professionals and cons
- Beautiful, timeless design
- Wonderful sound
- Larger soundstage
extra shopping for decisions
Marshall’s Stanmore line of audio system has been my dependable music associate for six years now. I like enjoying songs on my mains-powered Stanmore II greater than some other speaker. It runs within the background after I’m working, chilling, or simply present at house. So, I used to be greater than excited to see if the newest mannequin, the brand new Stanmore IV, was definitely worth the improve.
Additionally: Marshall Stanmore IV vs. Sonos Era 300: I tested both to find the ultimate home speaker
The fourth-gen speaker promised a extra immersive expertise with deeper bass and a wider soundstage, together with a extra repairable design. I’ve now been testing it for a month, and am glad to report that it stands true to most of these guarantees.
The Marshall Stanmore IV remains to be a Bluetooth-only speaker, missing Wi-Fi or voice assistant assist, not like different sensible audio system in its value vary. Nonetheless, it’s the signature Marshall design, sound, and general expertise that’ll sway you away from the sensible choices and towards an analog-first method. However is it actually definitely worth the $430 price ticket? Permit me to reply.
Finest bluetooth speaker offers of the week
Offers are chosen by the CNET Group commerce workforce, and could also be unrelated to this text.
An opulent, timeless design
The Stanmore IV options Marshall’s signature look, packed in a extra repairable wood cupboard measuring 13.78 x 7.99 x 7.28 inches and weighing 8.81lbs. As a mains-powered speaker, it’s meant to be stored in a single place, plugged into an outlet. It’s huge, however not like different house audio system, the Stanmore blends into your room’s inside. It does not appear to be an odd gadget sitting on a shelf.
Like its predecessor, the Stanmore IV has a faux-leather-clad exterior, a brass speaker grille, and golden accents, together with a big Marshall emblem on the entrance. These design parts give it an aesthetic, timeless look, which might complement any residing house.
Marshall’s bodily controls supply satisfying, analog suggestions that I miss on the Sonos Period 300.
Prakhar Khanna/ZDNET
On prime, you get three bodily knobs to regulate the amount, treble, and bass. They’re paired with an influence swap, Supply button (to toggle between RCA, Bluetooth, and Aux), a playback management button (to play/pause or go to earlier/subsequent observe), and an all-new M button. The multifunction M button could be custom-made by way of the Marshall app, the place you may discover choices to change between your saved EQ presets or open a Spotify playlist with Spotify Faucet. Plus, the purple LED indicators at the moment are brighter and extra legible than earlier than.
Additionally: I tested Sonos’ new beta features on iOS and Android – how to opt in and what to expect
This management system looks like the right mixture of analog and digital. There’s one thing extra satisfying concerning the bodily suggestions of knobs, buttons, and switches, which may’t be replicated by vibrations on digital buttons. Marshall’s use of buttons and knobs means you do not have to take out your cellphone to vary the EQ, quantity, and supply settings. It’s merely a extra joyful expertise.
My Marshall Stanmore II (left) has its ports positioned on the again, whereas the Stanmore IV (proper) has a cleaner look and has shifted its controls to the underside.
Prakhar Khanna/ZDNET
Marshall has additionally labored on tidying up the design. All ports, besides the three.5mm Aux port on prime, have been moved to the speaker’s underside, whereas on the Stanmore II, they had been on the again.
This shift in port areas permits you to place the Stanmore IV flush towards a wall, or whether it is on an open shelf, it’s going to look tidier from the again. It is usually extra repairable than earlier than. You possibly can swap out the entrance grille, knobs, ft, and the long-lasting emblem, ought to they get broken.
An excellent higher sound
I in contrast the latest-generation Stanmore IV to my Stanmore II, and it sounded higher than ever. It’s clearer, louder, and has an even bigger soundstage. The brand new Marshall speaker makes use of two 0.75-inch tweeters with 25W of amplification and a 5-inch sub with 60W of amplification to ship huge, booming bass.
Additionally: Marshall’s first soundbar rocks as a mainstream alternative – Here’s my take
I listened to all types of genres, and the Marshall Stanmore IV delivers an all-around pleasing expertise. It gives deep bass with out fatiguing your ears. The decrease frequencies have a thumping affect whereas remaining clear, with out sacrificing mids.
Rock songs have wonderful instrument separation, the place you’ll be able to hear the drumbeat alongside the power of electrical guitars. The treble sounds managed and vibrant in any respect volumes, with minimal distortion even while you crank it up. And none of it impacts the vocal readability. I loved listening to acoustic music as a lot as I loved rock.
Additionally: Sennheiser Momentum 5 vs. Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3: I tested both, and one wins nearly every metric
For the higher a part of my testing, I had my Marshall Stanmore IV related to the Vivo X300 Extremely (for higher-res LDAC) and iPhone 17 Professional Max. For probably the most half, I could not inform the distinction between the 2 sources. Nonetheless, I did discover vocals on the LDAC codec sounded barely extra detailed and had extra space.
Total, the Stanmore IV sounds as energetic as earlier than, however with higher tonal accuracy, deeper bass, and a broader soundstage.
The app, new options, and one lacking bit
The Stanmore IV could be paired together with your cellphone through the brand new Marshall app. It permits over-the-air updates and customization choices, and gives nifty options to ship a greater expertise.
The app permits you to alter the brightness of the LED indicators, use placement compensation to optimize the speaker’s audio output based mostly on its place, and save as much as three EQ presets with a five-band equalizer. You may as well customise the M button to your choice right here.
Additionally: Google Home vs. Sonos Era 100: I used both smart speakers, here’s what I recommend
Marshall has additionally added Aurcast assist to its new Stanmore IV and Motion IV audio system. This implies you’ll be able to lastly join a Stanmore speaker to an Acton, Woburn, or different supported Marshall speaker for a multi-room expertise. Earlier, you could possibly solely stack a Stanmore with a Stanmore or a Woburn with a Woburn. I am glad that is now an possibility.
Nonetheless, I am disenchanted that you’re going to want a $300 Marshall Heddon streaming hub to attach the Stanmore IV to its predecessor or to the Marshall Heston soundbars. Moreover, the shortage of Auracast assist for connecting to audio system from different producers is a serious downside. Sadly, in case you have a Stanmore II like me, you’ll be able to’t join it to Marshall’s newest house audio system.
I additionally want Marshall had included Wi-Fi assist in its new era of house audio system. I might like to attach my speaker to the house community and solid songs through AirPlay — not for high quality however for a no-interruption expertise. On Bluetooth, my music pauses after I’m scrolling by way of social media, and a video begins enjoying. If there have been Wi-Fi assist, this disruption would not have occurred, and I might have continued utilizing my cellphone with out worrying a few random noise interrupting my music.
ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation
At $430, the Marshall Stanmore IV will not be probably the most reasonably priced speaker available on the market. It instantly competes with a better $479 Sonos Period 300, which has Wi-Fi assist and voice assistant capabilities. Nonetheless, it does not have the identical timeless, elegant look as the brand new Marshall speaker.
Regardless of the value tag, the Stanmore IV stays a simple advice due to its timeless design and wonderful sound mixture.
The Stanmore IV’s faux-leather exterior with golden accents would simply match into any residing house, and its sturdy bass, paired with vibrant highs and clear vocals on a large, room-filling soundstage, would please each listener. If my expertise with the Stanmore II is any indication, this speaker is constructed to final, and a extra repairable design solely instills extra confidence. When you do not want sensible options, the Marshall Stanmore IV is the most effective house speaker you should buy in its value vary.
