Cambridge Audio Yoyo (M) wireless speakers review
Cambridge Audio Yoyo (M) wireless speakers
£300Pros
- Looks great
- Solid build quality
- Easy to pair and use
- Great stereo imaging
- Effortless sound quality
Cons
- Might not be accurate enough for fussy listeners
Cambridge Audio will be a familiar name to a lot of you Gadgety faithful. They’ve been around for 50 years, my first Hi-Fi separates sported the Cambridge Audio logo. Like many Hi-Fi makers they are ensuring they have a finger in the wireless speaker pie. I have been spending time with their Yoyo (S) and (M) speakers. Here’s my thoughts about the (M).
Yes, there is a large selection of Bluetooth speakers to choose from but, let’s be honest, not all are ideal for your stylish living-room.
Ruggedised and rubberised might be great for outdoors or the bathroom but perhaps not to sit amongst your soft furnishings.
If you’re going out to splash the cash you might has well add some other wants to the list. How about a wireless stereo pair? They would have to be easy to use, of course. Stylish, goes without saying. Oh, they’d have to be able to charge your smart device too – why not two at once? All of this whilst sounding more Hi-Fi than your average Bluetooth speaker.
Righty Cambridge Audio. There’s your challenge. Your answer? Something called Yoyo.
Cambridge Audio Yoyo (M) design
What screams ‘British’ more than tweed?
I was actually delighted not to have done any previous research about the Yoyo (M) and was pleasantly surprised by the covering.
Both speakers are covered in “acoustically transparent” fabric made by Yorkshire weavers Marton Mills. Yup, Cambridge gets extra points for the Yorkshire connection on this site too 😉
What’s special about this ‘worsted’ wool (with all fibres running in the same direction) is that it’s treated to resist water, dirt and shrinking. That is definitely a good thing as the ones I have to review are a rather pale grey. I could see chocolate-covered fingers soon ruining that finish otherwise (no, I haven’t got any kids).
Before you start getting thoughts of dropping a speaker in the pool or gliding through Glastonbury’s famous mud – no. Just, no. What I am saying is that having them on your garden table whilst enjoying a G&T should be fine.
Underneath the speakers you’ll find the connection for the power cable, an Aux line in for non-wireless sources, a USB charging port for your mobile device and a button to check how much charge the speaker has. Yup, these are totally wireless speakers – no power (when charged) or speaker cables here.
The Yoyo (M) measure 125 x 125 x 204 (W x D x H) and the pair weigh in at around 3 Kg.
They do feel really well put together too.
Cambridge Yoyo (M) performance
Inside each speaker you’ll find a 30mm full-range driver and a 75mm bass driver. These are both powered by a class D amplifier.
The Yoyo (M)s connect to each other wirelessly and automatically from the second they’re powered on.
The master unit (the one with the logo badge on it) is the right channel which leaves the slave unit to handle the left channel. So, yeah, those in the picture above are the wrong way around.
As previously mentioned you can have the speakers plugged in to the mains (they both have their own powerbricks and cables) or run them from their internal battery. Cambridge says that they will last 24 hours without the need of a plug. At ‘normal’ volume I found this to be the case. Obviously expect a little less at full party vibe.
To ensure not getting caught out, just press the button under each speaker to check how much battery is left. This will illuminate the white LEDs up top accordingly.
You rarely get a remote with Bluetooth speakers. Well, there’s generally no need is there as you will normally use your smart device to control playback.
However, the Yoyo (M) has a neat little trick. Yes, you have no doubt seen the touch-sensitive buttons on the units’ rubberised top panels.
The icons light up when you poke at them. All the controls – volume, playback, Bluetooth pairing – sync simultaneously across both speakers, too. Turn one speaker off and the other one goes to sleep too.
You can also use The Force. Kinda.
Simply wave your hand over the speakers to control them. Left to right plays and skips tracks, while going the opposite way pauses the music.
I can see this being handy when you’ve got a bottle in one hand and hotdog in the other.
You might have also noticed the brass threaded hole in the middle of the speaker’s underside.
This takes a Gorilla pod or standard camera tripod screw. Handy if you want to mount these on stands.
Sound quality
The first outing of the Yoyo (M) was with me and my colleagues working on a Saturday to get a software release out.
In the office the sound from the compact speakers is impressively large. Being totally wireless meant that we could have them well separated, at either end of the desk.
There is a slight warmth to them (could be the woven cloth – heh!) but this makes them a very unchallenging listen.
That’s not to say that they lack depth and power though. Being a mixed bunch we had what amounted to a best of the 90s playlist going on.
This covered everything from boy bands, Indie and Grunge, through to air-grabbing ballads and arena rock classics. These speakers handled everything in a relaxed and confident manner.
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Vocals seemed to be a little forward from the instruments which, for the most part, is fine.
The top-end seems to be a little rolled off. This aids the smoothness of the audio presentation. This has the knock-on effect of there being a slight lack of definition when compared with the DALI Katch, for instance. I think that this is purely down to taste though.
Bass is nice and weighty and the mids have good presence. For me, I would have enjoyed a little more focus from the lows in an ideal world.
Cambridge Audio Yoyo (M) review conclusion
Cambridge has come up with some portable wireless speakers that pleases.
The Yoyo (M) stereo pair, thanks to them being totally wireless, dishes out competent audio with a decent sound-stage and power.
Their comfortable sound profile means that relaxed listening is the order of the day here. It also means that they will be just as happy playing your Take That back catalogue as they are some smokey Trad Jazz.
If you are looking for speakers that will eek out every nuance of an orchestral piece, perhaps the Yoyo (M) aren’t the ones. If you simply want to enjoy music, they will definitely keep you smiling.
Add to that 24 hours of battery-powered playback and being able to charge a smart device from each speaker, it is well worth your while checking out the Cambridge Audio Yoyo (M) speakers.
Cambridge Audio Yoyo (M) price and availability
You can buy the Yoyo (M) now direct from Cambridge Audio for £300.
The speakers are available in three colourways: Dark Grey, Light Grey or Blue.
