Marshall – Stanmore II Voice Wireless Speaker with Amazon Alexa Voice Assistant – Black
$359.99
Last updated on June 12, 2024 3:20 am Details
Specification: Marshall – Stanmore II Voice Wireless Speaker with Amazon Alexa Voice Assistant – Black
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Photos: Marshall – Stanmore II Voice Wireless Speaker with Amazon Alexa Voice Assistant – Black
8 reviews for Marshall – Stanmore II Voice Wireless Speaker with Amazon Alexa Voice Assistant – Black
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Marshall – Stanmore II Voice Wireless Speaker with Amazon Alexa Voice Assistant – Black
$359.99
KMai –
Love it. For most of my guitar-playing life I’ve used Marshall amps. When they began manufacturing home speakers and the like I had zero hang ups on their sound, quality, nor aesthetics. They make great products, in my opinion.
I was curious about their software – some have commented about their integration with amazon and google and how frustrating it can be. I experienced no issues in set up, and have not had a single bad experience at all since we began using this a month ago. My one hiccup was that I downloaded the wrong Marshall app at first, and was unable to get my Stanmore set up on my network and into my amazon smart home ecosystem. Once I got the right app downloaded, setting this up was a breeze. Also, as others have noted, the Marshall app allows a bit more sound flexibility….there’s an equalizer within the app. I recommend using that EQ to get your sound how you want it, then let this start working for you.
I got this on sale via the 2020 Black Friday season. Definitely worth the $199.99 sale price. However, I would not shell out $300-$400 for this. I have Sonos and Bose products in my house, have also owned the Echo Studio, and currently use the Echo Show 8 and 10 on a daily basis. For the most part, any of these others can do as well as this Marshall. The Bose and Sonos will compete on sound, while the Echo Shows compete on ease of use. Instead of adding another Sonos (and admittedly, I tried both Echo Shows in the front living room and neither cut it), I was going for the throwback/vintage look in our front living room and that can easily power the first floor in our house, while also being tied into the amazon ecosystem. If you kept up with all that – mission accomplished with the Stanmore II.
Justin –
The Marshall name has little meaning to me as I am of a younger generation however when my elders saw this speaker they all starting tell me about the brand and their memories. Very neat for such a speaker to be such a conversation starter! The Stanmore II with Amazon Alexa puts a trusted name behind a new product so let’s take a look at what it has to offer.
Out of the box the speaker is fairly large but this is to be expected given the Stanmore II is one of their larger speakers. Fits great on an end table however it may take up most of the table depending on the size. The unit I received did come in a box that I would say had a major printing error which was the inconsistency of the output of the Stanmore II. The main back section said it came with a 30-watt sub amp and two 10-watt tweeter amps when the detailed spec side stated the correct information which is a 50-watt and two 15-watt respectively. Now this isn’t a big deal but rather an error that I hope has been caught by the time I am writing this. Otherwise the packaging was great with the usual power cord and booklet information as the only other items in the box.
Setup was a breeze and you can actually bypass the app if you just want to use this as a Bluetooth speaker however I would recommend using the app which allows for a few nice adjustments based on taste not to mention enabling the Alexa features. The app allows for adjustments to the Red LED backlighting around the knobs, equalizer settings, Amazon Alexa setup, Software updates to the speaker, etc. I boosted the backlighting a bit since it was a little dimmer in daylight out of the box. The equalizer allows user customization to the sound but I found the knobs on the unit enough to satisfy my needs for the most part but the app does include several preset EQ settings as well. The speaker itself allows connection via Bluetooth, Wifi, RCA, and AUX inputs. Seeing RCA inputs on a present day speaker is crazy to see but it stays true to the name and makes it a versatile speaker for sure. It would have been cool to see a USB Type C input or something as well but that might be asking quite a lot. The knobs on top control the Volume, Bass, and Treble continuously despite the unit having a 1-10 adjustment “look”. All the buttons feel of higher quality and the knobs are fairly tight with little play. The only question I am left with is why no power on and off switch? I guess they expect us to unplug the unit from the wall every time.
The sound quality of the Stanmore II honestly blew my mind the first couple time I heard it. I am new to powered speakers but not to portable Bluetooth speakers of $200+. I can say this speaker blew my 25-watt Bluetooth speaker out of the water (and it should for the price/power). The bass is deep and punchy which travels through the floor and walls when turned up. It has no lack of bass even in hip hop music which is does well for its size. The tweeters could be a bit better I would say as the highs can be a bit muddy at times but the sound is still amazing. Overall volume gets insanely loud for a speaker this size. Distortion is almost none existent at any volume but one small nitpick I have is that the volume level seems a bit out of wack, as the speaker needs to be at 40%+ volume just to hear it but once past that point get increasingly louder very quickly. Maybe having the level spread out a tab more would be better in my opinion.
My final opinion of this speaker is… buy it if you want quality sound AND a smart speaker. I believe Marshall does have “Non” smart versions of this speaker which would save some money and still allow for the powerful sound of this unit. I would highly recommend taking a look at the Stanmore II with Alexa if you are in the market for such a speaker!
Pros:
– Look/Design
– Incredible Volume
– Adjustable Sound Quality
– “Smart” Speaker
– Several Input methods
Cons:
– Packaging misprint
– Pricey
Linksys –
Most Bluetooth speakers are described as room filling, the Stanmore ll is house filling! Rock, alternative,country, and any other genre besides rap and the Stanmore ll could literally be your whole audio system, it’s that good. Listening to Metallica/Nothing else matters and you truly see what this speaker is capable of. I’ve listened to many Bluetooth speakers and this is the only one that does not distort, even at max volume. For the vinyl lovers or audiophiles you have the ability to hook up a turntable which is really nice. Alexa works great as you’d expect and is really nice to have that built in to select your music from your amazon library.
Obviously the most important element of a speaker is to sound good and the Marshall has that base covered. Where it truly stands head and shoulders above its competitors (with a lower or higher price) is its design. This isn’t just a speaker it’s a center piece, a piece of furniture, etc., it’s just beautiful. This is the type of speaker that people will automatically be attracted to and then will be blown away when they hear it. If you’re budget is less than this is in price and you want a Bluetooth speaker, save up wait and buy this instead! The Stanmore ll truly does the Marshall name justice.
Mirvana –
My wife and I LOVE the new Stanmore model from Marshall!! We replaced our Amazon Echo that we had in our living room with this and were extremely pleased with the quality of sound.
We also have the Kilburn II portable Bluetooth speaker and were very impressed with the sound and look and decided we had to try out the Stanmore as our main home smart speaker. Obviously, it was able to do that and more for us.
The sound is very rich and full without being overly bright. Bass response is good and provides a nice “punch” in high bass notes that a lot of smaller speakers lack. It’s not going to be mistaken for a home theater sub but it’s plenty adequate. If you like your music loud I assure you that won’t be an issue as well since it can get plenty loud enough for anyone.
As much as the speaker excels in sound it does that and more in connectivity. RCA, Bluetooth, internet, and coax inputs cover the gamut of “traditional” inputs while Alexa voice control feels just as responsive and intelligent as our dedicated Echo model. Pair all of this with the mobile app and you’ve got full control over your speaker from anywhere in your home without having to go to the speaker to change anything. Volume, equalizer, input, all of it can be accessed from the mobile app. You can even change the brightness of the red LED lights from the app as well as rename the speaker to whatever you’d like.
Aesthetically, I’m not sure how you could improve the Stanmore. No matter what decor you have at home it will fit in with anything. The classic look mixes well with anything modern and looks right at home anywhere. Despite its size, we were able to neatly and unassumingly place it on a bookshelf.
Setting up the speaker for both our home network and our Amazon account (for Alexa) were easily done through the app and took mere minutes.
As far as cons go there aren’t many: the price is steep but feels appropriate for the product and the apparent measure of quality it’s built to. If you must have “realistic” sound then a speaker like this isn’t for you. You’d be better off with a dedicated system. If you want a smart speaker that has incredible sound and looks like a million bucks with a trusted name behind it, I don’t know of anything at this price that’s going to beat it.
Ponskippa –
So I want to begin by saying that I consider myself a musician. I play guitar, I’ve owned a marshall amp in the past. I love music, and listen to music for at least two hours a day. The Marshall Stanmore II looks and feels like a Marshall Guitar Amp, So this will be great for Marshall Amp lovers who want to accent their living room or bedroom with the Marshall brand and design for their music and AI assistant purposes. The materials used in the build for this speaker feel every bit like the materials used in Marshall amps, even down to the buttons and control knobs. I love that part of it. It would be so awesome if I could plug my guitar into this thing and use it as a practice amp. No can do.
The amp has a good number of connection options, you can plug in RCA cables, an aux cable, or stream wirelessly with Bluetooth or Wifi. You do need to download the Marshall Voice app on your phone to connect the speaker to your wireless network. Having the speaker always connected to Wifi allows it to use Alexa with your amazon account. If your a fan and user of amazon and alexa this is a great option for you. It has all the same functionality of Alexa found in Amazons echo and fire products. I do not like that there is no On/Off button or switch on this speaker. I assume it is because it is meant to be left on and connected to Wifi at all times so that you can use the Alexa voice assistant. Its not a huge deal, but for times when you aren’t going to be home for an extended time, it would be great to be able to turn it off without having to unplug it. I only give this amp 4 stars and it is hard to recommend it to a friend because the sound quality is only just “good enough” but not great, especially for the asking price. That being said.. it’s not bad, the sound and eq is fairly balanced. At low volumes, the speaker sounds fine. Overall tones are clean and balanced, bass is present without being too punchy or distorted. The issue is when you get to 7 and above on the volume knob. To my ears, the sound becomes a little harsh on the high end, Treble is harsh and the bass doesn’t become any deeper. Everything just gets louder. The EQ knobs on the panel honestly do not do much to control the EQ. Bass sounds the same at 5 and 10. Same thing for the treble knob. Highs and Treble sound the same at 5 and 10. You’re honestly better off using a software EQ within your music streaming app of choice. Maybe they can fix this with a firmware update through the Marshall Amp. Out of the box, the bass and treble controls are useless. The look, design, and Marshall name call for this speaker to be played at high volumes to entertain your guests at a party. I just can’t recommend this speaker for that purpose. It doesn’t sound great at its highest volumes. This is a niche speaker for loyal Marshall Amp lovers and owners. Alexa is great on here, but Alexa is great on every other speaker that has it. If you are expecting amazing sound quality or a party speaker, look elsewhere.
Pros – Beautiful Elegant Classic Marshall Design
– Alexa
-Many connection options
– Balanced clean sound at lower volumes
Cons- No ON / OFF Switch
– EQ control knobs are pretty useless
– Not Portable ( needs to stay plugged into the wall at all times)
Saitzev –
This is a really nice speaker. It’s got that timeless Marshall design and really solid build quality. It weighs quite a bit too. This isn’t a speaker you’re going to be moving around a lot. you’re going to want to put this in a room and leave it there. It’s not one you can use off the AC like many other speakers. This one is more similar like the Echo or Google Home just much, much larger.
The sound on this is pretty great. There’s a good amount of bass and plenty to offer with high’s and mid’s. To really get a feel of the bass though you do have to have it turned up a fair bit, probably around 50% volume. Once you do though, boy does it come alive.
There is an app you will need called Marshall Voice. It will get your Speaker setup relatively quickly. It also takes you through the process of setting up Alexa with your Amazon account providing you have one. There is also an EQ that you can use as well. It’s just a 5 Band EQ. It would be nice if it was a bit more featured though. I didn’t notice a whole lot of differences in the sound when configuring it aside from the mids. There’s also a setting to adjust the brightness of the LED’s around the Dials for the Volume, Bass and Treble.
Alexa is very responsive from the little I’ve used it on this speaker, you could think of it as an extremely premium Echo.
The design and features are really nice. I appreciate the types of connectivity you get with this. You have an Aux In on top next to the dials. You have an RCA in on the rear. Then there is the Bluetooth along with Wi-Fi. I did test using Spotify over the various inputs including the Aux from my phone which has a Quad DAC built in. Using it’s a effects was welcome with an increase in audio quality, though it wasn’t staggering as what’s built in here is really good.
If you’re looking for a nice speaker to have in your home a fairly large or small room, this would be a great addition. It will need some room though as it’s over a foot wide and at least 8-10 inches deep and about 8-10 inches tall.
My only real dislike with it aside from needing to have the volume up to get more Bass response would be the Dials on top. I do wish they had a stopping point as they freely and infinitely rotate. This is just more a nitpick than a con really. I’d still get another one knowing this though.
The34Car –
This speaker is awesome! The sound is impressive without any tinkering and it is loud enough to fill the whole house. To my ears, the sound has plenty of deep bass, sharp vocals and clear highs to provide a really rich sound. The sound stays just as good at high volume.
It’s got a classic Marshall amp look that says you’re a serious rocker. The look is definitely a conversation starter.
Setting up Alexa on the speaker was simple and pairing to my phone was simple as well. I can now just tell Alexa to connect to my phone when I want to play music from my phone and listen from this speaker, so I don’t have to go into my phone’s Bluetooth settings each time I want to connect. I can also tell Alexa to play something on Pandora and the speaker will play it. So easy!
The thing I like the most, above the cool look of the speaker and above the convenience is the sound. I just love it and I have quite a few top brand Bluetooth speakers. This is my new favorite.
I will point out the one “downside” if you want to call it that: it needs to be plugged in to operate, so no rechargeable batteries in it. Not really a downside, but it decreases its portability slightly.
allib –
We have all seen the typical look of most Bluetooth/wireless speakers which are acceptable, but nothing special. That is not the case with the Marshall Stanmore II speaker! Its guitar amp style design with the classic gold Marshall lettering, grille and brass control knobs is something to admire and stand out. This is not a speaker that blends in to the background and we just love the look.
Speaker setup starts by plugging in the unit and installing the Marshall Voice App. In app instructions further guide one through the setup process. If one chooses to utilize the Amazon Alexa voice assistant you also need to download the Amazon Alexa app and then link it in the Marshall Voice app speaker settings. Thus far, we have used the speaker via Bluetooth and WIFI connections, but RCA and 3.5mm input connections are also available.
Sound quality is quite impressive with two 15 Watt class D amplifiers powering its tweeters and a 50 Watt class D amplifier to drive its subwoofer. The Marshall Voice app allows one to adjust equaliser settings or choose from custom settings for rock, hip hop, jazz and more. The app also allows one to adjust the LED intensity on your speaker which is red, but turns to blue when Alexa is actively in use. The Alexa voice assistant has worked quite well and can tie into any Alexa enabled interfaces such as thermostats, lights and locks. The hands free Alexa feature does make music listening easy by asking Alexa to change the volume, play a particular song, playlist or podcast. Alexa can be turned off on the speaker itself by holding down the voice mute button for about three seconds.
With Spotify linked in the Alexa app we were able to play music from this streaming service or the Amazon Prime Music service. There is a setting within the Alexa app to specify Spotify as the default streaming service or otherwise Alexa will play a song from its service first if available.
We have not tried out the multiroom speaker setup with the Stanmore II, but it’s good to know that we can establish this setup with Alexa enabled devices.
In summary, the Marshall Stanmore II with Alexa is a bit of an investment, but one is getting great quality sound with Alexa controls and multiroom compatibility in a very classic design. We would not hesitate to recommend this speaker.