The best budget and premium speakers

The first Mu-so Qb was a revelation – a premium wireless speaker shaped like a cube? We thought it was one of the coolest looking speakers and the second-gen version is even better. It’s one of the best Bluetooth speakers we’ve tested.

Like the original, it boasts a cubed design but features a new illuminated dial that lights up when your hand hovers over to reveal its controls, which our reviewer found to be one of the nicest control systems presented for a hi-fi speaker. The main upgrades aren’t visible on the outside, with Naim’s biggest changes all happening on the inside with all-new driver units and digital signal processor.

The range of connectivity is wide, as alongside Bluetooth 4.2 there’s Roon-ready support, Spotify Connect, built-in Chromecast, Apple AirPlay 2, UPnP, and Tidal for means of sending audio to the speaker, plus there’s Internet radio with via vTuner. Multi-room is a choice between products in the Google Home ecosystem and the aforementioned AirPlay 2, which is more suited to iOS users.

Compared to the original, we found the performance powerful but also nuanced, showcasing a broad and well-defined soundstage. It’s a beautifully made, fabulously exciting listen even with the increase in price to $1199 / £899 that makes it a pricey rival to either of Bowers & Wilkins’ Formation Wedge or Zeppelin efforts.

Reviewer: Simon Lucas
Full Review: Naim Mu-so Qb2

B&O A1 2nd gen is the sequel to the Beoplay A1 and improves upon that speaker with an even better sonic delivery.

It is the world’s first Bluetooth-only speaker to support Alexa, relying on the Bluetooth connection between it and a smartphone to access the digital assistant. We found it worked pretty well in a local park, Alexa usually responding quickly to queries unless the smartphone was busy doing another task. We’d suggest not doing too much multitasking with a phone if she proves to be less responsive than usual.

As you’d expect from a Bang & Olufsen product, it ladles on the style with its aluminium top surface and waterproof leather base. Its IP67 rating protects it from water and dust and the 18-hour battery life exceeds the likes of Sonos Roam and Wonderboom 3, so you can listen to music on this speaker for longer.

What impressed us the most during testing was its audio. For a speaker of its size and shape, it produced a detailed, clear sound, and ample amounts of bass. Compared to the portable speakers that feature on this list, it’s the best-sounding effort.

It’s gone up in price since we reviewed it, available at $279 / £239. Even in light of its increase, we’d rate this as an excellent Bluetooth speaker.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: B&O Beosound A1 2nd Gen

If you find the Naim too expensive, the latest iteration of Bowers & Wilkin’s Zeppelin speaker might turn your head at a less expensive $799 / £699, and recently it has dropped to £549 online.

Available in midnight grey and pearl grey (effectively black or white) to suit your décor, the Zeppelin is the widest Bluetooth speaker on this list at 650mm wide, which makes it slightly difficult to accommodate if you’re limited on space. Still, from an aesthetic viewpoint we found this to be a looker, the contoured curves and high-quality fabric covering showcases the speaker’s premium feel.

Bluetooth is aptX Adaptive, which will help the speaker maintain a steady connection to the source device irrespective of any potential interference. We enjoyed the audio performance this speaker offered, a big and loud effort that brought plenty of fidelity to whatever we listened to.

Compared to Bluetooth speakers of similar ilk, like the Braun LE02, the bass performance is bigger and more powerful, and the crispness of the sound works well with the reproduction of singer’s vocals. Although the Zeppelin claims to offer stereo sound, we found its stereo ambitions to be largely overstated, a sense of width and stereo imaging not especially evident with the playlist we listened to.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin

No company seems to produce as many wireless speakers in various forms as JBL does, the Charge 5 sits between the Flip series and Xtreme models as a big, yet portable speaker for those who want a loud, dynamic performance both indoors and out.

It comes in an array of colours to suit any listener’s personality, and also comes shaped like an American football. Its big and fairly heavy at nearly 1kg and doesn’t come with a handle or strap for carry. The fabric covering is one we found to be quite grippy for carrying in the hand though you’ll want to stow it in away in a bag when not in use. Its tough IP67 rating ensures protection against water and dust like the Wonderboom 3 and Beosound A1 2nd Gen that feature on this list.

Battery is quoted around 20 hours, which should suffice for a few days use and the speaker can be used as a powerbank to charge other mobile devices. There is app support in the form of the JBL Portable app, which we found to be simple to use. There aren’t many features inside, with just the ability to change the speaker’s EQ, update the firmware (which we did found could take a while) and enable the PartyBoost feature. This allows the Charge 5 to be stereo paired to another speaker or connected to as many JBL compatible speakers as you like.

The sound from the Charge 5 is one that our reviewer found to be big, loud and powerfully. It can generate satisfying amounts of punchy bass but it doesn’t do so at the expense of overall balance or clarity. The midrange is clear and there’s good separation and definition of voices and instruments to make the listener can hear what’s going on in the track. Raise the volume up and while there’s not as much bass as there is at lower volumes, there’s notable distortion with the Charge 5 sounding louder than the bigger Sony SRS-XG300 when playing The Beatles’ Hey Jude.

The JBL is a fun, energetic-sounding speaker with a sound that’s more balanced than you may expect. It’s available at a reasonably tidy price too, around the same price bracket as the Marshall Emberton II and Sonos Roam. For those in the market of a speaker that can go loud and still produce good amounts of bass, the Charge 5 is a portable speaker to keep in mind.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: JBL Charge 5

The Roam is the true Sonos portable speaker you can take on your travels unlike the Move. Use it at home and it connects to the Sonos network over Wi-Fi, and when outside it instantly switches to Bluetooth so you can continue listening to your music.

In terms of operation we found it easy enough to use, with playback buttons on the top surface and a power/standby button that’s easily reachable further down. The 10-hour battery is enough to eke out a day’s use, but behind the likes of the Wonderboom 2 (13 hours) and A1 2^nd Gen (18 hours).

It sounds great with a natural, detailed and clear sound. Bass is fine but is the weakest link in its armoury, the Ultimate Ears Boom 2 offers more presence while the Beosound A1 2^nd Gen rumbles up more depth. If bass is what you’re in need of, the Roam is punchier than it is deep with its low frequency performance. It’s a versatile unit though, happy to play any type of track with confidence.

For existing Sonos owners, the Roam makes sense for taking the Sonos experience out of the home, and with the Roam SL, there’s a cheaper microphone-less version of the speaker. Sonos has also rectified one of the nit-picks we had by expanding the range of colours it comes in (olive green, rusty red and wave blue), making the Roam more eye-catching for the outdoors.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: Sonos Roam

The original Wonderboom was great, the Wonderboom 2 went further and with the Wonderboom 3, Ultimate Ears has, in our view, created its best small portable speaker so far.

Once again it is the same size and carries the same look as before, and that helps make the Wonderboom 3 a good option for those who don’t have space in their bags for something big. The only real difference are the colours that the Wonderboom 3 come in, with Ultimate Ears choosing more contrasting colours this time out. It also keeps its IP67 rating that protects it from water and dust, so we can imaging this speaker being used in the garden, on a beach or even in more adventurous conditions.

On the features side not much has changed. The Outdoor Boost and Double Up continue on with the former boosting mid-range and treble performance for more extra clarity outdoors, while Double Up offers stereo pairing with another Wonderboom 3 speaker (it doesn’t work with other Wonderboom generations). Battery life has been increased by an hour to 14, while there’s no sign of USB-C charging, which may annoy those who’d prefer to rely on one cable to charge all their devices..

We felt that the Wonderboom 3’s audio was the best we had sampled yet from the series. Like the Stormbox Micro 2, it’s a much more balanced affair: smoother, more detailed and more spacious in how it sounds. It lacks the crispness, energy and dynamism of the Wonderboom 2 but we’d say the older model sounds less refined when compared to the new Wonderboom.

The speaker offers better sound and a sprinkling of new features for the same price as before, and that’s enough for the Wonderboom 3 to be one of the best Bluetooth speakers at its price point.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 3

The original Stormbox Micro was a very good portable speaker at an affordable price, and the Stormbox Micro 2 sees Tribit repeating the trick again with an even better performance.

The audio is a step up in virtually all regards. We found that the Micro 2 was able to go louder than the original, the size of the sound was also bigger and projected further away from the speaker’s body and it presented music with much more clarity than the original, too.

Out reviewer felt it achieved a better balance in its sound quality, with bass bigger and better described; treble frequencies sharper and clearer, while more detail is retrieved in the midrange, helping to define instruments with more sharpness and detail.

The design has been altered, the buttons coloured white to contrast better against the fabric covering; the speaker is also bigger and can now serve as a powerbank to change any mobile devices you have on your person via USB-C charging. It keeps the useful tear-resistant strap that allows it to be attached to handlebars or rucksacks to accompany users on their journeys. It also retains its IP67 rating, so it’s insulated against dust and water for those who want to take their speaker on more adventurous outdoor activities.

Battery life has been improved from 8-hours to 12, which puts it among the likes of the Sonos Roam (11) and Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 3 (14). There’s also support for an app that allows for the speaker’s EQ to be adjusted along with enabling updates, which should allow the speaker to last for longer.

The Stormbox Micro 2 is everything a sequel should be, improving on the weaker aspects and making the good parts even better. It does come at a slight increase in cost to £59.99, which puts in the ballpark of speakers such as the Tronsmart T7. The T7 is the better-sounding speaker, especially when dealing with treble and bass, but the convenience and versality the Tribit offers just gets our vote over the Tronsmart.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: Tribit Stormbox Micro 2

In the Q Acoustics M20 HD, you have a Bluetooth speaker that is more fitting for desktop stereo use or even connected to a TV via its other connections.

The M20 HD is an active speaker system, which means there is no need for external amplification/boxes, so you can plug it into the power port and get going with your music. AptX-HD Bluetooth ensures that the system can play files up to 24-bit/48kHz resolution, so you can get some high-fidelity performance from Bluetooth playback.

The Bluetooth support matches Edifier’s S2000MKIII, but at 10.6kg the Q Acoustics are a much lighter and smaller proposition, which makes carrying them around and positioning them on speaker stands less of a hassle. The range of connections is also better than the Edifier, so if you’re not listening to them over Bluetooth, there’s scope to connect the M20 HD to a TV or connect a USB stick to play audio files at resolutions of up to 24-bit/192kHz.

And in terms of their sound, we found the system boasted a fun and engaging performance, with a warm and rich mid-range performance, powerful bass and defined top end of the frequency range. They’re great with music, films and games and their price makes them better value than the similarly specified but more expensive Klipsch The Fives.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: Q Acoustics M20 HD

Bang & Olufsen are known for their interesting approach to design, but would you have ever imagined a wireless speaker that looks like a book? That’s the aesthetic the Beosound Emerge goes for, and despite the odd dimensions the style is backed up by substance with its audio.

It’s also backed up by a fairly sensible price for a B&O product at $799 / £669, though those figures will still put it out of reach for many, hence while we’re labelling it as a luxury speaker. The design makes the Emerge a true bookshelf speaker, our reviewer found that its compact footprint and 180-degree dispersion of sound makes it a great fit (literally) in tight spaces such as a bookshelf. The design is also modular, so parts can be replaced and upgraded over time.

It’s made from quality materials such as Kvadrat cloth and natural oak that we found gave the speaker an indulgent look, the brand logo running up the spine is a touch we found to be rather witty. The physical controls we found to be too sensitive and responsive, making the act of changing the volume more fraught that it should be. The app is a much better form of control in this instance.

There’s Bluetooth 5.0 support, but you can also connect this speaker to the Wi-Fi and get Spotify Connect and AirPlay 2 integration. The Bang & Olufsen radio station is supported within the app, and that extends music streaming support to Deezer. You can create a stereo pair, the expense of which puts the Emerge alongside the likes of the KEF LSX II and Q Acoustics’ Q Active 200.

There are some minor faults to deal with, such as the treble sounding rolled off and dulled, and a compact soundstage. Nevertheless, the integration across the frequency range is smoothly handled, tonally it produces a sound that’s slightly warm on the rich side of neutral. The midrange is informative, filled with plenty of detail and low frequency extension is respectable for a speaker of its size, and we found the bass to be nicely shaped and properly controlled.

Reviewer: Simon Lucas
Full Review: Bang & Olufsen Beosound Emerge

Denon’s Home range of wireless speakers has been a challenger to Sonos in the home speaker market, and one advantage it has had over its rival is that its speakers support Bluetooth. The Denon Home 150 is the smallest speaker in the range, and also has smarts in the form of Alexa and Google Assistant.

These smarts aren’t available in its Bluetooth mode, unlike the B&O A1 2nd Gen that features on this list, but it’s a well-appointed speaker in terms of features. Along with Bluetooth 4.2 support, there’s Wi-Fi and the HEOS app that offers access to music streaming services such as Amazon Music, Deezer, Tidal and Napster. There’s also Hi-res audio as the Home 150 can play 192kHz/24-bit FLAC, WAV, ALAC and DSD 2.8/5.6MHz through the USB port on its rear.

The design is not the most eye-grabbing with its fabric wrapping, but the Home 150 doesn’t appear interested in grabbing the limelight. On top is a touch panel made from hardened glass, with proximity sensors that light up the panel when we hover our hands over the speaker. It’s a nice, convenient means of interacting with the speaker itself.

It has a compact footprint, around the same size as the Sonos One, and it features more physical connections with an Ethernet, USB and auxiliary ports on its rear.

In terms of its sound quality the Home 150 lacks the balance and neutrality of the Sonos One with its richer, warmer presentation. We found voices to be well articulated, capturing enough detail to describe the character of a singer’s voice, and there’s decent dynamism too. Treble does sound a little rolled off, but there’s more bass here than there is on the Sonos and it’s more controlled than it is on Marshall’s Uxbridge speaker, though the integration between the mid-range and bass could be slightly clearer to our ears.

With the Sonos Era 100 on the way, the Denon has a new rival to compete against, and we’ll be looking to see how well it fares against the upcoming speaker.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: Denon Home 150

There’s a growing number of garden-based Bluetooth speakers, and the best value effort we’ve come across is KitSound’s Diggit 55.

At £50 you can buy a few to place around the garden, and if you purchase two there’s the option of stereo pairing to create a bigger sound, which we found simple enough to enable by holding the speakers together. They’ve had a few minor tweaks from their predecessor in terms of the faux wood look and placement of connections, and they come with a stake for rooting them in the ground. With their IP66 rating the Diggit 55 are water-resistant rather than waterproof; so while a light shower is likely fine, anything more and you’d need to bring them inside.

Its mid-range performance was the aspect we liked the most, with plenty of detail and clarity afforded to vocals and a soundstage described with a sense of space so instruments are separated from each other. Bass is flatly described whether indoors or out, and unlike the JBL Charge 5, it doesn’t reach the same volume levels or produce that speaker’s infectious sense of energy. Walking around the unit, the 360-degree worked well enough, with only a slight change in tone noticeable.

Set it in a decent-sized garden and the KitSound offers good-value sound that belies its asking price. For garden parties multiple Diggit 55 speaker is worth considering.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: KitSound Diggit 55