Q Acoustics E300A is a ceiling mounted amplifier with Alexa built in
British audio specialist Q Acoustics has taken the covers off of the E300A; a ceiling-installed hi-fi amplifier that has Alexa baked in.
When Alexa first arrived on the scene a decade or so ago, and Amazon opened the digital assistant up to be able to live on 3rd-party devices, we saw a bunch of devices likes this, which essentially mimic the looks of an Echo smart speaker but with bespoke audio tech on board.
But it’s been a few years since anything as interesting as the Q Acoustics E300A landed, a device that allows you to start planning a high-end multi-speaker setups with Alexa steering the ship.
Looking like a squished 2nd-gen Echo Dot, at least from the front, the E300A is capable of powering two or four Q Acoustics in-ceiling or in-wall speakers and, with Wi-Fi on board, is compatible with Amazon Multi-Room Audio, Apple AirPlay 2, Tidal Connect and Spotify Connect.
You can also connect non-Q Acoustic passive speakers too.
Behind that front-facing Echo-esque face is the engine of the E300A; there’s a combined mini Toslink socket for hooking up optical digital audio from a TV, a 3.5mm stereo analogue jack and a pair of RJ45 Ethernet ports.
It’s certified 60-minute fire rating and no fire hood is required, so it’s good for a kitchen installation and Alexa voice-control is activated by three far-field microphones, ensuring 360-degree coverage.
It comes with a remote control and can also be controlled with the Q Net app but, if you want to keep things super simple, it can also operate as a regular Bluetooth ‘speaker’ as well.
Costing £599 in the UK by itself, or £749 with a pair of Qi65C ceiling speakers, you can pre-order direct from Q Acoustic now.
It will go on sale Stateside next year.
