Some of the top brands in audio have adopted the wireless DTS Play-Fi platform for whole-house, high-resolution music. But while companies like Arcam, Integra, Klipsch, McIntosh, Polk Audio and Onkyo have built some nice Play-Fi products, they have yet to deliver a product with native Amazon Alexa for voice control.
So DTS built its own — the Phorus PS10 — and it's way better than Sonos, Airplay, Google Cast and Bluetooth in the wireless-audio department, according to the manufacturer (see comparison chart below).
Announced in September and shipping now, the PS10 apparently is the world’s first DTS Play-Fi enabled wireless speaker with Amazon Alexa Voice Service. Thankfully, that’s not the only feature that sets this speaker apart.
As this is a speaker designed by DTS, a company known for its audio technologies, users should expect some impressive acoustics from this speaker. To ensure that it delivers exactly that, the Phorus PS10 has a built-in 30W amplifier with DTS Sound post-processing, two 65mm Neodymium full-range transducers, and two 4in bass radiators in a sealed enclosure. That’s in addition to the support for DTS Play-Fi, which enables the playback of high-resolution audio files wirelessly and in multiple rooms in the house.
“Phorus is continually pushing the boundaries of the DTS Play-Fi ecosystem with new innovative products as demonstrated by the Phorus PS10 smart speaker, the first wireless multi-room speaker to ship with Amazon Alexa Voice Service built-in,” says Dannie Lau, general manager of DTS Play-Fi.
“The Phorus PS10 is also the first Alexa-compatible product to include one-touch music station presets and support for hi-res 24-bit/192kHz content, giving the product category-leading convenience, performance and sound quality.”
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Multi-room music control on the Phorus PS10 is easy using the Phorus Apps for Android, iOS, and Kindle. When compatible DTS Play-Fi products, including the Phorus PS5 speaker and Phorus PR5 receiver, are grouped with the PS10, music simultaneously plays to the group with playback controlled by Alexa. Each member of a family can also use the Phorus app on their smartphone or tablet to listen to music in their own room or groups of rooms. Users can also control their system using their Apple Watch or Android Wear device.
The Phorus PS10 supports playback through Airplay, and Spotify Connect, includes a 3.5mm input for connecting any analog source, and a line-level audiophile grade output for connections to high-performance audio components. Using DTS Play-Fi, the 3.5mm input can be streamed wirelessly to DTS Play-Fi enabled products in other rooms of the home. The line out features variable volume output control and a Wolfson high-resolution DAC. Additionally, the PS10 will support Amazon’s Connected Speaker API with a future firmware update. This will enable the PS10 to select and control the playback of music on all DTS Play-Fi enabled speakers throughout the home.
The Phorus PS10 ($249) is now available for those wishing to have the best of Play-Fi and Alexa.
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