I had my doubts about Marshall's first soundbar, but the Dolby Atmos-equipped Heston 120 blew me away

Stuff.tv

2 days ago

Stuff Verdict
A cracking Dolby Atmos one-boxer with huge sound, powerful bass and so many streaming options. But the retro look won't be for everyone.
Pros Surprisingly useful physical controls
Superb sound quality
Really powerful bass
Standout design
So many streaming options
Cons Different sources, quite different volumes
No remote control
Big competition – especially from Sonos
The look won't be for everybody
Marshall's history as a British amplifier specialist for guitarists and more has certainly been diversified upon in recent years. In 2010 it teamed up with Swedish company Zound to make Bluetooth speakers and then headphones like the excellent Monitor III ANC. That resulted in Zound buying Marshall in 2023 and re-branding the whole thing as The Marshall Group.
The company has clearly been planning to expand its wares for a while and produce more types of Marshall-branded tech. Welcome then, to the Heston 120. It's a high-end one-box soundbar with full Dolby Atmos and DTS-X support and as such takes on the Sonos Arc Ultra but boasts a slightly lower price. That's by far from an easy task.
But Marshall believes that enough of its devotees will want a soundbar that looks a little different than the norm and that is equally suited to music as well as TV. Is it enough? The company is certainly hoping so and more products will follow – a Heston 60 soundbar with virtual Atmos is coming later in the year to go up against the Sonos Beam.
There are two big selling points of this soundbar. Firstly, that it supports pretty much everything under the sun in addition to the aforementioned Dolby Atmos and DTS-X. Naturally there's HDMI eARC support. But there's also HDMI passthrough, Bluetooth (including LE and Auracast), AirPlay 2, Google Cast, Spotify Connect and Tidal Connect. There's even analogue RCA so you can hook up a turntable for example.
And then there's the physical knob controls (just like on Marshall's amps and speakers) for volume, treble and source select. More on those shortly.
You can order Heston 120 in the US for $999 or Europe for £900/€999.
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Design: not the most in-your-face, but it will be too much for some
The design of the Heston 120 is unmistakably Marshall but is more subtle than it could look. The large Marshall logo might put some off, but it doesn't stick out as much it could. The physical controls (more on them opposite) only stick out a little above the top of the soundbar, so you won't be bothered by them when you watch TV.
While some will view the physical knob controls (just like on Marshall's amps and speakers) as gimmicky I found it were genuinely useful for volume, especially when you're listening to music. You can also change source this way should you want.
Changing the source between streaming (from a phone) and your TV was actually the only thing I didn't find worked so well about this soundbar. If you're listening to some music over AirPlay for example, then changing back to HDMI as a source didn't stick. And that's a shame, because the theory of it is good.
Physically, Heston 120 was designed to have a low-enough profile to sit under most TVs, but it can also be wall-mounted easily. Happily there are also replaceable parts including the fret, end caps, drivers and even the circuit boards.
Connectivity: so many options and a well-designed new app
As we mentioned before, connectivity is king here and it really shows just how much effort Marshall put in. The company's design team obviously sat round a table and mused what the ideal bar would include. And they've pulled off a blinder in that regard.
Naturally there's HDMI eARC support (and there's an included high-speed HDMI cable). But there's also HDMI passthrough, Bluetooth (including LE and Auracast), AirPlay, Google Cast, Spotify Connect and Tidal Connect. There's even analogue RCA so you can hook up a turntable, for example.
A redesigned Marshall app also debuts alongside the Heston 120. You can set up the bar initially using this and you can optionally calibrate the sound to suit your room. This uses a simple test that takes just a few minutes.
Naturally, you can use third-party apps to control music while HDMI is naturally auto-switching so it's unlikely you'll use the app much after initial setup which is swift and works well. Indeed, we've had numerous issues in the past setting up devices with Apple's AirPlay. Not so here. Wi-Fi settings are also shared easily.
You can also select presets for quick access to a favourite playlist or internet radio station should you wish using the physical controls and you can flick between the sound modes – Music, Movie, Night and Voice.
Sound quality: superb for both music and movies
As you'd expect at this price, the audio hardware inside the 7kg bar is hefty in both weight and power. There are a huge 11 individual speakers and associated amps (2 x 50W, 9 x 15W, 150W peak power) arranged in a 5.1.2 configuration. So what does it sound like?
When watching TV, the bar is adept at movies in particular, while I also enjoyed watching the sport and the F1 in particular. Dolby Atmos obviously takes it to a new level. I found some softer voices require you to raise the volume, even in the Voice mode is selected. But it's a great all-rounder, which you obviously need from a soundbar.
Heston comes into its own when listening to music. The impressive range of sources and codecs should suit everyone and it is powerful. It's unsurprisingly happier with rockier tracks though bassier dance tunes are well catered for. And it's a warm, high quality sound that can easily fill a mid-sized room .
If you want even more powerful audio, an additional Heston Sub 200 is coming later in the year for those who want even more bass punch. There's no word on pricing yet though.
Marshall Heston 120 verdict
Marshall has created a wonderful box of tricks here and the wide variety of streaming formats is a real boon for full music flexibility. The sound quality is exceptional and bass especially is a real strength. You really won't be disappointed by it, even if it's hard to recommend it against the Sonos Arc Ultra, especially if you want any kind of multiroom possibilities.
And even though the physical controls are super, some won't like the look of the Heston. It's certainly a contrast to many sleeker soundbars. But overall, I really love how the Heston 120 sounds and performs. Like all great TV sound gear, it just works seamlessly with your TV and everything that plugs into it. And it's a real bonus that this bar just happens to be great for music, too.
Stuff Says…
Score: 5/5
A cracking Dolby Atmos one-boxer with huge sound, powerful bass and so many streaming options. But the retro look won't be for everyone.
Pros
Surprisingly useful physical controls
Superb sound quality
Really powerful bass
Standout design
So many streaming options
Cons
Different sources, quite different volumes
No remote control
Big competition – especially from Sonos
The look won't be for everybody
Marshall Heston 120 tech specs
Output 150W; 2 x tweeters, 2 x mid-woofers, 2 x subwoofers, 5 x full range Connectivity HDMI 2.1 eARC, HDMI in (passthrough), Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.3, RCA stereo, RCA mono (for sub), USB-C, Ethernet, Streaming Apple AirPlay 2, Google Cast, Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect Dimensions 110 x 14.5 x 7.6cm Weight 7.04kg