Our intrepid trade-focused reviewer Richard Stevenson takes an in-depth look at the integrated online music offering of the Q Acoustics E300A.
Richard: “Alexa, make me an Echo speaker that offers much better sound quality and it can be installed so I don’t have to see it or its power cable.”
Alexa: “I’m sorry I can’t help you with that right now.”
Just as well that Q Acoustics can, with the superbly funky and functional E300A. Consider an amplified Echo-style Alexa smart amplifier that you install in the ceiling and connect to a pair, or even four, ceiling speakers for sound that is leagues ahead of anything direct from Amazon. The wife can shout, “Alexa, play Barry Manilow” in the kitchen while knocking up a risotto and swigging a cocktail, without having to dive into an app or put sticky fingers all over your flush-fit touch screens.
No word of a lie, that is precisely how the E300A worked in our kitchen and the cocktail was an Aperol spritz, just FYI.
Custom installation has always been about making technology invisible, but the rise of smart speaker convenience has invariably meant a plastic box with a trailing power cable sitting on a table or windowsill. The most successful CI projects are those where the client enjoys the benefits of the system without ever needing to see the equipment that makes it work, and the E300A is an outstanding solution for making smart speaker convenience invisible.
The E300A is a ceiling-mounted amplifier and smart audio hub that integrates Amazon Alexa directly into the ceiling space. The cut-out of 102 millimetres baffled me for a suitable hole saw until I realised that it was ‘four inch’ and Screwfix offers a range of them in that size. It slots into the void secured by two ‘downlighter’ style spring clips, which at over 550g is getting close to spring weight limits, I would have thought. A dog-leg clamp would be better, but I didn’t notice any sag over the few weeks since installation.
Retro-fitting is definitely possible as long as you can get power to the 22V 1.5A in-line power supply that comes with a 3-pin fused plug as standard. Given that is also going in the ceiling void, chopping off the plug for the fused spur access from the room would be more than advisable. The E300A itself is 60-minute fire-rated, and our demo unit was supplied with Q Acoustics fire hoods and a pair of i80C speakers.
The speaker 18 AWG cable supplied would need binning for LZOH 16/2 in most cases but more usefully in the box you will find a remote control. Yes, a genuine IR handset remote control. When Alexa just can’t hear you over Copacabana at volume 9/10, the remote is a genius add-on to further make operation agro-free.
The E300A can be connected to the network via Ethernet for the most robust performance, or via Wi-Fi for ease. Spotify Connect, Airplay 2.0, Amazon Music and Tidal Connect are all supported. It offers 25W x 2 via Class D amps, cooled by a vertical fin, giving the unit a maximum inset depth of 135mm from the ceiling surface. The connections are neatly placed half way down so they don’t add to the height and include some robust phoenix terminals for the speaker cables. The manual suggests stereo-paired speakers for smaller rooms, four for larger – the latter configurations with both channels series-wired.
LIVE AND DIRECT
For direct wireless playback there is Bluetooth 5.2, while physical inputs include both a combined mini-TOSLINK optical connection and a 3.5-millimetre analogue jack to integrate a TV or analogue audio source. There is a second RJ45 for a data cable running to a Q Acoustics Local Input Module, with analogue and digital physical connections to simplify AV systems integration.
Speaking of integrations, you can use the E300A with anything that is certified ‘Works With Alexa’ such as doorbells, thermostats and home security, if not any of the big-ticket control systems directly. Control4, for example, has an official Alexa Smart Home Skill, but the flow control is one-directional, so Alexa-only devices (i.e. cheap ‘Works With Alexa’ smart plugs) won’t appear inside C4.
Arguably, that isn’t the point of E300A anyway, as it’s all about its own stand-alone simplicity and convenience.
With the four-inch core drill bit cooling, the E300A hooks up very easily and pops into the hole, pulling itself snug. There are just the two buttons on the front, one to mute and unmute the mic and one to enter set-up mode and both together to do a factory reset. The room-facing panel features three mics for 360-degree voice command pick-up, similar to a 2nd Gen Echo. It also includes a colour LED ring with its own sign-language in colours and lit segments.
The Q Acoustics Q NET app on iOS and Android (not to be confused with the QNET app… as usual, we make the howlers, so you don’t have to…) offers basic functionality to get the E300A hooked up to the Wi-Fi system and relevant Alexa account. And that is about it for set-up. Slick.
It operates just like an Alexa smart speaker, albeit Alexa’s voice can be a little scary if you have the volume turned up and she is giving it the full ‘voice of God’ from above. It responds every bit as seamlessly as Amazon’s own kit, and the three mics pick up your voice well even with the volume racked up. Turn the volume too high and you still have the remote to fall back on if Alexa is metaphorically holding her fingers in her ears at the time.
I have always liked Q Acoustics’ in-wall and in-ceiling speakers as it’s a brand that genuinely cares about install speaker sound quality, rather than simply offering a low-cost ‘background noise’ solution. The i80C is no exception. With the E300A, a pair does create a sound that will eat an Echo Studio for breakfast and still have room for an Echo Dot for dessert and a Pop with coffee. It’s big, bold and rich compared to an Echo device and, if not exactly high-end fidelity, it does elevate Echo-music to a new level. I’d love an RF remote that you didn’t have to point at the unit to work and maybe a few more Watts – but that is being really picky for the price.
For any install, from a budget TV room to a high-end cinema, if the household uses an Alexa, somewhere in the house, someone will likely want the performance and convenience of the E300A and in-ceiling speakers. It’s a nice little low-cost add-on to the primary job, perhaps, “Alexa – is this something for the kitchen?”
“Yes, the Q Acoustics E300A would make an ideal smart speaker system for the kitchen, and you won’t have an Echo device or trailing cables showing. Would you like me to find a local installer?”
Product pricing comes in at £849 for the bundle of the E300A plus a pair of Q Acoustics QI 80C 8in speakers. Other speaker combos are available. The E300A on its own is £599. The Q Acoustics QI 80CF Fire & Acoustic hood (for speakers) are £82 each.
