About The Escape M1 Air Music Streamer
Premium Hi-Fi systems are bought to be enjoyed for years. So a lot of people don't want to part with their devices, even if they are not really up to date in terms of high-resolution wireless audio streaming anymore.
That is why Escape developed the M1 Air streaming DAC. A universal module that can be easily connected to most Hi-Fi systems and supports 192kHz / 24-bit hi-res audio files.
The M1 Air is equipped with Chromecast built-in, AirPlay 2, Roon, Spotify Connect and Bluetooth 5.0. This allows you to easily stream music services such as Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, Qobuz, Airable internet radio or podcasts from a smartphone or other mobile device.
Upgrade the P9 with the M1 Air Module: Also the P9, the top model of the P series, can be expanded with the M1 AIR module. For this purpose a special compartment is provided under the keypad that is already equipped with a separate audio input (Aux 2) and a USB power supply connection.
Play Music in Every Room of your House: Wherever you have a good wireless Wi-Fi network available, several M1 Air's can be linked together to form a hi-res multi-room audio system. Its small design footprint allows it to be easily placed anywhere in the house and offers a wide variety of streaming options.
However, you don't have to purchase a complete system right away. You can start by connecting an M1 Air to the existing HI-FI system and later expand with, for example, the P6 Air or P9 (equipped with an M1 Air).
Music Sources: Use the appropriate app to stream music via AirPlay 2 or cast via Chromecast to the M1 Air. Supported Streaming Services include Spotify, Apple Music, TIDAL & Qobuz.
Easily Connects to a Wi-Fi Network via iOS or Google Home: The M1 Air easily connects to a wireless Wi-Fi network via iOS (Apple AirPlay 2) or Google Home App (Android and iOS). The M1 Air supports various systems for multi-room Hi-Res audio streaming over Wi-Fi.
Download the Google Home App from the Google Play store (Android devices) or the Apple App store (iOS) and use this app to pair the M1 Air with an existing Wi-Fi network.
Hi-Res Multi-Room Streaming: The M1 Air supports the three main multi-room ecosystems that provide wireless audio streaming between different devices. This allows the M1 Air to work perfectly with products from other brands that also use the same technology.
Apple AirPlay 2: One or more P6 Air speakers are easily connected to an existing Wi-Fi network through the iOS operating system of the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad or through iTunes on a Windows PC (Windows 10 version 16299.0 or higher)
Chromecast Built-In: Chromecast built-in is a technology that allows you to stream your favourite music apps from your phone, tablet or laptop directly to your M1 Air or collectively to other compatible speakers like the P6 Air. Chromecast built-in works with both the iOS and Android operating systems.
Roon Ready: Roon is perhaps the number-one system for managing and playing digital music. The Roon protocol, RAAT (Roon Advanced Audio Transport), provides a stable connection between Roon compatible devices (Roon Ready) over a Wi-Fi network.
Roon has its own application and the music player has a beautiful interface that tells you more than just song and album information. Roon uses metadata to display biographies, album references, concert dates and lyrics. Roon unifies your CD collection stored on a NAS drive with the High-Res (192kHz/24 bit) streaming services from Tidal and Qobuz.
Spotify Connect: Connect the M1 Air directly to Spotify via the same Wi-Fi network and use the Spotify App as a remote control. It is easy to use and offers high quality audio playback. It is currently not possible to stream simultaneously to multiple speakers via Spotify Connect.
Built-in Bluetooth® Receiver: The M1 Air has a built-in Bluetooth Receiver (5.0)
Escape® Remote App: Take full control over the M1 Air via the Escape Remote App which unifies the entire Escape range under one App. Use all possibilities via the Escape Remote application for your smartphone or tablet.
Our Take
The Escape M1 Air is kind of unique in its class as it is dual purpose. It can be plugged into a Hi-Fi system and just used as a streamer and this is a perfectly reasonable way to use it. However, we think most people will buy one to put inside their Escape P9 speaker so, instead of the P9 being just a very good Bluetooth speaker, it transitions into a wireless hi-resolution Wi-Fi streaming speaker. Yep, we really like the sound of that. We think you will too.
Main Features & Specifications
- Design: Music Streamer for Hi-Fi System or Escape P9 Speaker
- Supports various systems for Hi-Res Multi-Room audio streaming (192KHZ/24-bit) over Wi-Fi including Chromecast built-in, AirPlay 2, Roon Endpoint and Spotify Connect
- Lossless Audio Codecs: FLAC, APE & DSD support
- Apple® AirPlay 2
- Wi-Fi Dual Band 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac
- Bluetooth® 5.0
- Digital interface via a customized Escape® Remote App for both iOS® and Android™
- Combined 3.5mm analogue + digital optical Toslink output
- Please Note: Maximum preamp output voltage (audio volume) adjustable via the Escape® Remote App in two levels
- 1 Volt default set for use with the P9
- There is also a 2 Volt option available for use when the Hi-Fi installation requires a higher output voltage. Take extreme care that you do not change the maximum output voltage to 2 Volts when using the M1 Air in combination with the P9.
- THD + Noise: < 0.06%
- Frequency Range: 20Hz – 20kHz
- Included Accessories
- For Connecting to a Hi-Fi System: Power Supply, 1.5m USB Cable, 1m 3.5mm Stereo Mini-Jack to RCA Cable, Optical Cable, Toslink Adaptor
- For Connecting to the Aux 2 Input on an Escape P9: Velcro x 2, Short 3.5mm – 3.5mm Aux Cable (150 mm), Short Angled USB Type A to USB Micro Cable (45mm)
- Finish: Black
- Dimensions (WxHxD): 45 x 19 x 89mm
- Manufacturer's Warranty: 2 Years
Note: Features & Specifications Subject To Change Without Notice. E&OE.