One of the most crowded spaced in consumer tech has got to be Bluetooth speakers. So when one is able to grab my attention the way this has, that’s something. The Marshall Acton III sounds as great as it is stylish and right now happens to be majorly discounted. For a limited time, Amazon has the home speaker on sale for a solid 33% off. Listed normally as a full $300, that discount shaves off a clean $100, leaving you only having to pay $200.
Signature Sound
Marshall has been in the speaker game for more than six decades. The brand has had a huge role in shaping the sound of rock and roll music as we’ve come to know and love it thanks to its early guitar amplifiers. That first JTM45 amp produced a tone both heavier and more resonant than the vast majority of equipment on the market at the time. That sound defined generations ago has been a driving force for Marshall’s legacy and is still all over it’s modern offerings like the Acton III.
Aesthetically, the Acton III speaker is heavily rooted in the brand’s visual identity that has remained largely unchanged across its lifetime. It’s got that classic look and feel to it which shines through its textured casing, metal grilles, and analog control knobs across the top. Even though visually this speaker is very retro, it’s functionality is anything but that. The speaker integrates seamlessly with your phone, tablet, or laptop over Bluetooth connectivity. It still supports AUX even though that jack has disappeared from the devices we carry around in our pockets all day.
Visuals mean nothing if it doesn’t have the sound to back it up, but that’s no issue here. The Marshall Acton III can produce room-filling output with an even broader soundstage than the earlier versions of the speaker. It’s a perfect accent piece to you living space, great for everything from casual background music to being the center of attention.
Physically, the Acton III measures across at a wee bit over 10 inches and weighs just over six pounds. That’s compact enough to not take over a space, but beefy enough to be more than noticeable in both look and sound when defining that space.
The dials mounted along the top offer way more control than you’ll find on many other Bluetooth speakers. This one from Marshall has knobs for volume, bass, and treble separately. For other speaker, if they support bass and treble at all, you’d likely need to dig out some companion smartphone app to make those adjustments. The on-off switch is also super satisfying to flick on and off.