Denon - HOME 200 Wireless Smart Speaker - Charcoal

TLDR: Denon's latest attempt to dethrone the king of streaming & their hard work shows. CONNECTIONS USB-C 3.5mm Headphone Bluetooth Wi-Fi (2.4, 5, 6GHz) AirPlay 2 PROS Excellent iOS & Android support Huge, spacious sound Trouble-free set-up Smart Assistant Compatible CONS Cannot stream directly from Amazon Music app to the Home 200 with Android Limited music app functionality within Heos INITIAL SET-UP I'll admit it's been a while since I've given Heos a go. I had some of Denon's first generation Heos speakers when they hit the market. I had such high hopes. They sounded great and performed well, but Denon's primary competitor was already well established in the market and everything revolved around their products. So much so, that I eventually abandoned the Heos ecosystem and switched over. There was just too much left wanting that was not fully baked into the Heos ecosystem yet, not enough products, not enough infrastructure. Fast forward many, many years now and Denon has grown and refined the Heos ecosystem both in terms of available products and app compatibility, support, and development. Denon deserves props for making sure their apps are squared away prior to introducing a new product to the market. The Heos app is very user-friendly and setting up a Home 200 for the first time was stress and drama free. Kudos Denon. Unlike some of your competitors, the Heos app walked me through your new Home 200 series speaker set-up without error. Same kudos to your firmware. Upon initial set-up, like nearly 99% of the products after launch, there was a mandatory firmware update waiting for the 200. I am happy to report that the 200 downloaded, installed, and re-connected to the app and network without error or issue. I can't stress how uncommon this seems to be recently and Denon gets props from me for their efforts. Another firmware popped up today for the 200. Any issues? None. Great work! SOUND How does the Denon Home 200 sound? There is no other way to say it. There is no way a speaker this size should sound so big, open, and spacious. The 200 seems to defy the laws of physics. The 200 combines a 4" woofer with 2 angled high-frequency tweeters. Together, along with Denon's Atmos processing makes the little 200 sound unbelievably full and spacious from just a single, small package. I routinely found myself surprised while streaming Atmos-enabled audio, at just how enveloping the sound was. EXPANSION The additional driver in the Home 200 makes for a totally different experience compared to last generation. The added channel separation and makes for a tremendously wider soundstage compared to its predecessor. While the Home 200 will happily play and stand on its own, one must not forget that it is part of a larger Heos ecosystem. The 200 can be paired with an additional 200 to expand the already impressive soundstage and used as a set of stereo Left & Right speakers, or it can be used as a surround speaker set when paired with a Heos soundbar. My how far wireless technology has come over the years. This was something unheard of 5 years ago. CONS The biggest drawback for me is the Heos app. For me, my music service of choice is Amazon Music. As a primarily Android user, I don't like the fact that I can't select the Home 200 as a destination in the Amazon Music app without the addition of the Heos app. Not that I dislike the Heos app, it's just that gives you more of an Amazon Music Lite experience and loses some of the Amazon app's functionality. Not a deal breaker by any means, and honestly the Heos app is just as good as its competitor after their much-maligned app redesign. Could I offset some of my gripe by streaming to the 200 via Bluetooth? Yes. Definitely. Unfortunately, that also negates the ability to stream high-resolution audio to the device, as Bluetooth is a very lossy transport protocol. Denon's primary competitor is the same way, or was the last time I used their products and app. FINAL THOUGHTS Do I like the Home 200? ABSOLUTELY. The sound from a speaker, not as big as a 2L of soda, is huge. Mids and highs are clear and intelligible, and for only having a 4" driver to work with, bass is actually decent. By Denon adding an additional tweeter and applying the Atmos processing, it makes the little 200 sound much bigger and room filling than it actually is. The more I listen to the 200, the more impressed I am with it. So much so, that when I compare it back-to-back with the Home 400, I am much more impressed by what the little 200 offers compared to its bigger brother. The Heos app and ecosystem now have a robust assortment of products and has excellent app integration. If you are like me and haven't given the Heos products and the Heos ecosystem a try in a number of years, Denon deserves a second look. Their newest line of products has more than won me back. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Highlights: * Sounds great! * Really nice packaging and build quality * Easy to set up in the HEOS app * Apple AirPlay 2 compatible * Apple HomeKit compatible * Bluetooth compatible * Easy to group/ungroup speakers/rooms * Can store up to 3 playlists/stations for easy recall * On-speaker tactile buttons for volume, track and 3 favorites * Slim power cord * Supports 2.4Ghz, 5Ghz amd 6Ghz WiFi (a/b/g/n/ac/ax) Considerations: * Power cord sticks out the back quite a bit * Buttons don’t have tactile markings - have to look at what you’re pressing * Can’t set up, view or edit the speaker’s 3 favorites via the app The Denon Home series of speakers are all powered by HEOS which is the name for their ecosystem of multi-room audio equipment. Anything with the “HEOS” branding connects together through your home’s WiFi and can share audio, group speakers and function together similar to another multi-room system that begins with “S” ;-). I have a HEOS-enabled Denon home theater receiver with normal wired speakers, a Home 200 and a Home 400 speaker all on my home network. With the free HEOS app, I can easily group these three together or control them independently from the HEOS app on my phone. Let’s start with the hardware because no amount of connectivity is going to matter if the speaker doesn’t sound good. The Home 200 speaker is compact yet powerful and sounds great when driven with high-quality sources. It has one 4” woofer and two 1” tweeters that deliver rich stereo sound with virtual Dolby Atmos playback. The 3 built-in amplifiers drive powerful sound that fills small-to-mid size rooms where great audio is appreciated yet space is at a premium. The built-in microphone works with various services to allow voice operation (service dependent) and the on-unit buttons provide local control as well as quick access to 3 of your favorite stations or playlists. On the bottom of the speaker is even a tripod screw hole so you can easily mount it to various options. The rubber foot on the bottom will dampen any vibrations and keep things sounding great even at higher volumes, which sound great all the way up to uncomfortable sound levels ;-). Setup was simple with the free HEOS app. Start by adding the speaker to the app, tap the “Connect” button on the back when prompted and in seconds it’s all set up. If your home uses Apple HomeKit, the speaker can also be added to your Apple Home and/or share any content to it over AirPlay or Bluetooth. Everything worked seamlessly for me. Once added, you can use the free HEOS app on your phone to play your compatible music services to one or more HEOS-enabled speakers, group them together in any combination you choose, or just connect locally over AirPlay or Bluetooth. Another benefit of the HEOS ecosystem is that it includes not only speakers but also Home Theater components. My Denon HEOS-enabled home theater receiver has its own wired speakers but can easily route anything from that receiver to my Denon HEOS speakers individually or in groups. You can also set up the receiver to use this speaker as a wireless surround speaker. There’s an ambient light on the bottom front of the speaker that normally glows white when “online” and blinks when receiving commands remotely. In the app, you can dim that light or turn it off completely depending on your needs. I found that the app works well for selecting and controlling content from streaming services. It also has detailed options for adjusting the sound of the speaker remotely. Speakers can be grouped by dragging them together and you can even name and save your groups for later. There were a few small things that I didn’t particularly love, but nothing major. The power cord sticks out of the back quite a bit which limits how close to a wall you can put the speaker. While I appreciate having the buttons on the speaker, and especially love that they are tactile rather than capacitive, the buttons are on top and have no tactile indications or bumps. The only way to know what button you’re pressing is to look at the printed label. It would have been nice for at least the Play/Pause button have a bump you could feel it in lower light or if the speaker is up on a shelf. Lastly, the speaker has three “Favorite” buttons which is great! You can set each button to your choice of a streaming station or playlist and then just tap that button to play it again without having to go into the app. However; unless I missed it, you have to play the content first and then hold the number button to set it. Once set, there is no way to see what it is or edit it in the app… it’s basically a feature on the speaker only which is odd. In the app you can set a “Quick Select Name
for the intent of each button, but nothing more. Maybe the app will get an update later to let you view and/or change each favorite. Overall, this Denon Home 200 speaker sounds great for its size. It really packs a punch and fills smaller to mid-size rooms. The on-speaker controls are super convenient and the flexibility to control it via the app, a HEOS-enabled stereo receiver, or any other compatible phone or device is superb. The HEOS ecosystem works well for multi-room control and there are plenty of choices for speakers to meet your space and sound needs. The number of available music services directly in the app is limited but that will grow over time.

If I were to compare the Home 200 to other speakers in my setup, it would be comparable to the Nest Audio, but with a much cleaner, more concise sound. Its cylindrical aesthetic fits into any room without becoming an eyesore. The construction is solid, all the buttons and controls are well built, and it’s very easy to navigate directly from the speaker itself. The speaker can easily fill a small room with sound and works great as a satellite speaker when paired with one of the larger models. Depending on placement, you can also get variable bass to suit your needs. Like other speakers in this series, the sound is a pure reproduction—more like sitting at a concert than being in a club with a DJ. This is especially true when using high-fidelity sources through apps like Tidal or Amazon Music. Just like the Home 400 that I also use, connectivity is flawless when using both the HEOS app and Bluetooth. There are no connection problems, no dropouts, and it stays in sync with other speakers throughout the home. Unfortunately, like the other speakers in the lineup, if you’re a Google Home user, you won’t find the integration very accommodating. The smart features feel underdeveloped and seem intended only to complement audio once it’s already playing. There’s no native support for YouTube Music or meaningful integration through Google Home. Where I give this speaker some leeway is in its size and portability—it works well as more of a standalone speaker that you can move around the house. I’d almost place it closer to a personal Bluetooth speaker for individual use rather than a fully integrated multi-room solution. That said, if you’re invested in the HEOS app and the Denon ecosystem, this speaker will definitely complement your setup. Whether you’re using it to create a wider soundstage in a single room or expanding audio throughout your home, it performs well in that role. To summarize, for its size and category, this speaker delivers excellent sound and integrates seamlessly within the HEOS/Denon ecosystem. However, if you’re planning to combine it with other brands to enhance your home system, this may not be the best choice—it doesn’t play particularly well with others, especially in a Google Home setup.

PROS + Good sounding neutral sound profile with nice low-end for the size + Flexible placement (including stereo pairing and as a rear speaker for Denon Home Soundbar 550) + High-Res, uncompressed audio streaming through HEOS with direct Wi-Fi streaming + Bluetooth & Airplay 2 support, along with Dolby Atmos + Physical controls on the chassis with 3 custom shortcut buttons on top + Relatively compact and good looking chassis CONS - No automatic room correction - A couple of HEOS connectivity bugs - Only natively supports Siri voice assistant and requires Homepod to use - No upward firing driver to aid in Dolby Atmos tracks - Lacks some stereo imaging from the single speaker alone THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT The Denon Home 200 is a relatively compact (about ~12” tall and ~8” in diameter) cylinder which houses three speakers (2, 1” tweeters and 1, 4” woofer), each with their own class D amplifier. This results in a large, loud, and surprisingly detailed sound which does a good job of filling a room despite its size and lack of upward-firing driver. Bass is more than respectable for the size, with a solid presence that lends weight to music, and helps make the sound much bigger than the physical enclosure of the speakers. This is helped by the two tweeters which point outwards, giving a bit more width to the sound. You can adjust this further with the EQ in the app, which has a specific setting for sound width, but doing so processes the sound a bit too much to my liking, giving it a lack of focus. Overall, out of the box with a bit of speaker run-in time, the Home 200 sounds excellent. There are some cons, which I will mention near the end, but as a compact speaker, it certainly punches above its weight. On the software side of things, Home 200 is built around HEOS (Home Entertainment Operating System), which Denon built to manage all multi-room and home theater speakers under Denon and its partner brands. The app allows you to connect your music streaming services directly in the app itself (I primarily use Tidal day-to-day), so that you can direct stream to the speaker over your network, which allows for fully uncompressed audio as long as your source supports it. In the case of Tidal, this means I can stream up to 24-bit, 192 kHz FLAC files directly to the speaker, which works consistently great. I did some A/B comparisons vs. streaming using AirPlay 2 (which typically maxes out at 16-bit, 44.1 kHz) to see how noticeable the difference was on both the Home 200 and Home 400 speakers that I have. As an aspiring audiophile, to me the difference was night and day. Detail, instrument separation, vocal mid-range were all noticeably better streaming direct to the speaker, along with no drop-outs or distortion in audio quality. In the HEOS app, you can prioritize Normal or High bitrate quality with multi-room streaming based on your home network capacity, but I never had any issues setting it to High and just letting it run. In terms of cons, there are a few I wanted to note with the Home 200, some of which are shared with the Home 400 I have as well, and a few which are more specific to the Home 200. Firstly, there is no dedicated support for automatic room correction software. You can specify if the speaker is placed in an open space, against one wall, or against two walls, which adjusts the bass response a bit to try and capitalize on the location and minimize unnecessary reverberations, but this is about it. The ability to use a microphone to measure audio in your room and apply automatic tuning would be amazing given the flexibility of the placement that the speaker offers. This relates to my second issue, which is that unlike the Home 400, the Home 200 doesn’t do quite as good a job with stereo imaging from a single chassis. The sound is far more localized to the speaker, still sounding big, but definitely like it is coming from that speaker. If there was automatic room correction, this might be lessened as it accounts for the acoustics of your room, especially in large open spaces. This Home 200 would really benefit from pairing it up in a stereo orientation with a second Home 200, which would do wonders with the amount of depth you can get from the sound of the speaker. Speaking of sound, it’s maybe asking a bit much, but for the price, I would have also liked to have seen an upward-firing driver in the device. Since it supports Dolby Atmos, upward-firing drivers make a big difference in opening-up the sound. I don’t have a Denon soundbar at home that I can pair this with to test it as a rear-speaker, but I imagine many users would choose the Home 200 as their choice for being a rear speaker. However, without the upward-firing driver, it does limit the desirability of the speaker for movies with Dolby Atmos soundtracks, which might push people to use the Home 400 as surround speakers, which definitely feels like overkill. Adding an upward firing driver on the Home 200 would have been a great addition. Finally, I have had a few bugs using the HEOS app, which have been rare, such as not being able to find the speaker on my network and needing to reboot the app. Another bigger omission is, despite having a built-in microphone, you can also use the speaker with Siri, and to do so you need to have a homepod already to connect with. You can’t use Alexa or Google natively with the speaker, and it does not have its own native assistant, so you are stuck with Siri if you are in the Apple ecosystem, otherwise HEOS does support having other assistants play music on HEOS speakers, but only using those assistants from other devices. It's a bit of an omission given how connected the HEOS ecosystem is to other systems, but is far from a deal-breaker. Overall, I do really like the Home 200, especially for everyday music listening. I would recommend pairing it up with a second Home 200 to get that excellent stereo imaging, but even as a single unit, it still sounds excellent. It is best suited for smaller spaces, but it can fill small-medium spaces very easily with powerful sound that doesn’t distort at higher volumes, and lets you just lose yourself in the music. If you are in the HEOS ecosystem, or looking to get into the HEOS ecosystem, this is a great start.

The Denon Home 200 is one of the Denon “Home” premium series of speakers. It is a powered speaker, not a “portable” speaker. This is wireless, “smart”, and delivers stereo sound and Dolby Atmos Music in a single speaker. The look and build of these Denon speakers is impeccable. The exterior is covered in a charcoal fabric, and the fit and finish is excellent. The speaker feels very solid. On the bottom there is a 10MM threaded mounting hole for stand mounting or wall mounting with a bracket. The bottom of the speaker also has a soft silicone (?) insert that will not scratch surfaces if placing on a shelf. The Home 200 speaker uses two custom-engineered stereo wide-bandwidth tweeters and a 4-inch woofer, and each driver is powered by its own amplifier for clean sound. On the top are touch sensitive controls for play/pause, track, volume, action for voice assistants, and 3 customizable “Quick Select” presets. A few specs / features include Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, speaker paring, wireless multi room audio, microphone, Dolby AtmosMusic, etc. And, featured streaming services include Spotify, TIDAL, TuneIn, Pandora, iHeartRadio, with Siri and Google Assistant voice assistant built in. Status LEDs show inputs and status. Setup involves downloading the HEOS app, and connecting to WI-fi. In the HEOS app you to access - and change - settings such as volume, bass and treble levels, width, sound mode, source, etc. Multiple Denon Home speakers can be used, and settings customized for each speaker individually. Use in paired stereo mode, or in individual rooms – playing the same music, or different music in each room. Bluetooth paring was flawless, and I was able to pair the speaker with multiple devices.... There is some latency, but Wi-Fi streaming, or using AUX was excellent for internet radio, watching movies / videos. I auditioned the speaker using digital music – classical, jazz, rock - and streaming music, movies, and radio stations – and the sound belies the small size. I tried WI-Fi, Bluetooth, and wired AUX inputs. Depending on input, I was able to hear the “stereo” effect from the single speaker. The sound output had plenty of volume, treble and midrange was clear and clean. For the compact size, the bass response was very respectable. Then I used the EQ settings in my player to bring out the deeper bass notes, and the overall resulting sound is amazing. This speaker is excellent on its own, but used in tandem with other Denon Home speakers for stereo paring, home theater or multi-room sound, offers some excellent sounding possibilities in a compact format.