We’ve officially entered the most wonderful time of the year, and while many of us will be getting ready to decorate our Christmas tree and pondering if it’s okay to start blasting out Last Christmas from our rack, hi-fi and home cinema firms have continued working.
So much so that our reviewers have had no respite and, like Santa’s elves, have continued diligently working, covering all the latest important news to break over the past week. And there’s a lot, including our final verdict on Sennheiser’s latest wireless headphones, a key upgrade to a repeat What Hi-Fi? Award-winner and more.
Here’s what you need to know.
One of our favourite DACs got an upgrade
The Chord Mojo 2 is a repeat What Hi-Fi? Award-winner and one of the most frequently used pieces of hi-fi among our team for a reason. The tiny DAC offers a great, convenient way to elevate any mobile or laptop’s audio when it’s paired with a decent pair of wired headphones.
Hence why we continue to recommend it in our best DAC guide and gave it another Award this year. In fact, one of our only gripes is its use of the archaic micro-USB input for charging. Which is why we’re delighted to see Chord rectify the issue with its latest spruce.
Read the full story: The Award-winning Chord Mojo 2 gets two connection updates, but retains its price and sound quality
Sennheiser’s latest wireless headphones are an audio treat with a neat trick
Last week, we finished reviewing the Sennheiser HDB 630. These are a new pair of wireless headphones with a cool twist.
Specifically, the inclusion of a tiny dongle that adds aptX Adaptive codec support to any phone, tablet or laptop you connect it to. This makes it easy to elevate most smartphones, in particular, and let them offer the best wireless streaming quality possible via Bluetooth.
But what makes the headphones really shine is their stellar audio quality. Testing them with a variety of sources and with multiple music genres, the headphones consistently delivered a natural, dynamic, detailed sound, making them an easy five-star recommendation.
Read our in-depth Sennheiser HDB 630 review
We found a really goood entry level soundbar to recommend
For years, we’ve hunted for a soundbar to rival the ruling Sonos Beam (Gen 2) – which has sat, largely unchallenged, as the top affordable option in our best Dolby Atmos soundbars guide for multiple years.
And last week, we finally found one, in the shape of the JBL Bar 300MK2. Though it’s undeniably bigger than its Sonos rival, competitive pricing, solid features and excellent audio make it hard not to love. So much so that we gave it a five-star rating and reported in our review:
“The JBL Bar 300MK2 is a clear step up from its predecessor, improving on all aspects to give us one of the best Dolby Atmos soundbars we have tested at this price and giving the Sonos Beam (Gen 2) a real run for its money.”
If you want a great value soundbar capable of delivering a bombastic, room-filling performance, we’d strongly recommend considering the Bar 300MK2.
Read our in-depth JBL Bar 300MK2 review
MORE:
These are the best DACs we've tested
We rank the best wireless headphones
Our picks of the best soundbars
