Marshall Uxbridge speaker rock festival - 20 Minutes
- The range of Marshall speakers is expanding with the new Uxbridge, a wired speaker for the home.
- Despite a somewhat plastic finish, the device seduces with its rock spirit design and its audio quality.
- With its power of 30 watts and the presence of Google Assistant or Alexa assistants from Amazon, the Uxbridge fulfills its mission perfectly in small interiors, but has a competitor of choice in the place, called Sonos One.
Uxbridge? Let it be said: the name of the Marshall speakers is always that of a London underground station. The Marshall Uxbridge therefore joins the brand's line of loudspeakers: Acton, Stanmore, Woburn, Stockwell, Kilburn, Tufton ... And surprised at the unpacking, the Uxbridge looks like an amp model. What to do your mini rock festival at home…
Not the stamp of his big sisters
Taking up the aesthetic codes of the brand, the Marshall Uxbrige is therefore particularly compact: 128 x 168 x 123 mm for 1.39 kg. Too bad its coating does not adopt the rubbery imitation leather finish of its big sisters. Here, even if the structure is made of wood, the exterior formwork (unfortunately) gives a fairly plastic impression.
The traditionally metallic parts also seem to be made of plastic: logo, low band and upper buttons to adjust the volume, as well as the bass and treble levels. But the front features the famous fabric found on the front of the brand's stage amplifiers.
Alexa goes on stage
Do not expect to play nomads with the Uxbridge this summer: it is a wired speaker that only works on mains. Its particularity is also to embark with the choice Google Assistant or Alexa of Amazon. Be careful also at the time of purchase: you must choose one or the other model, the Uxbridge not being multilingual with voice assistants. This is the Alexa version of the speaker that we tested.
For implementation, the download of the Marshall Voice application is necessary. No account to create: the speaker is automatically detected and it only remains to associate it with the home wifi network and the Amazon Alexa application to be able to play the conductors: “Alexa, play Lean on Me from Bill Withers "!
Rock, metal, pop… a sound to personalize
The Uxbridge is also Bluetooth 4.2, but also AirPlay 2 (Apple's wireless broadcasting standard). Spotify subscribers will also be able to stream their favorite songs directly, the speaker being Spotify Connect compatible. For its part, the Marshall Voice application integrates the classic equalizer of the brand. This allows you to choose a sound signature (Rock, Metal, Pop…) or to personalize your listening. Strangely, there is no equalization "Marshall" supposed to offer the exact sound signature of the brand. However, it was offered via the Marshall Bluetooth application with the Monitor II ANC headset launched last March.
Trebles that sometimes have to be tamed
The listening offered by the Uxbridge remains rather in line with what we like about the brand: warm, giving the mids their proper place, allowing access to round and muscular bass, but also not reluctant to ride in the treble. In short, from Harlem by Ibrahim Maalouf, to Delicate by Damien Rice, via (There's ”) Always Something There to Remind Me by Dionne Warwick, La grenade by Clara Luciani, or Breathe Deeper by Tame Impala… our listening was revealed very pleasant, even if the precision here and there may be lacking.
Sometimes too, we had to decrease the share of high frequencies somewhat, the tweeter associated with the main speaker obviously wanting to assert its presence. With its 30 watts of power, the Uxbridge efficiently does the job in a room of regular size: living room, bedroom, office. But be careful not to push the volume too high: beyond 70% of the maximum possible, listening loses significantly in quality with an obvious distortion.
Launched at 199 euros, the Uxbridge is sold in a price range where competition is fierce. It is at this price that we find the Sonos One or JBL Playlist living room speakers whose sound reproduction is excellent. Marshall can play on his name, but also the affect that goes with it.
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