- Marshall Kilburn III is launched globally on May 27, 2025
- It is significantly more expensive than its predecessor of $ 379 / £ 299 / AU $ 599
- It offers 50+ hours of battery life, IP54 Waterproofing and Real Sterophonic Sound
Marshall has revealed the latest model in its line with medium-sized Bluetooth speakers, Marshall Kilburn III, which launched globally on May 27, 2025.
To compete with the best Bluetooth speakers around, Marshall Kilburn III has made some drastic improvements over its predecessor. The new model boasts more than 50 hours of playing time, IP54 dust and waterproofing as well as a more luxurious design.
But with these improvements comes an inflated price. Marshall Kilburn III has a list price of $ 379 / £ 299 / AU $ 599, which is $ 80 / £ 50 / AU $ 100 More than Kilburn II costs at the launch. That said, there are a lot of upgrades and additions to explore on Marshall’s latest speeches, which I discovered when I got to try it at Marshalls HQ in Stockholm, Sweden.
Here are my first thoughts about the flashy new Kilburn III.
A taste of kilburn iii
So I put my cards on the table – I didn’t get tons of time to listen to Kilburn III. The main reason for my trip to Stockholm was to see Marshall’s very first attempt at a sound bar with Marshall Heston 120. But I got a few minutes of listening across a selection of numbers from different genres, in a room that essentially mimicked a living room.
To cut to the hunt, Kilburn III made a good first impression on me. Marshall’s sound team has put a lot of emphasis on the speaker’s improved “real” 360-degree stereophonic sound designed to cause clear, powerful sound wherever you stand. And it seemed to be effective to me as I pace the room, with comfortable, distortion -free sound that always came through.
In addition, Kilburn III is designed to bowl with a rounded, “harmonious” audio signature. I was struck by the impressive balance across the frequencies, even at higher volumes. And this is not surprising considering the speaker’s dynamic volume tech that automatically adjusts bass, mids and treble depending on the volume where you play tracks.
In fact, Kilburn III has fully re-developed acoustics to take steps up from its predecessor, which impressed us in general, even though we felt there was room for improvements in low-end. But sound is not the only thing that has been refined; The speaker’s building and appearance are also taken a notch.
A lot of customers, Marshall told me, preferred the overall aesthetics of the original Kilburn launched 10 years ago. As a result, the company chose to base the latest Kilburn model on its original and I really liked the look of it.
After having previously lived in Kilburn himself, I must say that this Bluetooth speaker is far more beautiful than the London district, after which it is named. It has a retro-looking AMP-inspired look with a pin to turn on or off the power, tactile buttons for volume and playback control and a “M” button to access presets. Kilburn III is available in black & brass or cream where both color roads play for the speaker’s premium feeling.
Tuning of the details
After driving through some of the technical specifications of Kilburn III, I really expect this to be a significant step up over its predecessor.
It has a wider frequency range that now goes far down to 45Hz, up to the typical 20 kHz. It should mean that it is even more capable of hitting the deep dark bass notes than Kilburn II. New, more powerful drivers should also mean you get plenty of power out of this speaker, but you will have to wait for my full review to see if this is really the case.
Something we can say for sure, however, is that Marshall Kilburn III is far more suitable for bathroom use or takes outside on a rainy day. This is because it now comes with an IP54 dust and waterproof assessment- a significant step up from Kilburn II’s IPX2 protection.
Marshall told me that this model is meant to be more an “interior declaration” due to models such as IP67-classified Marshall Emberton III and Marshall Middleton occupying the robust space. But still, having an improved durability is a particularly nice to have.
The biggest change of Kilburn III is perhaps its battery life. Kilburn II offered 20+ hours of playing time, which is solid, but nothing particularly prominent. However, Kilburn III really takes things to the next level and delivers more than 50 hours of games – really phenomenal things. As a reference, it is the longest battery life for any Marshall speaker to date – not bad, right?
I could continue: You are able to adjust EQ via the renewed Marshall app; Use the speaker to charge external devices; Access Auracast connection; And even loosen his classic carrying strap. But that’s all for now. I’ll be back soon to give my full, unfiltered thoughts about Kilburn III. That is, after spending some time testing it here at Future Labs.
However, if you are already sold, you can get hold of Marshall Kilburn III now via Marshall’s own site. It will also be available to buy via selected dealers from June 10th.
