Neat Iota Alpha
Neat’s Iota Alphas are odd-looking things. Thanks to the mixture of knee-high stature and strangely angled appearance, it’s difficult to take them seriously. Yet, if you believe that beauty is as beauty does, then these floorstanders are something to savour. They’re for people that want great sound without room-dominating hi-fi.
We’re big fans of the original Iota standmounters. They remain a superb utility choice; small enough to squeeze into all sorts of places but always performing well. The idea behind the Iota Alpha is to take this can-do attitude and add an extra dose of sonic authority.
The top half of the Alpha is straight from the original. A 50mm Emit magnetic/planar tweeter sits alongside a 10cm polypropylene mid/ bass unit. However, here they’re in a sealed compartment in an effort to help integration with the downward-facing 13.5cm pulp-paper bass unit. The bass is tuned by a rear-firing port.
Connection is limited to a single pair of high-quality terminals. Some may bemoan the lack of biwiring, but the fuss-free attitude of these Neats is reinforced by the singular connection.
Take care when you lift the speakers out of the box. That bass unit is exposed and it’s easy to damage. There are some distinctive spikes in the packaging. You’ll need these because they set the gap between the bass driver and the floor, and so to a large extent govern the quality of the low frequencies.
Build quality is good. These feel like solid boxes and the finish is pleasing too. Those spikes aren’t particularly sharp, so may have issues piercing through thick carpet. It’s worth persisting, as a secure footing will bring sound benefits.
These Neats aren’t particularly fussy about placement. They need a bit of wall reinforcement – we place them around 30cm out into the room, with a hint of angle towards the listening position. The position of the tweeters gives extra scope for tweaking. Leave them on the outer edges, as we end up doing, and you’ll get a wider spread of sound. Set them on the inside and you’ll add a touch more focus. The optimum placement depends on your room and system.
While these speakers aren’t particularly picky, they respond well to higher-quality kit. We think something like Rega’s Elex-r integrated amplifier with a suitably capable source would be a good starting point. If you move on to more ambitious electronics the Alphas have enough sonic stretch to take it in their stride.
A good angle
If you were thinking short speakers mean a soundstage aimed at your knees you’d be wrong. That angled baffle helps throw the sound upward, resulting in a surprisingly expansive and spacious presentation that wouldn’t be out of place from rivals at twice the height. There’s a good amount of precision here, and the presentation stays stable even when the music becomes demanding.
We start with Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake and the Neats immediately sound way bigger than expected, delivering a sense of authority and solidity totally out of keeping with their size. If we’d first heard these speakers with our eyes closed we would have massively overestimated their dimensions.
The Alphas’ presentation is wonderfully cohesive and appealingly robust, the three drivers integrating seamlessly. Dynamics are strong too, with larger-scale dynamic shifts handled with confidence, even at higher volumes.
Tonally these speakers aren’t wholly even, but the deviation isn’t enough to worry us. Once we start listening, it’s the Neat’s ability to capture the essence of the music that grabs our attention, rather than any tonal shortcoming.
Driven, yet refined
Moving on to Stevie Wonder’s Superstition shows off the Iota Alpha’s excellent handling of rhythms. It’s surefooted and communicates the drive of the music superbly. There’s plenty of attack here, yet there’s also enough in the way of insight and refinement to keep us happy. Stevie’s distinctive vocals come through with clarity and passion, while the hard-charging instrumentation is well organised.
While there is a good amount of low-frequency action, it’s fair to say that one or two of the larger, similarly priced rivals in this test – notably the B&WS and Acoustic Energy AE309S – will dig deeper and louder.
It would be unrealistic to expect such compact speakers to fill a larger room properly, but in a small to medium space they’re fine for anything up to nightclub levels of sound.
These Neats are surprising speakers. If you’re after fuss-free floorstanders that don’t dominate your listening room there are few better alternatives. They sound way bigger than they look and deliver a combination of detail, dynamics and rhythmic integrity that competes with the best of the traditional competition. They’re not about analysing the recording, more about having fun. And that’s just fine with us.