Revo SuperSystem

The Revo SuperSystem launched in 2015 in direct competition with the already established Ruark R2. It followed on from the successful SuperConnect, which won the What HiFi ‘Best Radio £200+’ award in the same year, to provide a product with a wide range of features.

Design and Appearance

The most widely sold model has a walnut cabinet with anodised aluminium fascia and mild steel cabinet. It has a distinctive retro appearance and there are also black and white versions. The choice of materials is influenced not only by their good looks but also their feel and the fact they help to create high-quality sound.

Music Selection and Connectivity

The Revo provides plenty of radio options that cover FM with RDS, DAB, DAB+ and internet, giving access to over 24,000 stations nationally and around the world. Added to that, there’s Spotify Connect that provides over 30 million songs for Spotify Premium account holders.

Wireless streaming from a number of sources is enabled through Bluetooth, with Qualcomm aptX technology providing CD quality from supported devices. DLNA and WLAN technology allow playback from NAS drives and various other devices.

There’s also a 3.5mm input, RCA out, headphone out, Ethernet, optical in and out, and a USB port for charging and input from memory sticks, with compatible audio codecs including AAC, AAC+, WAV, WMA and FLAC.

Controls and Display

The Revo can be operated in a number of ways. There’s a large knob on top of the cabinet that’s simply used to adjust the volume, several buttons that control playback, presets, etc., and a small joystick that navigates the menu system.

Also supplied is a remote that can be used to control the device or, if that isn’t convenient, you can download an UNDOK app to a mobile device and use this instead. That includes the ability to distribute whatever’s playing to various rooms in the house, providing they have compatible Revo devices.

A 2.7” OLED display provides information about what’s playing and is clear enough to be read from a distance.

Other Features

The Revo has an 80-watt amplifier that delivers sound through two 3.5-inch flat panel BMR speakers. The effect is high quality sound that can fill a large room and is forceful and subtle at the same time.

A dual alarm is incorporated with sleep and snooze functions, and there’s a multi-country power supply in the box. Power consumption is 48.64 watts in operation and 0.758 watts on standby.

Reviews and Awards

The Revo has won multiple awards, including the What HiFi Best All-in-One System award in 2017. It also received the Red Dot Product Design award, which recognises good industrial design, innovation, quality and functionality.

Reviews frequently mention the product’s great build quality, extensive functions and superb sound.

Brand Reputation

Revo was founded in Lanark, Scotland, in 2004 and is a specialist designer of digital audio devices. It has a good reputation for sound quality and its products are sold in twenty countries. The company’s AXiS hybrid radio features in the National Museum of Scotland’s permanent collection.

Ruark Audio R2 Mk3

The Ruark Audio R2 is a well-established and highly regarded product that is now in its third version. The latest model appeared in 2015 and has been a market favourite since then.

Design and Appearance

As is common these days, the Ruark has a retro look with up-to-date features. The cabinet, available in handcrafted rich walnut or a soft white or black lacquer, has a steel front panel. The selected materials are intended to not only look good but also deliver excellent sound quality.

Music Selection and Connectivity

Radio is provided through FM, DAB, and DAB+ tuners, plus an internet tuner to give access to stations worldwide, with thirty station pre-sets (ten each for DAB, FM and internet). There’s also Spotify Connect that gives access to a vast array of music.

There’s Bluetooth with aptX technology for CD quality sound from compatible devices, WiFi for internet radio and wireless DLNA for audio streaming from networked storage devices and PCs. Additionally, there’s multi-room capability so several compatible devices can broadcast around the house.

Other connectivity is available through a USB port for playback and charging, stereo headphone output, telescopic aerial and two line inputs for audio devices. Audio codecs include AAC, WAV, WMA, MP3 and FLAC.

Controls and Display

The Ruark’s RotoDial control system gives access to all menu options and is provided instead of multiple buttons for different actions. Operation is as for all Ruark devices, turning the dial to scroll and pressing to select.

Alternatively, there’s a remote control provided and availability of the UNDOK app that can be downloaded to control the Ruark from a smartphone or tablet device.

The OLED display has a large format clock and other information. It has adjustable brightness and is easily viewable from all angles.

Other Features

Sound is delivered through a 20-watt output amplifier and there’s a loudness function to enhance sounds at low volume and a 3D sound mode for a bigger and bolder sound.

Also incorporated is a dual alarm with multiple settings, adjustable volume and sleep and snooze modes. This device tends to be a bit cheaper than the Revo SuperSystem.

Reviews and Awards

The Ruark R2 Mk3 is generally considered a quality product that delivers exceptional sound and has a large number of features. It won the 2015 What HiFi award in the All-in-One System category.

Brand Reputation

Ruark is a family-run British business that was founded in 1985. It has a reputation for good build quality and has plenty experience in producing high-quality speakers. As a result, it’s considered one of the best producers of audio products.

Making a Choice

Both these music systems are remarkably similar in terms of functionality, connectivity, build quality and exceptional sound output. They’re both also extremely attractive products (if you like the retro style) and so choosing between them may not be easy.

The Revo SuperSystem is by far the biggest and heaviest at 43 x 22 x 16.5 centimetres and 9.8 kilogrammes as against 34 x 18.5 x 12 centimetres and 3.6 kilogrammes for the Ruark. It also delivers the most volume to the point where one review believes it’s only suitable for large rooms and recommends turning off the loudness mode in any case. If space is at a premium, therefore, the Ruark R2 Mk3 may be your choice.

How you are able to handle the controls may also be a consideration, with the Ruark’s Rotodial being thought complex by some while others believe the Revo’s joystick is too fiddly. Both, however, have the alternative of a remote and an UNDOK app.

If you really can’t choose, it may come down to price, the Ruark typically being over £100 cheaper. Shop around, however, to see the current best price:

The post Revo SuperSystem vs. Ruark R2 Mk3 appeared first on Best Radios.

The Revo SuperConnect is an attractively designed high-end internet radio with FM and DAB/DAB+. The SuperConnect has won multiple awards including What HiFi’s award for the best radio over £200 in 2015 and the Sunday Times’s “Best Buy” award in the Multiband Radios category.

Revo is a relatively new player in the radio market, having been founded in 2004. Since then, the Lanark-based company has developed a reputation for producing some of the best-sounding and best-looking digital radios on the market.

This radio is available in a range of finishes: Matt Black/Silver, Matt White/Silver, Piano Black/Silver, Piano White/Silver, Walnut/Black and Walnut/Silver.

Find out more about what the SuperConnect can do and how it performs in this review…

Features

Dimensions: 27 cm wide x 18 cm high x 12 cm deep
Weight: 2.8 kg

Performance and use

Features and connectivity

The SuperConnect has a great range of features. It has regular FM (with RDS), DAB/DAB+ as well as internet radio, which lets you listen to more than 16,000 stations from all over the globe.

The radio has lots of connectivity options including Bluetooth with aptX for wirelessly streaming CD-quality music from your phone. It’s also compatible with Spotify Connect (Spotify Premium account required) which lets you play anything from Spotify’s huge archive of songs through the SuperConnect’s high-quality speakers and use the Spotify App as a remote control.

Sound

The wooden cabinet helps give depth and warmth to the SuperConnect’s sound. The radio uses Balanced Mode Radiator (BMR) technology, which helps improve the sound quality further. This radio is one of the best-sounding internet radios on the market, and compares well to Bose products.

Design

Design-wise the SuperConnect combines 1960s and ‘70s elements with more modern touches. There are 8 dedicated preset station buttons on the front, making it easy to tune into your favourite stations quickly. The cabinet is made of wood and is clad in American walnut, while the front facia is made from anodised T6 aluminium.

Internet radio

With the internet radio feature you can access more than 16,000 stations from all over the world, as well as national and local radio stations that broadcast online. You can also access several on-demand programmes and podcasts.

Provided you have a strong internet connection, internet radio should mean interference than you’d get when listening to FM or DAB stations. However, you might need to place the radio quite near the router or buy a WiFi booster if the signal isn’t strong enough. This radio doesn’t seem to pick up WiFi signals as strongly as other internet radios, so it’s not a good choice if you’re planning to position it a long way from your router.

Another disappointing thing about the SuperConnect’s internet radio feature is that you can’t manually add podcasts, so your choice of podcasts will be limited.

Practical information

The SuperConnect has an OLED display which is large and easy to read, and dims completely when you don’t need it.

The radio comes with a remote control that takes two AAA batteries, though you can also use your phone as a remote control if you want using the UNDOK app.

The radio is mains-powered only and usually comes with a multi-region power supply which is great if you want to take it abroad or are ordering it from outside the UK.

Verdict

The Revo SuperConnect is one of the best-sounding and most attractive internet radios available in 2017. It has a great range of features, and the sound quality doesn’t disappoint. However, the high price tag and need to position the radio close to the WiFi router are reasons to think twice about buying this radio. Overall though, it’s one of the leading internet radios and is highly recommended.

Similar radios

If you’re looking for a more affordable internet radio, a good choice could be the Roberts Stream 93i. This radio is one of the most popular internet radios in the UK thanks to its combination of versatility and affordability. The Stream 93i offers most of the same features as the SuperConnect, though at a lower price point.

A more high-end option is Revo’s flagship Supersystem, which is a top-of-the-range internet radio with 80 watts of stereo sound.

For some more options, see our roundup of the best internet radios.

The post Revo SuperConnect Radio Review appeared first on Best Radios.

The Revo SuperSignal Table Radio is a high-end FM/DAB/DAB+ radio with Bluetooth. The SuperSignal has a similar design to the Revo SuperConnect but comes with a lower price tag and doesn’t offer internet radio.

Revo’s intention with this radio is clearly to make one of the very best-sounding DAB radios on the market. So how does it perform? Find out in this review….

Features

Dimensions: 21 cm high x 14 cm deep x 13.5 cm wide
Weight: 2.3 kg

Performance and use

Sound quality

The SuperSignal features an all-wood walnut cabinet with aluminium and steel components. The combination of the wood cabinet with Revo’s sophisticated audio engineering create a sound that is detailed and warm with a good amount of bass. The bass level is quite high by default, but you can reduce it using the equaliser.

This radio is definitely one of the best DAB radios for sound quality available in 2017, and has a very detailed sound that is excellent for listening to classical and acoustic music, though rock and pop music sounds great too. If you’re used to listening to an average radio you’ll be surprised by how much more detail you can hear with the SuperSignal.

Design

The SuperSignal’s design blends classic 1960s elements with a minimalistic modern finish giving it a timeless look. One thing to watch out for is the delicate plastic screen cover which can be scratched easily.

This radio comes in a choice of finishes including matt black with silver, matt white with silver and the all-black ‘Shadow Edition’.

Alarm clock

The SuperSignal has a versatile alarm clock that lets you set alarms to sound once, daily, on weekdays or on weekends. The alarm is a bit fiddly to set, though you find this with most DAB clock radios. The alarm gradually gets louder so you can gradually wake up. You can use the snooze function just by touching the radio’s front panel when the alarm is sounding, which means you don’t need to find the snooze button.

The display is quite bright even on the lowest setting, so it’s not ideal as a bedside radio. Also, the buttons are the same shape and size so it’s not easy to find the right buttons in the dark or when you’ve just woken up. However, as mentioned above, the snooze function can be accessed just by tapping the radio’s front panel, which is a very nice feature.

Bluetooth

The SuperSignal has Bluetooth so you can wirelessly stream audio from a phone, tablet or laptop. Bluetooth works flawlessly and has a good range, so you don’t need to position your phone or tablet right next to the radio. It also has aptX technology which means that audio streamed will be at CD quality where available.

Other points

The SuperSignal comes with a remote control which is fully-functional, unlike some radio remote controls that only have a few functions. The SuperSignal has excellent reception on both FM and DAB radio, and picks up more stations than most radios.

Verdict

The Revo SuperSignal might seem expensive, but it has few very rivals for sound quality in its price range. It’s an excellent radio for audiophiles who want the very best sound quality. It also has a beautiful, timeless design that would suit any kind of decor.

However, the SuperSignal isn’t ideal as a clock radio as the display is quite bright and it’s not so easy to set the alarm.

Similar radios

The most similar radio to the Revo SuperSignal is probably the Ruark R1 MkIII, which has superb sound quality and a similar design with wooden casing. The Ruark R1 MkIII arguably has the edge over the SuperSignal when it comes to sound quality, though it might cost you a bit more.

If you want more features and don’t mind compromising on sound quality you should consider the Roberts Stream93i, which is a DAB radio with WiFi for streaming the 20,000+ radio stations available online. The Stream93i is cheaper than the SuperSignal and has decent sound quality even if it’s not up to the same standard as the SuperSignal.

For some other radios to consider, check out this article: Best High-End DAB Radios.

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