Triangle Borea Active BR03 BT review: Hi-fi sound, Bluetooth convenience

When you think about the best Bluetooth speakers, you might not imagine the Triangle Borea BR03 BT. These powered stereo speakers look much more like traditional hi-fi, the only difference is, they don’t need any additional kit to get started. These will play nicely with just your phone and a Bluetooth connection.

Of course, if you have a turntable, streamer or CD player – then there are all manner of inputs here to make use of, plus you can hook them up to your TV in place of a soundbar to truly get the most value from them.

But with no separate amplifier needed, the Triangle Borea BR03 BT can also simply stream music from your phone via Bluetooth too, making them a hugely versatile all-in-one (well, two) solution.

They’re pretty nicely priced at $799/£599 (though do look around, they are available cheaper at some retailers) – but how do they perform? I got listening to find out.

Design and connectivity

• Dimensions: 206 x 360 x 314 mm
• Inputs: Bluetooth 5.0, 3.5mm AUX, optical, coaxial, RCA (line/MM phono stage)
• Available in five colours

As I mentioned, the Triangle Borea BR03 BT look like traditional hi-fi speakers, because, well they are. Take the BT off of the name and you’ll find some very well considered standmount speakers that need all of the hi-fi gubbins to get them going – most notably, an amplifier. So if you like what you read below, do make sure you’re picking up the right version.

In the BR03 BT, the amplifier is built inside of the speakers instead – a 60-watt Class D amplifier for what it’s worth – so they’re ready to go out of the box. It’s about as plug and play as hi-fi gets.

All you need to do is plug the master speaker (which holds the amplifier) into power and place it on the right side of your listening position. You then use the included 3m speaker cable to hook up the left-hand passive speaker.

This is less flexible than some systems, and although you can place the master on the left if you want to – in order to reach a plug, perhaps – your stereo channels will be reversed. So best to dig out an extension cable instead.

As there’s no Wi-Fi here, there is no control app for the Borea BR03 BT. You get a remote included in the box, which is helpfully non-directional so you don’t need to be directly in front of the speakers to use it.

You can control volume, track, source and EQ from the remote – there is a small LED in the top right hand corner of the right speaker that glows different colours to show you what input you’re on.

From a driver perspective, you get a 16.5cm mid/bass driver and 25mm tweeter, and there are two bass ports at the back. This means they do ideally need a bit of space from a rear wall, though you can tweak the EQ to help if that’s not possible – more on that shortly.

If you like the hi-fi look, you can leave the speaker grilles off, but if you have a house with small children in, that you need to protect those drivers from, the BR03 BT ship with a stylish rounded grille that matches the finish you choose. Triangle do recommend you listen with the grilles removed for the best sound performance though – and I’d agree. Thankfully they are magnetic so you can snap them on and off really easily.

Triangle

I tested the white but there are five colours to choose from, from traditional black to oak coloured cabinets offset by coloured baffles in forest green or blue.

Either way, they look lovely and are beautifully built too, however it has to be noted – these are pretty big standmount speakers. Smaller rooms may suit the smaller BR02 better, but bigger rooms will lap up all the extra power the BR03 are capable of.

As I’ve mentioned, connectivity is strong in the Borea BR03, and includes Bluetooth 5.0 (aptX, aptX HD, aptX Low Latency, SBC, AAC), an optical input (great for TV audio), a coaxial input for high-res playback, a 3.5mm aux in and a built-in MM phono stage for turntables, which can be switched to an RCA line input instead.

There is no Wi-Fi here, so there’s no chance of Spotify Connect or AirPlay 2 here, and there’s no USB input either. There is, however, a sub output if you feel you want more bass (but spoiler alert, I feel fairly certain that won’t be the case for most people).

Performance

• 16.5cm mid/bass driver, 25mm tweeter
• 60W output per speaker
• aptX HD support

Getting the BR03 BT up takes less than a couple of minutes, but finding the right listening position to get the best from them can take a little longer.

As I mentioned above, these speakers do sound their best with a bit of space, so try not to tuck them against a wall if you can help it. The more space you can give them the better, in honesty, but if your room won’t allow it, you’ll want to play around with the EQ settings, and knock a couple of notches off the bass to ensure it’s not too overwhelming. You can always reset the EQ to default using the EQ reset button, to A/B the sound difference – but even then, they may not be the best for very small room, given their depth.

Merienda I found a position I was happy with (I moved the speakers a good 30-40cm from my wall and knocked the bass down by two, tweeter up by one – I also had the separated further than you will see in these pictures), I got to listening and jumped straight in with aptX HD streaming from Tidal using the Fiio M11S.

The first thing that’s abundantly clear is that these speakers have power and scale in spades. Granted, I don’t have the largest of living rooms, but they fill it without second thought – and with plenty of volume to spare. I’d imagine even those with much more space would still be easily catered for.

It’s a warm, refined sound that, with the positioning and EQ tweaks above, is well balanced and full of detail across the frequency range.

Bass is deep and authoritative with plenty of punch, mids are focused and insightful, and up top, the treble is bright and airy, with no sense of ever sounding stretched or out of its depth.

Play Royals by Lorde, and the BR03 BT handle the stripped backed intro with glorious clarity. Breathy vocals are pushed front and centre, and the impact of the bass drum rumble is offset beautifully by the crisp finger snaps, cutting through the mix with precision.

Switch to First of the Year (Equinox) by Skrillex and push the volume a little louder than I’m sure my neighbours would be happy with, and you can hear the soundstage these are capable of. This a big track that sometimes struggles to find its feet on single box Bluetooth speakers, but here there is space and organisation to allow all the various strands of the song the room to breathe and develop – all while putting you right at the centre the performance.

As the tempo pushes forwards and increases towards the middle of the song, the BR03 BT react appropriately, gripping tightly to the sometimes frantic melody, dynamics perfectly expressing the peaks and troughs of rhythm as it goes.

Even switching to an AAC stream from an iPhone 13 Pro, you won’t notice a whole lot of difference in what the BR03 are capable of. They manage a clever comprobación of being transparent without being unforgiving – I could listen to nothing but Bluetooth streams on these speakers and be very happy indeed.

Of course, feed them a better source and they will show their hand appropriately. Attaching the Bluesound Node streamer via the coaxial input and streaming from Tidal merienda again, you’ll hear more detail still, a little more separation and timing that seems all the more sure of itself.

The optical input also works beautifully for TV sound. There are limitations to sound output over optical, of course, so you won’t be able to get lossless sound like Dolby True HD and they certainly won’t be able to decode Dolby Atmos.

However, they still perform admirably, bringing all the strengths of clarity, separation and engaging sound that they have with music, through to TV. That means speech is clear and direct, and they don’t shy away from going big and reaching low when they need to either.

TL; DR? No matter what source you’re using, the Triangle Borea BR03 BT perform very well indeed.

Verdict

The Triangle Borea Active BR03 BT are a superb option for anyone looking to dip their toe into the world of hi-fi, without losing the convenience they are used to from one-box solutions.

There’s something just so likeable about the BR03 BT sound. They’re as refined as you’d hope, and packed with detail, but pack a sound that big and authoritative enough to fill even the biggest rooms.

No matter the input, too, you can be sure you’re going to get a sound that is very thoroughly hi-fi – but there’s no snobbishness here when it comes to wired sources contra wireless, and that’s quiebro refreshing, particularly at this price.

These aren’t the smallest bookshelf speakers and you will need to be a little careful with placement, or play around with the EQ to get the very best from them – for a more aséptico performance at least. They might not be the best choice for the smallest spaces even so, these sound their best when they have some space the breathe.

I’d love to see a USB connection, and Wi-Fi too would be great for more streaming options. But a lot of people will be perfectly served by the selection of inputs up for grabs here.

Whether you have the kit to make use of them now, hope to have it in the future or just want a more convincing performance for your wireless playback, the Triangle Borea Active BR03 BT are a powerful, engaging and affordable way to do it.