Atonemo Streamplayer Review: Make Old Speakers New Again

Photography: Chris Haslam

Plugged into my father’s 20-year-old Arcam subwoofer, which drives a pair of vintage-style Mordaunt Short floorstanding speakers, the Streamplayer works seamlessly. It required a 3.5mm to RCA cable (more on that below) but Dad’s box of old cables is a tech treasure. Upon first listen, I was impressed by how easy everything was, and switching between Qobuz and Spotify Lossless certainly wasn’t annoying. But when playing the same song side by side using a Cambridge mid-range audio CD player, the difference was clear.

Playing the album “Music from Big Pink” by The Band, the power and volume from the CD version easily beat out the Streamplayer. Rick Danko’s bass lines soared and the layers of instruments articulated nicely across the CD, while being noticeably subdued on broadcast. Same speakers, same amplifier, very different DACs.

It’s by no means a disaster, and it’s hard to argue with the ease of streaming – rather than a large CD collection. Even with high-quality components, performance will only be as good as the sound quality played back.

Cables and connectivity

Atonemo makes a big deal about being able to drive “all” vintage speakers. The box includes one 3.5mm to 3.5mm audio jack, allowing the ability to connect to active speakers, vintage radios, cassette players, boom boxes, and anything with an auxiliary 3.5mm port.

But to power analogue speakers, you’ll need a separate amplifier and replacement cables, whether that’s a 3.5mm to RCA jack cable or an RCA to 3.5mm SPDIF cable. Atonemo told WIRED that they considered including multiple cables in the box, but chose the 3.5mm audio jack because most people who use hi-fi will already have one. They also plan to sell a set of cables that will fit “all” older headsets. I think including a couple of cable options would have been a good idea, especially at launch, just to avoid any friction points with a first-time install, as not everyone has a box of old cables as comprehensive as my parents.

a race

Photography: Chris Haslam

Atonemo isn’t the only option when it comes to breathing new life into old hi-fi components. the WiiM Mini Music Streamer ($89) Cheaper, and offers streaming capabilities via AirPlay/Chromecast/Spotify Connect and XX DAC. Likewise FiiO SR11 desktop streaming music receiver ($110) Also compatible with Apple Music, Spotify, Tidal, FiiO Music, PCM 768kHz/32bit, and DSD256 (DOP) quality. For a further boost in sound quality as well as one of the best high-resolution multi-room live streaming platforms,… Bluesound Node $379 The nano streamer is hard to ignore. There are also plenty of basic Bluetooth dongles available as well if sound quality or the ability to enjoy multi-room audio isn’t important to you.

But what Atonemo did well was remove any technical barriers to use. The app is incredibly simple – in a good way – with no bloat or claim that it does anything other than facilitate streaming between your old speakers and your modern streaming platform.

Yes, it could (and perhaps should) squeeze in a better DAC, and a more comprehensive set of cables, but these are deliberate omissions, not glaring errors. Anyone looking to tweak, and generally care about bit rates, is already well served elsewhere.