B&O Play has announced its latest addition to the multi-room audio space, with the company’s Beoplay M3 set to directly compete with the Sonos Play:1.
The Beoplay M3 is the most compact model B&O Play has ever introduced into its wireless home speaker family, yet it still claims to offer impressive acoustics. That’s largely thanks to the fine tuning that has been done by Bang & Olufsen’s acoustic engineers – although these speakers also come equipped with a lot of technology, despite its small size.
“Our home wireless speakers are designed around the idea that sound should have a prominent place at home. It is about putting people before technology and designing speakers that earn attention for all the right reasons: immersive sound, a simple user experience and a design that adds warmth to the interior. Beoplay M3 delivers perfectly on this vision, and we are proud to extend the family with this compact yet powerful speaker,” says CEO of B&O PLAY John Mollanger.
Under the fabric or anodised aluminium covers you’ll find technologies that are typically associated with larger products in the B&O Play line-up. That includes advanced digital sound processing, adaptive bass linerisation, and unique control to protect against thermal and mechanical overload.
The Beoplay M3 also boasts a single 3½in custom designed long stroke mid/woofer. The unit itself is front firing, utilising an acoustical reflector carefully designed from listening tests. The mid/woofer covers the frequencies from the base band to the upper midrange, ensuring perfect integration of the individual parts of the spectrum. The treble is covered by a high quality soft dome tweeter utilizing neodymium magnet system.
Multi-room systems have become a hot commodity in the AV market, but it’s also a sector that has become increasingly crowded. Between systems from manufacturers like Sonos and Denon, there is little room for new entrants. Thankfully, Bang & Olufsen is an established player – and its premium offering is likely to prove popular.
“Beoplay M3 is all about character; one that can easily adapt to any interior style. We have worked hard to get the very best of the premium materials used and the result is a sleek, hyper simple speaker with a precise shape. Tight, compact and powerful, Beoplay M3 blends in perfectly with your interior”, says designer Cecilie Manz.
Like other speakers in the Beoplay range, the M3 is capable of connecting to a vast array of devices, whether it be through Bluetooth, Chromecast, QPlay 2.0 or, in 2018, AirPlay 2. The speaker can also be connected to other Beoplay products for playing in multiple rooms in the house.
Despite Bang & Olufsen being a premium brand, its speaker isn’t priced unrealistically for smaller projects. While the Sonos Play:1 costs £199, the Beoplay M3 costs €299, which is around £264.