One of my favourite Marshall speakers is £126 off: Marshall Stanmore III review

Black Friday is over but offers Bluetooth speaker deals are still there to be had. It's not often that we see one of our favourites on sale with a healthy discount, but right now there's £126 off the Marshall Stanmore III we reviewed, and it's also on sale as part of Marshall's Black Friday sale. Our advice? Buy one while you can, the Stanmore III is a classy piece of kit and one of the best Marshall speakers available – as our reviewer Chris Duffill explains in his full review, below.

When a company as established as Marshall releases a third iteration of one of the best speakers in its line-up, it’s time to break out the trusty axe and plug in. Except it’s not, because this isn’t a classic amp - it’s a speaker (as if you didn’t know). The Marshall Stanmore III may have that familiar logo emblazoned across the fabric grille, but we're hoping it's a worthy addition to the iconic brand.

The company's commitment to developing the Stanmore is a testament to how well-regarded this model is alongside the likes of the larger Woburn III and the rest of the Marshall range. But was the previous version really in need of much improvement? Or is the Stanmore III nothing more than a couple of minor tweaks and a subtle facelift? Our Tech Product Writer and 80s metalhead Chris Duffill has spent a few weeks seeing whether this amp-like monster of rock turns all the way up to eleven. So, was the Marshall Stanmore III paradise city, or did we run to the hills? Let’s find out.

Performance

Setting up

Lifting the Marshall Stanmore III from its box, I was immediately impressed by the heft of the thing. As a speaker that measures around 35 centimetres across, it’s reassuringly heavy. Unlike many smart or multiroom speakers, the setup was extremely straightforward. After all, this literally just plugs in and then it’s up to you which of the three connection options you use first.

Following some extremely light reading of the included instruction booklet, I downloaded the Marshall companion app. A long press of the clearly labelled Bluetooth input button enabled a more or less instant connection with my iPhone. As with many such apps, this one really just serves as a single hub for any and all of your Marshall devices with easy access to basic EQ settings.

There’s also a Placement Compensation function that really sounds more impressive than it actually is. Unlike the Sonos One Gen 2 I reviewed recently, the Stanmore III doesn’t include any intelligent fine-tuning of the sound to suit the acoustics of my particular room. Instead, it asks a couple of simpler questions such as whether your speaker is up against a wall or at the edge of a unit (as mine was). This results in a slight compensation to the sound profile but (at least in my case) this was quite minimal. That said, much like the whole Marshall aesthetic, I found the whole setup refreshingly uncomplicated and echoes the no-nonsense ‘it just works’ ethos of the brand.

Eager to play with this heavyweight amp-a-like, I skipped testing the analogue inputs for now and headed straight for Spotify.

The sound

In a textbook example of small(ish) changes adding up to a big difference, Marshall claims that they have widened the already spacious soundstage of the Stanmore II by angling the two tweeters outwards. The second major improvement is the new Dynamic Loudness implementation, which works to ensure the tonal balance of the speaker the louder the music gets. I’m normally sceptical of any software gadgetry that will dynamically alter the output of any device, let alone a speaker. But, I was pleasantly surprised and seriously impressed by both the improved soundstage and the sonic abilities of this speaker at higher volumes.

Choosing my go-to Spotify Premium playlist, I kicked off the session with a blast of Mötley Crüe with Looks That Kill (as it happens, very apt for the Marshall Stanmore III - more on that later). The first thing I noticed, having set the volume to around a third and bass and treble controls to midway, was that it’s very close to many other similarly-sized and priced speakers in terms of the overall sound. It’s pleasing, and has enough of a soundstage to enjoy, but is otherwise pretty vanilla.

Taking things up a notch with the Marshall Stanmore III

Adding more bass and fine-tuning the treble using the ASMR-inducing amp-like control knobs really took things up a notch. Cranking up the volume to suit my taste, the Crüe were suddenly sounding more like a recording of a live band. The reach and scope of the bass, drums and guitar harmonics just seemed to get better the louder it went. This has to be down to that Dynamic Loudness feature. Next up was some Van Halen with Jump - and it was here, with the prominent synths and crisp production on this track, that I realised how good this speaker might also be with different genres. Hooking up my CD player to the RCA inputs to escape any compression for the moment, I played Dream Attack by New Order, followed by Breathe by The Prodigy. And yes, I did shake the foundations of my house - nothing broke, including the bass response of the Marshall. Impressive stuff.

Next, back to the iPhone. Although this speaker has a higher grade 5.2 version of Bluetooth, I did find that internet radio isn’t given a free pass in terms of overcoming audio compression. And that’s a good thing. Some speakers I’ve used have less precise drivers and cones, which makes them muddier but more forgiving with rougher sound sources. The fact that the Marshall sound separation is so precise with genres as layered as rock and metal is just what I’d been looking for from a speaker. That said, internet radio stations do vary. For me, John Lee Hooker’s One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer on TruBlues 975 sounded far from hung-over.

After wearing out the virtual grooves of my hard rock and metal playlists, I decided to test again - this time with some podcasts for spoken voice. It’s fine for that, but many podcasts aren’t exactly high-bitrate lossless affairs. My Samsung TV was also able to connect to the Marshall Stanmore III - fine for streaming music apps, but there’s too much of a delay to sync up with video content. So, this speaker (unsurprisingly) doesn’t really double as a soundbar.

Design and build

Right out of the box, this thing tells you it’s a quality piece of kit. The convincing weight aside, it’s clearly built to last. The rugged retro-amp appeal is well looked after and avoids the pitfalls of imitation or faux finishes. The textured black vinyl is hardy to the touch but well-refined. The eye is, naturally, drawn to the understated grey fabric speaker cloth on the front - and that beautiful brass Marshall logo. More than just evoking the infamous Marshall stack adopted by many a rock band, the Mk.III Stanmore has toned down the wider engraved brass strip on the front, which I think makes for a more balanced look that favours the logo.

But, it’s the controls that really have a serious wow factor. Set against an inset brushed brass panel, the controls echo vintage amps but with a small handful of extra tactile buttons and switches. They’re a joy to use. The mode switches are small but easy to use too. The main power switch is knurled brass with a satisfying click, and there’s a small play, pause and skip spring-action control. Crucially, none betrays the heritage of the brand, as they’re metal and reassuringly solid to use. Thankfully there’s not a touchscreen or nasty plastic button to be found here.

Best of all is the subtly high-tech addition of small red LEDs to the volume and EQ controls. Those control knobs have been engineered to look and feel just like they might be attached to a weighty potentiometer. But, they are in fact linked to the system digitally - so you can keep on turning them in any direction and watch the level LEDs adjust accordingly. It’s great to do this via the app as well if you need to, as those lights will react the same way. All this genuine brass and attention to detail just screams refinement and speaks volumes about the care and attention that Marshall put into their speaker products. I love the way this looks, and it certainly walks the walk.

Any downsides?

As I mentioned earlier, this isn’t a kind speaker for highly compressed music - but if that’s the price of having such a well-defined soundstage for everything else, that’s fine by me. Elsewhere though, there are some gripes.

By far the biggest fly in the ointment is the automatic Bluetooth standby mode. Even with the Marshall app, it’s not possible to disable this feature. If unused for ten minutes (you know, because you paused your playlist to make some coffee or take a call) the Marshall Stanmore III will disconnect from your Bluetooth device. Reconnection is fast and easy of course, as your device doesn’t need to be re-paired. But why is this even a ‘feature’ of any speaker? Technically, the Stanmore III is still plugged in (it has no battery…) and on standby, so I can’t imagine it’s for power-saving reasons.

Secondly, I get why the 3.5mm auxiliary input is on the top panel - very true to an amplifier look and feel. But I do wish there was a second one hidden away on the back panel to keep things looking tidy. Yes, I could always adapt the rear RCAs to an audio jack, but I’d rather be able to hide and use both sets of analogue inputs. If it’s going to have an aux input in plain sight, I do wish it had been a 6.35mm one for that guitar jack feel.

Lastly (and this is really a nice-to-have rather than a flaw) - I found myself wishing this was a multiroom speaker with integrations with popular streaming services. As it is, it’s a simple beast of a Bluetooth speaker, and multiroom smartness would probably kill that whole vibe; so, I’ll happily continue to use my phone to queue up my tracks and enjoy the Stanmore III for what it is.

Price and competition

In terms of the look and feel, only Marshall can really lay claim to the sort of authentic rock and roll amp aesthetic on offer here. In terms of competing with the overall size and price of the Stanmore III, when we reviewed the Audio Pro C10 MKII we found a highly refined sound with multiroom functionality as a welcome addition. All of that aside, just in terms of audio quality, I would suggest that any serious rock or metal fan should probably look at other offerings from Marshall - like the Woburn III or the slightly smaller and cheaper Marshall Acton II that we reviewed.

Verdict

To say I became obsessed with the Marshall Stanmore III's quality and looks is almost an understatement. Yes, it’s famously well-attuned to rock and electric guitar-based music, but it’s also massively capable elsewhere. The fact I was able to turn that satisfying volume control all the way up without things breaking down was an absolute thrill. I'd revisit tracks that I know all too well - and occasionally discover new things about them, especially during quieter sections (I’m looking at you, Hit And Run by Def Leppard…).

All in all, Marshall has taken the previous version of this trooper of a speaker and focussed their effort right where it was needed. It’s my favourite standalone speaker of this size to date - even if you can’t (as yet) plug your favourite axe into it.

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Who tested it?

Chris Duffill is our Tech Product Writer. When not listening to blues, rock and metal on vinyl, he’s probably making some sort of electronic gizmo from parts. With experience in video and digital media production, he's a detail-obsessed fan of entertainment, hardware, software and the latest tech.

How this product was tested

I tested the Marshall Stanmore III every day for around three weeks in a room measuring around 16’ x 10’. The speaker was placed on a media unit in a corner, and music was accessed using Bluetooth connection to both iPad, iPhone and a Samsung smart TV. Music sources included some heavily compressed internet radio stations, and higher bitrates from Spotify Premium. Analogue inputs were used for audio from a CD player. Genres tested ranged from metal, rock and blues to orchestral soundtracks, electronic and spoken word.

Chris Duffill is a Tech Product Writer for What's The Best. He specialises in audiovisual, computing, and gadgets. He's also a frequent Black Friday bargain hunter and speaker sale searcher.

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