhauled and is much better now plus I can use it with my years of iTunes music from various sources in one interface.

I've been using Roon and grouping the Kefs and HomePod and also directly from the Tidal and Pandora apps using airplay.  Once you have it playing then you can control Tidal, Pandora or whatever with voice.  It's not the end of the world to open the app and tap the Airplay icon.

 

Airplay 2 docs are here;

https://developer.apple.com/videos/play/wwdc2017/509/

I would summarize Airplay 2 this way;

1.  Software only so no longer requires a chip which is why so many devices only need a software update.

2.  Streams faster than real time to minimize lag.

3.  Much larger cache than Airplay 1to minimize lag.

4.  Can pull directly from the cloud similar to Spotify Connect.

 

I'm a big airplay fan and have used it for years in a 5200 sq foot two story house with many different devices at once using Airfoil.  Never had an issue but then I have a well optimized wifi network.

 

[DarwinOSX]

19 hours ago, sdolezalek said:

Somehow I don't think Steve Jobs would be in favor of the direction so many of these products are taking us in.  The original Apple platform was designed as a way to unlock our creativity and provide us greater means to express ourselves, whether in writing or artistically.  Even Job's careful choice of fonts was about artistic discretion and careful choice.

 

Most of what we now face, and not just from Apple, is a series of products that make us better couch potatoes.  Ideally we would just sit there focused on a screen, headphones or EIMs on, a gamestick in our hand, a voice controlled box at our side, a drone to deliver things (and a big wallet to pay for all that stuff and what we order with it) and an ever declining level of physical and intellectual engagement, discernment, creativity, individuality, active participation, mental challenge, etc. (as all that stuff gets in the way of simple consumption -- don't question, just keep buying).  

 

Which consumer products companies are today challenging us to be more?  Speaking to our true individuality?  Allowing for not just differences in taste but expectations of higher quality, better fidelity, more intense engagement? 

 

 

Steve Jobs made plenty of mistakes large and small as well as many brilliant things.  Nobody knows what he would do.