We take a look at the Minx Xi streaming mini system from Cambridge Audio, winner of the What Hi-Fi? Award for Best Music System £400-£800…
The problem that all manufacturers have to consider when designing their mini systems is, do you stay smaller in order to keep the unit nice and neat or do you go large with your components in order to maximise performance?
If you’re Cambridge Audio then naturally you try for both. The Minx Xi has its roots in previous award-winning sound systems such as the NP30 and it certainly shows in the usability as well as the sound. Recognising that music listeners are moving away from CDs and towards the realm of streaming, the company has embraced this digital age with a small, neat and easy to use system.
Catering to the masses who just want to stream their MP3s is easy, but it takes a good system to also hold its own when it comes to CD quality or higher resolutions, and that’s exactly where the Minx Xi pitches itself. Easy and simple enough to use for people with simple audio needs but capable and bold enough to go further and impress when it has something to get its teeth into.
“Overall this is a terrific streaming system.” – What Hi-Fi?
Build quality is excellent with a heaviness to the unit that’s immediately reassuring, as you might expect a lot of good quality components have gone into the Minx Xi. The system boasts and impressive 40 watts of power and underneath the stylish cover you’ll find a toroidal transformer not usually seen in small systems, allowing the Minx Xi to really throw out its elbows when it comes to punch and power.
The front panel is a very simple but effective LED display where the volume dial doubles as a selector allowing you to scroll through the menus with relative ease. You’ll also find some simple control buttons either side of the display screen along with a headphone socket, USB and auxiliary input for simple connections when needed. On the rear, the digital feel continues with optical, coaxial and another couple of USBs (one to plug in Cambridge’s Bluetooth dongle). All of these are handled by a Wolfson DAC that takes it all in its stride whether it’s Bluetooth or 24 bit/96khz audio.
Cambridge haven’t completely eschewed analogue options as there’s a couple of pairs of phono sockets just in case you might have other sources like a turntable that you wish to connect. Wi-Fi or a cabled connection to your network are both on offer but always go cabled if you can for the stability and speed it offers.
Hook up some classy speakers such as Monitor Audio’s Bronze 2 standmounts (another What Hi-Fi? Award Winner) and the amount of “oomph” in the small Cambridge is immediately apparent. When listening to Castle by Halsey the dynamics and detail on offer are apparent as soon as the first chorus kicks in. Take things down a touch with Jamie Cullum’s cover of Blame It On My Youth and the smooth mellow jazz is beautifully rich and warm without being too soft and timid. Switch to Bluetooth and although the expected drop in quality is audible, the Minx Xi manages to smooth out the bumps better than expected and is perfectly listenable when you want to play tracks straight from your phone or tablet.
Using the Cambridge Connect app is the preferable way of accessing your digital content, allowing you to choose from music stored on a directly connected flash drive, NAS drives or the hard drive of your computer. You can queue up tracks as well as choosing what to immediately play and it’s also particularly useful when searching for any of the 20,000+ internet radio stations that are available. Even if your chosen station isn’t seemingly available you can input the URL address into the unit and add it to your favourites!
When this was originally tested and reviewed by What Hi-Fi? in 2014 it was in the unit’s early days. Since then a raft of updates have been applied, including compatibility for Spotify connect and improvements to its app. When compared to the other mini systems such as the Marantz MCR611, Denon CEOL RCDN9 and Sonos Connect:AMP it’s a serious contender that gives you the most bang for your buck sound wise. It’s no surprise that the Minx Xi has retained its crown for the 2015 awards.
To find out more about the Minx Xi, click here.
Author – Steve, Bristol store
