Read enough home audio advertisements, reviews, and audiophile discussion boards and you’ll undoubtedly run into the description, transparent. The subjective term describes audio output that hasn’t adulterated (noticeably) any hardware during the flow of input to output. In the case of DECT Technology’s DECT wireless speakers – the ONEclassic – the description is literal: a completely transparent cabinet audio speaker.
Constructed with 12mm German made acrylic plastic, the wireless ONEclassic’s see-through cabinet wasn’t just chosen for aesthetic reasons, but also related to acrylic’s high internal damping characteristic; the material helps stop sound from reflecting inside the speaker enclosure and discoloring transparency (there’s that term again).
The trade-off is a higher cost per unit – 5x more expensive than using wood. ONEclassic’s development team claims the costs are worth the results, offering cleaner and warmer performance capable of handling all genres of music without distortion. One would hope so, considering the considerable $3,550 price for a pair of these speakers (currently available for pre-order price at $1,999).
The hand-constructed ONEclassic is designed to work with any audio source that supports USB audio – computers, mobile devices, set top box, or even a NAS server – delivering compatibility with an integrated USB dongle. The transparent design and bookshelf speaker size offers placement flexibility, for sure. Considering the price, the speaker is out of bounds for the typical consumer, those better served by single Bluetooth speakers or a Sonos system. But for audiophiles seeking uncompromising performance with wireless stereo or surround sound performance, this conversation-starter is clearly within contention.