Page 4 - Conclusion
Did the 512 continue to reinforce the perception of Audioengine's excellence, or did it fall short of what we expect? In many ways, the Audioengine 512 is a great first attempt for something being designed from the ground up from a company with no prior experience in making such a product. It produced generally clear sound in a compact form factor. The rounded design made it interesting to hold and look at, and the 12 hour rated battery life is reasonable and achievable at normal listening levels. The wireless range was also good and the connection quality was consistent, which is something we have come to expect from the company. Of course, the most impressive thing about the Audioengine 512 was its super wide soundstage. Even though it is just a small Bluetooth speaker, it sounds way wider than its size and form factor suggests. However, being a first attempt in the true Bluetooth portable speaker realm, there is some room for improvement to make the 512 better. Firstly, the quality of the bass, midrange, and treble was only average in my opinion. I think my biggest issue was the sound output was not that clean; possibly coming down to the amplifier lacking power and the way it was tuned. Adding better Bluetooth audio codecs like aptX and AAC will also improve its wireless streaming quality. On the hardware side, adding a built-in microphone and using a USB Type-C port for charging will improve the user experience. Lastly, I recommend making the next version waterproof, but I would choose audio quality over that any day as it is also Audioengine's priority. For about $170 at press time, the Audioengine 512 is a decent Bluetooth speaker, but it did not blow me away -- the standard is still the V-MODA Remix, which costs about $30 more at press time.
Audioengine provided this product to APH Networks for the purpose of evaluation.
APH Review Focus Summary:
7/10 means Great product with many advantages and certain insignificant drawbacks; but should be considered before purchasing.
-- Final APH Numeric Rating is 7.0/10
Please note that the APH Numeric Rating system is based off our proprietary guidelines in the Review Focus, and should not be compared to other sites.
The Audioengine 512 is a compact Bluetooth speaker with a super wide soundstage for the size.
Do you have any comments or questions about the Audioengine 512? Drop by our Forums. Registration is free, and it only takes a minute!
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Hardware
3. Subjective Audio Analysis
4. Conclusion
