Though audio may be perceived differently by individuals, the basics of good sound—detailing, clarity and balance—do not change. And that is exactly what Danish audio brand Bang & Olufsen offers with the BeoPlay S3.
The design of the BeoPlay S3 is inspired partly by a geometric dodecahedron and partly by a tennis ball. This is the sort of design that would eventually grow on you. What stands out is the compact footprint and the fine build quality—it is small enough to fit easily on your bedside or study table. Bang & Olufsen has kept it simple in terms of the materials used—the front part that protects the speakers and the grille is made of a thin nylon fabric, while the rear half of the speaker is essentially plastic.
The biggest surprise is the power that the BeoPlay S3 packs in. The two Class D amplifiers can produce a combined 240 watts peak power, and have a 4-inch woofer to take care of the lower frequencies. The Bluetooth set-up is simple, and there is a free-to-download B&O Play app that lets you control music from your Android phone, iPhone or Apple Watch. But we noticed a fairly annoying 3-second lag when you first play music after connecting to the BeoPlay S3—this is not generally a problem with Bluetooth speakers, and perhaps a firmware update for the speaker will be able to resolve this.
Overall, the audio experience is excellent. You get crisp sound, and the sort of refinement that is largely missing in most rivals, except perhaps the Marshall Kilburn.
Audio products originating from Scandinavian countries are never heavy on bass, and are more tuned for richer detailing—perhaps because of the regional preference for music genres such as orchestras and operas. The BeoPlay S3, however, does deliver a serious amount of bass, without sounding too thick or overwhelming the mid-range frequencies. You can push the volume really loud, and the clarity remains pristine.
If one is not enough, you can connect more BeoPlay S3 speakers (also known as daisy-chain) for even more powerful multi-channel audio.
This is by far the best wireless speaker at this price as far as audio quality is concerned. What it does not have, though, is a built-in battery. That restricts portability—and that is where the Marshall Kilburn scores.
