VERDICT
The new Zeppelin Wireless is a beautiful-looking and beautiful-sounding network music player, bringing back the classic design with an even more powerful, yet detailed, aural experience.
PROS:
- Detailed mid-range
- Powerful, controlled bass
- Improved iconic design
- More open system
CONS:
- Still kinda pricey
- Inevitably limited stereo effect
- Slightly awkward setup
The legend has returned. Back in a time when the iPod dock was basically a cheap, plastic charging station with the same acoustic power as dropping your phone into a vending machine cup, the original Bowers and Wilkins Zeppelin arrived bringing HiFi quality to a neglected market.
The Zeppelin Air came along a few years later but now, eight years on from its first appearance, the new Zeppelin Wireless is here, rocking the same airship aesthetic as its forebears but bringing an even higher level of audio quality to wireless streaming market.
"The important message is this is not a facelift or a slight cosmetic tweak," Bowers and Wilkins' Graeme Taylor explained to us, "this is a ground-up reinvention of the Zeppelin concept."
800 series
There may be a few of the same screws and maybe some wires that were used in the first Zeppelins, but apart from that this is all new. It's built from the same studio-quality DNA as B&W's flagship 800 Series loudspeakers, even using the same Fixed Suspension Transducer (FST) technology in its mid-range drivers.
The goal being to essentially make the Zeppelin invisible from an acoustic standpoint, by holding the speaker cones in a surroundless suspension. This delivers greater control to the sound by ensuring the chassis itself adds nothing to the sound of the driver units.
At the very edges of the Zeppelin Wireless shell, either side of the twin 90mm mid-range drivers are a pair of 25mm tweeters, creating delightfully clear treble.
And that iconic shape comes into play here with the driver placement. Like the 800 Series speakers, giving their tweeters limited airspace to work with, the iconic elliptical shape does the same for the Zeppelin Wireless' tweeters too.
It's not the exact same chassis design as the first Zeppelins though. In some places the enclosure is some 50% thicker, but that's all down to an aeronautical engineering analytical tool - called Fine Element Analysis - which was used to measure the vibration of the internal components.
Because of this analysis, and because B&W thought the original design a little bass-heavy at times, the new Zeppelin Wireless has had the twin flow ports removed from the rear of the chassis.
This now means the Zeppelin Wireless operates as an almost completely sealed unit, with only a few, smaller micro ports beneath the grill at the front.
Zeppelin Wireless
Sound quality
Does that mean the new design has weaker bass response? Not a jot.
There is a huge amount of punch and power to the audio coming out of the Zeppelin Wireless, but that beefy bass is beautifully controlled, terminating precisely without being left to wobble away out into the world.
And despite its beefy bass performance its power doesn't impact on the aural clarity of the mid-range experience. Vocals are crisp and clear, and sound natural without being overly harsh. When listening to acoustic tracks you can make out the breath under a singer's voice or the shifting fingers of a guitarist's hands across the strings and fretboard.
mid-range
It also creates an impressively wide soundstage too, despite its relatively diminutive stature. Inevitably though, as a single component device, it's never going to be able to create the same level of stereo as a set of separates.
Up-sampling
That clear, detailed audio can come from even a relatively low-rent source like Spotify, thanks to its up-sampling through an audiophile-level 192kHz/24bit digital-to-analog converter (DAC).
Zeppelin Wireless
And thankfully B&W has opened up the latest iteration of the iconic Zeppelin to ensure it suits as wide an audience as possible.
No longer is it limited to Apple's AirPlay tech, it's also rocking Bluetooth AptX support as well as Spotify Connect . And for the analogue crew there's also an AUX input on the smooth rear of the chassis.
Bowers and Wilkins Zeppelin Wireless
Bowers and Wilkins has also made an effort to ensure the Zeppelin Wireless sounds as good at low volumes as high by dropping a new Digital Signal Processor (DSP) into the mix which is twice as powerful as the original design's.
And part of this detail at low, as well as high, volumes is the dynamic EQ which monitors the audio signal to ensure its powerful bass remains beautifully controlled no matter what level you turn it up to.
The new Zeppelin Wireless is looking once more to bring audiophile quality to the single component speaker market. And at this price you'd hope so.
For its $699 (£499 / AU$999) pricetag you get a host of premium-quality componentry fitted inside the newly-designed Zeppelin housing, making Bowers and Wilkins' latest iteration of the iconic shape the best yet.
DSP
It represents a genuine upgrade in both functionality - with more connections than before - and in terms of its aural quality too. The sound is excellent; bassy, but controlled and doesn't impact upon the clarity of the rest of the audio. The mid-range is incredibly powerful, but the clear separation means even Spotify tracks sound fantastic.
It's by no means perfect though.
The Apple bias is still there in that the only support app on offer is for the iOS software, or via a desktop computer. Given the extra demands of AirPlay setup that's almost forgivable, but the process of connecting to your home network on Android devices involves IP addresses and awkward router-like refreshes.
If you have multiple WiFi networks in your home - wireless signals sadly don't travel the length of my thick-walled home - then shifting the Zeppelin between them means going in and setting the connection up anew each time.
But it's not designed to be a particularly portable device - it's power cable does suggest it's meant to be kept in one place after all - though it would be handy if it could remember more than one network at a time.
Bowers and Wilkins Zeppelin Wireless
We liked
The new Bowers and Wilkins Zeppelin Wireless is a beautiful piece of design. It's a solid, reassuringly weighty wireless speaker delivering on all the B&W audio heritage which the British audio maestro has been building up throughout its near fifty year lifetime.
The sound is clear and natural, delivering room-filling audio with seriously punchy mid-range, and dynamic, controlled bass.
It remains clear and distortion-free throughout its volume range too. The dynamic EQ settings seem to work marvellously making sure nothing becomes overpowering or lost as it gets quieter or louder. And it sure gets loud....
The addition of Spotify connect is very welcome and with Bluetooth and AirPlay connections, wireless input is extensive and simple. You also get an easy auxilliary input too if you want to forgo such wireless pleasures and make with the cabling.
We disliked
That price is always going to be a bit of a stinger, especially when we're talking about single-component audio devices. But, considering something like the Naim Mu-so is still almost twice the price, the audiophile-level sound you can get out of the Zeppelin makes its argument for you.
Setup without the iOS app was a little awkward too. My main PC isn't on the wireless network so I had to do it via an Android device, inputting the IP address of the Zeppelin and setting up the network via a web-page. Intuitive it is not.
And you have to go through the same procedure if you want to change networks too - though as an ostensibly non-portable device that's more forgivable.
Verdict
After my first demo with the Zeppelin Wireless in Bowers and Wilkins' audio room I was pretty blown away. But then, back home enjoying my elderly speakers and amp with the joys of Google's Chromecast Audio, I wasn't sure I'd still feel the same when our review unit arrived.
But I love the new Zeppelin.
I love the closed, sleek styling. I love the impressive wireless connectivity. But most of all I love that sound. It's powerful, but defined; equally adept at pumping out pounding Happy Hardcore, breathy live vocals or delicate piano scores.
Would I pay $699 (£499 / AU$999) for the privilege? Not on my wage...but it would be a HiFi-quality wireless speaker that I'd aspire to own and one that isn't utterly unattainable.
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