Triangle AIO Twin Wireless Speakers & Thetis 340 Subwoofer: Review

Sitting in heavy traffic on Queen Street West last week in downtown Toronto, I spotted a young woman inside a local record store listening to music through a pair of headphones whilst seated at a listening station adjacent to the front counter. It might sound odd to say this, but she represents the future of high-end audio.

My 75 year-old mother sits at her breakfast table in Delray Beach every morning reading the newspaper and listening to old Yiddish recordings she found on YouTube through a Bluesound Pulse Flex 2i Wireless Loudspeaker. She also represents the future of high-end audio.

Products like the Triangle AIO Twin Wireless Loudspeakers and Thetis 340 Subwoofer are the future of high-end audio and they make a rather compelling case for a 2.1 channel music and home theater system that won’t break the bank or become overly complicated to use.

Triangle celebrated its 40th Anniversary in 2022 and introduced an impressive new lineup of loudspeakers to celebrate this important milestone. The Triangle Borea BR03 BT Wireless Loudspeakers caught our attention for the simple reason that they offer so much for under $800 USD and having just reviewed the impressive KEF LSX II Active Wireless Loudspeakers which retail for $1,400 USD (not including stands) — we needed to take a deeper dive.

You can read my assessment of the very impressive Borea BR03 BT here.

Audiophiles who are growing weary of our belief that active wireless speakers will (eventually) make traditional high-end systems irrelevant are deluding themselves; and that doesn’t mean that manufacturers are about to stop engineering components.

Based on our three recent podcasts with Focal, Naim, and Cambridge Audio, high-end audio components are already in the pipeline for the next five years but there is a recognition within all three manufacturers that things are changing rapidly; both in terms of what customers want to buy and their listening habits.

Dynaudio and KEF have already successfully proven that it can be accomplished at the high-end for under $10,000 USD and there is clearly a lot of room in the $800 to $1,500 range for products like the Triangle BOREA BR03 BT, KEF LSX II, and the new PSB Alpha IQ.

Having listened to the Triangle AIO Twin Wireless/Thetis 340 Subwoofer combination for the past two months in the dining room system, I am starting to become even more of a convert.

Do you know how many guests ask about the Cambridge Audio Edge A/ATC SCM50ASLT system in my den?

Zero.

Both the size and $30,000 asking price of those two components alone turn people off.

It doesn’t matter that the sound quality is utterly mesmerizing when I stream something through Qobuz and my Roon Nucleus or play a record on my Thorens turntables. It is completely irrational to my guests who love music but have mortgage payments, college tuition, health insurance bills, and elderly parents to take care of.

These same people drive Teslas and Range Rovers and live in homes that run into the millions. High-end audio at this level is not a priority for them.

Products like the Triangle AIO Twin/Thetis 340 pique their interest in a very real way.

French Dressing

The Borea BR03 BT were definitely not without some quirks; they wouldn’t be French if everything moved in a straight line or didn’t offer its own spin on things.

But what they did accomplish for less than $900 USD captured my attention and made me put my KEF LSX II away for the better part of 3 months.

The Triangle AIO Twin deliver everything that their less expensive sibling offered but with a very different — and more appealing tonal balance and sense of scale.

And that was before we inserted the Thetis 340 into the system which made it almost ideal for our living room which does not have a lot of room for large floor standing loudspeakers and is occupied by a rather feisty West Highland Terrier with a drinking problem.

Tyrion (Terry) “I drink from a bowl and know things” White likes to chew on things; he took a particular interest in the Bowers & Wilkins 703 S3 as I was unpacking them and that required reviewing them in a different part of the house where he could’t inflict any damage.

The AIO Twin/Thetis 340 system does not require a lot of space to perform at its best and there is a minimal amount of setup required.

Positioning the Thetis 340 subwoofer required moving a chair so I could pull it closer to the edge of our BDI Interval media cabinet and away from the corners where I felt it was overloading the room.

Specifications

• Drivers: 1 x Tweeter 25 mm / 1 x Midrange/Bass Woofer 13 cm
• Power Handling: 2 x 50 watts/channel
• Network: Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11 b/g/n Standard 2.4GHz RJ45 10/100M LAN
• Bit/Sample Rate: Up to 24-bit/192kHz
• Bluetooth Codecs: Bluetooth 5.0, aptX, aptX HD, aptX LL, SBC, AAC
• Audio Inputs: Wi-Fi, RCA / Phono, Mini-Jack 3.5mm, S/PDIF Optical, Bluetooth
• Audio Output: Subwoofer output
• USB: USB2.0, USB-A FlashDisk.
• Bandwidth: 56 Hz – 22 kHz
• Official App: TRIANGLE AIO for iOS, Android
• Audio Formats: APE, FLAC, WAV, Apple Lossless (ALAC), AAC, AAC-LC, HE-AAC, HE-AAC v2, MP3, CBR/VBR
• Dimensions (UNIT): 6.5″W x 11.96″H x 9.25″D
• Weight (Pair): 22.8 lbs
• Finishes: Graphite Black, Frosted White, Linen Grey, Abyss Blue, Eggplant and Brown Maple

Each Box Contains

• 1 x active loudspeaker AIO TWIN 
• 1 x passive loudspeaker AIO TWIN
• 2 x magnetic grills 
• 1 x power cable 
• 1 x 3 meters speaker cable to link the loudspeakers 
• 1 x remote control + Battery 
• 1 x user manual 

Setup and The Art of Being French 

Triangle did not supply their own loudspeaker stands with either review pair (they do exist), so I did most of my listening with the AIO Twin speakers on my BDI media console which allowed me to place them almost 48″ apart. 

Just like the Borea BR03 BT, we experimented with the AIO Twin on 24-inch stands from Gig Harbor Audio placed almost 60″ apart in my basement office, but I never really warmed up to that scenario.

There is a mono subwoofer output which I did use with 3 different subwoofers; Triangle, Q Acoustics, and Monoprice subwoofers all filled in the bottom octaves rather effectively but the tonal balance and impact delivered by the Triangle Thetis 340 matched its sibling the best. 

The AIO Twin are rear ported and require 8 to 12 inches of space between the wall and the cabinet; I settled with the rear of each cabinet 12 inches away which created the most balanced sounding bass output.

The speakers must be interconnected with the speaker cable provided.

Ensure that the speaker connection polarity is correct: the red and black terminals on the passive and active speakers must be connected respectively to one another. To aid with the set-up, the connection cable indicates “TRIANGLE High performance OFC cable” and is dedicated to the red terminal (+). The black cable is labelled “High performance OFC cable.”

The USB input allows you to connect your USB storage devices, USB drive or portable hard drive. You can also use it to charge your devices like a smartphone or DAP. It will not work as a digital input for your laptop or desktop computer.

The AIO Twin supports Spotify Connect.

Sources included an iPhone 12, iPhone 13, Apple MacBook Pro, WiiM Pro and Cambridge Audio MXN10 Network Players, Andover Audio SpinDeck Max, Thorens TD-145 MKII, NAD C 588, and Pro-Ject X2 Turntables, and the Marantz CD60 CD player.

Bluetooth Performance

The AIO Twin supports Bluetooth 5.0, aptX, aptX HD, aptX LL, SBC, AAC and there were never any issues pairing the loudspeaker to any device.

Triangle is marketing the AIO Twin loudspeakers as a “multi-room” audio option for consumers which can be controlled through the AIO app and that means Bluetooth range and stability matters.

We walked around the first floor of our home and changed tracks successfully through walls and even managed to get the loudspeakers to respond positively when I raised the volume walking up the stairs.

Every scenario will be different based on the distance, construction of your home, and any forms of interference; our home was built in 2000 and there are a few pockets where Bluetooth and Wi-Fi performance are less than ideal.

The AIO Twin were placed in a room that often requires a wired Ethernet connection in order to maximize our 500Mbps service; 240Mbps is the typical wireless speed performance from my iPhone or ASIS router which is located in a room directly above the living room.

Unlike the Borea BR03 BT, the AIO Twin offer a hard Ethernet connection and it worked superbly.

Was there a big difference between AAC and Bluetooth aptX? I was more than satisfied that the loudspeakers work with a wide range of codecs and that any sonic differences between them listening to TIDAL and Qobuz were more recording dependent.

AIO App Setup

For iOS or Android 

1. Press “Add device”. 
2. The following window opens. Then go to the Wi-Fi setup window of your device.
3. Select the Wi-Fi network: “TRIANGLE AIO TWIN-xxx”, then go back to the TRIANGLE AIO app.
4. Select your Wi-Fi network and enter the password. 
5. Your AIO Twin are ready to operate. 

Unlike the Borea BR03 BT, the AIO Twin can be controlled with a dedicated app that works extremely well.

The “Party Mode” allows you to connect various AIO devices to play the same music at the same time. 

You can connect to up to 5 devices using one Wi-Fi connection and up to 10 devices using an Ethernet connection. 

I was able to access my Qobuz, TIDAL, Spotify and Deezer accounts directly through the app. You can also connect to TuneIn as well using the app. There is no native support for Amazon Music HD or Apple Music.

One of my frustrations with the Borea BR03 BT was the rather coarse EQ settings using the supplied remote control. Triangle have integrated Bass and Treble settings into the AIO app and it’s actually possible now to know what they are with visible information.

Issues

We wish Triangle had included an HDMI port and USB digital input so that users could connect the loudspeakers to a desktop computer or laptop; they really work exceptionally well on the desktop. 

An HDMI ARC/eARC input would make it easier to connect this system to your TV; although you can use the digital optical input as well.

I mentioned in my review of the Borea BR03 BT that the phono stage was slightly noisy regardless of which phono cartridge or turntable I connected; the AIO Twin only exhibited that issue from the right speaker if the ground post was not tightened enough.

The phono stage only supports MM phono cartridges but it is unlikely that a lot of potential users are going to run a low output MC cartridge into this active loudspeaker because of the low gain. 3.5mV should be considered a safe place to start; the recently reviewed Goldring E4 was a rather good match for the phono stage.

Sound

For a point of reference, I used some of the same tracks with the AIO Twin that were used in the original review of the Borea BR03 BT loudspeakers and switched back and forth between the two sets of loudspeakers which were still being used in my office.

Listening to Wayne Shorter’s Speak No Evil and Adam’s Apple (Qobuz, 24-bit/96kHz), it was easy to discern that the AIO Twin and Borea BR03 BT both share the same DNA when it comes to dynamics, presence, detail, and overall pacing.

Where the two paths initially diverge is in the upper bass and midrange; the AIO Twin offer the same lively presentation of their less expensive sibling but with a warmer tonal balance and less micro detail.

Horns have slightly less edge to them but the change in timbre gave every instrument an improved sense of depth and texture.

Both loudspeakers offer excellent transparency, but the AIO Twin create a meatier palette which some will prefer; other listeners will find the tonal balance and presentation less open.

One of the weaknesses of the Borea BR03 BT was its handling of male and female vocals; midrange clarity and detail were very good, but I would have preferred slightly more color with vocals; Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday were delivered with a lot of energy and clarity, but slightly cooler than I normally prefer.

When I switched over to the Marantz CD60 with the same CDs, there was most certainly an uptick in midrange warmth.

The AIO Twin offered a very different perspective using both my iPhone and the aforementioned Marantz CD player.

Both jazz legends came across with slightly less detail but with far greater presence and without the top end edge that one gets from the Borea BR03 BT’s tweeter.

Sam Cooke and Nick Cave came across with slightly less body through the BR03 BT and that was never the case with the AIO Twin which added texture, dynamic punch, and just enough detail to keep one engaged.

While I still enjoy listening to the Borea BR03 BT for its clarity, detail, and low end punch — the superior resolution, texture, and dynamic capabilities of the AIO Twin make it a better option for longer listening sessions. There is zero fatigue factor listening to these.

The low end performance of both loudspeakers is still very impressive considering their smaller size and it was the one area where there was not as much daylight between them.

The AIO Twin have slightly less definition in the bass range but greater overall impact which worked well with electronic music and some rap and hip-hop music suggested by my 17 year-old son.

Travis Scott’s Utopia (Qobuz, 24-bit/88.2kHz) and Madlib and MF Doom’s Madvillainy (Qobuz, 16-bit/44.1kHz) came across with an enhanced sense of space through the Borea BR03 BT but the top end became slightly strident as I pushed the volume even higher.

The darker tonal balance and impact of the AIO Twin worked well with both recordings that can be slightly thin sounding through a lot of systems.

Movies?

I mentioned at the very beginning that the AIO Twin and Thetis 340 subwoofer might be the “better” option for some listeners who wish to combine music and movies in one system.

Part two of my review covering this part of the system’s performance is coming next week and I plan on comparing the Triangle 2.1 channel system to a similar system from Q Acoustics that offers comparable performance at a slightly lower price.

Both work exceptionally well with both music and movies, and you would certainly not feel the need to upgrade anytime soon with either one.

Conclusion

The Triangle AIO Twin Wireless Loudspeakers offer so much value for the money that it is very hard to not considering them one of the best affordable high-end wireless loudspeakers right now.

Some will roll their eyes at the “affordable” designation but when you add up all of the connectivity options, internal MM phono stage, high-end remote, well designed control app, build quality, and overall sonic performance — it is very hard to see view these excellent loudspeakers in any other way.

We do wish that Triangle had included an HDMI input with support for ARC/eARC, but that didn’t make the cut. If you decide to use the Digital Optical audio connection from your TV to the AIO Twin, compatible formats include two-channel stereo PCM, Dolby Digital/Dolby Digital EX, DTS Digital Surround, and DTS ES.

The MM phono stage is above average and we would like to see that improve on the next version; the performance with my Marantz CD player and the various streaming platforms was more consistent and there was never any issue with noise.

Does it make sense to select the AIO Twin over the Borea BR03 BT? The jump in price is not enormous but is there enough of an upgrade in performance to justify the expenditure.

The better answer is that it depends on your listening preferences.

If you prefer a livelier, more detailed presentation with additional top end energy that some might find somewhat thin sounding in comparison to the AIO Twin — these are definitely going to be a better option for you.

For those that lean in the opposite direction and desire something that is smoother sounding overall with higher resolution and greater emphasis on texture — the AIO Twin will make more sense.

For more information: trianglehifi.com

Where to buy: $999 at Amazon

Related reading: Triangle Borea BR03 BT Loudspeakers Review