Bose Smart Home /SoundTouch
Bose has two parallel multiroom families — Smart Home and SoundTouch.
Bose SoundTouch 10 Bose SoundTouch 20 Bose SoundTouch 30
There might be a tendency to think of Bose as a mass-market brand, simply because of its size and presence. But that doesn’t mean its products aren’t hi-fi — indeed economies of scale could make it able to offer better value than products from smaller companies. Also, some clever decisions made by Dr Amar Bose before his passing in 2013 have ensured that the company has full control of its own future — the money men can’t dictate what they do in terms of research and product design. The proof is in the listening. Bose continues to excel in personal audio, notably areas such as noisecancelling headphones and Bluetooth speakers.
And when streaming became a thing, Bose developed its SoundTouch platform, which combines online music services (notably Spotify, Deezer, Amazon Music and TuneIn) with network streaming, Bluetooth and multiroom operation. And a bonus lurking within Bose SoundTouch systems is that they are Apple AirPlay 2 compatible, so users of iPhones and iPads, Apple computers and even (with a cheap workaround app) Android devices can throw any music whatsoever to their Bose systems. AirPlay 2 also offers Apple users an alternative path to multiroom audio with all SoundTouch players — and anything else with AirPlay — playing along in unison. All units also have Bluetooth onboard.
Bose has since introduced a second speaker series — the ‘Smart Home family’ (pictured below) — which features built-in voice control (both Alexa and Google) in a range featuring two soundbars, three standalone speakers, plus rear and subwoofer add-ons for the soundbars.
The SoundTouch family, meanwhile, includes the three standalone wireless speakers named, in ascending order of size, the 10, 20 and 30. There is also a version of Bose’s longstanding Wave Music System which
upgrades its usual CD and radio with all the streaming abilities of SoundTouch. And there is the SoundTouch Wireless Link adapter, which can plug into any existing hi-fi or audio system and thereby update it with all the SoundTouch streaming abilities, plus an input for an additional source.
Bose’s ‘Lifestyle’ 600 and 650 five-speaker surround systems systems also include SoundTouch, so they can join in the streaming party. Finally there’s something of a secret weapon in the SA-5, a 100W hideaway amplifier to which you can connect three sources and up to four loudspeakers of your choice, extending SoundTouch to a rumpus room or outdoor areas.
The Smart Home family can play different music on each unit, or the same music to all of them, and the SoundTouch series can do the same. The two systems don’t however, talk to each other— so if you’re building a home of such units, stick to one or the other.
Another merit of Bose’s wide appeal is that its systems are among the easiest of all wireless multiroom platforms to use on a day-to-day basis. You can control them from smartphone or tablet or by voice (SoundTouch is Alexa-friendly with an external device , while the Home devices have their own microphones), but our favourite way to get them singing is to use their presets. Indeed these are what gave SoundTouch its name — the use of the six preset buttons common to every SoundTouch device in the home, as well as appearing in each version of its app and programs, since you can control it also from a PC or Mac using free software. Touch a preset button, and you have music. And we give bonus points for every SoundTouch unit coming with a proper remote control. So once you’ve allocated your favourite radio stations or streaming services or playlists to these preset buttons, no controls are required at all. Every time we review a SoundTouch product we love this instant access to music.
We remain fans of SoundTouch, and of the little SoundTouch 10 in particular as the perfect kitchen/bedroom radio. This is a family of products that just works, and remains sonically competitive at their pricing.