Danish-Italian studio GamFratesi has been tapped by Bang & Olufsen to help produce its most powerful portable speaker to date – the head-turning Beosound A5.
Due to its light oak handle and woven paper fiber grille, the new Bang & Olufsen speaker looks vaguely similar to a picnic basket with an attractive Nordic Weave colourway And that’s apt, seeing as taking this powerful speaker around to outdoor gatherings looks to be the idea, evoking Scandinavian summers.
The blend of aluminium, wood and paper fiber helps set the speaker apart from a market that mostly plays it safe and functional when it comes to design. The Nordic Weave colourway is the most interesting but there’s also a Black Anthracite aluminium version with a dark oak handle and a matching speaker cover which, according to the B&O, was inspired by “the aesthetic of winter woodlands.”
Despite the light materials, B&O has still managed to work the A5 into an IP65 rating, which means it’s sufficiently dust and waterproof for outdoor use. But that’s to be expected from a speaker that’d squeeze US$1,650 out of you.
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B&O’s proprietary Mozart software has been included to adapt the speaker to rolled updates over time, meaning the speaker’s audio and connectivity will continually be updated seamlessly in accordance with advancements in technology. Not many Bluetooth speakers allow for such future-proofing so consider that when you take into account the punchy price tag. This software should also make it easier to pair two units into a studio set-up or integrate the A5 into a multi-room arrangement.
Internally, the Beosound A5 has a four-driver array with four digital amplifiers that manage to pump out 280 watts of power. That should be enough to fill any large space with surround 360-degree sound, pushed out by a 5.25-inch woofer, two 2-inch mid-range drivers and a 3/4-inch tweeter. Beamforming technology is used for immersive sound similar to Bang & Olufsen’s Beolab 90, which is substantially more expensive at US$120,000 (AU$181,000).
Round out the specs, you have a comprehensive set of connectivity options with support for AirPlay 2, Chromecast and Spotify Connect and a battery rated for 12 hours of playtime with reverse wireless charging on the speaker’s top panel.
Bang & Olufsen’s Beosound A5 is now available in Australia. The Nordic Weave colourway is priced at $1,650 while the Dark Oak colourway is priced a bit higher at $1,800.
