Marshall Emberton III review: Don't fix what ain't broken

All of us who love music and Bluetooth speakers know and adore the Marshall Emberton series. Both the original model and its successor were massive hits and with good reason. With the recent discounts that we have been seeing regularly, the Emberton II can be bought for $100 during sales like Prime Day, which is unbeatable for that sound quality.

Marshall refreshed its Emberton and Willen lineup in August 2024. The Marshall Emberton III is fresh out of the oven but it looks nearly identical to the last generation at first glance. There are subtle differences, but the real question is whether it's worth the buy now that the Emberton II is consistently so darn cheap.

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You can purchase the Marshall Emberton III for $170 from Amazon and most other retailers. The Emberton III is available in one of two of Marshall's signature shades, Black & Brass and Cream.

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Now I'm not going to lie to you, besides being slightly louder, having an even longer uptime, and a few small changes, the Emberton III isn't radically different from the Emberton II. But I think that's perfectly alright because it continues to serve consistently well and can easily fill any large room with amazing sound. Any time I use the speaker at parties or while hanging out with friends, I always get asked, "Hey, what speaker is that?". Coming from friends who are JBL loyalists, that's no small feat.

The Bluetooth speaker is noticeably louder than its last-gen counterpart. Marshall maintains its excellent tuning, so the Emberton III produces lovely notes that are alterable via the EQ presets in the Marshall app. Unfortunately, we still don't have customizable EQ options, but the presets are so good it can be forgiven this time. The signature Marshall sound is fun and extremely well-balanced, with the highs and the lows sounding just right. It has that oomph, that lively, high-quality feel to it.

The sound is not particularly bass-heavy, but it is rich and lively. You can alter it to your liking through the app if it's not booming enough for you. I found the high notes to be particularly crisp with excellent clarity levels. The speaker fires sound from the front and back grills, producing 360-degree multi-directional audio. Marshall uses its proprietary True Stereophonic tech to deliver spatial and binaural sound.

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Physically speaking, there's now a dedicated power button and a new bracket so you can attach hooks or carabiners to it. The speaker continues to have a robust IP67 water and dust-proof rating and a classy leather-and-metal design. You can submerge the speaker in water as deep as 1m or 3ft for up to 30 minutes without sustaining damage. Also, it can pair with multiple other Emberton III speakers thanks to the Stack Mode.

Marshall bumped the 30-hour battery life to an even more impressive 32-hour battery life. The charge time is also improved thanks to fast charging tech that tops up the speaker from zero to a hundred percent in two hours.

Setting up the speaker is super easy thanks to Google Fast Pair. As long as the speaker is on and around Android phones or devices, you get an immediate prompt to connect to the Emberton III. I even connected the speaker to my smart TV in a matter of seconds thanks to Google Fast Pair.

A great new feature included in the Marshall Emberton III speaker is Bluetooth Auracast. My colleague Derrek Lee spoke about the benefits of Auracast at length in his editorial, so I won't do a deep dive here. You should really read his article to truly understand the power of Auracast. It is the future of Bluetooth and the best evolution of Bluetooth to come. Basically, it enables public and private broadcasts via Bluetooth LE.

Although Auracast is not properly available on phones and devices just yet, it's very comforting to know that the Emberton III is already compatible with it. You won't need to upgrade this speaker once Auracast is everywhere. This makes it a secure buy, giving you the assurance that it's a future-proof Bluetooth speaker.

After using the Marshall Emberton III speaker for two months, I have become quite fond of it. I rely on the speaker and end up taking it with me on road trips or group hangouts. It costs less than $200, which is a fabulous price point in my opinion. This one was a major hit for me and I can't recommend it enough.

Sure, the $100 Emberton II is an unmissable deal, but if you want something that's ready for the future, spend that extra $70 and get the latest Marshall Emberton III. Trust me, it's worth it.