Tech Review: Creative Sound Blaster Roar 2 Portable Bluetooth Speaker

TL;DR - if you aren't insanely particular about audio reproduction, and are instead more interested in not breaking your back or your baggage allowance, get the Roar 2.

A year ago I went on what David Attenborough might have described as a frenzy, technolusting after a product I only had theoretical knowledge about, eagerly awaiting the day I would be able to queue up (short one, because obviously I was one of the first), fling dolla dolla bills at the poor staff behind the counter, and dance out of the convention hall with my new-found (still theoretical) love into strawberry fields forever.

I did so, minus the swag bits (because civilization, guys), and went home with the Creative Sound Blaster Roar. And for once, the hype did not disappoint. It performed as it said it would, and astounded as it promised it would.

Courtesy of the awesomely hospitable Creative team, I got a chance to learn more about the Roar 2, and take a review unit home for further testing.

"20% smaller, 10% lighter, 100% sexier" is the tagline they've come up for the Roar 2 - I have my subjective reservations about the 100% sexier bit, but I still think the phrase makes brilliant sense from a marketing perspective. Creative basically said that they looked to shave as much external material and components without changing any of the core internal components that have contributed to the original device's jaw-dropping audio quality. For those considering the Roar for the first time, those internals are a bi-amplifier system separately driving two higher-range drivers, and one woofer with two passive bass radiators on either side that amplify and throw lower frequencies outwards, along with aptX and AAC Bluetooth audio codecs to ensure the best possible wireless sound.

Before I go on, Creative has made it clear, both to me and within their press and marketing materials, that the Roar 2 is not an upgrade, or a Gen-2 product, it is an alternative choice for customers in line with feedback asking for something even more compact, and lighter. Keep that in mind as you read through the rest of this review and assess which is better for you, the Roar 2 or the Roar Classic.

Shaving as much of the chassis off meant sizing down with as little compromise to the product's now famous audio quality. I suppose it is natural that the first thing to go were the metal grills protecting the bass radiators on either side. This along with the reduced overall size does mean that there is less room within the speaker for the bass to resonate, but more on how that affects overall sound later. Creative assures me that the now exposed radiators have been suitably reinforced, and indeed the metal plates are made of beautifully machined aluminum surrounded by a springy flexibie rubber that feels it can take some accidental impact. If it is your thing, the radiators now visibly pulsate to tangibly mesmerize you with almost-holographic Creative logos. Like so:

Other external enhancements: I love that the front buttons are now tactile bumps, instead of being flush with the surface. So much easier for you to deal with your speaker without looking at it, because there should be plenty more important things to do in a party, or indeed, for visually impaired people to use the device. The MicroSD card playback and voice record buttons sets at the back remain the same, but they have removed the alarm button out (I love bells and whistles but that was a vuvuzela right there if you know what I mean) and moved the Roar button to the back, which now functions to cycle between regular, Tera Bass and Roar audio modes. There is also now a switch between USB Audio and Mass Storage modes, to cut out the problem of cranky computers not recognizing your Roar's MicroSD as a storage device. This switch makes it clear what you intend to do - use it as audio output or manage your MicroSD card. Ports remain the same - MicroSD slot, MicroUSB, USB out for charging your device (the Roar uses a 6000mAh Li-ion battery), Aux In and DC In.





If you've read this far, you're interested in the crux of the matter: just how does a sized down Roar perform aurally?

 Maintaining the same innards as its predecessor means that the Roar 2 essentially can handle just about any genre of music you throw at it - classical, opera (not the same), hard rock, jazz, musicals, live recordings, funk, classic rock, electronic, dance. Those are just what I have in my library, and if tests are anything to go by, the list goes on. Nuances that you would think to forgo in a portable speaker surprise you by showing up anyway - the squeak of fretting on guitars, shadow beats on cymbals and drums, breathy harmonics on a flute. These are the marks of solidly crafted mid-high frequency drivers.

The bass continues to be a pleasure to indulge in, and now have throbbing aluminum plates to boot. The massive bass drops in Jamiroquai's Tallulah and Giorgio Moroder's 74 Is the New 24 did prove to be a little beyond the speaker's capabilities, but for one with dimensions similar to that of a paperback novel, the fact that it managed to reproduce half of those drops already speaks volumes (heheh volumes, geddit).

Roar 2 speaker configuration

A key difference between the Roar Classic, as they are calling it, and the Roar 2, is that the two mid-high speakers now accompany the low-mid woofer in firing upwards, as opposed to the front-firing configuration in the Roar Classic.

Roar 1/Classic speaker configuration

This crucial change makes for several things: with the Roar 2's configuration, you are now able to either lie the speaker down for coffee table-type use, or sit up for more directional, party-type use. This, Creative says, is in line with user feedback which requested this flexibility. When told this I nodded with a smile, guiltily wondering how many times I made my Roar Classic sit up, completely forgetting that the two more important speakers were firing right into solid wood or stone. Honestly, it still sounded good, which is why I never had enough cause to doubt I was using it wrongly, if I even did so in the first place.

The down side to this that, from a strictly audio perspective, you do not get the best-of-both-worlds configuration that the Roar Classic offers, firing mid/high frequencies forward while throwing low/mid frequencies upwards and sideways, where it would have more space to resonate. But hey, if you wanted something that can produce great audio at both low and high volumes, with audible bass, wherever the hell it fires as long as you hear it, then get the Roar 2, because it will be less of a strain on your luggage space, or your shoulder if you are hand-carrying it. If you know that you will be using this speaker for evening tunes before bed as much as you will be using them on travel, then get the Roar Classic, because you will most likely appreciate the more carefully projected soundstage the Classic offers.

If you already have the Roar Classic, I wouldn't advise purchasing the Roar 2, unless you have a family member whom you can pass the Classic to - remember, it is not an upgrade, it is an alternative choice for customers.

The original Creative Sound Blaster Roar is available at the IT Show 2015 at Suntec Convention Center Hall 601 for S$198, and the Creative Sound Blaster Roar 2 available in limited quantities for S$249 in black or white, bundled with a really sexy neoprene carrying case. If you are going to pick either products up there, ask for the discount vouchers.

Tech Review: Creative Sound Blaster Roar Portable Bluetooth Wireless Speaker

TL;DR: it's good, go get it, mai tu liao.

Given that audio reproduction revolves chiefly around the induced movement of air, when audio products come in small sizes, they have a great tendency to leave much to be desired of its quality. Smaller drivers are only able to move so much air, and that usually makes for a weak, unbalanced or worse, forced output. From time to time, however, certain products find the means to go against the odds of physics to create highly admirable sound within a compact package. I consider myself immensely fortunate to be able to own a number of such products, and the latest addition to the family is the freshly released Creative Sound Blaster Roar.

When this portable Bluetooth speaker was first announced at CES 2014, I noticed news of it but never bothered to read any article that featured it. All of that came back to me when I received Creative's eDM on the then upcoming IT Show, announcing they would be debuting their latest star product, one that has won international recognition, with a 41% introductory discount. A quick search revealed a fresh article on Hardware Zone reporting on their closed-door preview of the device, which I have perused extensively in the lead-up to my purchase. The writers at Hardware Zone take after my heart in their standards for aural excellence, so if they've waxed lyrical about it, that's theoretical reason enough for me to go for it. Check the article out for more technical and feature-centric points on the product.

By the way, having seen the mad sell-outs on the first two days of the IT Show, I went down at noon when the show opened on Saturday and literally brisk-walked to the Creative booth to listen to the device for a grand 15 seconds before zipping to the payment counter to pick up a unit. I thought that kiasuism had gotten the best of me, and was just starting to feel foolish when I found out later that units for the day sold out at 2pm.

BAZINGA. More pre-order information below.

Ok, review. With the product lying down, Creative logo facing towards you, there are two mid/high speakers projecting stereo sound towards you, bass projecting upwards because obviously that's where the least obstruction of air should be, and radiating panels on either side to push the sound outwards evenly. This is something that's really apparent with the device - it's of course easy to tell where the sound is coming from or projecting towards, but wherever you place the Roar, you get a great sense that its sound reaches outwards to fill the space, which I think is well beyond the expectations of many smaller sounds systems, to say nothing of portable wireless speakers.

  

Will you get tight and defined 10Hz bass beats? No. Is the bass tangible? Heck yes, and I think it's something that will continue to impress me for a long while. As for the main pair of speakers, it's got the good ol' signature warmth of Creative speakers, without getting muddy and in fact being impressively crisp, that I so love. I have yet to hear it crackle, and I don't want to make that happen because 1) I would like to retain my precious hearing please and 2) I don't want the police paying me a visit.

Having put everything together in such a compact case, I think the choice for hard metal grills are highly sensible, if not pure genius (which sensibility seems to be as rare as these days). Metal grills will provide due protection to the many speakers and driving elements inside, while ensuring that air is able to move freely.

Here's the thing about the Roar button though. It was made to amplify, enhance and spatially widen the sound so that it still cuts through in larger gatherings and spaces, and that will of course contribute to an accelerated loss in battery life. But there is a marked difference in quality between Roar and normal modes, so great that I would much rather turn the Roar on and reduce the volume, rather than go with the normal mode at a higher volume. Even better audio quality, enhanced for longer reach, which can be enjoyed at lower volume - why would you not take that? I certainly would. Every time. In other words, I would have been happy without an option to un-Roar the speaker.

Quick note: it is mentioned in the manual that plugging the power supply in would further enhance the quality of the Roar mode, and that it is recommended to keep the power supply plugged and running while on Roar mode. While I would gladly endorse the latter statement, I noticed no significant difference between battery-powered Roar, and DC-powered Roar.

Another difference I was pleased to find a lack of is the audio quality between direct playback and Bluetooth playback. I've loaded 320kbps MP3s as well as WAV files into the card, and playing the same music from my phone through Bluetooth, I found only the same sparkling audio quality from it. Be warned: Your mileage may vary on this point.

The sheer multitude of features were also a huge factor in influencing my purchase. Offering not only playback from a MicroSD card but read/write via USB, audio output via USB in which your sound experience can be further tweaked with downloadable software, the ability to answer calls and record either currently streaming music or voice via in-built microphone into the card, and good Lord why has no one thought of this, a USB DC-Out to supply extra juice to your mobile device streaming music to the speaker, this portable speaker has all you need and more, with fantastic audio quality to top it all off.

While I definitely do find the Alarm mode useful (calling-for-attention alarm, not wake-up-at-7 alarm) I don't think I'll be using it anytime soon. Ditto for Life-Saver modes, which play loud noises randomly to keep you awake, although I'm way more appreciative of this feature, since it can help with midnight oil burners who don't want to wake up the next day to find that their report consists of 6 words and a pool of saliva on the table, and more importantly long drives in other countries.

An unfortunate problem of the speaker, even though it technically has stereo output, is the lack of effective separation between Left and Right audio channels. This is due to the fact that the speakers are so close to each other, but I gather you don't really need such details when you are groovin' away at the party. This will be more of a pain point to the discerning audiophiles who just want to bring their music along with them to enjoy. I would have thought that it would be a simple matter of angling the speakers away from each other to pull the audio channels apart, but perhaps that would be detrimental to the effective projection of the sound, which is obviously key in this product and while I well won't argue with.

The speaker is also rather hefty, at more than 1kg. It's kinda like the Alienware of the portable speaker world - while it can definitely be moved around and transported quite freely, you will find the bulk and weight to be the cause of slight annoyances if you're hand-carrying the speaker, even with the carrying case that they're currently giving away free with purchases of the product.

The Recommended Retail Price of the Sound Blaster Roar is S$338. At time of writing, you may still pre-order your unit at S$199, to be delivered from 8 April 2014 onwards, though this extended IT Show promotion will end 10 March 2014. As echoed by many others, it offers tremendous value for money even at its standard price, and at $199 you are getting practically glorious quality and features for pretty much a third of the market price for such products. If you are in the market for a portable audio solution of any kind, you need to have this product in your consideration list.

Sennheiser HD 598

I've been eyeing this pair of headphones for the longest time. It's luscious creme-colored leather skinning and brown earpads were the first thing to catch my eye (yes yes shallow like that), and when I picked it up to listen to it, I was astounded by the clarity of what I heard.

That was, however, in a Sennheiser store, with properly-amped, high-quality music, and just plugging it to my phone and playing music from the in-built audio circuit does this pair of headphones no justice at all. I was very pleased to be linked up by SG Story to the Sennheiser Asia folks, who very readily sent a pair my way for review.

The Set Up
If I were to actually buy this for myself, it would be sitting in office, where I have placed my trusty little tube amp and 30-pin iPhone dock, which in turn holds my iPhone 4 and pipes its music out via Line Out to my amp when connected.

The Music
Pretty much everything I have. I've been taking a more orchestral slant so I've been listening to alot of operas, musicals, concertos and symphonies. But I've also tried out rock, hard rock, metal, jazz, blues, funk, post-rock, vocals and some pop, wherever my fancy takes me. I try to have my music source in as high a sample rate as possible, so most of them are in 320kbps, but some of my more complex music like concertos and jazz are in lossless WAV, running at 1411kbps.

The Verdict
The defining factor about the HD 598 is that it is open-canned, meaning that air is free to pass through the earcups, allowing for wider sound reproduction as opposed to closed cans, where the air available to transmit sound is limited from what's within the earcup, up to your ear drum. That is, unfortunately, also it's only pain point. Air moves so freely that people around you can pretty much hear whatever you are listening to, and you can still hear everything that goes around you, even a suppressed cough. Some argue that if people can hear what you are listening to, you're listening to it too loud. And with proper amping, the HD 598 can produce all frequencies evenly at low volumes. But for lack of a better phrase, it's quite simply tak shiok when the music isn't completely washing over you. Even feels like a bit of a waste at times, listening to music so softly when you have such powerful hardware. But to each his own. In fact, even with air flowing so freely, your ears start to feel tired, not from the prolonged cupping of the cushions, but if the volume is too loud.

The thing about the HD 598 is that its transducers deliver music so smoothly that it quite often feels flat. That is not to say the music feels lifeless - rather, it's helped me pay more attention to the details of my music, and rewarded that attention by faithfully reproducing every last bit of audio information that the little bits you never knew were there - a cough, a musician shifting in his chair, a slide on the fret, the sigh of a piano's sustain pedal - presents itself to you and delights the heck out of you.

Along with the open-cans, Sennheiser's Eargonomic Acoustic Refinement technology claims to give you the experience of sitting in front of a hi-fi system. Not sure how effective that has been for me. For sure the soundstage can be matched by few within its class, and stereo separation is well-defined, but it can feel very lateral, instead of the more forward placement you would expect from a hi-fi system.

Bass instruments that are often glossed over by lesser audio products - softly rumbling kettle drums, double basses, the lower harmonics of trombones, even some frequencies of bass guitars, are clearly heard with these headphones without getting too overwhelming.

The same can be said for the high frequencies. I have yet to hear something that could push the headphones' high frequency output into "ear-piercing" territory. Cymbal clashes, crashes and bashes, high notes of female singers, piccolos, trumpets and usually painful guitar squeals are all pumped out clearly yet tolerably, allowing you to enjoy musical climaxes without destroying your eardrums.

Mids have an unfortunate chance of getting overshadowed by the higher frequencies, but I've only heard that happen when everything is playing together, for example when chorus and orchestra are both going at full volume. If there is a tenor or baritone singing however, you can be damn sure that they'll cut through and be the centre of your attention. Even if they've been mixed to be in the background.

The recommended price of S$399 is a hefty one to pay if it's your first or second time making the jump to higher quality audio. And it's seldom worth it unless you already have an amping system in place that can provide proper output support. Music forced at loud volume from inferior audio circuits merely sound like wind through a tunnel. Try plugging any high quality headphone to your iPhone and maxing out the volume to see what I mean. Not a pleasant experience, and certainly not an experience worth draining your player's battery for. But if you want to jump into the world of audio goodness, and are willing to pay for an amp, the HD 598 offers amazing value for what you are paying, and should last you a very long time in your journey towards better music.

Sony introduces PHA-1 portable headphones amp

Rather dated news but took me a long time to get my blog going as I like it.

So right on the heels of its second generation of balanced armature driver earphones, Sony announced their entry into the portable amplifier market with the PHA-1 portable headphone amplifier. This news has been out in Japan as early as September 2012, but Singapore will find this product in stores from March 2013 for a recommended price of S$599.

Ideal for the "mobile audiophile" (sounds rather ridiculous when you type it out but goodness knows our numbers aren't scarce), the PHA-1 supports audio signals as high as 96KHz, with 24-bit resolution. Are those specs cool? Yes. Are those capabilities maximised? Not easily, these days.

The amp can also be hooked up to your computer to serve as a Digital to Analog Converter (DAC) (in English, better quality music). It has an in-built, USB-charged battery that runs for up to 10 hours when music is piped in through Audio In, and 5 hours through Digital In.

You can hook your player or smartphone up to the amp by the Audio In jack in front, which I along with most other aurally-inclined technophiles tend to discourage, if there are better alternatives.

1. It causes the audio to be double amped. Think of the audio circuit in the amp as a large shiny water pipe with treatments to make the water better, and think of your audio player's audio circuit as a thin, old rusting pipe whose impurities the water carries along with it as it travels through (it's probably not all that bad your player's audio quality but just as a comparison...). Running your water through the old pipe and into the large shiny pipe is merely throwing impurities into the latter - remember it has enhancement features, not decontamination treatments.
2. As a source your player will need to push a strong audio signal, which almost certainly means that you need to pump your player's volume to maximum. Remember that this is usually meant to go straight to your earphones and so uses the full audio circuitry in your player. Nothing like full-powered audio output to burn your player's battery life.

But here's the cool thing about the PHA-1, you can hook your device directly to it via USB. Apple's 30-pin connector, Walkman's connector and a standard 3.5mm jack are included in the package. Sony says that Lightning devices are supported by the amp but that the cable will not be included. With this method your audio source gets piped in via Digital In, and the amp acts as a DAC to pump the music out to your earphones.This is a far better way to process music than Audio In, and maintains alot more audio fidelity, especially if your sources files are lossless types like AIFF, WAV or FLAC. However, it utilizes pretty much all of the PHA-1's circuitry, which explains the higher battery usage.

And Sony says the amp doesn't require burn-in. I haven't had a chance to test this so I cannot verify this at the moment. Take it how you like.

Most of us know Sony to be the company responsible for Playstations, Bravias and Xperias, but my friend pointed out that they started as an audio company after all. This is a cool step for Sony to take, to return to their roots perhaps? But unlike the balanced armature earphones this amp isn't priced below the market rate. S$599 is what a mobile audiophile in these parts would have to cough up, at the very least, for a decent portable amp. Is this a sign of Sony's confidence in what this tiny giant can deliver?

I'll let you know when I've tested this out. Meanwhile, XBA reviews coming soon.