Customer Ratings & Reviews

Dont use airplay because it has a lot of connectivity issues. If you have apple music and you are using airplay and the song wont stop than go to the B&W app and pause it through the app. The speaker sounds really well balanced and well rounded. If your looking for high resolution audio than be aware that air play is buggy. If your looking for a good bluetooth speaker that has really good vocals this speaker is amazing in bluetooth mode still. For loseless audio on apple music I woild recomend going with a different speaker because of the air play bugs. Another mention is the spread angle pf the music isn’t as wide as the formation edge and you cant tilt the speaker pointing up or down some because its just a fixed base.

Bowers & Wilkins new wireless Zeppelin speaker is one of the cleanest hearing sounds I have ever heard in my life from a speaker. This device has a richness to the dimensions of sound it covers around the room. I am blown away and shocked they can hit a level of quality from a wireless device. The Zeppelin is elegant and you can just feel that this device was constructed in a way to give you optimal sound. Zeppelin is somewhat heavy meaning you will not be moving this unit from room to room. Taking out the box and placing it where you want is best as this speaker needs to be plugged up and have A/C power to the unit. There isn't much in the box but just enough to get you going as fast as possible. Thankfully B&W gives a quick start guide that gets you going without wasting your time. Design is also modern yet strange; like a big football shape speaker facing you. Nothing wrong with that as it doesn't really take up that much space on my entertainment center. It isn't cumbersome or feels out of place in my home. On the top of the speaker, the buttons include; Vol up, Play/Pause, Multifunction, Alexa / Smart speaker button, and Vol down. There is a light bar indicator to let you know if the speaker is on. The speaker can connect to Spotify Connect, AptX, Bluetooth, Airplay 2, and B&W's own Connect app. This gives you multiple ways to connect your music wirelessly with tons of compatibility. Setup was easy with three simple instructions and you must download the app to set the speaker up. This includes an update to the speaker which I highly recommend doing before you enjoy the speaker. The sound of the Zeppelin was simply the best. It was clean, clear, and powerful. Everything was fleshed out and you can hear every single detail in sound. The football shape speaker just gives you a sound I would call award-winning. The bass is strong but not overpowering. It was an instant smile across my face This was just using Airplay 2 alone how moving the sound was on this speaker. I couldn't believe this much sound was coming out of a speaker of this size. Whatever drivers Bowers & Wilkins are using it's something that you will be extremely satisfied with. The five speakers inside are beyond exceptional and 24-bit/96kHz high-resolution sound is heavenly to listen to. The sound to my ears was magnificent! I was only able to test Tidal/MQA as that's the only platform I use this kinda music on but it delivered. Every tone and note was giving me a surround in my environment. with 24 bit music; there is also Deezer, Qobuz, TuneIn, and more to use to try. The integration with the app/speaker is great. This is a true wireless speaker meaning there are really no ports for you to use an aux cord and if you are looking for that this is not the speaker for you. This is one for those who truly want a wireless speaker to connect to most of the wireless devices quickly. One feature I love inside of the Zeppelin is the ability to connect multiple speakers together with the B&W app or with Airplay 2. Combining this speaker with four other speakers was fun as they sync with each other flawlessly. Alexa worked as intended with no issues with the device hearing my voice. Music. Music is what this device does and does it well beyond my expectations. The sound feels award-winning how clear and clean the music comes out at you. I'm truly blown away by the sound of this B&W Zeppelin model. I will say if you decide to pick one of these up there won't be disappointed at all. and oh boy once you connect this to multiple wireless speaker setups your home will be booming with sound. Clearly, it's one of the best speakers to date I've used. Definitely the most powerful I own.

Elegant, stylish and cool looking speaker. It rests on a isolating metal pedestal stand that prevents the transmission of speaker vibrations to the furniture its sitting on. It is purely a wireless streaming speaker with support to several music streaming apps via B&W music app. The B&W app itself is pretty simple with options to stream music from different apps with a simple sign on. It also supports Airplay, Bluetooth, and has built in Alexa voice control support. It also has controls to adjust bass and treble. Waiting for google home support and few others music apps and suppose to have support for those in the near future along with the multi room capability to share music among speakers in different rooms. It has dimmable (via the app) light projecting on the stand. Took less than 5 minutes to set it up and update the firmware. No specific instructions on how to connect to Bluetooth, which I eventually figured while checking out the app features. The app has an option under "devices" to enable Bluetooth and pair it with TV and other devices. It doesn’t come with a remote, not a stop shopper for me, but good to have feature. It boosts a premium 6" base driver, 2 mid-range drivers on either side of the base driver and 2 tweeters with total of 240 watts of output, which is pretty impressive given its size. Coming to its performance, it definitely competes with the name brand ones in its price range. It fills the room with rich and lively sound and its design allows the sound to travel around the speaker. I cranked up the volume and the bass and didn't hear any muffled audio at all. Midrange is a little low and good for small to average rooms and it still delivers high quality audio at full volume. Vocal is crisp and clear at high volume. Enough bass to match the music and fills the room with rich and lively music. I tested 30+ speakers and music systems and this definitely falls in the top 5% speakers in its price range when it comes to performance and would highly recommend it for music lovers who crave rich and lively music.

TLDR; This wireless speaker blows my mind (and ears) on so many levels. The sound quality is superb, capable of outputting 24-bit/96kHz high-resolution stereo sound. The design of the Zeppelin exudes so much style and confidence. It begs to be placed front and center as a conversational piece. It breaks the traditional Bluetooth speaker pairing paradigm with Wifi connectivity and access to hi-res content. It doubles as an Alexa smart speaker when idling from playing music. Sound quality is attributed to its five drive units: 2 tweeters (1”), 2 mids (3.5”) and 1 low (6”), delivering a total output of 240W. The sound is best enjoyed at least 10-15 feet away and as far as 40 degrees from center. It has tremendous amounts of clarity and can get very loud without distortion, easily filling a large room with sound. Sometimes I feel like it can be a bit on the bright side and I end up taking the treble down a couple of decibels to let the midrange come through. The only, only thing that might draw a bit of criticism is the low end thump. No, this is not a subwoofer, yet there is plenty of clean low end bass for what it is trying to accomplish. It just won’t shake the windows or rattle the ground, if that’s what you’re after. I love using Dr. Dre’s 2001 Instrumental to gauge the bass performance of speakers and I’m not disappointed at all as you can actually hear the bassline nice and clear. There are no bass/treble controls on the unit itself; you’ll have to use the BW Music App to access those tuning knobs, and it only offers bass and treble tuning adjustments. I threw almost every genre at this thing and it did not disappoint. From a design standpoint, I think the speaker looks amazing. The front grill is just one large sheet of fabric, with continuity only interrupted by its name plate. The integrated stand is recessed back to give an illusion that the speaker is floating and there is a dimmable cool-white LED that illuminates the gap between the speaker and stand to enhance that illusion. There are no buttons to push from the front side as they are slightly hidden toward the back side where the fabric meets the hard shell. The body is shaped, as you guessed, like a zeppelin. It’s significant because we have all been used to square/rectangle or cylindrical designs, and BW’s iconic design is unique and unchanged since its creation at Steyning Research Establishment (SRE) in West Sussex back in 2006. From a functionality standpoint, its shape dictates where the drivers are placed (more surface area in the center for the large driver, then the smaller drivers as it tapers toward the edges), and they are spaced across the entire face to help promote stereo sound separation. The Zeppelin is wide enough that it could take the place of a soundbar (if your TV supports BT streaming), but I think it’s best suited on a table where it can be admired on its own. I think a majority of consumers looking for a wireless speaker solution immediately think of a “bluetooth” speaker. As a matter of fact, I thought that exact same thing when I was setting this up, only to learn that I have to download an app to make this thing work. Apprehensive at first, I thought BW was cornering themselves with this method of setup and playback, but man was I wrong. The Zeppelin is both a bluetooth speaker AND a smart speaker. It supports aptX Adaptive, AAC and SBC codecs if your device supports it, and connectivity is handled from within the app first and then exposed as a “part of your house” name in the available BT devices to choose from within your phone’s BT setup. Then you can still go about streaming music like you would normally to a BT speaker or headphones. Oh, and it supports Apple Airplay2. But the feature that makes this thing shine is the ability to stream music from services through a Wifi connection. I do have TIDAL and this can be played back from within the app with an available Wifi connection at home. With Wifi set up and app connected, there’s no need to worry about BT codecs or stream connectivity. And when the music stops, the Zeppelin will standby as a smart speaker. And like a smart speaker, you’ll have Alexa at your disposal. Even at louder volumes, Alexa is still able to pick up my voice and answer my requests for music and weather, for instance. I will probably stream music through the app from this point on. Other music services supported are Qobuz, deezer, TuneIn, last.fm, NTS Radio, SoundCloud, and Dash Radio. BW mentions that they will continue to add more streaming services in the future. A few complaints: (1) The Zeppelin can only use Alexa as the voice assistant. That may not be an issue for those who’ve already adopted Amazon’s solution, but for others that have Siri and Google Assistant, it will be an annoyance to have another voice assistant just to tell the Zeppelin to play music. (2) 24-bit Hi-Res tracks can only be had through the Qobuz Music Streaming service, linked into the BW Music App. I pay for TIDAL now for its MQA tracks, but I cannot enjoy them fully through the Music App. I ended up signing up for Qobuz... (3) There is no indication of the actual bit depth or bitrate when streaming any music through the Music App.

I really want to love the Zeppelin speaker. It has a really unique design that makes it quite the statement piece in my home. It's well built as well well and the hardware feels like it justifies the high price tag well. It also sounds amazing. But I think the feature set leans more towards an iPhone user and I wish it also incorporated Google Cast audio. Overall I would say if you're an iPhone user I don't think there's anything missing from having a great experience there, but on Android you may have to settle for Bluetooth or hope your music service is built into the Bowers & Wilkins app. At least the Bluetooth support incorporates aptX Adaptive for the best possible experience in that regard though. Unboxing is about as simple as it can get. You get the speaker, the power cord, and the manuals. The sheer heft of the speaker was apparent pulling it out of the box. The design is going to be polarizing for sure and it makes statement right out the gate. I myself love it. The materials all blend with each other really well and it feels extremely well constructed. For ports it's just the power connection and a USB port, but the USB is only for service. I do wish for a speaker this expensive that some kind of wired option was incorporated. There are 5 buttons across the upper back - volume up/down, play/pause, Alexa, and a multifunction button. At the bottom of the speaker there's an LED that provides some subtle illumination. It's a nice touch, but can be turned off in the app if it's not preferred. Setting up the speaker through the Bowers & Wilkins app was very straightforward when it came to detecting the speaker, connecting it to the network, and applying updates. You can use the app to adjust the bass and treble on the speaker, setup Amazon Alexa, and link some music services. At the time I'm writing this (Feb. 2022) there aren't many services available to link directly in the app, at least compared to the Sonos app. You can play music to the Zeppelin in a variety of ways. The first is via the Bowers & Wilkins app if your service is supported. It also supports Spotify Connect and AirPlay 2. The last (and in my opinion least ideal) method is via Bluetooth. Streaming lossless audio on Apple Music via AirPlay 2 worked great and I was able to try Tidal via the Bowers & Wilkins app and that worked well too. Bluetooth support is for 5.0 with aptX Adaptive codec, so at least Bluetooth is as good as it could possibly be here, though the bitrate still fall short of streaming via WiFi and you also have to contend with your phone being within range and device alerts potentially disrupting the listening experience. I was initially able to get my device (Pixel 6) to connect via aptX HD (it does not support Adaptive), but subsequently have only been able to connect via AAC. I’m going to chalk that up to an issue with my phone though. I do wish a Google Cast option was offered with the Zeppelin; maybe as part of some kind of future update, but I’m not holding my breath. I did find the sound of the Zeppelin to be excellent no matter how I listened to it or what I was listening to. It doesn’t struggle at all at high volumes and the bass is powerful. The sound is very detailed and I could pick out all the individual elements of the tracks. I definitely prefer it to the Sonos Move and Sony HT-Z9F soundbar that we typically listen to music through. Overall I’m happy with the Zeppelin speaker. I remember the original iPod dock version that came out in the 2000’s and this new version carries forward that legacy well. I do wish Bowers & Wilkins would add Google Cast support and some more music services to their app. Those are both things that can be fixed with software updates, so I’m hopeful.

This is the latest follow on to the original and well-received B&W Zeppelin introduced for use with iPods in 2006. In the words of the old TV commercial, “You’ve come a long way, baby.” The new Zeppelin’s shape may be the same, but current technology is built inside to provide 240 watts (according to the B&W Website’s specs) of clean, clear, room-filling stereo in the excellent tradition of all B&W speakers. Measuring about 8.25” high x 25.5” wide x 7.5” deep and tipping the scale at 16 pounds, it will be a comfy fit on a wall with the optional wall mount or on the deck of a credenza, dresser or anywhere there is the space for its package. The new Zeppelin is easily and quickly paired with iOS and Android mobiles and with the added connectivity commands from built-in Alexa, Zeppelin is and always has been a visual and audio work of art. In all ways simple to operate, she is smile-producing to all listeners who can appreciate the solid sound from such an unusually shaped package. The latest iteration of the Bowers & Wilkins app melds basic settings with connected content from Bluetooth-connected mobile devices and a growing list of content providers (more on this later). Whether perched for service in a bedroom, office, kitchen, separate workspace or anywhere there is power (yes, she needs to be plugged in), the newest Zeppelin is sure to please as a premium audio product for the discerning customer. **WHAT’S IN THE BOX** • Zeppelin • Power cord • Basic and simplified manual with separate safety booklet/warranty **THE SETUP** Open the box, read the paperwork, download the mobile app, plug her in, launch the app, update firmware if applicable (mine was), Bluetooth-connect with mobile devices, one at a time. On the back panel towards the top are the power button, volume buttons, play/pause, and Bluetooth setup. Alexa was set up easily through the iOS app and she responded when summoned. The Alexa function was easily defeated with the press of the Alexa button for five seconds, turning off the mic. Lower and hidden in the recessed back panel are the reset button, power cord plug and USB-C service port. Connected and powered on, then linked with optional, paid services including Deezer, TuneIn, Last.fm, Tidal, Qobuz, with more to come, it’s fired up, ready to go and time to . . . **PUT IT TO THE TEST** Because I am so familiar with some of the tracks on the Eagles Hell Freezes Over live album, that was my first stop, sent by the Music app on an iPhone. It’s my go-to for many speaker tests. Listening to Hotel California, Take It Easy and Desperado, I noted the bass response and clarity of vocals along with stereo separation while conjuring comparative memories of these tracks as heard through other audio systems with other speakers. So far, so good. Next, some classical tracks from Apple Music’s lossless selections, including Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture, Dvořák's Eighth Symphony, and a little Yo-Yo Ma thrown in just because I love his work. We sampled a few tracks from TuneIn, Last.fm and Deezer, all with premium sound characteristics. In our subjective judgment, this B&W delivered pleasing, balanced sound imaging without being heavy or light anywhere along the continuum of frequencies, all managed through the app. Not everyone will agree, and this is where the app settings will come in handy. Make the sound pleasing to the listener. Zeppelin also features Apple AirPlay 2 connectivity, another convenience. **CONCLUSION** In this case, value is in the ear of the beholder. With so much to offer in what is a unique, classically designed package, powerfully delivered, Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin with wireless streaming and built-in Alexa is highly recommended. It will be sure to please for many years to come. Though we cannot assure that B&W’s promise to add more capabilities and services will be delivered, there is every indication that they will. Since its initial availability in recent months, sources have been added that total those listed above. Important to note, NONE of the premium sources are required. Send music or over content already available in the user’s music library or even from YouTube or other free resources. Time to go and enjoy listening to my Zeppelin. **WARRANTY** Two years manufacturer’s warranty

I have the previous zeppelin model. Purchased as a floor model open-box, for $500, after sitting on the show room floor for god knows how long. When I say this is literally the best thing ive ever owned, im not joking. I have taken this speaker to countless parties, roughly 40 to play music. Mostly at maximum volume. All low end songs, i have literally torturered this speaker. It has been dropped off of counters, onto the hard wood floor, its been outside, in the grass or rolling around in my backseat. Undeatable sound quality, i plug it into my router and can use the app to change settings (this speaker is literally ancient), connect via airplay or bluetooth, ive used it for a samsung tv via bluetooth once. Absoutle tank and for sure worth what i paid, bought it years ago and still use it often. Its impossible to replace this speaker with anything else but a set of bookshelf speakers and a literal reciever. I would give it six stars if i could.

The Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin returns in its 4th iteration as a fully wireless, premium speaker while retaining the character of what it historically has been known for. Some of the updates include revised design, upgraded speakers, more powerful amp, Amazon Alexa support, and 24bit/96kHz audio streaming support. After 6+ weeks of trying to resolve an ongoing issue regarding connectivity, B&W support has not responded to me after 3 attempts of contacting them. This is an especially frustrating issue given the only connectivity options of this speaker are wireless. So when problems arise, it’s very useless and frustrating. In the box: - Zeppelin - Power Cable - Quick Start/Warranty Guide Setup: While taking the speaker out of the box you are present with a hefty, premium feeling speaker. The speaker weighs in just under 15lbs and measures 25.5” wide, 8.25” tall, and 7.5” deep. This will require a decent amount of desk, table, stand real-estate but it is designed to be one of the focal points in the room. Once power is supplied to the speaker it will boot up and you can start the pairing process. I would highly recommend using the B&W Music app to get the most out of this speaker. Once you have signed into the app it will find the speaker and allow you to connect it to the Wi-Fi network. This speaker only supports 2.4gHz so make sure this is available. Alternatively, B&W states you can use the USB-C port on the back to connect to Ethernet via an adapter if preferred. Once everything is connected the app allows you to connect several streaming services directly through the B&W app. These include: Deezer, TuneIn, Last.fm, Qobuz, NTS, Soundcloud, Dash, and Tidal. I have heard that Pandora and others are coming shortly. To get the most out of this speaker, I chose to purchase a Tidal HiFi Plus membership to access H-Fi and MQA audio files. NOTE: According to what I have seen, only Qobuz inside the B&W app allows for Hifi (24bit) streaming. This should be expanded to other services in the future. The speaker itself has 5 physical buttons on the upper back, volume up/down, play/pause, Alexa, and multifunction buttons. The bottom of the speaker features an LED that creates a levitating type effect for the speaker. Brightness and toggling it on/off can be controlled via the app. It is important to note there are no analog inputs for this speaker. You have a power and USB-C port on the back and that is it. Like mentioned earlier, B&W states the USB-C port can be used as a wired Ethernet port incase wireless is not available though I do not have an adapter to test this. Sound Quality: I used a couple different devices to stream music via this speaker to help test quality and connectivity. - Pixel 6 via B&W app with Tidal - Desktop Computer via BT 5.2 (Speaker is 5.0) CD MP3 files - Pixel 6 BT AAC (Speaker would not show up as aptX or aptX HD even through developer options) I found the sound quality of this speaker excellent. Because this speaker has the stereo channels so close together stereo separation is fairly weak unless you are directly in front. Despite this the highs, mids, and lows were very distinctive. I did find quite the variation of volume levels through Tidal for certain tracks but the Zeppelin gets LOUD no matter what. Some tracks just got even louder depending on how it was mixed. Since I was unable to connect via aptX or access streaming Hifi quality files due to limitations with connectivity and B&W app, I wasn’t technically streaming the highest quality files but even with the CD quality or so I was able to stream, it sounded great. Bass is not overpowering but the highs can be a little intrusive depending on genre. I dialed back treble about .5-1db and that was enough to take the piercing edge off for my tastes at higher volumes. Overall this speaker has the power to deliver intense sound for 500sq feet with ease. The Zeppelin supports Airplay2 and Spotify Connect. Multi-room support should be coming with a future update to the Zeppelin/app in the coming months to allow multi device connection between the Zeppelin and other Formation devices from B&W. Connectivity Issues: My Pixel 6 is setup with the B&W app. It worked well for the first day or so then I wanted to test the speaker with a direct BT connection via PC. I paired and connected it and it seemed to work fine for the rest of the first day. After the first sleep/power off (Leaving the unit plugged in overnight as it controls power itself) the sound started cutting in and out with playback of the PC BT connection. Over the subsequent few days the speaker would connect to the PC (Audio confirmation and all) but wouldn't play sound despite showing connected. It would need to be deleted in BT and repaired like a new device every time or a full power cycle by unplugging the unit. On top of this, I tried playing music via the B&W app on my Pixel 6 and the speaker would not play audio at all. I got an error at the bottom of the app “Check devices”. The speaker worked fine after a full restart and re-pairing process to the PC. Since this issue began the speaker has had a software update and it still occurs from time to time. Because this speaker is solely wireless, any issues that arise REALLY affect how one can use the speaker. Given the price point and brand, I would not only expect a higher quality product without bugs but also customer service that attempts to correct the issue. I would say neither of which the brand has done for me. This is my first experience with any B&W product and it has been quite disappointing. Overall: I would be very leery of this product given the bugs I have experienced and lack of customer support. Even though the sound quality is excellent the connectivity bugs between using the app and connecting via BT at the same time would prevent me from recommending this speaker to anyone who plans to use this with more than one device with the B&W app. If you only plan to use this with one device and the app, then it might be a fair purchase.

There are so many Bluetooth speakers in the market today. Most differentiate themselves as being portable, powerful, and offer some sort of sound dispersion. Bowers and Wilkins is so far beyond 99% of those speakers from enhanced sound reproduction to exclusive and unique styling. This unit is meant to be seen, it's meant to be as much a conversation piece as a speaker. Like many speakers in the Magnolia collection, this unit excels by offering not only the most well designed cabinet and speaker locations, but also WiFi streaming with a 24 bit DAC sound processor and BT APTX adaptive enhanced sound. So yes, it's a Bluetooth speaker, but also a wifi speaker. The Zeppelin doesn't disappoint once you set it up by downloading the B&W app and setting up an account. It connects to a handful of wifi music apps like Deezer and Spotify that you can access right thru the app. Music reproduction blows you away and actually sounds better 20-30ft back! There are no equalizer settings on the app, just treble/bass. I think with this type of speaker, less is more, the DSP takes care of it all. The highs are crisp and clear, the midrange is effective and explosive, the bass tone is only noticeable over 100hz. That would be the only place it faulters a bit in the lower frequencies where you should hear and feel a thump of radiating bass, you get a hum and tap. The important thing is the sound is very clear and no discernable distortion even at annoyingly high volume. Genres of music like BPM, Dance, Dubstep, Classical, all sounded clear and true to tone. I'm a little surprised at this price point that it doesn't connect with 5ghz wifi. My phone automatically connected to the 5ghz network at home and then I wondered why it didn't recognize the speaker after I was sure to have connected it. Alexa only works if my phone is connected. I'm not a big fan of Alexa, but I assumed Google Assistant would also be available. The app is updatable, so as they will be adding new services, they may add support for Google. I think this speaker has a lot going for it, from it's amazingly clear sound, to it's unique Zeppelin (blimp) aesthetic, coupled with the app's support for adaptive music service and updatable features, I highly recommend it.

Sound quality is normal B&W greatness. App isn't great though. Connectivity is weird to deal with coming from other speakers app integration with music platforms works great though.

This speaker is absolutely incredible. I’ve tested many speakers in this category and overall blows all others away!!! The sound and volume are enough to fill a large room and easy to use. Would definitely recommend this speaker to anyone who enjoys great sound !!

Easy operation and wonderful sound. I should say that I pretty much stay with Bowers and Wilkins for all my speakers, because I prefer their naturalistic sound. This doesn't disappoint. It is a bit pricey.

My rating is based on the sound of this device, which is amazing. The mid and upper range shine in the musical content. The software which runs the system is about as quirky as any I have worked with, but I have been able to figure it out and make the system perform as I want it to.

Awesome sound and sleek design! The led is an added bonus.

Great sound - exactly what to expect from B&W. Easy Wifi/Bluetooth connection. Was debating between Wedge and this new Zeppelin. Very satisfied so far.

Great sound quality and modern design. Not very easy to set up over the internet. Requires install of B&W application.

Sweet sound across the full range. Lives up to the BW reputation. Worth the purchase as an 'Open Box' for sure!

The best sounding Bluetooth speaker, but it lost a star as the direction on how to operate this without a network connection is intuitive and required a web search it fo it.

Outstanding product. Well built with Outstanding Superb sound. Thinking of buying another one!

Great speaker for small to medium size rooms. Effortless and solid connection through Apple airplay2. Highly recommended