The Cambridge Audio Evo One isn’t usually the sort of product I cover, but I felt intrigued when they listed ‘gaming’ as a potential feature of a dear £999/$1499 all-in-one music system. This is a product that’s more classic hi-fi than gaming soundbar, but with 14 speakers inside and compatibility with the best gaming TVs, it’s actually a pretty powerful option that’s worth knowing about.
In terms of looks, the Evo One reminds me of a modernised version of old hi-fi cabinets from the 1970s, pairing a large 6.8-inch IPS display on the front and a removable black surround fabric grille with a walnut finish on top. It’s just the right blend of old and new to fit just about anywhere.
Weighing in at 14.5kg and measuring 67.5cm wide means you’ll need somewhere robust and sturdy to match the speaker’s high-quality finishing – mine has been living on my dining room sideboard for musical purposes, and it’ll just about fit under my 32-inch monitor on a desk for gaming. The speaker actually sits on a recessed stand, so it’s raised slightly off the ground – another nice touch.
The large screen is very useful for at-a-glance information about the music you’re listening to, plus it can display everything from VU meters to album artwork, and it can also work as a clock. The selection of buttons beneath the screen handles more menial tasks, such as volume control, track seeking and more besides. They are a little cheap feeling against the smooth, slick lit-up dial and touchscreen combo you’ll find on the competitive Naim Mu-So 2, but they work well enough.
Connectivity is plentiful, too, with everything from HDMI eARC, for connecting to your TV (or a gaming monitor) as a very powerful soundbar, to a USB port for playing files directly off a drive, an Ethernet port for wired networking and more usual aux-in and optical inputs. This system even has a moving magnet phono stage inside, so you can hook up a turntable directly to it for enjoying vinyl on a modern system. You can also connect to it over a network and stream directly from your phone (or through Cambridge’s Streammagic app), with support for Tidal Connect, Spotify Connect, Deezer and Qobuz. Plus, there’s AirPlay 2, Google Cast, Bluetooth 5.1, and it’s Roon Ready if you’re a paid-up subscriber. The Evo One also accepts music over the app from a network server via UPnP (which is what I’ve been doing with my QNAP NAS over Plex).
Alongside integrating it with Spotify Connect and UPnP, I must also commend the Google Cast integration. I know a lot of folks in the know will be surprised that I’ve only just discovered this, but it is possible to create multi-room audio over Wi-Fi with two or more different speakers that support Google Cast in the Google Home app. You can create a speaker group in the app with speakers connected to Wi-Fi in separate rooms (you have to designate each speaker a separate room in the app) and then bring them together with a couple of small taps, so you can have multi-room audio without being at the behest of having matching speakers a la Sonos. In the living room, there’s a Naim Mu-So Qb 2, with the Evo One in the dining room, and it works without a hitch.
The Streammagic app is also there for when you want to control music at a distance from the Evo One, providing you with the same degree of control as with the display, plus it integrates with the streaming services above in a slick and neat interface. There are also additional settings, such as for room compensation and speaker placement and a seven-band EQ so you can get audio just right. The app also lends itself well to getting the unit set up initially, providing on-screen instructions on getting it connected to Wifi, and then running over-the-air firmware updates so it’s ready to go in a matter of minutes.
The Evo One features what I think is the largest number of drivers in a single box to date, featuring a set of 14 drive units with upwards of 700W of amplification that’s aided with digital signal processing – Cambridge says this is designed to help the Evo One produce deep and controlled bass, for instance. You get four 25mm silk dome tweeters, with four 57mm aluminium cone mid-range units, and a further six 70mm woofers that are designed to produce big sound to fill a large room.
With such a vast array of speakers and versatile use cases, I had high hopes for this Cambridge system. The thing that immediately hit me when putting it through my customary tests of both September from Earth, Wind & Fire and 2112 from Rush was the width and expanse of the audio. Its sound extends beyond the confines of the unit, and carries some excellent precision and space for clearly picking out different elements, such as September’s far-off bongos, or 2112’s running water in the ‘Discovery’ section.
In the Bee Gees’ Nights on Broadway, as much as the track’s marvellous harmonies were front and centre, I could still hear the track’s clavichord and electric piano work far off on the distance with the utmost clarity. I also like to use a live cut of George Benson’s Affirmation (thanks, DankPods) for testing soundstage due to the crowd noise at the beginning, plus the track’s percussion and clapping elements, whose detail was discernable even among a busy live recording. Speaking of busy, Brand X’s Dance of the Illegal Aliens is a very busy jazz fusion track with everything from frenetic bass and rolling drums to percussion and more besides; the song’s bongo hits felt far off on one direction, beyond the confines of the unit, and almost towards the back of the set.
The Evo One’s bass is as described above, I’d argue, with good depth and control to it. In some instances, it can encroach a smidgen on the mid-range and provide this system with a heavier-handed approach, but this can be adjusted with EQ settings should you wish. In spinning up The Invisible Man from Marillion, the track features a deep and brooding bassline amongst an atmospheric vocal from Steve Hogarth that demonstrates both its extension and power, but also the depth and body that lends itself well to darker–sounding, busier songs. I felt much the same with Steven Wilson’s very tricky Meanwhile from his last album, which has a gritty bassline at one particular point contrasted with lighter acoustic guitar work – there’s certainly plenty of rumble.
As much as the low-end can feel a little overbearing at times, there is still plenty of room for the rest to breathe. On James Taylor’s September Grass, his warm vocal and the track’s acoustic guitar elements came through with some gorgeous detail and richness without feeling pushed back into the unit. The same was true for the brighter Tape Deck from Jack Johnson, with his vocal, the song’s minimalistic acoustic guitar and light drum and percussion work each occupying their own space in the mix.
Unlike other speakers, the top end from the Evo One isn’t sharp or overbearing, and this system doesn’t lend itself to a V-shaped profile (that is, one that prioritises bass and treble above all). It’s a precise and bright treble, as I noted with the competing percussion intro to Steely Dan’s Do It Again. That can be particularly challenging for any speaker to master, but the combination of the sparkly feel and vast soundstage means that Cambridge’s unit handled it with panache. The Strokes’ On The Other Side provides an interesting challenge, with its introduction pairing a pounding bassline with constant cymbal hits, and as much as the booming bassline was there consistently, the cymbals didn’t feel drowned out and held their own in the mix.
The expansive soundstage and consistent performance, no matter how far you are away from the unit, also lend themselves well to games. Granted, it isn’t the typical use case for this system, but hook it up to a compatible TV or monitor (rare, but possible) via HDMI eARC, and it works a charm with the combination of a powerful low-end for atmosphere for gunfire or engine noises, plus expansive space for the mids and highs for vocal clarity. I’m not saying to use it for competitive eSports such as Counter-Strike 2, where precision is vital, but for more cinematic titles with scale and depth, such as Cyberpunk 2077 and even my usual Forza Horizon 5 and EA FC titles worked great with noise such as deep engine rumbles and the far-off noises of crowd chants.
The Cambridge Audio Evo One is a genuinely gorgeous all-in-one system that’s equally adept for games as it is for music. Its fit and finish is excellent, and I’m loathe to send it back with how pleasant it looks in my dining room. Not to mention, its very versatile connectivity, the bonus of a large screen and handy app support. Its audio is expansive, detailed and wonderfully clean with tight bass, rich mids, and surprisingly bright treble that sounds fantastic. Some may prefer a speaker that isn’t as heavy-handed with the low-end at times, but to my ears, it’s still a huge technical achievement. It’s surely worth recommending as one of the best console or computer speakers, a rare product that ticks basically every box – just as long as it physically fits where you want to use it.
