Atonemo Streamplayer Review: Make Old Speakers New Again

The Core Story

The Hi-Fi industry seems to be in a state of constant, somewhat unnecessary evolution; if Guglielmo Marconi was inventing the radio today it would almost certainly come in five different colorways, dripped out over a few years as though they were new products. Still, the past 20 years—with the invention of Bluetooth, music streaming, and mass adoption of voice control speakers—has fundamentally changed what many people think of as home audio. All-in-one streaming smart speakers are ridiculously convenient. But what about the millions of old analogue amplifiers and passive speakers that still sound great? The Bowers & Wilkins bookshelf speakers you bought 20 years ago remain phenomenal, they’re just not as smart. New Swedish startup Atonemo would like to change that with their small, unassuming Streamplayer. Measuring a matchbox-sized 1.97 x 2.76 x 0.73 inches, the Streamplayer is a very simple device designed to give streaming capabilities to any existing speaker. It supports AirPlay 2, has Chromecast built-in, Spotify Connect and Tidal Connect, and can offer playback in a respectable 24-bit/192 kHz high resolution. There’s no display, a single clicky button, and output options are via one 3.5mm jack either as analog or optical S/PDIF. That’s it. Power comes via USB-C, and once you’ve synched everything up with the Atonemo app, linked it to your Wi-Fi, and plugged the supplied 3.5mm jack into an amplifier or active speaker, you can then stream audio to it from pretty much any platform

. It took me three minutes to turn a verging-on-vintage Vita Audio R1 Mk1 (what is now Ruark Audio) into a Tidal streaming delight. The app is mercifully stripped back, and the software feels nimble, and is a whole lot more responsive than using Sonos. Much of the success of “smart” audio products has been based on convenience, rather than audio quality. Despite having access to more hi-fi kit than is strictly healthy, I still struggle with the quality vs. convenience of it all: There’s a $45 Echo Spot in my kitchen, but I have a $1,400 Audiolab M-DAC+ headphone amp in the office. Both work brilliantly, one actually sounds good. The Streamplayer does its best to straddle both these worlds. The team at Atonemo has chosen an integrated DAC from Realtek's SoC (system-on-chip) range. This chip is a mass-market option, but can still handle 24-bit / 192 kHz resolution. It’s a world away from high-end standalone DAC chips (like ESS, Cirrus Logic or AKM) but at $99, to expect audiophile levels of DSP (digital signal processing) would be a bit much. It is convenient though. Aside from Bluetooth streaming is Wi-Fi 6 dual-band 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz (802.11ax) with WPA2 and WPA3 security. It’s a pretty solid offering for a cheap box of tricks and the brand also promises over-the-air firmware updates.

Plugged into my father’s 20-year-old Arcam amplifier, powering a pair of equally vintage Mordaunt Short floorstanding speakers, the Streamplayer works smoothly. It did require a 3.5mm to RCA cable (more in this below) but dad’s box of old cables is a tech treasure trove. On first listen I was impressed by the ease of it all, and switching between Qobuz and Spotify Lossless certainly didn’t offend. But when playing the same song side-by-side using a mid-range Cambridge Audio CD player, the difference was obvious. Playing the album “Music from Big Pink” by The Band, and the power and scale from the CD version easily eclipsed that of the Streamplayer. Rick Danko’s bass lines soared and the layering of the instruments was wonderfully pronounced via CD, while they were noticeably subdued when streaming. Same speakers, same amplifier, very different DACs. It’s by no means a disaster, and the streaming convenience—in lieu of a large CD collection—is difficult to argue with. Even with quality components, the performance is only ever going to be as good as the audio quality played. Atonemo makes a big deal over being able to power “all” legacy speakers. Included in the box is a single 3.5mm to 3.5mm audio jack, giving the ability to plug into active speakers, old radios, cassette players, boomboxes, and anything with a 3.5mm aux-in port. But to power analogue speakers, you will need a separate amplifier and alternative cables, whether that’s a 3

.5mm to RCA or SPDIF RCA to 3.5mm jack cable. Atonemo told WIRED they toyed with the idea of including multiple cables in the box, but opted for the 3.5mm audio jack because most hi-fi people would have one already. They also plan to sell a range of cables to suit “all” legacy speakers. I think including a couple of cable options would have been a good idea, especially at launch, just to avoid any friction points with first-time installation, as not everyone has a box of old cables as comprehensive as my Dad. Atonemo isn’t the only option when it comes to breathing new life into older hi-fi components. The WiiM Mini Music Streamer ($89) is cheaper, offers AirPlay/Chromecast/Spotify Connect streaming capabilities and a XX DAC. Similarly the FiiO SR11 Desktop Streaming Music Receiver ($110) also copes with Apple Music, Spotify, Tidal, FiiO Music and PCM 768 kHz/32 Bit and DSD256 (DOP) quality. And for a further boost in audio quality plus one of the finest hi-res streaming multiroom platforms, the $379 Bluesound Node nano streamer is hard to ignore. There are also plenty of basic Bluetooth dongles available too if audio quality, or the ability to enjoy multi-room audio, isn’t important to you. But what Atonemo has done well is remove any technical barriers to use. The app is incredibly simple—in a good way—with no bloat, or pretence it is doing anything other than facilitating streaming between your old speakers and a modern streaming platform. Yes, it could (and probably should) squeeze in a better DAC, and a more comprehensive collection of cables, but these are deliberate omissions, not glaring mistakes. Anyone looking to tweak and tune, and generally nerd-out about bit rates, are already well served elsewhere.

Key Analysis & Details

Future Implications

Conclusion

To summarize, this event marks a significant moment in the industry. We will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates as more information becomes available.