Harman Kardon's Omni+ speakers offer HD multi-room audio
The Omni+ line includes speakers, a soundbar and outdoor options.
When it comes to speakers, connected gadgets capable of multi-room audio are all the rage these days. At CES 2016, Harman Kardon pulled the wraps off its new line of devices that'll do just that. The Omni+ collection includes the Omni 10+, Omni 20+, OmniBar+, Adapt+, and the Omni 50+. That's four speakers, a soundbar and an add-on for those older non-wireless speakers. Each piece of audio gear handles high-definition audio streaming with 24-bit/192KHz quality and there's a controller app for beaming songs with either Spotify Connect of Google Cast. There's no mention of AirPlay, but that companion app is available on iOS and plays nice with other streaming services like Deezer and Tidal.
By connecting a couple of the Omni+ speakers with the OmniBar+, you can build a 3.1 or 5.1 wireless surround sound setup to enhance living room audio. If that sounds familiar, the likes of Sonos and others also let you pair speakers together for better sound from your television. As you might expect, that controller app is where you'll setup the speakers in different rooms, syncing them together to play the same music or keeping them separate for different tunes. In addition to 5G WiFi connectivity, the Omni+ line also houses Bluetooth, Ethernet jack and an aux input if you'd prefer to employ those instead.
Pricing for the series starts at $199 with the Omni 10+ and tops out with the $999 OmniBar+. If you're looking to use the Adapt accessory to provide some connectivity for your older speakers, it'll set you back $129. What's more, the entire set is slated to arrive this spring, so you might want to start saving up now.
