Yamaha MusicCast 20 wireless speaker WX-021 – Alexa compatible Bluetooth Speaker with MusicCast multi-room Technology and built in Streaming Services – Black

Anyone who has the Musiccast Bar 40, will not be disapointed by investing in a pair of these. Expensive, but the difference they make to viewing anything that has 5.1 soundtrack a joy. A bit fiddly to set up, which cannot be done without installing the Musiccast app. Of course they can be used as stand-alone music streaming devices, but there are many less expensive alternatives. But, if you want 5.1, and have a Musiccast system, there is no suitable alternative. Yamaha do have you by the short n curlies, as no other manufacturers products will work. Personally, I love them.

As I have a complete (9 various) MusicCast setup at home I only hope, that Jamaha doesn’t discontinue support of it. I wouldn’t have invested so much in MusicCast and specially in the speakers if they weren’t that good. Fantastic quality, great sound, easy setup. All in all above average (in my opinion).Before someone comments in a negative way: I know the downsides of switching power supplies, wireless connections. Of course I have a hires setup as well with DACs and so on, but for streaming I use MusicCast in all of my rooms, works well for me. Alternatives are certainly available.

Oh dear, after reading so many decent reviews on this product I took the plunge and I have to say I’m left scratching my head and wondering what the hell is the point?The main issue with this product is the software... and that’s what makes these speakers so expensive. Without the software these are just an ok pair of speakers that require a plug socket and a rather unsightly (and short) cable, rather than thin speaker cables. But any advantages having a speaker connected to the internet are taken away by the fact the software that drives the speakers rarely works.On its own this speaker is absolutely awful. I even thought the speaker was faulty it’s that bad. Pair it up with another and yes, the sound is lovely, but so are much lower priced speakers... The IKEA Sonos speaker at £89 is way, way better... and IKEA don’t even make speakers... go figure.I’d seriously stay away from this product. Or at least read online reviews as you’ll see the problems a lot of people have with these speakers, the software is not easy and the system in general. I even had a compatible sound bar, which I gave away due to poor connection issues with my LG TV (another common issue) and the sound was so bad I just couldn’t bear it.Yamaha can’t possibly be proud of producing such a poor product.

I ordered two of these for stereo pairing, fantastic sound, easy to setup (do them one by one, for some reason I tried to set them both up at the same time which was stupid in hindsight haha).I wouldn't buy this as a single speaker, as a single I found the sound very mono and lacking in definition, once I paired it with another it completely changes everything.If you have a musiccast system, these work perfectly as a second zone and link easily through the software. I recommend using the musiccast app as you can tweak the sound profile of the speakers, as the default whilst it sounds ok once tweaked will be a lot better.Haven't had any connection issues like some of the other reviews.All in all, a great speaker for the price and does a fantastic job filling my kitchen with great sound.

Good speaker; even better in a pairHaving bought a Yamaha RN602 as my main hi-fi receiver earlier in the year, I had a sense of what the Yamaha MusicCast system was capable of. So when I was looking to add a wireless speaker system for my home office in our converted loft, I investigated the MusicCast 20.Before installing the MusicCast 20 in the home office, I first tried it in the kitchen, so I could test the synching with the RN602 in the lounge. I didn’t do a huge amount of testing, but what I did do was very impressive. The RN602 and MusicCast 20 stayed in sync.Having moved the MusicCast 20 to the home office, I was pleased with the sound, so a couple of days later opted to buy a second MusicCast 20 so that I could pair them in stereo. This has resulted in a very impressive sound.The pair of MusicCast 20 speakers is not as good as the RN602 with my Mordaunt Short 902 speakers (but then they are less expensive), but they are very capable of providing a clear and detailed sound. The default bass isn’t very deep, so I tweaked this in the MusicCast app. I think the sound quality is better when the volume is turned up as this gives the speakers room to shine.The MusicCast app on the iPhone is very capable. Although not as polished or full featured as Sonos, offset by the device’s ability to play hi-res audio. In terms of services available, it’s not as complete as Sonos either, and Yamaha seem to be taking their time to add Amazon Music and Apple Music. Hopefully that will come soon, but in the meantime, it’s possible to stream over AirPlay.Aesthetically, the MusicCast 20 is nice and unobtrusive. One minor complaint is that the touch buttons on the top of the speaker will leave fingerprint marks, no matter how clean you think your hands are. There are three buttons on the top that can be programmed for specific purposes (e.g., Net Radio stations) for quick access, although I tend to use the app for most interactions with it.In summary, very happy with the MusicCast 20, and now planning on purchasing a third unit to run as a single speaker in the kitchen.