I get the temptation. The Marshall Middleton looks like someone shrunk a 70s guitar amp down to pocket size. It's a beautiful object. But a beautiful object and a good speaker aren't always the same thing – just ask anyone who's bought an Italian car based on looks. Henri's Alfa Romeo is a living testament to this.
What do you get for your money?
The Marshall Middleton costs around €250–300. The Nordell MK3 costs a fraction of that. This is the part where honesty hurts – but not us, Marshall.
Sound quality: The Middleton sounds good. It's a big, heavy speaker (around 960 g), and it packs power. The Nordell MK3 pushes 2 x 20W with a frequency response starting at 80 Hz. In practice, both play loud enough at the beach that your neighbours will hate you. Marshall's bass response goes a bit lower, which is physics – bigger enclosure, bigger bass. Nordell's 3D sound mode, on the other hand, adds a surprising amount of spaciousness, as long as you don't try to use it in a stereo pair (doesn't work, it's a DSP effect).
Water resistance: This is where it's decided for a lot of people. The Nordell MK3 is rated IPX7. That means you can submerge it in a metre of water for half an hour. Drop it in the pool, rinse it in the shower, use it in the rain. The Marshall Middleton is IP67 – so it also survives submersion, but the dust resistance rating is higher. On paper, Marshall is slightly ahead here. In practice, both will survive a summer of boozy shenanigans alive.
Battery: Marshall promises around 13 hours. Nordell promises 8–10 hours. Marshall wins this round. If you need a speaker that lasts an entire festival day without charging, that's the right pick.
Stereo pairing: The Nordell MK3 supports two-speaker stereo pairing. Buy two, pair them up, and you get real stereo. Two Nordells still cost less than one Marshall Middleton. Jasse's tuning shines through in both.
Why Nordell?
Price. It's simply that. You get a functional, waterproof, great-sounding speaker for the price that might get you a charger and disappointment from Marshall.
Repairability is another thing. If a Nordell breaks, we fix it in Kajaani. If a Marshall breaks, you chuck it in the bin and buy a new one – or try to navigate some multinational corporation's support site for three hours. Do you know who Marshall's head of customer service is? You don't. Our repair guy is Jasse, whose ears are insured.
And every purchase funds our Death Star. Marshall's money funds someone's PR department PowerPoint presentation.
Who should pick Marshall?
If the speaker mainly lives on your living room shelf and it's important to you that it looks good there – Marshall is beautiful. Genuinely. That retro look works as a design element in a way that Nordell doesn't even attempt. If longer battery life is the deciding factor, Marshall's 13 hours beats Nordell's 8–10 hours.
If you're willing to pay for the brand and the design, there's nothing wrong with that. People buy Alfa Romeos too, even though they break down constantly.
Summary
- Marshall Middleton: Looks amazing, sounds good, longer battery, expensive. Repairability non-existent.
- Nordell MK3: Costs a fraction of the price, water resistant, stereo pairing, repairable. Won't win any beauty contests.
If the speaker is heading to the beach, the cottage, or the patio – Nordell. If it's going on a shelf to look pretty – Marshall. If you buy two Nordells as a stereo pair, you'll get better sound than from one Marshall, and still have money left over for beer.
The choice is yours. We want your money, but we won't lie to get it. That's what sets us apart from about a hundred other speaker brands.
