Marshall Emberton II now available for less than 2 thousand! It boasts stunning design, great sound, and decent battery life

The Marshall Emberton II is one of the most popular portable speakers in its category and typically stays above the 2,000 CZK mark. The current price of 1,971 CZK on Heureka is the first discount below this threshold since December, which is not typical for Marshall – its products usually hold their value very well.

Quick summary:
✅ Makes sense if you want a compact speaker with characteristic sound, retro Marshall design, and long battery life.
⚠️ Consider if you need real stereo with two units paired together (Emberton II does not support stereo pairs, only Stack mode) or a full-fledged equalizer
💡 At 1,971 CZK, it offers one of the best price/performance ratios among premium portable speakers under 2,000 CZK.

Why this discount is unusual

Marshall generally belongs to brands that are very reluctant to offer price discounts. Portable speakers from the Emberton series consistently retail for around 2,200–2,500 CZK on the Czech market, and they only manage to drop below 2,000 CZK for a few days a year, typically during larger clearance sales. Heureka records the first such drop since December for the Emberton II, which is not an insignificant situation for a product that sells continuously without significant discounts.

Key parameters: sound, battery, durability

The sound is handled by two full-range Class D drivers with a total output of 20 W, complemented by two passive radiators. With the Emberton II, Marshall retains what makes the brand unique – a characteristic sound emphasizing mid-range and bass, which primarily suits rock, classical, and generally music with instrumental depth. A frequency range of 60–20,000 Hz and a maximum sound pressure level of 87 dB are decent values for a speaker of this size.

An interesting feature is True Stereophonic technology, which Marshall describes as 360° spatial sound – simply put, the speaker distributes sound evenly in all directions, so it doesn’t matter how you orient it on a table. However, for a true stereo pair of two Embertons, they cannot be paired as classic L/R stereo, only in Stack mode, where both speakers play the same signal in parallel for louder sound – several reviewers on Heureka mention the absence of stereo mode as a specific objection.

Battery life is one of the main selling points of the Emberton II: 30+ hours of playback on a single charge. This is a jump of approximately 10 hours compared to the first generation. A full charge takes 3 hours, and fast charging is also available – 20 minutes of charging = 4 hours of playback, which you’ll appreciate when traveling with a power bank. Connectivity is handled by Bluetooth 5.1 with a 10-meter range.

The speaker boasts top-notch durability: IP67 certification means it can withstand complete submersion in 1 meter of fresh water for 30 minutes and is also dust-resistant. A weight of 700 grams and dimensions of 16 × 7.6 × 6.8 cm make the Emberton II a highly portable choice for the garden, swimming, or travel. Furthermore, Marshall changed the materials for the second generation – the body is made from 50% recycled plastic and is PVC-free.

Practical aspects: controls, app, design

The main control element is the multifunctional gold joystick on the top. Through it, you turn on, adjust volume, skip tracks, and pair – all without an app, with one thumb. For more advanced settings, the Marshall Bluetooth app is used, where you can select preset equalizers (Marshall, Push, Voice) and download OTA firmware updates.

If you’re expecting a full-fledged parametric or manual equalizer with bands, don’t look for it on the Emberton II – it uses fixed presets. Several reviews on Heureka mention this as the most common objection: “I would welcome a better equalizer in the app.” For some, it’s a minor detail, for others, a reason to opt for a higher model like the Marshall Stanmore or a competitor like JBL.

Design-wise, the Emberton II remains true to Marshall’s aesthetic: textured silicone casing, metal grille with the Marshall logo, and classic script lettering. The speaker simply looks as a Marshall should – a compact amplifier in miniature form.

What users say

On Heureka, the Marshall Emberton II has a rating of 97% from 55 ratings (38 text reviews), with 34 out of 38 customers recommending the product. This is one of the best figures in the Bluetooth speaker segment. Among the most frequently mentioned advantages are: sound quality (“rich sound”, “bass”, “classic rock sounds like on big Marshalls”), long battery life, compact size, premium craftsmanship, and easy Bluetooth pairing. Reviewers repeatedly mention that the speaker gives a more expensive impression than its actual cost.

Criticism is also specific and worth mentioning. Users cite the limited equalizer in the app, longer charging time (3 hours for a full charge), occasional distortion at higher volumes, and the missing stereo mode when pairing two units. One user also aptly notes that due to its wide frequency range, the speaker “reveals every imperfection in the recording” – a plus for high-quality recordings, a minus for low-bitrate streams.

When it doesn’t make sense

If you need full-fledged stereo from two separate units (a classic L/R pair), the Marshall Emberton II will disappoint you – the Stack feature sounds louder, but it doesn’t create a stereo pair from two units. For stereo pairing in this price range, you’d likely opt for a JBL Charge 5 or Bose SoundLink Flex.

Second scenario: if you want maximum bass and volume for an outdoor party, the Emberton II is more of a mid-range option in this category – for large spaces, you’d need to go for its bigger brother, the Marshall Middleton, or speakers like the JBL Xtreme. And third: if you don’t have an affinity for the brand or its retro aesthetic, you’ll find a speaker with genuinely better technical parameters for the same or lower price – Marshall heavily relies on its design, and that design needs to be appreciated for the price to make sense.

Verdict: who it’s worth it for

At 1,971 CZK, the Marshall Emberton II offers a combination that is hard to beat in a similar aesthetic and sound class: signature Marshall sound, 30+ hours of battery life, IP67 durability, quality craftsmanship, and characteristic design. For lovers of rock, classic brands, and compact form factors, this is essentially the default choice. A discount below the 2,000 CZK mark is unusual for Marshall, and given that Heureka records the first similar drop since December, it makes sense to act sooner rather than later – this brand typically quickly returns prices to their original level after sales.

When choosing a portable speaker, does sound or battery life play the main role for you?