Neat Mystique Classic

Small towers that go big on fun

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It's easy to imagine that Neat's Classic range of loudspeakers could have been named by Doctor Seuss, consisting as it does of the hugely entertaining Neat Petite standmounts, the Neat Mystique middle-child floorstanders and the range-topping Neat Elite towers. We can easily speculate as to what further additions to the lineup might have been called. Neat Complete? Neat Discreet? Neat Secrete?

Whatever you think of the company's naming conventions, Neat's Petite standmounts were certainly tough to beat, ending up as some of the most likeable speakers we have had in our test rooms for some time.

The Neat Mystique Classic floorstanders are the Petite's bigger brothers, and if they can deliver those same qualities of fun and agility as their standmount siblings, they could be a truly charming addition to the Classic family.

Neat by name, neat by nature. Measuring in at 78 x 20 x 16cm (hwd), these compact towers barely come up to just above our waists, even when attached to their provided metal plinths. This makes them ideal if you want a pair of unobtrusive floorstanders to fit into a relatively small listening area.

Each wood-veneered cabinet of our review sample is basic but well made.

Neat hasn't ignored cosmetics entirely, and we discern no visible fixings around the drivers.

These dinky towers employ a 9cm Air Motion Transformer tweeter matched with a 13cm paper cone bass/midrange unit taken from Neat's Motive range of loudspeakers.

The crossover network, meanwhile, uses high-quality inductors and polypropylene capacitors designed to “minimise disruption to the signal path”.