Riva Turbo X Bluetooth loudspeaker system

Since you are reading this magazine, odds are you already own a full-fledged hi-fi system—probably a very good one and quite possibly one that your friends and colleagues consider ‘expensive’. However, if you think back to the earliest days of your interest in our hobby, it’s likely your first system (or first piece of audio equipment) was pretty modest. The important point, of course, is that first ‘starter’ system helped stimulate both your love of music and your appreciation for better-than-average sound quality—pursuits that, we presume, you still find rewarding to this day.

But this train of thought led me to some important questions. For instance, what musically satisfying yet high cost effective choices are available to today’s newcomers to the world of high-performance audio? And in a related vein, what sort of playback ‘system’ actually makes the most sense for modern, music-loving newbies? As I’ve pondered these questions, I reached the conclusion that perhaps the best starter system might not be a traditional system at all, but rather a compact, affordable, yet surprising capable single-chassis device such as the Riva Turbo X Bluetooth speaker.

I first encountered the Riva at the 2015 SoCal CanJam event, where the Riva team was proudly showing audiophiles and discerning headphonistas alike the capabilities of their pint-sized Turbo X. What struck me and many other listeners present was the tiny Riva’s uncannily smooth and full-bodied sound, coupled with its unexpected, big-system-like quality of three-dimensionality. It’s always tempting, of course, to be wowed by small devices that sounds bigger than they look, but with the Riva I think there is something deeper going on; namely, an ability not only to sound ‘big’, but also to sound good and in ways likely to appeal to audiophile sensibilities.

The Riva is the brainchild of a firm called Audio Design Experts, Inc. (or ADX, for short) whose Chairman and Chief Creative Officer is the charismatic former rock’n’roll impresario Rikki Farr, ably complemented by the firm’s President and Chief Technology Officer Donald North. Together, Farr and North make a great team, with Farr supplying the vision for what his firm’s products should be and do, while North provides the creativity, technical know-how, and sheer inventive genius to turn Farr’s ideas into real-world products. In the case of the Riva Turbo X the result is a product that falls in a familiar category (Bluetooth speakers), but that proves from the outset that it is—to use one of my favourite British expressions—‘a bit special’ (although that’s putting things mildly).

The Riva Turbo X is a small, 230mm wide oblong speaker with a wraparound grille made of perforated metal, trimmed either in black or white and silver, and fitted with a top-mounted set of seven touch-sensitive control switches (power on/off, Trillium Surround mode on/off, input switching/Bluetooth pairing, mute, volume down, volume up, and Turbo EQ mode). At the rear of the Riva is a small connection bay featuring a 3.5mm stereo analogue input jack, a USB data port (for firmware updates), a master battery on/off switch, a USB iPod/iPhone charging port, a 19V power supply input socket, and a battery status indicator light.

On the inside, the Turbo X is fitted with three proprietary ADX 60mm full-range drivers, plus four proprietary ABX dual-piston bass radiators. Powering this array is a three-channel amplifier with a total of 45 watts RMS output power, plus processing circuitry as needed to support the Riva’s three main playback modes. These modes include: Normal listening mode (in essence, a three-channel stereo mode), Trillium Surround mode (an astonishingly effective simulated surround mode intended for home theatre or gaming applications, but also excellent for music listening), and Turbo EQ mode (essentially a ‘kick out the jams’ mode that applies both special EQ and dynamic compression setting to allow the Turbo X’s to produce output levels as high as 100dB). Additionally, the Turbo X offers a Speakerphone mode when paired with Bluetooth capable smartphones, and a Phono mode that allows the AUX analogue input to be reconfigured as a phono input.

As you can imagine, the Riva lends itself to several real-world playback applications. First and foremost, it is a very fine-sounding Bluetooth speaker and speakerphone. Next, though, the Riva can be connected, via included cables, to the analogue outputs of disc players, Blu-ray players, or even flat panel televisions, making the Turbo X a lovely little single-chassis TV speaker that can do a fairly convincing imitation of a surround sound system: not bad for a speaker roughly the size of a box of tissues. The unit is not supplied with a remote control, but Riva offers its Ground Control app through the App Store and through Google Play. The Ground Control app supports volume up/down/mute functions, provides controls for the Trillium Surround and Turbo EQ modes, monitors battery life, manages audio prompts, and allows user to set the app’s background colours.

The real proof of the Riva Turbo X’s merits come not in its features, but rather in the listening, where my assessment is that the Turbo X offers best-in-class performance for products of its size, type, and price. For my listening tests I primarily ran the Turbo X via Bluetooth connections to an Apple iPad Air 2 tablet and from a Samsung Galaxy S5 smartphone loaded with lossless PCM files. With both devices, pairing with Riva proved easy to accomplish, so that I was able to get under way within a matter of seconds from starting the pairing process.

From the outset, the Riva distinguishes itself from other compact Bluetooth speakers through its admirable smoothness, generally full-bodied sound, energetic upper bass, and—when the Trillium Surround mode is engaged—through its surprising wide, deep soundstages. As an example, listed to ‘Wicked Game’ from Chris Isaak’s Heart Shaped World [Reprise] and listen to the Riva’s sweet, silky smooth rendition of the song’s soaring guitar lines, Isaak’s lilting crooner’s voice, and the loping bass pulse that gently drive the song forward. What the Riva does so well (and that lesser Bluetooth speakers barely do at all) is to allow the guitar riffs to float upwards on the air, while Isaak’s voice fills (yet does not overpower) a broad and expansive soundstage, even as the bass manages to sound deeper and more solid than seems possible given the Turbo x’s compact size. It’s with sheer depth and width of the stage that many listeners—this one included—find particularly pleasing and compelling.

But enjoyable though listening with the Trillium Surround mode engaged can be, there are certain songs—especially those involving overlaid voices—where Normal mode lends a heightened degree of focus and definition that is very desirable. A good illustration might be ‘Who by Fire’ from Leonard Cohen’s Live in London [Sony], where Normal mode does a better job than Trillium Surround mode in terms of drawing out the gritty textures and subtle inflections of Cohen’s deep baritone voice. Where Trillium Surround mode gives the sound greater depth and width, Normal mode gives the presentation greater resolution and a tighter sense of overall focus.

Frankly, the Riva Turbo X tends to provide plenty of volume, even in relative large rooms, so I felt little need to explore the Riva’s signature Turbo EQ model. However, certain songs, such as some of guitarist Joe Satriani’s more high-energy, groove orientated efforts, that fairly beg to be cranked up, and for those moments the Turbo EQ mode is just what the doctor ordered. Just bear in mind, though, that prolonged use of the Turbo EQ mode will dramatically reduce battery life (from a high of 26+ hours at moderate levels down to just 6+ hours with the pedal-to-the-metal Turbo EQ mode engaged).

All in all, I think the Riva Turbo X makes a wonderful starting point for potential audiophiles in the making and in particular for those who have never owned sound systems of any kind before. While purists might rightly argue that a compact Bluetooth speaker is no substitute for a proper loudspeaker based hi-fi system, the fact of the matter is that the Turbo X delivers an awful lot of music for not very much money, while offering terrific convenience, ease of use, portability, and the elusive but all-important ‘fun factor’ that keeps users coming back for more. Music lovers with limited budgets and/or tight space constraints may find that the Riva Turbo X is the user-friendly, real-world hi-fi system they have been looking for—and one that can come along when they travel, too.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

• Type: Compact, three-channel Bluetooth speaker system
• Driver complement: three ADX 60mm full-range drivers, four ADX dual-piston bass radiators
• Inputs: aptX Bluetooth input, 3.5mm stereo analogue input, USB data port for firmware updates and future upgrades
• Outputs: USB charging port for iPods/iPhones.
• Audio Codecs supported: SBC, AAC, aptX.
• Remote Control apps: Riva Ground Control smartphone apps are available free of charge from the App Store and from Google Play
• Amplifier power: 3 × 15Wpc RMS
• Battery Life: 26+ hours at 75dB, 6+ hours in Turbo mode at maximum output
• Playback modes: Normal: A three-channel stereo playback mode. Trillium Surround: A proprietary simulated surround mode.  Turbo: A combination EQ and high-output mode that allows output levels to reach 100dB.
• Speakerphone mode: The Turbo X is microphone equipped and can serve as a speakerphone when used in conjunction with Bluetooth capable smartphones
• Phono mode: By pressing a specific combination of input selections buttons, the Turbo X’s AUX analogue input can be used as a phono input
• Accessories: Standard: 19V battery charging power supply, AC power cord, 3.5mm-to-3.5mm analogue input cable (48-inch), 3.5mm-to-dual-RCA-plug analogue input cable (70-inch), and splash resistant rubber input jack cover. Optional: Padded, heavy canvas carry bag with built-in accessory pouch.
• Dimensions (H×W×D): 105mm × 89mm × 230mm
• Weight: 1.6kg
• Price: £229

Manufacturer Information: Riva Audio

URL: www.rivaaudio.com, www.rivaaudio.co.uk

Distributed in the UK by: Decent Audio

Tel.: +44 (0)5602 054669

URL: www.decentaudio.co.uk

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