Kanto Living ORA Desktop Loudspeaker & sub8 Subwoofer Review

[shadyJ]

While Audioholics reviews a wide gamut of home audio loudspeakers, we haven’t done very many desktop speakers. One reason is that it is a space filled with very cheap PC speakers that are more intended for bare sound reproduction and are not designed with fidelity in mind at all. We haven't covered much that looks at a normal pair of desktop speakers. However, in this review, we will be evaluating a pair of traditional desktop speakers as well as the corresponding subwoofer from their product line-up in the form of the Kanto Living ORA speakers and the Kanto sub8 subwoofer.

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At $350, the ORA speakers are still on the high-end of the price range of what many desktop speaker shoppers are looking at, but those who want some desktop speakers that actually sound good probably understand that they will need to spend more than the trifling cost of so many generic Chinese imports from the recesses of Amazon, Newegg, or eBay. The relatively high MSRP of such small speakers should bode well for their design and build, but, as we have seen so many times in the loudspeaker world, price does not always correlate to quality. So do buyers get their money’s worth with the ORA speakers and sub8 subwoofer? Read our full review to find out…

READ: Kanto Living ORA Powered Desktop Loudspeaker & sub8 Subwoofer Review

 

[j_garcia]

Nice. I have an ultrawide monitor too and it overhangs the left side of the desk, so no real speaker options, but I more frequently than not just listen on headphones for that reason. USB-C input is pretty interesting too.

 

[ryanosaur]

Nice. This looks like an impressive little package! Thanks, as always , for your review @shadyJ !

 

[Cos]

I have been using the Kanto Yu6s in the bedroom for a simple 2 channel vinyl setup and the Kanto Tuks on my Desktop in my office, I have been happy using both.

I am seriously considring downsizing to the ORA and repurposing the Tuks into my sunroom. I want to move up to a 48" Monitor and I need the real estate. I am a little surprised at their pricepoint as they cost almost as much as the YU6s.

 

[dolynick]

I also use a set of Yu 6s and a sub 8 in my office at work. Decent little set up with a small footprint at a moderate cost. I doesn't surprise me that a set of more desktop oriented speakers from them turned out to be fairly decent as well.

 

[gene]

I also use a set of Yu 6s and a sub 8 in my office at work. Decent little set up with a small footprint at a moderate cost. I doesn't surprise me that a set of more desktop oriented speakers from them turned out to be fairly decent as well.

Do your YU6 turn off randomly when playing at very low volume? I have a pair that do. Meanwhile my wife's YU4s never do that.

 

[dolynick]

Do your YU6 turn off randomly when playing at very low volume? I have a pair that do. Meanwhile my wife's YU4s never do that.

Not that I recall. Just the normal power off after a while with no signal. I believe there was one instance of a random shut off, but it was at a normal-ish volume (rather odd) and has never happened again.

I often don't listen very loud in my office, but not usually "whisper quiet" either.

I'm feeding them RCA input from a Schiit modi, if that has any relevance to you. Shouldn't matter.

 

[Cos]

Do your YU6 turn off randomly when playing at very low volume? I have a pair that do. Meanwhile my wife's YU4s never do that.

I play my YU6s at low volume at night and I have not had that issue, the Tuk's are little more sensitive to low volume and have done that on rare occasions. I think you can defeat the auto shut off if I remember correctly.

I did find this (YU6)

"If you do not find the Auto Power-up (APU) feature useful, you can disable it by pressing the Balance Reset button on the remote and holding it for 5 seconds. The Status LED will blink once to indicate that you have disabled the APU feature. "

Auto-power-up I assume it will disable auto poweroff

 

[MrBoat]

I never understood why desk speakers need to be on top of the desk. This was for dorm rooms and office cubicles, or 2.1's that could fit in a box with a Gateway PC. I had HK's Soundstick 2s on my desktop and even as skinny as those were, I hated having them there. It occurred to me about 10 years ago that there are no rules for desk systems. All we have to do is to quit calling them desk "top" speakers.

Open floor plans, master closets that are larger than most kids bedrooms were 30 years ago, and yet we keep putting these baby speakers on desk tops. I have these JBL S38s on stands currently right next to my desk, but right behind them are my F-12 Tempests, which are usually my "desk" speakers. I can never go back. This is why nothing with a 5" woofer in it appeals to me. God help the speaker industry that has so much invested in tiny designs if the rest of the world figures this out.

I guess for an office or for someone living in an efficiency or a closet, but to anyone else with 3ft on either side of their desk, go bigger. It will change your life.

Boom-boom-tchh

 

[Cos]

I never understood why desk speakers need to be on top of the desk. This was for dorm rooms and office cubicles, or 2.1's that could fit in a box with a Gateway PC. I had HK's Soundstick 2s on my desktop and even as skinny as those were, I hated having them there. It occurred to me about 10 years ago that there are no rules for desk systems. All we have to do is to quit calling them desk "top" speakers.

Open floor plans, master closets that are larger than most kids bedrooms were 30 years ago, and yet we keep putting these baby speakers on desk tops. I have these JBL S38s on stands currently right next to my desk, but right behind them are my F-12 Tempests, which are usually my "desk" speakers. I can never go back. This is why nothing with a 5" woofer in it appeals to me. God help the speaker industry that has so much invested in tiny designs if the rest of the world figures this out.

I guess for an office or for someone living in an efficiency or a closet, but to anyone else with 3ft on either side of their desk, go bigger. It will change your life.

Boom-boom-tchh

Mine need to be on top of desk, because I have a standing desk

 

[MrBoat]

Mine need to be on top of desk, because I have a standing desk

Sure, there are plenty of reasons to put them on a desk, or maybe someone just doesn't want larger speakers in a work environment, but there seems to be a great divide between HT, larger home systems and then comparatively diminished desk systems, in all but the gaming gearhead faction.

I'm just posting why I don't have much use for smaller speakers, which there is no shortage of. So, in case someone is on the fence about installing a large system in their home when they spend most of their time on a PC, or smaller home, an expanded, studio type desk system is an option for those who want some real power up close. I just mention it because this mid-sized potential is rarely mentioned, while the tiny and the large, are beat to death.

Two of my friends never considered it as possible until they saw mine. . .they thought there was only desk top speakers. When they went to build a system, they found choices of hi-fi monitor speakers in the 8" range to be limited. One buddy ended up buying the new JBL L100 classics (12") instead. Another ended up going vintage Pioneer.

Something like the Kali IN-8 perhaps, but I don't know if modern dedicated studio monitors pass for hi-fi use. Something I always question when I read reports of the Yamaha studio monitors being crap for music listening beyond analyzing recordings, among others. These little JBLs are rated at 175wpc, with a sensitivity around 89db, are 3-ways and holy crap do they pound. Add a pair of 10 or 12" subs and it's all she wrote.

If I had a stand up desk, I'd have stand up stands.

ETA: I would like to see Audioholics take on such a system. They have certainly covered everything else. I know they have done desktop system before, but it would be nice to see something a bit (or even over the top) bigger, without the usual. . ."the speakers are a little large for a desk."

 

[shadyJ]

Sure, there are plenty of reasons to put them on a desk, or maybe someone just doesn't want larger speakers in a work environment, but there seems to be a great divide between HT, larger home systems and then comparatively diminished desk systems, in all but the gaming gearhead faction.

I'm just posting why I don't have much use for smaller speakers, which there is no shortage of. So, in case someone is on the fence about installing a large system in their home when they spend most of their time on a PC, or smaller home, an expanded, studio type desk system is an option for those who want some real power up close. I just mention it because this mid-sized potential is rarely mentioned, while the tiny and the large, are beat to death.

Two of my friends never considered it as possible until they saw mine. . .they thought there was only desk top speakers. When they went to build a system, they found choices of hi-fi monitor speakers in the 8" range to be limited. One buddy ended up buying the new JBL L100 classics (12") instead. Another ended up going vintage Pioneer.

Something like the Kali IN-8 perhaps, but I don't know if modern dedicated studio monitors pass for hi-fi use. Something I always question when I read reports of the Yamaha studio monitors being crap for music listening beyond analyzing recordings, among others. These little JBLs are rated at 175wpc, with a sensitivity around 89db, are 3-ways and holy crap do they pound. Add a pair of 10 or 12" subs and it's all she wrote.

If I had a stand up desk, I'd have stand up stands.

ETA: I would like to see Audioholics take on such a system. They have certainly covered everything else. I know they have done desktop system before, but it would be nice to see something a bit (or even over the top) bigger, without the usual. . ."the speakers are a little large for a desk."

The problem with using large speakers for desktop settings is that the wavefronts from the drivers take some distance to integrate- sometimes as much as 2 meters or even 3 meters for some tower speakers. You definitely do not want to use speakers with drivers that have a wide spacing for near-field use.

As for monitors passing for h-fi use, they absolutely can if they are well-made. Monitors are supposed to have a high level of fidelity to the source signal, so they should be 'hi-fi,' at least as much as if not more so than home audio speakers. Unfortunately, not all monitors are accurate, but I would expect the Kalis to be very good.

 

[shadyJ]

ETA: I would like to see Audioholics take on such a system. They have certainly covered everything else. I know they have done desktop system before, but it would be nice to see something a bit (or even over the top) bigger, without the usual. . ."the speakers are a little large for a desk."

For the review for the RBH PM-8s, I used them as desktop speakers for a while, and they worked well in that capacity, and they are monitors. Those are not small standmount speakers. Large speakers can work well for near-field use, but the design must be correct for it.

 

[kantoliving]

Auto-power-up I assume it will disable auto poweroff

Only TUK and YU (newer speakers than YU6 and YU4) have the ability to turn off auto power down. Can't disable APD on YU6 or YU4. The reason YU6 and YU4 only have an APU toggle is because, back when they were made, people still connected individual AV devices directly to the speakers via optical. We didn't want a DVR turning on in the middle of the night to record something and wake up the speakers.

 

[MrBoat]

For the review for the RBH PM-8s, I used them as desktop speakers for a while, and they worked well in that capacity, and they are monitors. Those are not small standmount speakers. Large speakers can work well for near-field use, but the design must be correct for it.

I agree, by trial, no less. I have a couple pairs of tower speakers. I discovered they were not good for near field use. I was hoping they were because I didn't want to rearrange my seating to accommodate them when wanting to hear them. 8 ft was as close as I can get to them for the obvious 1st sweet spot. OTOH, the large monkey coffins from the '80s worked up close. They actually drew people to the near field. Is possibly where I first got hooked on near field listening. That and car systems, of all things.

 

[Mark A]

I enjoy reading about desktop systems. As much time as I can spend in front of my computer I want to hear music, and I want to hear it played nicely.

I worked a system of Schiit Modi/Magni, Emotive 6 monitors on stands, and a SVS sub tucked under the desk.

Overkill? Probably. Do I love it? Absolutely.

 

[MrBoat]

I enjoy reading about desktop systems. As much time as I can spend in front of my computer I want to hear music, and I want to hear it played nicely.

I worked a system of Schiit Modi/Magni, Emotive 6 monitors on stands, and a SVS sub tucked under the desk.

Overkill? Probably. Do I love it? Absolutely.

Overkill works, more often than not, and certainly better than underpowered. A desk system is one of the easiest places to get away with it and for less $. I have friends who have converted to larger desk top systems recently and they said it just never occurred to them to put larger speakers there. They'll never go back.