Short answer: the Marshall Stanmore III. It ranks #6 of 29 powered desktop speakers by sound quality, rated 3.8/5, at $388.99; the Denon Home 250 ranks #13, rated 3.7/5, and costs $549, so there is not much of a tradeoff to weigh.
Why pick the Denon Home 250: A Wi-Fi smart speaker with stereo sound from one cabinet, built in Alexa, AirPlay 2 and HEOS multiroom. It streams over Wi-Fi as well as Bluetooth, which the Marshall Stanmore III cannot. It links with other speakers (HEOS multi-room, stereo pair with a second Home 250), which the Marshall Stanmore III cannot. The tradeoff: Trusted Reviews’ own complaints are a slightly disjointed hand-over between the bass and midrange, and a safety-first treble response that avoids sounding harsh at the cost of outright detail.
The case for the Marshall Stanmore III: A mid size home speaker with classic Marshall amp styling, Bluetooth, and RCA and aux inputs for a turntable or other source. It has an adjustable EQ, which the Denon Home 250 lacks.
Buy the Marshall Stanmore III. It is rated higher for sound quality than the Denon Home 250 and costs less, so only choose the other one for a particular feature it does better.
Still deciding? The full Powered Home rankings cover every ranked option.
Prices on this page were last checked November 7, 2026 at 7:34 PM UTC. Product prices and availability are accurate as of that date/time and are subject to change; the price and availability shown on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
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Specifications Side By Side
| Denon Home 250 | Marshall Stanmore III | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $549.00 each | $388.99 each |
| Ranked | #13 of 29 in Medium Size Powered Desktop Speakers | #6 of 29 in Medium Size Powered Desktop Speakers |
| Aux Input | Yes | Yes |
| Battery Life | No Battery | No Battery |
| IP Rating | None | None |
| Party Mode | Yes (HEOS multi-room, stereo pair with a second Home 250) | No |
| Power Input | External AC adapter | AC Power cord |
| Stereo | Yes | Partially (1 woofer) |
| Weight | 8.2 lbs (3.7 kg) | 9.7 lbs (4.4 kg) |
| Wi-Fi | Yes (2.4/5GHz) | No |
| App | Yes (HEOS) | Yes |
| Bluetooth Codecs | SBC | SBC |
| Built-in Microphone | Yes | - |
| EQ | No | Yes (Bass/Treble) |
| Power Bank | No | No |
| TWS | No | No |
| Amplifier Power | 80W (Class D, combined) | 80W (Woofer: 50W, Tweeters: 2x15W) |
| Drivers | 2x 19mm tweeters, 2x 102mm mid-bass drivers, 133mm passive radiator | 5” (midrange/woofer), 1x 5” midrange, 2x 0.75” Dome tweeters |
| Inputs | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet, USB, 3.5mm aux | Bluetooth, RCA, Aux |
| XLR Input | No | No |
| RCA Input | No | Yes |
| TRS Input | No | No |
| Optical Input | No | No |
| Coaxial Input | No | No |
| USB Input | Yes | No |
| HDMI Input | No | No |
| AES Input | No | No |
| Bluetooth | Yes | Yes |
| Bluetooth Version | 5.4 | 5.2 |
| Dimensions | 11.8” x 8.7” x 4.7” (300 x 220 x 120 mm) | 13.8” x 8” x 7.4” (350 x 203 x 188 mm) |
| Voice Assistants | Amazon Alexa | - |
| Streaming Services | HEOS app streaming (Spotify, Amazon Music, Tidal, Deezer, SoundCloud, TuneIn), AirPlay 2 | - |
| Frequency Response | - | 45Hz - 20kHz (Manufacturer specified) |
| Woofer Cabinet | - | ported |
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