NuVo P200 Wireless Player

NuVo's new Wireless Audio System delivers streaming audio anywhere in your home?even to multiple rooms simultaneously. The P200 ($599 list), the company's wireless stereo amplifier and media hub, supports dual-band 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi and MIMO for truly reliable performance, and is capable of transmitting up to 16 simultaneous streams at 600Kbps each. It's also a stereo amplifier, giving you the ability to hook up any pair of passive speakers that could very well sound much better than any AirPlay or Bluetooth speaker.

Used as intended?in multiple rooms, with?the GW100 Gateway (which is required for wireless use),?multiple P200s, and multiple sets of speakers?the whole system is very expensive for the average music listener, and it has a few issues as well. But if you're an audio component fan interested in top-quality wireless streaming throughout your home, and you have the means, read on.

Design, Amplifier, and Main Setup
The NuVo P200 measures 1.65 by 9.02 by 5.0 inches (HWD) and weighs 2.5 pounds. It's made entirely of black plastic, with a vertically curved edge on one side and a horizontally curved edge on the other. The front panel is clean save for four capacitive buttons, which control volume, muting, and Bluetooth functions, plus a combination power and status LED. The back panel houses standard-size 3.5mm input and output jacks, a 3.5mm setup mic port that the manual says is for "future use" only, and four gold 5-way binding posts for connecting speakers. There are also USB 2.0 and Ethernet ports, plus a hardware power switch that, thankfully, doesn't send a loud thump through your speakers when you switch it on.

Inside is a 60-watt-per-channel stereo amplifier that works with 8 ohm and 4 ohm passive speakers. There's Audyssey-powered dynamic volume processing onboard for balancing day and night listening at lower levels, as well as bass and treble adjustments with 12 dB of range in either direction. I tested the P200 with a pair of Klipsch HD Theater 600 satellites and their companion 100-watt, 8-inch powered subwoofer. I hooked up the satellites to the P200 via its five-way binding posts, and then used a 6-foot stereo Y-cable (which is not included) to connect the stereo 3.5mm mini-jack line out on the P200 to the pair of stereo RCA inputs on the powered subwoofer.

The setup process is a little confusing. First, you hook up your speakers, plug the P200 into the wall, download the NuVo Player iOS or Android app on your mobile device, and follow the on-screen instructions. From the app, you can begin setup of a new system or join an existing system you're expanding.

Unfortunately, while the P200 supports Wi-Fi, you need the $199 NuVo GW100 Gateway in order to use the P200 wirelessly. Otherwise, you must use the included Ethernet port and connect it to your router. I tested the P200 with the GW100, which came with no instructions. Basically, you just connect the main port (not one of the four LAN ports) to an existing free port on your router with the included Ethernet cable. The app found it immediately. Next, I powered on the P200, waited for the solid green LED light indicating ready status, and then tapped Next in the app. Then I paired the P200 with the GW100 by holding down the Volume Up and Mute buttons as indicated. From there, I was off and running.

Sound Quality and Music Source Setup
As a general rule, sound quality from the built-in amplifier was uniformly excellent, with a clear soundstage and plenty of gain. I wouldn't have any reservations about powering a full-range pair of floorstanding speakers with the P200. That said, audiophiles may wish to bypass the P200's internal amp and employ the line out for use with an external integrated amplifier or preamp/amp combo. Even better, I didn't experience any audio dropouts while sharing music from a variety of sources, even on our extremely saturated PCMag Labs Wi-Fi networks.

The real purpose of the NuVo system is to enable multi-room wireless streaming, and with multiple sources of music. For that, you may find that a single P200 isn't enough; you can put one in each room, along with an appropriately sized set of speakers, and then control the whole shebang using the app's visual interface. This is the kind of setup where the NuVo system excels, thanks to its reliable wireless performance.

(Next page: Other Features, Product Line, and Conclusions)

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