Analog Gear News

Who’d want to stream vinyl playback to other rooms? Well, if you’re in a living situation where multiple listeners are constantly involved in the decisions behind what’s being played and where, it’s something you have to consider, regardless of your own individual sweet-spot-only listening proclivities. Juke Audio understands the inclusionary inclinations for modern multiple-member household scenarios, which is why the burgeoning company is now offering the Juke-6, a multiroom streaming amplifier seen as a possible gateway device to get other listeners involved, and interested, in what we analog lovers listen to.

This is the point where bigger-picture thinking comes into play, so hear me out. Remember, we are always looking to be more inclusive in our analog-planetary-based listening tendencies, rather than exclusionary and/or purely elitist. My view on this tack is simple — if we can collectively find more ways to give newer, younger, and as-yet-uninitiated analog listeners the option of, at the very least, being exposed to analog playback in any form as their starter kit-cum-entry point, then I’m all for anything that gets them in the door for us to then further extol the wonders of our own analog lives and the joys of vinyl listening in general.

Those of you who have been following and/or participating in the Comments section of my recent Analog Gear News post about Andover Audio’s SpinBase MAX turntable system know exactly what I’m talking about here. (And if you don’t know, go here to see and participate in that thread.)

Hence, that all brings us back to Juke Audio and the Juke-6 multiroom streaming amplifier, and what it can do for all of us. First, the economical stats. The SRP for the Juke-6 is listed at $1,349, with a rack-mount option adding $19 to the cost. If you want to ramp up to a Juke-8 for eight zones instead of six, that will run you $1,499 (with the same $19 rack-mount add-on option cost). An extended warranty for either device will run you $99. (You can suss out all the Juke combos and options here.)

Still wary? Fair enough. Let’s ask Juke Audio president Colton Forth to address the analog elephant in the (multi)room. To do just that, Forth and I got on a video call together late last week to discuss all the Juke ins and outs, and here’s how it went.

My first Q was straightforward enough, as I asked Forth, based on the analog preferences I just outlined, did he really think the Juke-6 could fit the bill? “Yes, the device can support up to two [line-level] analog inputs,” he clarifies. “You can then use your Wi-Fi devices — phones, tablets, etc. — to wirelessly control which zones the vinyl stream or any analog connection is routed to, as well as adjust the volume without needing to go back to the vinyl device or Juke itself.”

Tell me more about the “sharing” process, and who it benefits. “Offering a combination of both analog and wireless inputs, the Juke Audio system caters to any member of a household, regardless of listening preferences,” Forth outlines. “With the system able to support four inputs simultaneously, one user can be listening to an audio stream in one area, while another listener is in a different area of the home listening to a different audio source entirely.”

How does the Juke-6 fit into existing system-oriented home designs? “Our multiroom amplifier can serve as a simple retrofit of architecturally based systems built into homes from the ’90s and early 2000s,” Forth continues, “allowing for full wireless control of individual zone volumes, and input-to-output routing without needing to revisit the stereo receiver/amplifier every time a change is needed to be made.”

With all that now in mind, do you think a Juke-6 (and/or a Juke-8) might work for your household? Check out all the specs below, and then feel free to add Comments as you wish in the section that follows below.

JUKE AUDIO
JUKE-6 MULTIROOM STREAMING AMPLIFIER
(SRP: $1,349)

Specs
Dimensions: 15 x 8 x 3 in (w/d/h)
Weight: approximately 6 lbs
Available with optional rack ears to allow mounting in 19in equipment racks
Maximum ambient temperature: 40 degrees C
Internal Power Supply
–Voltage input range: 90 to 264 VAC, 127 to 370 VDC
–Safety standards: UL60950-1,TUV EN60950-1, CCC GB4943, EAC TP TC 004 approved
–Efficiency: up to 95% efficient
–Surge withstand: 300 Vac for 5 seconds
External Power Requirement: 600W max
Speaker Connections
–Speaker impedance: 2 Ohms to 8 Ohms
–Multiple speakers can be connected in parallel as long as the effective impedance is greater than 2 Ohms (e.g. one zone could have 3 left speakers and 3 right speakers if each speaker is 8 Ohms)
Speaker Wires
–Accepts 12 to 22 gauge wires
–Stripping length: approximately 0.25in to 0.3in
–Attach by tightening screws
–4 pluggable 8-position terminal blocks with 0.2in spacing
–Flammability rating according to UL 94 V0
V(ESD) Electrostatic Discharge
–Human-body model (HBM), per AEC Q100–002: ±3000V
–Charged-device model (CDM), per AEC Q100–011: ±500V Protective Functions
–Output current limiting, output short-circuit protection, over-temperature, under-voltage and over-voltage
Amplifier Power Output
–40W peak per channel (80 W peak per zone). RMS power: 20W per channel (40W per zone)
–Aggregate output power of zones operated simultaneously: ~400W peak
Network Connections
–Ethernet via an RJ-45 connector, or
–Wi-Fi using WPA2. Note: Juke should be within 10 to 15 feet of an access point, otherwise we recommend using a TP-Link N300 and connecting Juke to its Ethernet port
Internal Computer
–Lots of horsepower for future firmware feature additions
–Processor: Quad Core, 1.2 GHz
–1 GB of RAM
Firmware
–FLASH based
–Upgrades are provided OTA (over the air)