Marshall Stanmore II Wireless Bluetooth Speaker - Black (UK)

Product Information

At first the upper-mids and treble can sound a little unrefined, but I found my ears grew accustomed to the tone within an hour or so. If yours don’t, you can just tame the treble a little with either the treble knob up-top, or through the app. Marshall is the most iconic name in guitar amplifiers – but if you’re reading this then you probably know this already. Famous names who have used Marshall kit over the years include Hendrix, Van Halen, Slayer and Spinal Tap. The Stanmore 3 has a greater emphasis on sustainable materials, with Marshall stating that the speaker is made of recycled plastic, contains no PVC, and uses “vegan materials” (in other words, the leather exterior isn’t actually leather).

Small batteries, especially those that experience the drain/recharge cycle on a repeated basis, are destined to fail. The Stanmore, on the other hand, avoids this risk by relying on a constant power source instead. However, the build quality and design of both speakers is so similar that I don’t expect the Stanmore 3 to suffer durability issues. The speaker box is solid, the product is well-built, and the faux leather exterior holds up well over time.

In This Article

Both speakers have beautiful and sturdy designs along with high sound quality and EQ knobs right on the device. This gadget was created by Marshall, a British audio enterprise. Anyone who has ever attended a live music session will identify the Marshall logo from towering, strong speakers on either side of the stage. They're consistently named as one of the best speaker brands. They also specialise in amps for your guitar.. Stanmore II is an active set up. Therefore it comes with a fitted amp. On paper, powered set ups are the best option. Active Principle This is the reason it sounds so relaxed; it’s at ease at volumes that will make your neighbours feel anything but. The Stanmore II is a great party speaker. Historically, if the technology is nearly ready, it gets added before the speaker goes to market. There are numerous examples of bluetooth speakers that have had app-compatibility “coming soon” for years – without ever receiving the update.

Dynamic loudness, on the other hand, changes the equalizer based on the speaker’s volume, in an attempt to find the right sound balance at any level. Marshall’s marketing material for the 3 focused on the improved soundstage, and thankfully Marshall actually delivered in this regard. The tweeters are positioned with a wider angle on the 3 than the 2, and in testing you can truly hear a difference.On the above note, it should be pointed out that both the Stanmore 2 and 3 require a permanent power source. These are not portable speakers with built-in batteries. There’s no hiding that the Stanmore II falls behind top performers such as the Sonos One and Harman Kardon Go + Play in certain areas, though. Bass control, dynamics and separation are just okay. Both the 2 and 3 have a power button, input ports, and bass/treble/volume knobs on the top of the device.

Both speakers have the same input options – a 3.5 mm aux port, RCA inputs, and bluetooth-capability. The speaker appearance is nearly identical, as well. The control panel is located on the top of both speakers, and again is almost identical. The Bluetooth is very reliable, I could take my smartphone into another room without the music cutting out, and my phone automatically connected almost instantaneously every time I switched it on. Sound quality is balanced and crisp on both speakers, without much difference on the newer iteration. The Stanmore 2 seems to get slightly louder than the 3, but the difference will only be observable during side-by-side testing. Other than these changes and a few minor changes we will discuss below, the Stanmore 2 and Stanmore 3 are almost identical.However, the one true omission is portability. The Marshall Stanmore II would be a great speaker for summer days – and if that appeals then you should consider the Harman Kardon Go + Play while it’s still available. Verdict Also included on this unit is a handle, something that I wish was part of every speaker for the purposes of portability. Despite being a Bluetooth speaker, the Marshall Stanmore II actually needs to be plugged-in to function. To look at it you may think, “of course it needs mains power, look how big it is”. However, the Harman Kardon Go + Play 2 is a similar-ish size but can run for up to eight hours off a charge.

It’s a fairly large Bluetooth speaker that perfectly at home being cranked up loud. It has oodles of Marshall style and fairly good audio quality, too. However, since it doesn’t rely on Wi-Fi like its pricier sibling, the Stanmore II Voice, this version is just begging for an integrated battery like the Harman Kardon Go + Play 2. Stanmore II is the midrange offering in Marshall’s wireless speaker line, with a price tag of around 350 euros that puts it into DXOMARK’s Advanced category. The brand says, “Stanmore II is the most versatile speaker in the Marshall line-up and is perfect for any room, big or small. Built with advanced components, it produces clean and precise audio, even at the highest levels.”The placement compensation feature is controlled through the app, and basically functions to modify the equalizer settings if there are obstructions nearby the speaker. It sounds its best when played fairly loud, but doesn’t quite have the separation and dynamics of the very top performers. The same criticism can be levelled at Marshall’s other speakers, too. Stanmore 3 features more recycled plastic, which may prove to be a durability concern over time. But we honestly just trust that Marshall knows what they are doing. The Stanmore 2 and Stanmore 3 both have equalizers that can be controlled right from the device, with knobs for bass and treble on the top control panel. This is an unusual feature for a bluetooth speaker, and we give Marshall a lot of credit for including this.