September 2016


Best Of 2016 Blue Note Equipment Awards

Audioengine HD6 Premium Powered Speaker System
Price: $749
Click here to read the complete review.

  For a lousy $749 one can procure Audioengine's top of the line self-powered HD6 that Senrior Editor Tom Lyle reviewed in March 2016. Not only is it self-powered, but this speaker also includes an onboard DAC and is Bluetooth capable. Audioengine also throws in speaker cable and interconnect that connects the speaker with the internal amp/DAC to the other. In my review I said of the Audioengine HD6 that not only can these speakers provide much more than decent sound, they negate the need for an amplifier, preamplifier, and DAC. When one considers the price of the HD6, it's a no-brainer. A beginning audiophile can easily connect a turntable's phono preamplifier cables to the HD6's analog RCA inputs and viola, a system that not only sounds great, but is one that he or she might actually be able to afford.

Audioengine's HD6 is powered by a Class A/B 50 Watt per channel amplifier that uses a linear power supply with a toroidal power transformer. It also sports both analog and digital inputs. The optical digital input can decode signals as high as 24-bit / 96kHz, and the HD6 also comes with an aptX Bluetooth input. This Bluetooth input obviously means that one will be able to play through the HD6 whatever streaming service they desire on their smartphone, tablet, or computer. The HD6's speaker grilles attach magnetically, and the speakers have a very nice looking "furniture-grade" wood veneer that's available in black, walnut or cherry, all at the same price.

The 5.5" woofers with die-cast aluminum woofer-baskets in the HD6 are newly designed, and its silk dome tweeter is also new, and has been upgraded from their previous models to now have neodymium magnets and ferrofluid-cooled voice coils. Audioengine claims that the cabinet of the HD6 is also a new design that is thicker and more stable than their other models, therefore further decreasing resonance. To add to their appeal, if one purchases these speakers from Audioengine's on-line store one will have 30 days to change one's mind and return the speakers for a full refund with no restocking fee. Enjoy the Music.com seriously doubt Audioengine has to deal with many dissatisfied customers.

Click here to read the complete review.

Previous Annual Blue Note Awards

Product of the Year Awards 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, and 2001