When Focal launched the five-star Mu-so Hekla, Trusted Reviews thought that was that for any new Mu-so speaker launches for the next few years. Turns out that Naim had something under its sleeves…
Alongside the development of the Hekla, Naim was also coming up with its own all-in-one speaker that could be the true sequel to the legacy Mu-so speakers with the Naim Mu-so Utopia. While it looks similar to the Hekla in form, it sports redesigned drivers, more power and the most “sophisticated amplification ever developed for a Mu-so System”.
Let’s dig more into the details then.
The Mu-so Utopia is more focused on music
This is the first Naim Mu-so product to bear the name of the Utopia, which previously was designated to Focal’s massive active loudspeakers. While Focal as a brand has leaned more towards AV and immersive audio, Naim has focused on two-channel and amplifications and that’s the case with the Mu-so Utopia.
Yes, like the Hekla, the Utopia features upward-firing drivers for Dolby Atmos, but what separates the two speakers is the drive units, which have been upgraded in spec from the Hekla, with Focal-derived tweeters in the new PRISM technology making its way to the Mu-so Utopia, as well as a pair of midrange ‘M’ shaped drivers. Compared to the Hekla, every drive unit in the Mu-so Utopia is brand new.
Another change from the Hekla is the use of both Class D and Class A/B amplification, with the latter offering more control over the highs. Speaking of power…
The Mu-so Utopia’s power levels are through the roof
Another point of difference between the two speakers is the amount of power that the Mu-so Utopia can parse out to its speakers. The Hekla was able to summon 660W, the Utopia takes that up to 720W of power.
As Trusted Reviews was informed during a tour and presentation of Naim’s HQ in Salisbury that the Mu-so Utopia has received a new power supply upgraded from the one in the Hekla. The amplifiers for the mid-range drivers are “incredibly over specc’d”, in a way that allows Naim to “underdrive them and run them at a very very sort of low distortion”, that cuts down distortion compared to the Hekla by about five times. We can’t say we even heard much distortion when we tested the Hekla earlier in 2026.
This speaker is also able to generate a bigger sound, filling rooms up to 50m2 in space (up from the Hekla’s 40m2). The number of speakers remains the same as before (15), but the refinements made to the speaker driver set-up and the revamped amplification suggests that this is an even bigger beast that the mighty Mu-so Hekla.
The rest of the specs are more or less the same
We’ve not mentioned the look, which has been slightly tweaked with the addition of a sleek red trim to the speaker; but otherwise on the spec and design front, everything is largely the same. And we do mean ‘large’ quite literally to.
The cabinet is the same size to maintain the all-in-one distinction, with a built-in subwoofer (why design an all-in-one speaker that still requires an external subwoofer is Naim’s thinking). Otherwise, Google Cast, Spotify Connect, Qobuz Connect, AirPlay 2, Bluetooth, Tidal Connect and Presto Music are available in terms of streaming. You can still connect to a TV through the systems HDMI eARC port.
Audio support hits all the way up to 32-bit/384kHz WAV, DSD64/DSD128, and Bluetooth streaming remains at SBC and AAC. As mentioned above, Dolby Atmos sound is supported, though Naim did comment that when playing two-channel music, they’ve been able to bypass Dolby’s processing, creating a shorter signal path for audio, and further reducing any distortion and or colouration.
The price has gone up
The Mu-so Hekla looks like a snip compared to the Mu-so Utopia. The new driver set-up and amplification has led to a jump in price, so if you thought £2999 was on the expensive side, the Mu-so Utopia gives it a substantial push to £4499 / €5000 / $5500.