Marshall Reveals Next-Generation Acton And Stanmore Wireless Speakers

Marshall has updated its iconic Acton and Stanmore wireless speakers, adding Auracast broadcast audio technology and an improved soundstage. The upgrade brings Bluetooth LE Audio's most anticipated feature to two of the best-selling home speakers, allowing users to stream to unlimited devices from a single source.

The news arrives as Auracast — short for Audio Broadcasting with Bluetooth — finally enters mainstream consumer audio. Marshall, the brand built on guitar amplifier heritage, is betting that the ability to share music, podcasts, or movie audio with any Auracast-compatible speaker or earbud will become a must-have. The Acton and Stanmore are the first Marshall speakers to support the technology.

Marshall's decision to update its mid-range home speakers rather than launch a new category underscores a strategic shift: instead of chasing pure novelty, the company is retrofitting its proven hardware with next-generation connectivity. The Acton (the smaller of the pair) and the Stanmore (a larger bookshelf model) already account for a significant share of Marshall's consumer electronics revenue. By adding Auracast, Marshall aims to future-proof these models without redesigning the classic look.

**What Auracast brings.**
Auracast lets a phone, tablet, or laptop act as a transmitter, sending audio to an unlimited number of nearby receivers. Think of it as Bluetooth's answer to multi-room audio without a Wi-Fi network or proprietary app. In practice, that means a single playlist can fill every room in a house — or a whole café — if each space has an Auracast-enabled speaker. The technology also supports assistive listening in public venues, though that use case is still emerging.

Marshall claims the new Acton and Stanmore also deliver a wider stereo soundstage. The physical driver configuration remains the same — a two-way speaker design with a dedicated tweeter and woofer — but internal digital signal processing has been re-tuned. Early listeners report noticeably better instrument separation and a broader sweet spot versus the previous generation.

The update comes with a modest price increase: the Acton now starts at $279 (up from $249) and the Stanmore at $349 (up from $319). Both are available from Marshall.com and select retailers starting July 14, 2026.

**Why this matters.**
Auracast's arrival marks the first major Bluetooth audio shift since Bluetooth 5.0. The standard was ratified in 2022, but hardware support from both phones and speakers has been sparse until this year. Apple added Auracast to the iPhone 17 Pro series; Samsung's Galaxy S26 lineup includes it. Now, with Marshall — a brand with cult status in music circles — adopting Auracast, the technology gains credibility beyond early adopters.

More broadly, Marshall's update signals the end of proprietary multi-room solutions. Sonos, Denon, and others rely on Wi-Fi for whole-home audio, which can be finicky to set up. Auracast is essentially plug-and-play: any Auracast device can broadcast to any other, regardless of manufacturer. The democratic potential is enormous.

**What's next.**
Expect other major speaker brands to follow Marshall's lead. Anker (Soundcore), JBL, and Sony all have Auracast-compatible products in the pipeline. Auracast's adoption in headphones and hearing aids will also accelerate as the standard gains critical mass. Marshall itself is likely to bring the technology to its Emberton and Middleton portable speakers within the next 12 months.

For now, the updated Acton and Stanmore represent a cautious but meaningful step. Marshall is not reinventing its lineup — it is enhancing it. And in a market cluttered with smart speakers and voice assistants, sometimes a better-sounding, more connected dumb speaker is exactly what listeners want.