HD4 Home Music System w/Bluetooth aptX-HD

The size of the speakers are 9"H x 5.5"w x 6.5"D each

We take great pride in our products, and go through great lengths to ensure consistency and quality. For that reason, this item was randomly selected for an additional step of Quality Assurance.

You can do this using powered speakers like our A2+s, HD3s, HD4s, A5+s, and HD6s.  For this, you'll connect the W3 sender to the RCA output on the left speaker, using a 3.5mm stereo-mini to RCA "Y" cable.  Then connect the W3 Receiver to the input on your S8.  You can either use a 3.5mm stereo-mini to stereo-mini cable for this, or another 3.5mm stereo-mini to RCA "Y" cable; either will work fine.  Both W3 units will need to be powered from a USB port.  You can use USB AC power adapters, or if the powered speaker you're using is our A5+ Classic model, you can use the USB port on it's rear panel for the W3 sender. The same would apply to the S8 subwoofer if you have our current 'Gen II' model that has a USB port on the rear panel.

Absolutely!  Our speakers are safe to place sideways and, from our experience, sound great. When doing so, we recommend that you position each so the tweeters are facing outward.

The speakers we offer that are designed to have a remote control are the A5+ Classic, A5+ Wireless and HD6.

The following systems do NOT support a remote control:  512, A1, A1-MR, A2+, B2, HD3, HD4.

The HD4 is equipped with a power-saving circuit that turns off the final stage of the speaker's amplifier when no input signal is detected, so you can absolutely leave them on when not in use. This activates right after you stop playing music, and is instantaneous (as soon as the input signal stops and it disengages automatically once an input in reintroduced), so there shouldn't be a noticeable delay when resuming audio. It's also fine to power off your speakers when not in use if you prefer.

There can be only 1 active pairing at a time.

Yes!  As long as your speakers have an analog output (either RCA outputs or a 3.5mm stereo mini output), you can absolutely connect the S6 to your powered speakers.  With the exception of the B2, all of our powered speakers will have the outputs needed to connect the S6, this includes the original A2 and A5 models.

You can simply use RCA cables to connect the S6 to the A2+, HD3, HD4, A5+, A5+Wireless, and HD6 speaker models.

For the A1 and A1-MR speakers, you can use one side of your stereo RCA cables. Just use the left/white RCA cable, and leave the red RCA disconnected to prevent an accidental ground loop.

** Please note:  a 3.5mm/stereo mini cable will not work with the ‘Subwoofer’ output on the back of your A1/A1-MR speakers. **

No, there are no firmware updates or special drivers needed unless you own our A1-MR multi-room speakers or our B-Fi multi-room wireless streaming device.

If a firmware update is released for the A1-MR or the B-Fi, you will be notified of the update the next time you open the Audioengine Control App.  If an update is needed, simply click "update" on the DEVICES page next to the product that needs to have the firmware update applied.  The app will handle the rest of the process from there!

Standard plug-n-play drivers that are provided by your computer's OS are utilized when using the USB input on our A2+, HD3, and HD4 speaker models.

And all of our Bluetooth speakers/products are compatible with any device that supports Bluetooth, and the A2DP profile for streaming stereo audio. This includes most smartphones, tablets, and computers. For computers that don't include Bluetooth support out of the box, you can simply add a USB Bluetooth adapter.

                                          Applicable to our A2+, HD3, HD4, A5+, A5+Wireless, and HD6 speakers.

Start with power cycling your speakers by turning them off and then back on.  From there:

1. Determine if the distortion is due to your source by disconnecting all source devices from the speakers.
2. Please make sure all of your connector cables are in working order. Try different cables as well as a different source device.
3. Please try using each input available (mini-jack, RCA, USB, as well as Bluetooth), one at a time, to see how the speakers react. If the distortion is unique to one speaker, when testing via RCA switch the RCA jacks (red to white and white to red) to see if the issue remains in the same channel.
4. Make sure it is not a power issue by trying a power outlet that is on a different circuit.

If the issue persists, please click on the following link and then click on the dropdown to submit an email to our Support team:

Support Page

When doing so, please copy and paste the above troubleshooting steps along with the results of each and include this information when contacting us.

                                                           Applicable to our HD3 and HD4 speakers

Turn on the speakers using the power switch located on the rear panel.  The speakers will automatically go into Bluetooth "pair mode" and the Pair button on the front panel should start flashing.

1. On your source device (phone, tablet, laptop, etc), turn on Bluetooth and go to Bluetooth preferences.
2. Select "Audioengine HD3 (or HD4)" to pair and connect.  The Pair indicator on the front panel should be solid. Play your music and adjust the volume levels on the speakers and your device.

To add additional devices put the speakers back into pair mode by disconnecting them from your device or by pressing and holding the Pair button on the front panel until the pair indicator starts flashing.

Our speakers can wirelessly connect to only one device at a time, however it will remember up to six different devices.

                             Applicable to our A1, A2+Wireless, B2, A5+Wireless, and HD6 speaker models

Turn on the speakers using the power switch located on the rear panel.  The speakers will automatically go into Bluetooth "pair mode" and the Pair button on the back panel should start flashing.

1. On your source device (phone, tablet, laptop, etc), turn on Bluetooth and go to Bluetooth preferences.
2. Select "Audioengine (your speaker model)" from the list of available devices to pair and connect.  The Pair indicator on the back panel should now be solid. Play your music and adjust the volume levels on the speakers and your device.

To add additional devices put the speakers back into pair mode by disconnecting them from your device or by pressing and holding the Pair button until the pair indicator starts flashing.

Our speakers can wirelessly connect to only one device at a time, however it will remember up to six different devices.

Applicable to our A2+, HD3, and HD4 speaker models

All digital audio sources will ultimately need to be converted to analog to provide sound through any speaker system. The USB and Bluetooth inputs will pass the digital signal on to the speaker's internal digital-to-analog converter (DAC), while the RCA/3.5mm inputs are already analog and have been converted by the built-in DAC in your source. So it's a question of which DAC sounds best to you. We would recommend testing each input separately to see which one you prefer!

Applicable to our A1, A1-MR, A2+, HD3, HD4, A5+, and HD6 speaker models

If one of your speakers is not working (whether it be the left or right speaker), we would recommend the following troubleshooting steps:

Start by power cycling your speakers by turning them off and then back on.  From there:

1. Check to make sure the speaker wire connecting the left and right speakers is connected according to proper polarity (Red to Gold, Black to Silver) on both ends.
2. Please make sure all of your connector cables are in working order. Try different cables as well as a different source device.
3. If you are using any other devices in line with these speakers, please temporarily remove them from your setup and connect the source directly to the speakers
4. Please try using each available input, one at a time, to see how the speakers react. When testing via RCA swap the RCA jacks (red to white and white to red) to see if the issue remains in the same channel.

If the issue persists, please click on the following link and then click on the dropdown to submit an email to our Support team:

Support Page

When doing so, please copy and paste the above troubleshooting steps along with the results of each and include this information when contacting us.

Yes, you still need to connect the active/left speaker to the passive/right speaker via the included speaker wire. The passive right speaker has no power source of its own and relies on the amplified signal coming over the wire.

You can absolutely use your headphones with the HD4 speakers.  The HD4's have a built in headphone amp and a 3.5mm headphone jack located on the front of the powered speaker.  When headphones are connected, the audio coming from the HD4 speakers will be cut out so as to not interfere with the audio coming from the headphones.  We recommend using headphones with impedance levels between 10 ohms to 10,000 ohms.

If looking for a desktop stand, our DS2 desktop stands are sized to fit the HD4's almost perfectly. You can also use the Sanus Steel Series Speaker Stands, however the HD4's do not have threaded inserts in the bottom of the speaker.

Lastly, here is a list of stands our customers have recommended for wall mounts:

Vogels VLB200 Speaker Wall Mount
Sanus WMS2 Speaker Wall Mount
BTECH BT-77 Side Clamping Wall Mount

We tend to recommend clamping mounts as they allow for a quicker and easier setup.

The HD4's USB interface can only accept up to a 16-bit audio signal.  However, the built in DAC of the HD4's will pad the bit depth to 24-bit during playback, helping to lower the noise floor and provide a better dynamic range.

HD4 is an all-in-one system with no extra components needed except your phone or computer. Simply place the speakers where you want them and connect the power supply. Hook up the included speaker wire from the powered left speaker to the right passive speaker. Then connect your music with the supplied cables - or go wireless - and that's it.

The HD4 speakers do include detachable magnetic grills. The grills have thin rubber pads to prevent marks or damage to the finish or the cabinet, so your HD4s will keep looking great even if you like to remove / replace them frequently!

Absolutely! The HD4 offers wired or wireless connections to any phone or tablet using the aux audio input or Bluetooth aptX-HD. For wired connections to newer devices without a headphone jack, you'll need the correct USB-A adapter cable to connect from your tablet to the USB input on the HD4. These are generally available from the manufacturer of your tablet/smartphone, local electronic stores, or even online retailers.

Yes, you can. The HD4 speakers use a switching power supply so it will automatically convert to the different voltage. The power cable is also detachable which makes it convenient to replace the AC plug with a different type if you don’t want to use an adapter plug.

Sure, for HD4 you will need an inverter that can supply about 50-60 watts.

While the HD4 has a fantastic 24-bit DAC, you can always run your own external DAC to the speakers by connecting to the analog inputs.

Some turntables will need a preamp before being connected and others may have one built-in. Check the turntable manufacturer’s website or user manual.

Yes! All Audioengine powered speakers have multiple audio inputs. Both analog inputs (3.5mm and RCA) are active, so you can connect multiple audio sources at the same time. 

The digital inputs are slightly different, though. Both the Bluetooth and USB inputs share an internal DAC. In this case, the Bluetooth input will take precedence over the USB connection. This means that the Bluetooth input will mute the USB input's audio playback. Simply disconnect your Bluetooth device from the HD4 speakers to resume playback from your USB source device.

You should be able to use multiple sources with the HD4s just fine. The analog inputs on the HD4 are always active. They will play at the same time as the Bluetooth or USB input. Bluetooth and USB share the DAC though, so you can only listen to one at a time, and Bluetooth takes priority. If you're using USB for example, and start using Bluetooth, USB will mute and Bluetooth will take over. If you pause or disconnect from Bluetooth the speakers will automatically switch back to USB after a few seconds.

Technically, yes. But thankfully, it won't really be noticeable! Bluetooth only has a delay of about 30ms (milliseconds). So for example, you can watch videos from apps like YouTube and stream the audio through your HD4 without any noticeable lag.

You would connect the variable output of the HD4 into the input of your sub using RCA cables.

The light on the front panel of the HD4 Wireless is the Bluetooth LED indicator. Below are the various Bluetooth LED statuses and their meanings.

• Bluetooth LED is on and solid: The HD4 Wireless has power and currently connected to a Bluetooth-enabled device.
• LED indicator illuminates orange instead of white: This is normal! It means that your source is currently sending the HD4 Wireless an aptX signal.
• Bluetooth LED is on and blinking: The HD4 Wireless has power and the Bluetooth receiver is in pairing mode.
• Bluetooth LED is off and HD4 Wireless is on: Bluetooth is in standby and not in pairing mode. However, the HD4 Wireless is still visible to your device, so simply connect using your device and it will automatically wake up.

Absolutely!  You can connect any Audioengine speaker with an analog output to any Sonos product that has the Line-In feature.  You can also connect any Audioengine passive speakers into an existing Sonos system using the Sonos Amp.

Absolutely! To do so:

• Open the Alexa App on your smartphone or tablet (Apple link  |  Google Play Link)
• Tap the “Devices” icon and select the Echo/Alexa device you want to connect to speakers
• Select “Bluetooth Devices”
• Select “Pair New Device”
• Find your Audioengine wireless speaker on the list of available Bluetooth devices, and select it

Your Bluetooth connection works by projecting the sound from your phone. So, if your ringtone volume is on, that sound will come through Bluetooth too. This is a simple fix by changing the phone's ringtone settings to either vibrate or silent.

This sometimes happens when the speakers and turntable share the same surface. The vibrations from the speakers playing feedback into the turntables stylus, causing unwanted noise. The best way to mitigate this would be to place the speakers on a different surface. If that's not an option, we'd recommend trying out some isolation stands. For larger speakers like A5+ and HD6, the ones made by Isoacoustics work well.

Yes! We incorporate all the relevant functions and features from Bluetooth 5.0 that apply to our products! These features include; extended range, low latency (so that video and audio sync properly), as well as higher level aptX-HD, aptX, and AAC codecs (with the exception of our 512 portable speaker which supports SBC only). Keep in mind that the capability of the source is what controls the Bluetooth experience.

If the left speaker is in an easy to reach location, you can certainly use the physical knob to set volume. If not though, it's perfectly fine to set the speakers to a good volume and then adjust from your source moving forward. Every setup is different, so some experimentation will be necessary to find your preferred settings.

No. The Bluetooth and USB inputs both share the internal DAC for processing, so you can only listen to one at a time, with Bluetooth taking priority. If you're using USB for example, and start using Bluetooth, the USB signal will cut and Bluetooth will take over. Depending on your source, if you pause or disconnect from Bluetooth the speakers may automatically switch back to USB after a few seconds.

Though overall latency can be affected by some external factors (including things like signal strength, how well the source device's manufacturer has implemented it's Bluetooth, and even simply from being physically further away from the speakers) Audioengine Bluetooth products have very low latency when compared to most Bluetooth receivers, 30ms or less.

Here are some tips you can use to minimize any latency issues you may run into with your Bluetooth setup:

1) Try restarting both your device as well as the speakers (by switching them off, and back on, with the power switch on the rear of the speakers).

2) Check to make sure your source device is running the most up to date version of software available.

3) Try disconnecting from and forgetting the your Bluetooth speaker or device through your source’s Bluetooth settings, and then re-pair to your Bluetooth speaker/device.

4) If you have multiple apps or windows open when the delay occurs, try closing all of the apps that are not currently in use.  The more multitasking your system is having to do, the greater the potential delay in audio when using Bluetooth -- this would apply to both your smart phone and computer.

5) When using your iPhone, we've found that resetting your network settings can help improve the overall functionality of Bluetooth with your device -- including the latency.

-Both analog (3.5mm mini-jack and RCA) inputs are "open" or active, so you can leave 2 audio sources plugged in at the same time.

-The USB (Optical for HD6) and the Bluetooth module share the same DAC (Digital to Analog Converter) If connected to both, the Bluetooth connection will take precedence. If you're using USB (Optical for HD6) for example, and start using Bluetooth, USB (Optical for HD6) will mute and Bluetooth will take over. If you pause or disconnect from Bluetooth the speakers will automatically switch back to USB (Optical for HD6) after a few seconds.

*Please note, if you have a digital (Bluetooth, USB or Optical) and or multiple analog sources connected and streaming you are able to hear the input sources if they play simultaneously.

Yes they do! They are equipped with a power-saving circuit that turns off the speaker's final stage amp. This idle mode activates right after you stop playing music. Due to this power-saving function, it's perfectly fine for the speakers to stay on all the time!

Setting up your Bluetooth turntable with your Bluetooth-ready Audioengine speakers/components should be simple! First, you would also need to make sure your Audioengine Bluetooth device is on, in pair mode (LED light flashing), and near the turntable. Next, you would need to use the pairing button to send the turntable into pairing mode. Depending on the turntable, you will need to either press and release the turntable's pair button or press and hold it; for example, on the Audio Technica AT-LP60-BT you would need to hold the turntable's pairing button for about two seconds, until the light flashes different colors. Once the turntable is in pairing mode, it will search and connect to the nearest available Bluetooth device. Once the turntable if paired and connected to your Audioengine Bluetooth device, the pair light on the receiver should turn solid.

If the Bluetooth LED is illuminated orange that means you are streaming in aptX HD which is a higher grade of Bluetooth signal.

If you’ve connected your turntable to your speakers and the volume is low, one of two situations may be happening:

If you have a turntable with a built-in phono preamp, such as the Audio-Technica ATLP120 or the Music Hall USB-1, the output may be in the wrong setting. Double check and make sure the switch is set to “line” instead of “phono.” Be careful to keep the volume of your speakers low as it can be quite loud if you had to switch it to "line".

Your turntable could also not include a built-in phono preamp, such as older turntables. If your turntable does not include a built-in preamp, you will need to add an external preamp to bring the signal up to a line level signal. We don’t have any recommendations on a particular brand or model preamp to use with this setup.

You may have a loose volume pot.  This can happen when the nut that holds the volume pot in place becomes loose.  This can be easily accessed and tightened without opening the speakers up.  Try this:

1) Pull the plastic volume knob off the volume pot.  Depending on how tight it's on, you might be able to pull it off with just your fingers. If not, you may need to cover the knob with a soft cloth and pull out with pliers.

2) Use a deep well 10mm socket (or socket driver) to tighten the nut around the volume pots shaft.

3) Press the plastic volume knob back over the volume pot's shaft, and retest.