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With the Echo, Amazon created the smart speaker market. However, since that device debuted, the business has focused on value as it has observed how some of the greatest Alexa speakers—which sound much better than the Echo—are produced by other companies. Amazon’s first attempt to take on the luxury smart speaker market is the $199 Echo Studio, which directly competes with the Sonos One. The Sonos One is still the greatest smart speaker for audiophiles.
Even though the Amazon Echo Studio is the best-sounding option for consumers who want all of Alexa’s functions. Amazon unveiled a firmware update for the Echo Studio that includes new spatial audio processing technology and a frequency range extension at its yearly fall event. According to the business, this will produce more immersive audio for watching movies and listening to music. Amazon stated that the update would be released in the upcoming months but did not give a specific release date.
Amazon Echo Studio review: Design
Particularly the original Echo and the Echo Plus, Amazon Echo speakers have a fairly uniform appearance that has grown on us. The Echo Studio maintains the same design aesthetic, is cylindrical in shape, and is covered in a fabric mesh. However, it is far larger than any Echo that has come before it, as if a conventional Echo had been blasted with a gamma ray and made to grow at least two times as huge, Hulk-style. It measures around seven inches broad by eight inches high.
Therefore, it is a large unit and has output to match. The Echo Studio’s five speakers—two side-mounted mid-range speakers, one upward-firing mid-range speaker, one front-facing tweeter, and a sealed 5.25-inch woofer—can produce 330 watts of peak power. The top of the device has volume controls, a mic mute button, an Alexa wake button, and the recognizable blue light ring. Additionally, the Echo Studio enclosure has two cut-aways that allow air to move freely, enabling it to produce bass at a loud volume. You can buy this speaker from its official website.
Amazon Echo Studio review: Sound quality
The Amazon Echo Studio makes bold claims about being not only the best-sounding Echo speaker ever but also a smart speaker that is actually suitable for audiophiles. The Echo Studio supports 3D audio via tracks encoded in Sony’s 360 Reality Audio and Dolby Atmos in addition to having improved internals fit for CD-quality and hi-res audio, both of which are currently offered by Amazon Music Unlimited, the most recent version of the company’s music streaming service. Can the Echo Studio compete with Sonos and Audio Pro and make Amazon’s smart speakers a viable option for people who demand high-quality audio?
Amazon Echo Studio review: Features
However, you must use Amazon’s $12.99 a month Music HD service, which supports high-res tracks and its brand-new 3D music format, in order to enjoy all the Studio’s audio features. (Amazon claims that starting in the next year, Tidal HiFi will also enable 3D music.)
New music mixing techniques like 3D music offer a more immersive listening experience than traditional stereo mixes. Similar to how Dolby Atmos gives movies a more spatial surround sound experience, one of the two 3D music codecs (the other is Sony’s 360 Reality Audio) is named Dolby Atmos Music. The Echo Studio is the first speaker to support either Dolby or Sony’s versions of this new format.
Amazon Echo Studio review: Price and release date
It’s remarkable, actually, how amazing the sound quality is once the Echo Studio has been tuned. The $200 suggested retail price for the Echo Studio seems excessive for a smart Bluetooth speaker with Alexa. The updated Echo Studio’s audio quality, however, is comparable to high-end speakers that cost twice as much.
The speaker can definitely provide room-filling audio with deep, rich bass that surpasses that of other high-end speakers, such the Sonos speaker, indicating that the calibration was effective. However, even if it is incredibly satisfying, intensity has other advantages.
Amazon Echo Studio review: Final words
By a significant measure, the Echo Studio is Amazon’s best-sounding smart speaker. The audio is excellent, engulfing the space, and the bass is visceral and heart-pounding. The fact that you can use this gadget as a speaker for both your HDTV and an Amazon Fire TV device is another feature I like. Nevertheless, because it simply performs a better job with music, the Sonos One is still the superior smart speaker overall.
While a subwoofer is required to provide the same low-end response as the Echo Studio, the Sonos One is more sharper and enhances the clarity of artists’ vocals. Additionally, you may use Alexa or Google Assistant with the Sonos One. The high-end Alexa smart speaker you’ve been waiting for is the Echo Studio, but you might not want it.