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name for stereo system in single case

A few current product designs feature stereo driver pairings in a single unit, essentially offering the simplicity of radio boxes, but playing an external audio source.

Many are extremely inexpensive designs packed with high-tech features, but a few are more subdued, extending the low-end of the range of mid-range manufacturers.
A few examples of the following:

The aim of course is not to satisfy the most discerning audiophile, but to make a pleasant experience with very modest demands on space and investment (for example, in a kitchen, someone listening frequently to talk but occasionally to music).

Is any particular name given for such a product, that is, one essentially having the following features?:
  • A single case
  • Stereo speakers (drivers, e.g. two woofers and two tweeters)
  • Internal amplification, for line input to the whole unit.
thinker
volumizer
86 posts
 
Highly Intergrated Stereo System?

aka...HISS
volumizer
86 posts
 
Limited Output Wireless Fixture?

aka...Low-Fi
tim_p's avatar
tim_p
361 posts
 
HA...I had one of those "boom boxes" tied to the head of my rack onboard ship when I was in the Canadian Nsvy back in 81, used headphones mainly or took it up on the helo flight deck at sea. It was a single cassette deck with am/fm "stereo" tuner. It had huge dual 8" speakers with "base boost" feature by Sony and took 10 D cell batteries if I recall correctly. 
auxinput
2,920 posts
 
Hah! It’s only a boom box if it has a handle on top. Gotta carry it on your shoulder or hanging down below, walkin’ down the getto while blasting Easy E!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwOEDNGW5mA

As far as the OP is concerned, I think these are really just called "bluetooth speakers" nowadays. I thought you were going to mention something like this:

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/yamaha-micro-component-system-white/4723607.p?skuId=4723607

It looks like Best Buy is calling these "Stereo Shelf Systems".
thinker OP
2 posts
 
As far as the OP is concerned, I think these are really just called "bluetooth speakers" nowadays.

In practical terms, I agree in a large sense, but Bluetooth is an input, not a cabinet design or driver layout. I was genuinely curious whether this physical configuration had any particular name, since it of course in principle can be constructed without any Bluetooth receiver.

By the way, a web search with key words "bluetooth speakers" mostly produces products in two categories, one being a genuine stereo speaker pair with a Bluetooth input, the other being a small battery-powered device, very much as a modern-day boom box, of very low cost and basic construction, suitable for outdoor recreation, and the like. Neither of these two broad categories quite encompass the description I gave. Hence, I think, a new name is badly needed.

Of course many, especially in this community, would have limited interest in such a configuration, but in my view it may not be as frivolous as some might assume. Once getting passed the idea that not every room in the world is as meticulously arranged as an audiophile’s living room (I know, it’s hard), and thinking about spaces like kitchens, hallways, and bedrooms, where a transistor radio would have been common in yesteryear, I think that some would start to see the usefulness. I think many are still unaware that an appliance as small as 50 centimeters long, smaller than a mobile phone, in fact essentially a phone with no screen or battery, can easily provide the audio source, connecting to a local media server or internet radio channel. Functionally, the effect is the look of a mid-century radio box combined with the ability to play an uncounted variety of of live or recorded sources.





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