Roberts Stream 67 review: The high-end internet radio that does it all

Think of Roberts and you probably think of something like its classic Revival; a marriage of cool retro design and years of radio expertise, as British as the red telephone box or a Morgan sports car. For the last few years, though, the brand has been trying to push out to new territories, adding Bluetooth connectivity to DAB radios and embracing the world of streaming audio and internet radio. Some of these products have been great, but Roberts hasn’t always nailed the style, the user interface or the all-round sound quality. Can it do so with the new Stream 67?

You’d certainly hope so, because this is a high-end streaming audio system coming in just shy of £600. We can’t even really describe it as an internet radio, because it also covers DAB, streaming services and Bluetooth as well, while even cramming in a CD player. Roberts positions it as a Smart Audio system, taking up where the existing Stream 94i leaves off.

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Roberts Stream 67 review: Design

The Stream 67 is certainly no shrinking violet. The wooden unit is nearly half a metre wide and 16cm high, and at nearly 30cm deep it may not fit on the average bookshelf. And it weighs a hefty 7Kg in so you might need something sturdier. But, it looks at home on a low table or a sideboard where you can appreciate its slightly retro looks.

I was never really convinced by the looks of the smaller 94i, which seemed to sit uncomfortably between Roberts’ traditional design and a less-charming modern look, but the Stream 67 is a huge improvement. With its light wooden cabinet, dark speaker cloth and metal accents it feels like the descendent of an old-school tabletop radio, but the central 3.5in square OLED display drags it right into the present.

Take a look around the back and you can see the bass ports for the rear-ported speakers, the DAB and Wi-Fi aerials, and in-between an array of connections. There’s Gigabit Ethernet, in case you don’t trust a wireless signal, but also a 5v 1A USB output to charge your smartphone along with a 3.5mm auxiliary input and a matching headphone out.

The top panel houses the controls, including chunky rotaries for volume and selection/tuning, plus a dual-function shuffle/Bluetooth pair, the usual transport controls and buttons for info, presets, menus and setting the alarm. They’re all pretty clear but you don’t have to use them all the time, as Roberts supplies a chunky but fully-featured remote; or, you can control many settings through the associated Undok app.

Roberts Stream 67 review: Setup and use

Plug the Stream 67 in, turn it on and you’ll be met by a straightforward setup wizard, taking you through language and privacy notices then running you through connecting to your Wi-Fi network. Annoyingly, it lists the available networks in alphabetical order rather than – as most devices do it – by signal strength. Bad news if you’re on Sky or Vodafone and you haven’t changed your network name. Still, you’ll probably only have to do this once, which is a plus when you also have to enter your network password using the remote control’s D-pad and a clunky on-screen keyboard. Once that’s done, you’re ready to go.

Alternatively you can configure the Stream 67 using the Undok app, connecting directly to its default Wi-Fi access point then setting up the connection from there. You’ll need to install the app anyway, as it’s the only way to sign the system in to your favourite music streaming services. The Stream 97i will work with Spotify Connect, Deezer, Amazon Music and Tidal, treating each as a separate source along with Bluetooth, internet radio, FM Radio and DAB.

In use, the Stream 67 is strongest where you might expect it to be. It’s a great DAB radio with configurable presets and easy station switching and it’s nearly as good on internet radio. You can find stations, and even individual podcasts, by genre then browse through the most popular choices; be aware the chunky text on the OLED display can make scrolling through long lists a chore. Find something you like and you can add it to the presets for later listening. Use Undok and it’s slightly easier, partly because it’s more straightforward to navigate and enter search text with a smartphone.

It’s when you come to streaming music services that specialists like Sonos have the edge. Whether you’re browsing for new tracks and albums or checking out playlists, Undok is never as user-friendly or effective as the native apps, while doing the same using the Stream 67’s remote and display feels even less natural. It’s no disaster and you soon get used to it, but if Roberts was looking to match Sonos for the streaming experience then it still has a lot of work to do.

There are alternative approaches. You can simply use your smartphone as a source and stream over Bluetooth, though you might not get the full quality of HD services like Tidal. Secondly, you can use Amazon Alexa through an Echo device for voice control. This works well, much as it does with older Sonos speakers, though it’s less ideal for browsing as you really need to know what you’re asking for.

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Roberts Stream 67 review: Sound

While ease of use isn’t the Stream 67’s strength, the sound quality easily makes up for such shortcomings. Even at low volumes it’s weighty and authoritative, growing in presence as you turn the level up. There’s a warm mid-range that’s great for talk radio, news, podcasts and drama, and more than enough bass for pop, EDM and jazz. In fact, you might even need to turn the bass down a little, even at flat EQ the built-in sub is overpowering with some material, and turned up it’s a little boy racer car stereo.

Much will depend on your source. With Amazon Music, the sound was slightly thin and hollow; not a problem with Tidal’s higher bitrate streams. With Bluetooth, I had to turn up the volume and adjust the EQ before I got a decent sound. Internet radio sounds fantastic, whether listening to podcasts – a real treat with the Stream 67 – or classical stations. Surfing channels for Americana, jazz and alternative rock has the Roberts sounding its absolute best.

If there’s any criticism, it’s a slight lack of space and treble detail. Playing tracks through the Stream 67, a Sonos Play:1 and the excellent Sonoro Cubo radio, the Stream 67 has the biggest sound of any of them, but doesn’t have quite the sparkle of the Sonos or the Cubo. It’s a smooth, rich sound, but ever so slightly dull at the high end. Turning down the sub and tweaking the EQ improves the clarity, but if you’re expecting the ultimate audiophile radio and streamer, then the Stream 67 might fall slightly short.

Roberts Stream 67 review: Verdict

For all our quibbles, this is Roberts best internet radio/streaming system yet. It looks the part, sounds great and feels like a grown-up slab of audio kit: the kind of thing you like to have sitting in your living room. It makes everything from listening to podcasts to exploring the world’s radio stations hugely enjoyable. Yet there’s no getting past the fact that it is £600, that the sound isn’t quite as wonderful as it could be, and that Robert’s streaming features aren’t as slick and easy to use as those of rivals. It’s close to greatness, but the consistency isn’t quite there.