Kanto YU4 Powered Speakers
I had my first experience with Kanto a few months ago when I reviewed their hugely impressive TUK-powered speakers. Back then, I was getting into active units and realizing companies were taking their designs more seriously than in the past. The Kanto YU4 that im going to review today is their smaller and cheaper speaker with an RRP of $419 USD. They are available in various colors and can be purchased via numerous online retailers and direct from the company.
The Concept
Kanto is a company that sets its focus on the creation of active-powered speakers. For a long time, audiophiles would mock these types of speakers with good cause. Many times in the past, companies have put out low-quality products or repurposed existing speakers with low-quality components added. However, in recent years companies like Kanto and Edifier have been showing what is possible when designing active speakers from the ground up.
The YU4 utilizes a slick aesthetic design with good materials to grab the eye; they look Kanto distinctively, following in line with the YU, YU2, and YU6, which differentiate themselves with driver size. The YU4 has a 4-inch driver at its heart combined with a fairly common 1-inch silk dome tweeter aimed at reproducing high notes.
Specification
Drivers: 1X 1″ Silk Dome Tweeters & 1X 4″ Kevlar® Drivers
Amplifier: Class D Amplifier w/ 140W Peak Power (70 Watts Total RMS)
Frequency Response: 60 Hz – 20 kHz
Inputs: 3.5mm mini-jack AUX, RCA with Phono Switch, 2 x Optical (TOSLINK), Bluetooth™ 4.0 with Qualcomm® aptX™
Dimensions (per unit): 5.5″ W x 7.5″ D x 8.7″ H (14 x 19 x 22 cm)
Weight: 6.9 lb (3.2 kg)
As you can see, Kanto has done a great job of covering the basics providing good quality and appropriate amplification. The connectivity gives you lots of versatility for setting up your input sources, and adding 2 Optical inputs is something you don’t often see. If there was a criticism, the Bluetooth standard in 2022 is now 5.3, which increases range and reduces latency over the outdated 4.0 standard. Still, with this version of Bluetooth 4, there is support for hi-res streaming via the APTX codec.
Build and Aesthetic Impressions
Kanto just nails the aesthetic design of their speakers. It’s not easy to do either, as so many companies produce bookshelf speakers, and the best they can come up with is rectangular boxes. The Kanto YU4 feel fresh and modern, classy when you look directly at them, yet understate enough that they blend into the background of modern furnished environments.
It also helps that Kanto offers the YU4 in 9 different colors. It's an absurd amount but something I love because it lets you have it your way and stops you from accepting the black monoliths of lesser brands. The review unit I was using was white, which had a cool kind of stormtrooper vibe, but if I had my choice, I think I would go for the bold gloss red option as a centerpiece. Really more companies need to start following Kanto’s lead and offer more color options.
On the front, the design is beautiful; the way the tweeter is inlayed into the faceplate with the sloping curves catches the eye, then below the 4-inch driver with the kevlar weave adds a bit of wow factor.
One thing that often irks me with active speakers is asymmetry. Usually, this is caused by the IR blaster receiver for the remote. Edifier, for example, just randomly placed it as done Sony speakers I have tested in the past. Kanto tackled them by making the master control speaker have a front-facing volume pot to match the size of the IR blaster. This makes the master speaker symmetrical stood on its own and just shows that they thought seriously about how to make the best of a common issue. Well done.
Now build quality is top-notch. As I mentioned above, I reviewed the KANTO TUK last month, and one of the highlights was the build quality and finishing. That all flows downwards into the cheaper model and the build actually feels on par with that speaker that is twice the price. No rough edges, no imperfections, and high-quality materials are used throughout.
The remote doesn’t feel to the same standard as the speaker; it’s more of an afterthought and feels a bit generic. However, the functionality is ridiculous; it gives you access to everything you can possibly need from the speaker and is very well laid out.
Sound
The sound is well refined and clear overall balanced and produces a neutral tonality.
The quality of the main driver shines, with the kevlar being stiffer than the usual bio cellulose we see on desktop speakers at this price. That makes it better at resisting distortion and producing more detail; it’s actually true. The detail and clarity work in harmony to make for a very pleasant listening experience with good spacing between instrumentation.
The low end could undoubtedly benefit from more sub-bass capability, which is usually found in a small driver system like this. The bass is tight, punchy, and definitely bangs, but to get full-range low notes, it should be used with the matching Kato subwoofer.
The highs are clear and crisp and slightly rolled off at the top, which will cause less fatigue over long listening sessions. Thes are designed to be used as desktop speakers, so it’s likely you will be doing a lot of nearfield listening, and for me, a rounding of the highs is important in such situations.
Overall I think the best thing about the sound is the natural tone. It sounds very realistic and true to the source, even similar to more expensive speakers I have been testing recently. In fact, in the mids, it shares many similar characteristics to the TUK, so there is an element of Kanto having developed a house sound.
Final Verdict
It’s true that brands like Edifier have come to dominate the active speaker market in recent years, yet their design implementation leaves a lot to be desired. Kanto as a company is on the right path to creating gorgeous-looking speakers and pairing them with strong audio performance. To date, they are one of the best all-around desktop speakers I have tested and worth considering as alternatives to the Audioengine HD3 and Airpulse A100. Top marks Kanto, keep doing what you are doing.
Official Website of the Kanto YU4: www.kantoaudio.com
