Sharp sound for every room: The best speakers for music in 2024

Most music lovers will admit that today's best budget speakers for music would outstrip the ones you grew up listening to. But we listened anyway and discovered the songs that would become the soundtrack to our lives. But now, thanks to some of the best speakers on the market, there's no excuse for putting up with tinny mids and thin bass. Muddy Waters doesn't have to sound muddied; the Stereophonics can live up to their name, and any tin will be outlawed from your heavy metal collection.

While what makes a good speaker varies from ear to ear, there are some things you can gather from the spec sheet, such as whether it's a Bluetooth speaker, has multiroom capabilities, what size the cones are, and so on. But this is no small task. With so many speakers on the market at so many price levels, it's easy to get lost in the data and wild promises. But you won't be lost for long – our experts have found some of the best speakers for music on the planet.

Best speakers for music in 2024 at a glance:

• Best overall: DALI Spektor 2 Bookshelf Speaker – View at Amazon
• Best budget: Edifier R1280T Active Bookshelf Speakers – View at Amazon
• Best portable: Marshall Middleton Bluetooth Wireless Portable Speaker – View at John Lewis
• Best floor-standing: DALI Oberon 9 Floorstanding Speakers – View at Peter Tyson

We've grouped our pick of the best music speakers into two categories. First, we've looked at different sizes. Whatever you choose, you'll need to be able to fit it into the available space. Second, and perhaps most importantly, is how well-matched the speaker is to the type of music you listen to.

Some speakers, most notably Marshall, are known for better suiting rock and metal than other genres. At the same time, brands like Bose have a dedicated following from classical music fans due to their delicate frequency response. We've included examples from those speaker brands, too. So pull your favourite LPs from the shelf and your best CDs from the rack. The best speakers for music are on their way.

Best speakers for music in 2024

All prices are correct at the time of writing. Prices, stock and deals are subject to change without notice.

How to choose the best music speaker for you

Judge for yourself

Musicality is a nebulous term that many people use to describe how natural or warm a speaker sounds. But, for others, it's how faithfully the speaker will render certain instruments or how defined and separated the frequencies are. Build quality and brand aside, this isn't always about how much money you have to spend. Sometimes, a cheap and cheerful smart speaker can hit that sweet spot that suits the type of music you listen to. Others, perhaps in the audiophile category, would prefer investing in the best speaker technology that money can buy.

There really is no substitute for listening to the hi-fi speakers you're interested in. There are a number of ways to do this. One is buying from a retailer that supports easy returns if unsatisfied. The second is to find a friend or colleague who has the same or similar speakers to listen to. As always, we recommend taking your own music with you to test it.

Match up your speakers with your amp

If you're buying new speakers to go with your amplifier, you'll need to ensure that the specifications match up. An amplifier is rated for output and audio signal at a certain wattage. There's also impedance to take into account. There's more on these terms in our jargon buster below. However, don't be tempted by speakers because you like their look. Check that they're a good match first. It's possible to damage a speaker or the amplifier permanently if you don't.

Bigger isn’t always better

Speaker technology has advanced dramatically in recent years, and with this has come a boost in performance at all sizes. Some of the best smart speakers and bookshelf speakers we've ever seen have sound you'd normally associate with floor-standing units of old. Unless you're going with large floor-standing speakers because they have more drivers inside, such as the outstanding Audio Pro A48 speakers, the chances are you'll do just as well with some excellent bookshelf speakers.

All that glitters is not audio gold

As with most tech, the cover is sometimes better than the story inside. If you find a speaker from a brand you've never heard of that looks very premium, it might be too good to be true. Equally, we recommend avoiding speakers with too much cosmetic bling; that raft of useless chrome plastic detailing and flashy graphics likely hides some substandard cones and drivers.

Best speakers for music in 2024: Jargon buster

Passive speakers

A passive speaker has no active power or amplifier circuitry. So, you must route your sound to them via an external amplifier. Some speakers, like the Edifier R1280T, are active. They don't require an external amplifier.

Active speakers

Likewise, an active speaker has its own power supply and amplifier function. This means that you can hook up any sound source directly to the speakers, usually via an auxiliary input connection, such as an audio jack or twin phono plugs for speakers for a record player. Because these speakers actively power themselves, they can amplify the music you pipe into them. This, of course, includes all-in-ones like Bluetooth portables and some ceiling speakers.

Power rating

Typically, as a range expressed in Watts, this is the power output through each speaker's terminals. Therefore, choosing a speaker that requires more power than your amp can deliver will result in weak, under-par sound and an over-driven amplifier. Conversely, too much power from the amp will destroy speakers that aren't built to take it.

Impedance

Impedance is measured in Ohms and tells you how much the speakers impeded or resisted the audio signal. A 20-watt speaker rated at 4 Ohm will require less power from the amplifier to overcome that impedance level. Therefore, it's crucial to match up the impedance of your speakers with that of your amplifier. You risk damaging speakers by pushing too much power onto them when there's not enough resistance.

Watt

Wattage in regard to sound output and speaker power is a measure of the strength of the signal that drives the speaker. The wattage between the speaker and traditional separate amp needs to be compatible to avoid potentially damaging both; but of course with active speakers this is all dealt with for you.

Decibels

Sound is measured in decibels (dBs). While it's an accepted measure of volume, it doesn’t correlate with wattage. Although, more wattage doesn’t necessarily mean bigger or better volume, or quality for that matter. Usually, manufacturers specify the amount of dBs that a speaker can produce with a single Watt of power at a 1-metre distance.

Drivers

A driver is a device inside any speaker, be it the best-wired headphones or bookshelf speakers, that converts electrical signals into sound. It follows that larger drivers are able to deliver a more powerful sound with greater accuracy. That said, this isn't always the case as build material quality also plays an important role.

Tweeters

A speaker is two components: a woofer and a tweeter. A tweeter is responsible for producing high-frequency sounds. They're often a dome shape and may even be independently positionable.

Woofers

A woofer is part of the speaker that produces low-frequency sounds. You'll commonly see these described by the cone's width – in inches or centimetres. This will also give you a slight indication of how much range and power they may have.

Frequency Range

In Hertz (Hz), this is a measurement of the range of sound frequencies a speaker can reproduce. Our ears can perceive 20 – 20,000 Hz, with the lower number being a lower tone and vice versa.

Why should you trust us?

At What's The Best, our mission is to provide accurate and reliable reviews, ensuring our readers receive honest and transparent information about the best technology products available. Anything less would undermine our commitment to being a trusted source of unbiased product information.

Our dedicated in-house writing team comprises experts with extensive experience and a genuine passion for technology. Collectively, we have spent decades testing and writing about tech, leveraging our expertise in all our articles, advice pieces and reviews.

We maintain complete editorial independence and do not accept payment for product reviews. Our writers have full control over their content, ensuring that products are selected based solely on the needs of our readers. While we may earn commissions or other compensation from links on our website, this never affects our product choices. These links enable us to continue offering valuable consumer advice, without compromising the integrity of our reviews.

Read more about why you should trust us.

Chris Duffill is a Tech Product Writer for What's The Best and Yours. His background includes writing, editorial, marketing, design, video production and photography.

He specialises in home entertainment and audiovisual tech, including speakers, amplifiers, turntables, streaming media players, and TVs. He is also one of our resident experts in computing (PCs, tablets, smartphones, smartwatches), DSLR photography and all kinds of digital cameras. He also writes about retro gaming, game consoles and various electronic gadgets. If it plugs in, lights up or makes a noise, he’ll write about it.

Subscribe to the What’s The Best Newsletter to keep up to date with more of the latest reviews and recommendations from the rest of the What’s The Best team.