Audioengine's HD4 speakers: Easy setup, great sound

WHAT Audioengine’s HD4 Powered Bluetooth aptX HD system

WHAT IT DOES This great-looking pair of Bluetooth speakers is easy to set up and they sound even better. Setup is a breeze: It took exactly four minutes and 17 seconds. That included opening the box, taking the speakers out of nice cloth bags, and locating the power cord and the installing speaker cable. A connection for a Bluetooth antenna is included.

THE COST $449

AVAILABLE FROM audioengineusa.com

WHAT'S HOT A variety of choices are available to connect music from your smartphone or receiver. Also included are cables for direction connection that include 3.5-millimeter stereo mini-jack, micro-USB and RCA L/R. The latest Bluetooth 5 is used for simple and robust wireless. There are even output options with RCA variable line-out and 3.5-millimeter mini-jack headphone out.

Using the speakers with connected devices, streaming music, movie night and even listening to a live baseball broadcast, all produced great sound, with perfect clarity at any volume. The three setups were in different environments and the Audioengine HD4 Powered Bluetooth speaker system was great.

Each speaker is 9-by-5.5-by-6.5 inches, and since these are bookshelf speakers, the looks count. And these are a winner, with a walnut finish constructed with real wood veneer. Audioengine has built the speaker cabinets with thick high-resin MDF walls with extensive internal bracing. They state that heavy internal sound-damping material is used to reduce unwanted sound reflections inside the cabinet. All cabinet edges are rounded, which look great and reduce high-frequency diffraction effects on the front baffles.

WHAT'S NOT The speakers are not waterproof, weatherproof or anything close, so don't try to use them for an outdoor movie night if the forecast calls for rain.