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Marshall Updates Its Mid-Sized Middleton Portable Bluetooth Speaker

Marshall Updates Its Mid-Sized Middleton Portable Bluetooth Speaker

Forbes01-07-2025
The new Middleton II portable Bluetooth speaker is available in Black or Cream.
Following hot on the heels of the new Marshall Kilburn III, the iconic amplifier and speaker brand has unveiled an updated version of its mid-sized Middleton Bluetooth speaker, which the brand claims is the most powerful portable audio device to fit in one hand.
This is the second iteration of the Middleton and it now boasts more features, including 30 hours of battery life and True Stereophonic multidirectional sound. A full charge of the onboard battery can provide more than 30 hours of playing time and if the power runs low, a quick 20-minute burst charge can have everything up and running again.
Marshall has enhanced the Middleton II by adding a deeper and more refined bass, even when played at maximum volume. It also features 360° True Stereophonic sound, a multidirectional audio technology that ensures the music always sounds full and powerful from any position around the speaker. There are also separate bass and treble settings.
The Marshall Middletone II has a multidirectional controller as well as separate bass and treble ... More settings.
At the heart of the new Middleton are a couple of 3-inch woofers and two 0.6" tweeters. The amplification is Class D with 2 x 30 W for the woofers and 2 x 10 W for the tweeters.
The Middleton II is also a durable and compact speaker that's built to resist dust, sand, dirt and a few water splashes. It has been tested by immersing it in up to one meter of water for 30 minutes. The rugged exterior is also specifically designed to withstand tough environmental conditions.
'Extending portable playtime is something we put a lot of work into at Marshall, and Middleton II is no exception with its 30+ hours,' says Ebba Gouverneur Regnström, product manager for Marshall Speakers.
'Combine that with improved features such as a built-in microphone for seamless speakerphone calls and a refreshed design that not only looks better but also enhances usability with improved user experience. With support for LE Audio, listeners can also enjoy a more efficient and enhanced listening experience.'
With its detachable carry strap and resistance to dust and water, the Marshall Middleton II is ready ... More for the beach.
The Middleton II's controls have also been updated to eliminate any unnecessary complexity. Users can navigate through playlists with the multidirectional control knob that can play, pause and skip tracks. The control can also be used to answer phone calls and adjust the speaker's volume levels.
Although music comes first, Marshall's new Middleton II is practical, too. If your phone runs out of charge, the speaker can double as a power bank. The Middleton II can also connect via Bluetooth to a smartphone for making hands-free phone calls using the speaker's built-in microphone.
The new Middleton II is available to buy globally from July 15, 2025, from Marshall.com priced at $329.99 / £259.99 / €299.
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It's in the app that you'll find the noise-canceling modes. I don't really get these — I just leave my ANC on max level when I want it. Transparency is the one mode I do use frequently, however, as well as the 'off' setting, so that I can save a little battery. Inside the app there's also the EQ, and it's very good. Plenty of bands for adjustment make it very easy to dial the sound in exactly as you want it. Spatial audio is here as well, and it's much better than Bose's option. It's similar to Apple's headtracked Dolby Atmos, only it's built for Amazon Music Unlimited as opposed to Apple Music. Bose's app is also very easy to use, I find. Everything is better laid out than Sony's app, but there are fewer options for customizing your headphones. I don't miss the multi-step ANC adjustment, and I like how you can turn the ANC to transparency and back. Not off, however, for Bose does not believe in turning ANC off. To each their own, but it would be nice to have the option to save some battery life. EQ is good, although not as in-depth as Sony. It gives you ample opportunity to change the sound of your headphones in the long run, however. Giving you ample opportunity to make use of the 'off' slider is Bose's version of spatial audio. It's an in-house 'enhancement' of whatever music the headphones are playing, but I find it just makes music sound anemic. It's the best of these in-house systems, also found in the likes of the Marshall Monitor III and the Nothing Headphone (1), but it's still better left in the 'off' position. Perhaps the most important part of the whole competition here — has Sony finally caught up to the might of the Bose noise-canceling machine? Short answer: No. The longer answer is that Sony's noise canceling is better than that found on the older XM5. Thanks to a new chip and some more clever algorithm changes, the ANC handles some annoying noises better than before. 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That's not great, and the Sony handily beat them out with 35 hours of battery. During my testing, I found that the battery life claims of both pretty much matched the expected life on the specs sheet. Remember that you can extend the XM6 to 40 hours when you turn off the ANC as well, something you can't do with the Bose headphones. Fast charging is a helpful bonus for both headphones: 3 minutes of charging the XM6 gets you 3 hours, while the Bose get 2.5 hours after a 15-minute charge. Both aren't the best around, but there is a clear winner overall. I put these two headphones head-to-head when the XM6 launched, but I didn't have both in hand at that point. Now that I've had ample testing time with both sets of headphones, I can find a clear winner — and it's Sony with the XM6. They might not look quite as pretty as the Bose or have better ANC performance, but their sound, features, and battery life ultimately win them the competition. If you're looking for the best ANC you can buy, I've found you're still better off with the QuietComfort Ultra Headphones. For just about everything else, the Sony are the headphones of choice. Follow Tom's Guide on Google News to get our up-to-date news, how-tos, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button. Sony WH-1000XM6 Bose QuietComfort Ultra Price and value (5) 3 3 Design (15) 13 14 Controls (10) 7 5 Sound quality (25) 22 20 Active noise cancelation (20) 15 20 Call quality (10) 9 9 Connectivity (5) 5 5 Battery life (10) 8 5 Total Score (100) 84 80

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