Customer Ratings & Reviews

I was introduced to Marshall’s consumer speakers with the Stanmore III a couple years ago. Of course, Marshall equipment has been a fixture at rock concerts for over 50 years. I’m not ashamed to say that, while I love the sound of my Stanmore III, I was initially drawn to it for its definitive styling including the legendary Marshall script with the music history it holds. The metal buttons, switches, and backlit dials that are a rarity these days and make a tactile, emotional connection in a way plastic or touch sensitive controls can’t. This is true of the entire Marshall speaker line including this Kilburn III. Marshall speakers, to me are timeless and handsome. HI-FI WITHOUT WI-FI IS GETTING LONG IN THE BLUETOOTH Still, while I enjoy my Stanmore III, it’s not perfect, so I was anxiously awaiting to see what update would come to, what I regard as the Stanmore III’s portable sibling, the Kilburn. I now played with the new Kilburn III, and it has a lot of nice upgrades, but I’m disappointed with the omission of one – it still has no Wi-Fi connectivity (AirPlay 3, Chromecast, etc). It’s still just Bluetooth, and per the spec sheet isn’t compatible with any high audio res or lossless codecs. At the Kilburn III’s premium level this is a legitimate reason to look elsewhere. This is the chief reason why I cannot give the Kilburn III a 5-star rating. Despite this, I ordered the Kilburn III anyway, because I wanted a portable speaker and appreciate the adaptability of the Marshall speaker sound and aesthetic. If you are not a fan of Bluetooth it has a 3.55mm mini jack aux input. So, while it misses the Wi-Fi bell and whistle it still harmonizes with my many use cases and room decor. Another plus, the Kilburn III’s Bluetooth range, at least in my use, is unyielding even at it’s far limit. I can move 40ft away with my phone in hand and the connection never cracks up or pauses. IT’S GOT THE POWER Easily, and literally, the biggest upgrade for the Kilburn III is it’s 50 hours rated battery. For a portable speaker, ultimately, that is more useful than Wi-Fi connectivity, so there is that. This marathon battery life is likely assisted by the efficiency of Bluetooth LE and certainly 50 hours couldn’t be achieved with Wi-Fi. Frankly I was suspect of the 50-hour claim until I let it play off and on for many hours over 4 days at mid volume. I got over 50 hours, but, of course, YMMV. I don’t think any Kilburn III’s competitor comes close to this mark. And there is more - the battery is replaceable. That is not a phrase I get to type much anymore. This is huge for both the consumer and environment. Marshall speakers can last “forever,” but batteries don’t. But wait, there’s still more! The Kilburn III can play all day, wherever you are but the mobile device you are streaming music from probably can’t. Cleverly, the Kilburn III doubles as a battery bank to charge up your phone or tablet if it gets low on power. There is a downside here too though. In my experience, the Kilburn III does not charge while it’s in use. To be fair I was only using a 60w charger but when it was plugged to the Kilburn the battery % kept decreasing. When not in use it charges up fine with this charger. BUILT LIKE A ROADIE The Kilburn III’s construction feels beefy and road ready. Marshall says 38% of it is from recycled material, a well-hidden feature to me. If Marshall didn’t announce it I’d never have guessed. The controls and front and rear grills are metal. Oddly the only detectible plastic is the Marshall logo. A weird choice with everything else feeling premium. I don’t know what the frame is made of but it’s covered in “vegan leather.” As a portable device, I question if that material can handle the punishment that comes with portability. But then again, this is the 3rd iteration of this model and it looks like it’s worked out fine all these years. Sonically, this is a genuine stereo unit with two 2” drivers and a 4” woofer. It’s notable because there’s a lot of sheepish speakers dressed like wolves but possess just a single driver. Now I don’t confuse the Kilmore III’s channel separation with a proper home stereo, but it beats mono every day. In keeping with the Kilmore III’s burly build, it’s IP54 rated dust and water resistance and pool or mountain side ready. That means a product can handle water splashes, a brief light rain, or moderate dust. To be clear, the speaker is not sealed so bathing it in large quantities of either will not end well but it should be robust otherwise. No truly portable device is complete without a handle so a removable one top covered in vegan leather to match the speaker and dark red faux suede on the bottom is included. I found the faux suede “icky” feeling so I reversed it so the vegan leather is on the bottom/palm side. (I included a picture for visual reference). Any strap with slits can also be substituted. The Kilburn III rocks an electric guitar riff on power up, a not-so-subtle clue about its nature, and pumps me up. This is a speaker that begs to party. Before taking the stage it must be paired to your device. The optional, but free, Marshall app makes it easy, but you can also do it manually on your device. I appreciate the app is not mandatory. It also makes the Kilburn III obsolete proof. If you choose the app no obnoxious registration is required to get the speaker working. The app does request it and also permission to have “anonymous” data sent to Marshall, but both can be skipped. However, be vigilant because the option to “skip” is obscured. The app has three main functions. 1. Firmware updates, which is self-explanatory. 2. Battery management options, which by the way, this function, by default, limits the Kilburn III’s max battery charge to 90%. So, when you full charge your speaker and the app reports it’s at 90% that’s why. You can change to 100% but it’s not advised, similar to your cell phone battery. And finally, #3 the custom equalizer. There are also a few pre-sets too. While you can adjust bass and treble on the speaker itself, you’ll need the app if you want to set specific frequency ranges. There’s also a feature to automatically adjust sound placement if the speaker is in a corner WARM UP ACT OR MAIN EVENT? Everyone loves features, but sound is what’s paramount. Of course, everyone’s ears and genres, even artists within a genre differ like spots on a giraffe. Still, in the endeavor to get a thumbnail sketch of the Kilmore III’s strengths and weaknesses, I sampled music from Beethoven to Big Band Jazz to The Beatles and Beyond. I also listened to a couple podcasts to hear its spoken voice performance. All the music was ripped from CD, encoded at AAC 320kbps and streamed from my iPhone 15 Pro Max. The podcasts were streamed from Apple’s Podcast app. After playing various genres over a couple days I detected a common thread. The Kilburn III, while competent playing softly it doesn’t come to life until volume is 33%. Between 40-60% of top volume is the sweet spot where the bass sounds authentic to the song and the music has an emotional sway. Distortion starts creeping in after 60% and, at least to my ears, it’s unlistenable after 75%. I note these tiers because, like I said, this is a speaker that want to make noise. It’s good, not great at being a background speaker, as some are. A great background speaker presents strong bass and mids even at low volumes. The Kilburn at low volume mutes these to the point they are not entirely flat but also not engaging. That said, even at low volume vocals – even Bob Dylan and late career Leonard Cohen, are clear. On the other hand, in the middle of the Kilburn’s volume range it’s a small room filling dynamo. The bass is pointed and expressive and gets me moving or at least gets me to pull out the air guitar. But that’s not to the detriment of the mids or highs. It doesn’t trade one for the other like some other speakers do. It’s just one great rocking package… or jazz club, symphony, whatever you like. I don’t need to say it, but I will, it can’t be an audiophile speaker and doesn’t pretend to be. It’s just a small portable powerhouse. That’s inside. Outside performance is going to hinge on uncontrollable external noise. I live on a moderate traffic street – tens of cars per minute, more during rush. So that is where I tested this aspect. Street noise with cars zooming by registered 66 dB, which is typical for an urban setting. I had to crank the Kilburn III to about 70% to overcome this level of external noise and hear the speaker. Even then the background noise mingles with the speaker sounds. Bottomline here, this speaker likes to party but it’s not a party speaker. Know the noise level of where you’ll likely use the Kilburn III before buying. Spoken word on this speaker is much more sensitive to the source’s production values and very much garbage-in, garbage-out. The equalizer can help if the sound is too tinny. But really, the Kilburn III is designed for music; spoken word is a bonus. Spoken word playback quality here is the reverse of music. With spoken work the sound is best under 30% max volume, rather than above it, and distortion starts creeping in around 40%. Listening at these low volumes is clear and loud enough though for a small 100-200 sq ft area. IN SUM I’ll conclude where I started. The Kilburn III’s handsome look and premium built is probably its biggest differentiator and reason to buy vs anything else. It’s sound ranges from capable to outstanding depending on where the volume dial is. It’s certainly feature rich, but noticeably lacks Wi-Fi.

[PROS] Supreme Battery Life: The battery life of this speaker is unmatched when compared to similar products. I have yet the drain the battery fully and have even managed to charge my phone fully without issue. Stellar Design: The Kilburn III was designed in an excellent way in every category. Physically, it has a sturdy body and carrying strap. It was also able to withstand the splashes of water I threw in its direction. Aesthetically, the black and gold compliment each other greatly with the metal finish. Finally, the interface contains all of the functionality that I can adjust on the fly without my phone. Rich Bass: Sound quality is great all around, but the bass stands out. It's not the strongest but does very impressive given the stature of the speaker. Intuitive App: The Marshall companion app is very lightweight and simple to use. I'm able to set my EQ profiles and tweak settings without having to get lost in a web of menus. [CONS] Limited Ports: Unfortunately, the Kilburn III only has two ports: In/Out USB C and Line-In port. I was hoping to be able to utilize for additional functionality, but I'll have to settle. [CONCLUSION] The Kilburn III is an excellent speaker for home use and on the go. With great sound and an extreme battery life, it's a great addition to bring fun to any environment. I would highly recommend it.

I LOVE this speaker! The sound is so crisp and clear, the battery life is impressive and the app is a nice bonus. This sound on this speaker is better than my vehicles speaker. I'm obsessed with it. I've had the speaker for over two months and I've only had to charge it 3 times the whole time after listening to music for a considerable amount of time. The app is also really convenient, making it seamless to adjust the EQ settings based on what type of music you're playing. It's worth the price if you're someone that enjoys high quality sound and like to take your speaker to the lake or beach, or even just have some tunes playing during your home cleaning.

Looks great sounds great and love the knobs on top. Only negative I can say is wish it was louder but really can’t complain. Thinking about getting a second one to pair with it.

This speaker rocks! I also have the Stanmore 111 and I think this has a better sound profile. It is a well balanced sound that comes out clean, with the right amount of bass. Plus, I love that you can tweet the treble and bass without going to the app. All in all ,this is without a doubt, one of the best bang for a buck you're going to find anywhere. Highly recommended.

So far so good I use it at work gm assembly line I take it station to station fits perfect for the job

Great sounding speaker as usual from Marshall. Very much satisfied customer.

I love the retro look and feel of this speaker. The sound doesn’t disappoint either. No distrition and very loud. The battery life is one of the best on the market for this type of speaker. Close to 50 hours. Dont hestitate to get this great speaker that will bring you happines with uour music, for years to come!

Very loud and beautiful sound, overall quality is top notch, looks classy and great easy to carry anywhere.

Sounds great. I love it. I would recommend to others.

It is always a pleasure to get a great quality sound. This speaker is alme of the best soeakers ive owned. Very classy HQ

Good product. Crisp sound. Good volume. Attractive look. Easy to operate. Highly recommended.

This speaker is a huge upgrade from the killburn 2 its got good bass and mids and good highs i think it’s a great all around speaker juat a little pricey

Very nice, and I love the retro style, the look is simple and I love it.

Worth every penny for a portable. Great bass included.

Best Purchase per price it is a value pruchase definitely worth it

Great speaker just a little pricey. I really like the quality as well as the sound.

Exellent sound and volume level. Auxliary inputs are very helpful. Lightweight and portable

Nixw looking and great sounding speaker. Battery lasts a long time.

I think it sounds very similarly to the Action 3, but it's now portable and can be used to charge other things.