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  1. Table of Contents
  2. Top
  3. Main Differences
  4. Design
    1. Pictures
    2. Style
    3. Portability
    4. Build Quality
    5. Controls
    6. In The Box
  5. Sound
    1. Frequency Response Accuracy
    2. Raw Frequency Response
    3. Soundstage
    4. Dynamics
  6. Active Features
    1. Battery
    2. Voice Assistant
    3. App
  7. Connectivity
    1. Wired
    2. Bluetooth
    3. Wi-Fi
  8. Comments

Bose SoundLink Flex vs Marshall Willen

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Bose SoundLink Flex
Marshall Willen

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Oct 31, 2024 02:49 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Sep 04, 2024 07:31 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Bose SoundLink Flex Picture
Marshall Willen Picture

Variants

  • SoundLink Flex (Black)
  • SoundLink Flex (Carmine Red)
  • SoundLink Flex (Chilled Lilac)
  • SoundLink Flex (Cypress Green)
  • SoundLink Flex (Stone Blue)
  • SoundLink Flex (White Smoke)
  • Willen (Black/Brass)
  • Willen (Cream)

Our Verdict

Bose SoundLink Flex

Marshall Willen

Depending on your listening habits, you may prefer either the Bose SoundLink Flex or the Marshall Willen as these portable Bluetooth speakers have different strengths. The Bose supports voice assistants from your smartphone, unlike the Marshall, and it reproduces a deeper bass which fans of EDM may appreciate. The Marshall is more customizable, with EQ presets to help you control its sound, though it can't get a similar bass response to the Bose.

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Black
SoundLink Flex
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Black/Brass
Willen
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Carmine Red
SoundLink Flex
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Chilled Lilac
SoundLink Flex
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Cypress Green
SoundLink Flex
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Stone Blue
SoundLink Flex
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White Smoke
SoundLink Flex
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Main Differences for
Music

Threshold 

0.10

Music 

6.3
5.9

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

6.9
5.8

EQ 
 

No
Presets

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Style Photo  

Bose SoundLink Flex Style Photo
Marshall Willen Style Photo

RGB Lights  

No
No
Show text

Portability 
 

9.2
9.4

Dimensions Photo  

Bose SoundLink Flex Dimensions Photo
Marshall Willen Dimensions Photo

Volume 
 

57 in³ (942 cm³)
24 in³ (400 cm³)

Weight 
 

1.3 lbs (0.6 kg)
0.7 lbs (0.3 kg)

Power Source 
 

Battery & USB
Battery & USB

One-Hand Carry 
 

Yes
Yes
Show text

Build Quality 
 

8.7
7.9

Build Quality Photo  

Bose SoundLink Flex Build Quality Photo
Marshall Willen Build Quality Photo

Material Quality 
 

Good
Good

Water Resistance 
 

Submersible (IPx7)
Submersible (IPx7)

Dust Resistance 
 

Dust-Proof (IP6x)
Dust-Proof (IP6x)

Impact Resistance 
 

Yes (IK rating unspecified)
No

Floats In Water 
 

Yes
Unspecified
Show text

Controls 
 

8.4
8.0

Controls Photo  

Bose SoundLink Flex Controls Photo
Marshall Willen Controls Photo

Controls Photo 2  

Bose SoundLink Flex Controls Photo 2
Marshall Willen Controls Photo 2

Ease Of Use 
 

Okay
Great

Feedback 
 

Decent
Great

Music Play/Pause 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Call Answer/End 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Volume Up/Down 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Track Next/Previous 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Microphone On/Off 
 

Yes (Physical)
No

Additional Controls 
 

Yes
Yes
Show text

In The Box 
 

In The Box Photo  

Bose SoundLink Flex In The Box Photo
Marshall Willen In The Box Photo
Show text
Sound

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

6.9
5.8

Frequency Response Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Slope 
 

0.22
1.30

Std. Err. 
 

2.85 dB
2.76 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

60.8 Hz
113.1 Hz

High-Frequency Extension 
 

15.6 kHz
18.5 kHz
Show text

Raw Frequency Response 
 

Raw Frequency Response Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Binaural Recording @ 1m 
 

Binaural Recording @ 2m 
 

Soundstage 
 

5.5
5.4

Directivity Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Directivity Index 
 

4.59 dB
4.86 dB

Stereo 
 

No (mono)
No (mono)
Show text

Dynamics 
 

6.4
6.8

Dynamic Range Compression  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

SPL @ Max Volume 
 

87.5 dB SPL
87.9 dB SPL

DRC @ Max Volume 
 

3.02 dB
2.34 dB
Show text
Active Features

Battery 
 

6.7
9.0

Battery Life 
 

7.2 hrs
14.5 hrs

Charge Time 
 

2.7 hrs
2.6 hrs

Power Saving 
 

Yes
Yes

Charging Port 
 

USB-C
USB-C

Battery Powered 
 

Yes
Yes
Show text

Voice Assistant 
 

5.7
0.0

Alexa 
 

No
No

Google Assistant 
 

Yes (Requires Smartphone)
No

Speakerphone 
 

Yes
Yes

Siri 
 

Yes (Requires Smartphone)
No

Voice Assistant 
 

Yes
No

Voice Activation 
 

No
No

Microphone Mute 
 

No
No

Far-Field Performance 
 

Excellent
No Assistant

Ambient Noise Performance 
 

Excellent
No Assistant
Show text

App 
 

6.6
6.0

App Picture  

Bose SoundLink Flex App Picture
Marshall Willen App Picture

App Name 
 

Bose Connect
Marshall Bluetooth

iOS 
 

Yes
Yes

Android 
 

Yes
Yes

EQ 
 

No
Presets

Stereo Pair Mode 
 

Yes
No

Party Mode 
 

Yes
Yes

Multi-Room 
 

No
No
Show text
Connectivity

Wired 
 

Aux Input 
 

No
No

USB Audio 
 

No
No

Other Ports 
 

No
No
Show text

Bluetooth 
 

8.0
9.6

Bluetooth 
 

Yes
Yes

Bluetooth Version 
 

4.2
5.1

Bluetooth iOS Latency 
 

236 ms
33 ms

Bluetooth Android Latency 
 

109 ms
32 ms

Bluetooth Range 
 

255.9 ft (78.0 m)
255.9 ft (78.0 m)

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

2 Devices
2 Devices
Show text

Wi-Fi 
 

0.0
0.0

Wi-Fi Version 
 

No Wi-Fi
No Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi Frequency Band 
 

No Wi-Fi
No Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi 
 

No
No

Apple AirPlay 
 

No
No

AirPlay Latency 
 

N/A
N/A

Google Chromecast 
 

No
No

Chromecast Latency 
 

N/A
N/A

Check Price

Black
SoundLink Flex
Searching
Finding store
Black/Brass
Willen
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Carmine Red
SoundLink Flex
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Chilled Lilac
SoundLink Flex
Searching
Finding store
 
Cypress Green
SoundLink Flex
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Stone Blue
SoundLink Flex
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White Smoke
SoundLink Flex
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Bose SoundLink Flex

Marshall Willen

Comments

  1. Comparison

Bose SoundLink Flex vs Marshall Willen: Main Discussion

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