Review: Audioengine HD4 Speaker System with Bluetooth APTX-HD

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HD4 Joins the Audioengine HD Family

The HD-series of Bluetooth speakers represent the pinnacle of Audioengine's wireless offerings, and the new HD4 fits perfectly between the HD3 and HD6. Constructed with custom components, including 4" aramid-fiber woofers and 3/4" silk-dome tweeters, the HD4 features two analog class-AB monolithic power amps that deliver 60W peak per channel. Audiophiles really dig the sound of analog amplification, so they will feel right at home with the HD4.

In addition to Bluetooth 5.0 with low-latency aptX, aptX HD, and AAC codecs, physical inputs include a 3.5mm stereo minijack, USB for computer audio, and a pair of RCA jacks—talk about flexibility! Their small size belies a big sound extending from 60 Hz to 22 kHz (±1.5 dB), making them the perfect choice for smaller rooms and desktops. And the precision-tuned, hand-built cabinets are finished in wood veneer for a cool retro look.

• Simple setup, no network configuration
• Extended dynamic range with 24-bit resolution
• Flexible selection of inputs, plus a pair of variable RCA outputs for a subwoofer
• Sturdy hand-built cabinets finished in wood-grain veneer
• Small enough for a desktop, big sound fills the room
• High-performance built-in headphone amplifier

Video Transcript

"Hi, this is Brian from World Wide Stereo. I'm here to talk to you about the Audioengine HD4 Wireless Speaker System. ♪ [music] ♪ Audioengine is an independent speaker company based out of Austin, Texas. They started making speakers in 2005 with a simple philosophy of, "Make a good product, make it sound good, and make sure that people can listen to music that they like every day." The HD4s are built with an MDF.

They've got a 120-watt analog amp, that's a 60 watts per channel peak. Audioengine was really smart with the release with this. They wanted to put out a product that fit between their HD3 and their HD6. And really, what they were looking for is the size. They wanted to hit a specific size between the two, and they did it well. They can be for someone who really cares about music and wants to have really high-quality computer speakers, or they want an easy lifestyle speaker, something that can fit really well into a living room, look nice, and sound good as well.

Its placement can be almost anywhere in the house. Some people may use these as an add-on to a television. So instead of using a soundbar, they can have a powered speaker that they could easily add to a TV to get some better TV audio. I would use them on my computer, but they really are a lifestyle speaker because they're nice looking, and they really can go anywhere. You know, they can go on nice set of speaker stands or on a bookshelf.

The biggest thing is that it is a powered speaker, so all the amplification does come from this speaker right here. It's actually going to be the last speaker because everything Audioengine does, the left speaker has the amp built into it. Setup is quite simple. If you just want to use them as Bluetooth speakers, they work out great for that, all you have to do is make sure that they're connected to power, and the amplified speaker is connected to the non-amplified speaker, and you're ready to go.

Or you can go a little bit more in-depth with it. If I were to use these, like I said, I would use them as a computer speaker. And one of the nice things that I would see them as a computer speaker is they have an onboard DAC on them. You can connect that directly to your computer. The reason why I like that is I'm going to get a much better sound from this speaker connected to this digital input. And there's two reasons why I'm going to get better sound to that.

You can connect that analog eighth-inch stereo input, which is what most people will do with their computer speakers. But the problem with that is you're going to get the noise that you might get from your computer. So unless you have a really good power supply, and you really care about how your motherboard's connected, and all the blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah computer stuff, you'll get that low-level noise. And when you have low-level noise when you're listening to music, that's going to interrupt with what you can hear.

There's no switching in between inputs. You don't have to worry about, "Oh, am I listening to my USB input? Oh, am I listening to my analog input?" It's going to play whichever one that you're currently playing. So in actuality, you can actually play two things at the same time if you really want to make your system jam and really confused. I learned that while I was testing them because I went to go test the Bluetooth on it, and then I connected the analog to it, and I accidentally had Queen playing twice.

But it was at different times, so it was a really weird mix but an interesting way to listen to "Bohemian Rhapsody." So the Audioengine HD4s are really a set of versatile speakers. I would use them as a computer speaker, you can use them as an add-on to your television, or they can be a simple, clean two-channel setup almost anywhere in your house.

This has been the Audioengine HD4 Wireless Speaker System. You can view this item online at worldwidestereo.com. Or if you happen to be in the area, please, stop into either our Ardmore or Montgomeryville showroom to check it out in person. We offer a 60-day return policy, free shipping, and we are authorized dealers for everything we sell. If you have any questions or comments, you can leave them in the comment section below.

Or, you can call or email us at any time. Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel, and catch us on all our social media platforms. This is Brian from World Wide Stereo. ♪ [music] ♪"