From Phono's Mouth To Speaker's Ear
Sound & Vision|January 2018

Kanto YU6 Powered Speaker System

Mark Fleischmann
From Phono's Mouth To Speaker's Ear

WHY SHOULDN’T LIFE BE SIMPler? If there’s one thing your studio apartment, dorm room, bedroom, or guest bedroom doesn’t need, it’s an audio rack with a tangle of cables. But going without music would be barbaric. So how simple do you need to get? If a bare-bones Bluetooth speaker isn’t enough, a pair of powered speakers might make more sense. You’d have a stereo soundstage without the fuss of an outboard amp and rack. If you want something vinyl-friendly, that narrows the search dramatically. The Kanto YU6 is one of the few powered speaker systems with a built-in phono stage. Add line, optical, and Bluetooth inputs, and you’ve got an economical but versatile little music maker.

Born in Canada about a decade ago, Kanto offers three powered speaker systems, two powered sub-woofers, speaker stands, and audio cables. Along with the YU6 ($480 list, but widely discounted to $390), the systems include the smaller YU4 ($390) and YU2 ($249). (You can check current promotional pricing for all models with retailers listed at kantoaudio.com/authorized resellers.) The top two models include phono pre-amps and Toslink optical inputs, while the bottom model has a USB jack that accepts direct input from a computer. All have subwoofer outputs with 200-hertz low-pass filters. The idea is you dial down the high-pass filter on your sub until blending is achieved; the speaker always outputs a full-range signal, and the sub is simply filling in below the speaker’s capabilities.

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