Sound quality: Marshall's Acton II had Good overall sound quality - this model reproduces music and dialog reasonably well despite the obvious shortcomings in its sound. Bass has good impact, and goes fairly deep, but is slightly prominent and somewhat boomy. Midrange is fairly even, but is somewhat grainy, hazy and a touch etched. Treble is fairly extended, but is slightly prominent and smeared, and a touch sizzly. Does a so-so job of recovering room ambience but sounds somewhat congested. Provides a decent volume level in medium sized room. No significant difference between Bluetooth and Aux input sound quality. When combined with a second unit to form a stereo pair over Bluetooth the overall sound is very similar to a single unit, but the room ambience recovery improves to decent, the sound stage can be made wider depending on placement, and overall score improved slightly to the top of the Good range.
Ease of use: We found the Marshall Acton II ease of use to be very good overall. Bluetooth pairing requires the press of an unlabeled multifunction source button; then discover with your device. There is an indication when unit is in pairing mode and when it has paired. Volume control: It's a volume knob with index and persistent numerical indicator. Source Selection: Source button is a labeled multifunction button that is also a Bluetooth pairing button. Button is prominent and clearly indicates with words or symbols which source has been selected.
