![]() ![]() With Ariana Grande's "Problem" from her album My Everything (CD, Republic), the lack of bass was much more noticeable due to the amount of deep, synthesized bass featured on the track that the Turbo X could not reproduce with any real weight. The Turbo X has a forward midrange (less so when Turbo mode is off) that made vocals clear and pronounced.įor example, in Hozier's "Take Me to Church" from the album of the same name (CD, Columbia), the piano and vocals were full and well defined, but the lowest bass notes had substantially less weight. I streamed lots of music from Tidal on my iOS device to the Turbo X and heard some sonic characteristics that remained constant despite the type of music being played. While the Turbo X is closer in size to the pocket-sized Bluetooth speakers than to the much larger Cambridge Audio Bluetone 100 that I recently reviewed or the popular Wren X speaker, the Turbo X sounds closer to the larger speakers in both volume and quality. The Turbo X sounds much bigger than it is. The Turbo mode engages a different, more forward-sounding equalization curve and lets the speaker's volume go to "11." I ended up doing most of my listening with both the Trillium and Turbo modes engaged. Selecting the Turbo mode causes the speaker to make a revving engine sound, which I was thankfully able to deactivate by changing the settings. The Trillium Surround mode does not provide a true surround sound experience but does make the soundstage a bit bigger so that the sound seems to be coming from the general area of the speaker rather than only the speaker itself. The Turbo X has two special listening modes: Trillium Surround and Turbo. I inadvertently discovered the Turbo X's proximity sensor one evening when I reached over to adjust the volume using the top-mounted buttons-when my hand got close to the speaker, the buttons' backlighting activated, making them easy to find. When streaming from my iPhone, I generally used the Riva app to control the Turbo X. Most of my listening involved music streamed from one of my iOS devices, but the Turbo X also has an auxiliary input, which can be configured as a phono level input for those of you who want even your portable systems to be vinyl-compatible. Bluetooth pairing was quick and simple, and I downloaded the free Riva Ground Control application, which is available for iOS and Android devices. The user guide is well written but not needed, as operation is intuitive. ![]() The speaker comes nicely packaged with power and auxiliary input cables and protective plastic on the glossy top and bottom panels. Using the Turbo X was fairly straightforward. While I normally do not comment on the underside of review items, I must note that, in addition to soft pads to prevent slips and scratches, there is also a removable cover for the input/output panel to protect it from dust and splashes. The backside features an auxiliary input, a micro USB port for updates, a USB output for charging portable devices, a 19-volt DC power input, a battery level indicator, and a battery on/off button. This mid-sized Bluetooth speaker also contains a 45-watt amplifier that drives three full-range and four bass drivers. I suspect that most of that weight is due to a battery that provides 26 hours of life and can also be used to charge your phone. However, when I first saw the Turbo X sitting on a table at the Newport Audio Show and went to pick it up, I was a bit surprised by its substantial 3.5-pound weight. The Turbo X speaker has clean styling, measures 9.1 by 3.5 by 4.1 inches, and comes in either black or white, with glossy top and bottom panels, color-coordinated perforated steel sides, and a row of flush buttons on top. The Turbo X ($349.99) is the first product from Riva Audio, a company founded by legendary concert promoter Rikki Farr.
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