‘Turn It Up to 11, Alexa’

Marshall, the U.K.-based maker of some of the most revered guitar amplifiers in the world, has announced two Alexa voice-equipped versions of its “mini Marshall” wireless multiroom music systems.

The Stanmore II Voice, available now for $399 (left in photo), will be followed by the Acton II Voice ($299), which is slated to ship November 9.

Beyond Marshall’s iconic styling — done to a T but in miniature — both models support Bluetooth streaming, app/Wi-Fi-based multiroom connectivity, and use a far-field microphone array with noise cancelation so Alexa can pick up voice commands from across the room, even when the speaker is rocking and the volume is cranked.

The Stanmore II Voice uses a 50-watt Class D amplifier to power its woofer and a pair of 15-watt amps to drive its tweeters, while the smaller Acton II Voice delivers 30 watts to its woofer. The drivers in both models are custom-tuned to provide “balanced and dynamic response” from a bass reflex cabinet, according to the company.

The Acton II is slightly smaller at 10.2 x 6.3 x 6 inches versus the Stanmore’s 13.8 x 7.7 x 7.2 inches but both speakers are rated down to 50 Hz and designed to play fairly loud at 98 and 101 dB SPL, respectively.

Marshal plans to roll out support for Google Assistant later this year and says it will introduce more voice-enabled speakers in the future.

For more information, visit marshallheadphones.com.

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