Loudspeakers

Although the THREE can be used ‘as is’, most buyers will surely want to add the optional Kii CONTROL external controller/preamp. With it, input options are considerably expanded to include coaxial and optical S/PDIF (maximum sampling rate is 192kHz) as well as USB, which supports PCM files up to 384kHz as well as DSD files of up to DSD128. In addition, the controller provides volume, source selection and mute controls alongside armchair adjustment of the DSP’s boundary and contour filtering, facilitated by a small OLED display. Although the CONTROL uses a wired connection to the master THREE, the main functions can alternatively be remote controlled using either an Apple Remote or RC-5 protocol infra-red handset. Some potential buyers will inevitably question why Wi-Fi isn’t supported to allow control via iOS/Android apps, but perhaps that will come. Others will thank heaven for a proper, chunky control solution with real buttons and a real volume knob that won’t get lost between sofa cushions and never tells you it’s having a problem connecting with the network.