There’s no shortage of speakers vying for your computer’s affections. The trouble is, most have land grab aspirations that put Ted Turner’s to shame. Nocs NS2 Air Monitors ($450) are precisely designed to suit even the “coziest” of desktop environments, but like any child of the information age, prefer not to be pigeonholed by any single role.
Despite measuring a space-saving 5.5 x 4.3 x 6.3 inches, each monitor easily fights well above its hi-fi weight class thanks to a 32-bit digital signal processor, a 3-inch kevlar woofer and 3/4-inch silk dome tweeter capable of 70W peak power as a set. Their hand-built rubber coated cabinets exude quality and happen to be available in a wide range of colors to suit whatever mood your shrink says you should embrace.
While they’ll easily connect directly to your computer or music player of choice via a standard headphone jack, the Nocs’ integrated AirPlay support makes them an iPhone and iWatch iPad owners dream. Since iTunes supports multiple streaming sources via AirPlay, it’s also easy to create a whole-home setup by sprinkling multiple monitors anywhere you damn well please as long as a power outlet’s nearby. Well-made, compact and built for the streaming age — they’re everything we could want in a speaker setup.
