The just-add-speakers system in its most compact and affordable guise yet
Streaming system | £599 | whf.cm/PowernodeEdge
It could be reductive to call the Bluesound Powernode Edge a smaller, more affordable, cut-down version of the five-star Bluesound Powernode (2021) system, but it’s not far from the truth.
This model offers network streaming smarts, a complement of connectivity and amplification in a very neat and compact box to which you just need to add speakers. It couldn’t be simpler – and it’s the most affordable just-add-speakers all-in-one system that we have yet seen.
Canadian brand Bluesound has a knack for creating modern-looking boxes that fit and blend into any space, yet still offer a wealth of streaming connections and great sound quality. But this is fast becoming a fiercely fought category.
The art of downsizing
Looking at the two Bluesound Powernode units side-by-side, the difference is obvious. The double-decker look of the Powernode (2021) is out, the Powernode Edge is a single-storey unit. It’s tiny. It looks more like a space-age modem than the traditional just-add-speakers all-in-one system we are used to seeing from the likes of Naim, Marantz and Cambridge Audio.
What is still familiar is the ultra-compact design and uncluttered aesthetics that Bluesound has preferred throughout its products. The upshot of this is that the Powernode Edge is a unit that can sit anywhere in small rooms.
The unit itself is well built, too. There’s no physical remote included, but there are basic touch controls for playing, pausing, skipping tracks and changing volume on the front panel. They all respond well, and we particularly like the subtle fade in/out effect when pausing or resuming play.
Around the back, you will find a neat complement of connections: one set of speaker terminals; an HDMI eARC input; a combined digital optical/3.5mm analogue input (an adapter is helpfully included in the box); a USB port; an ethernet port; and a subwoofer out. It’s not too dissimilar to the bigger Powernode’s connectivity, and means you can plug in a TV, a CD player or even an external phono stage (with the help of adapters) for your turntable, for instance.
Don’t be deterred by a lack of a remote, as your main port of control will be through the well-appointed BluOS app on your smartphone or tablet.
Streaming is where the Bluesound really kicks into gear, thanks to its tried and tested BluOS streaming platform and accompanying app. This app gives the Edge pretty much all of the streaming feature
