TechAudioSpeakers5 weatherproof speakers for your garden: bring the music outsideBring your tunes to the yard this summer with an outdoor sound systemWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
TechAudioSpeakers5 weatherproof speakers for your garden: bring the music outsideBring your tunes to the yard this summer with an outdoor sound systemWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Bring your tunes to the yard this summer with an outdoor sound system
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Sonos)
(Image credit: Sonos)
We live in a golden era for home entertainment, as thebest smart speakersof all shapes and sizes bring streaming tunes and voice assistants to every room in the home.
But what about the garden? Sure, you can take aBluetooth speakeroutside, hook up a smartphone and carry it around when you move from the patio to the lawn, or back into the kitchen when the rain inevitably starts to fall. But if your pockets are deep enough, there are better options – weatherproof speakers that are permanently installed to bring music to the garden all year round.
Make no mistake, carrying a Bluetooth speaker into the garden is a far easier and cheaper way to blast your playlists at the petunias, but here, we’re looking at hardwired, permanent speaker installations – and in most cases you’ll need to connect them to an amplifier too, which only adds to the budgets.
1. Sonos Outdoor Set
(Image credit: Sonos)
(Image credit: Sonos)
I’ve always been a big fan ofSonos, so the idea of extending my system into the garden is one I can absolutely get onboard with. Prices are high, even for Sonos, with a pair of the company’s weatherproof speakers costing £899. Available in black or white and with brackets for wall mounting included, they are built to survive life outside, and are protected against humidity, water, salt spray, heat, UV light and freezing temperatures.
That way, you can have smartphone app-controlled music throughout the home and garden. Not cheap, but surely the ultimate way to extend your smart home music system into the outdoors.
Sonos says its own amp can power up to six of its own outdoor speakers. If you want to build a garden system with more than three pairs, then you’ll need extra amps.
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2. Bowers & Wilkins AM-1
(Image credit: Bowers & Wilkins)
(Image credit: Bowers & Wilkins)
Sticking with the high-end theme for now, a Sonos alternative that also caught my eye is theBowers & Wilkins AM-1. Also available in black or white, with wall-mounting brackets included and a not insignificant price of £680 per pair, the AM-1 is an entirely sealed speaker built to survive a lifetime in the garden.
Weighing in at 4kg each, these are some seriously chunky speakers. These house Bowers & Wilkins’ 25mm Nautilus aluminium dome tweeter and 130mm glass fibre cone for bass and midrange.
These are passive speakers, so require a physical connection to an amplifier using speaker wire. Not a cheap way to go, but if you have the budget I think these outdoor loudspeakers look fantastic (especially in the white and silver colour way) and should serve you well for many years.
3. JBL Stage XD-5
(Image credit: JBL)
(Image credit: JBL)
JBL sells loads of Bluetooth speakers that work great in the garden, but since this article is about permanent outdoor audio I’m going to suggest the company’sStage XD-5. At just under £500, this pair of outdoor speakers is a fair bit more affordable than the previous two options, while still being waterproof with an IP67 water and dust resistance rating, aluminium dome tweeters and adjustable wall-mount brackets included.
Also available in black or white, the JBL speaker pair have rotating logos so they can be mounted upright or on their side without upsetting their aesthetics, and an IP67 rating means they’re safe to live out in the elements. Again, these require an amp to function.
If you want to make these speakers smarter – and the same goes for the other pairs mentioned in this article – you’ll need to hook up an amp that is itself connected to the internet. That could be via the amp’s own Wi-Fi or Ethernet connection, or via a smart speaker like anAmazon Echo Dotconnected to the amp with Bluetooth or an auxiliary cable. Do that, and the outdoor speakers will play whatever audio comes from the Echo Dot.
4. Cambridge Audio ES20
(Image credit: Cambridge Audio)
(Image credit: Cambridge Audio)
We’re getting a bit more affordable now, you’ll be pleased to see. This pair ofoutdoor speakers from Cambridge Audiois £299, making them a relative bargain compared to many others. They won’t have the acoustics abilities of pricier options, naturally, but should still be plenty powerful enough for a smaller outdoor space – and your neighbours will doubtless be thankful, too.
These speakers house a 25mm aluminium dome tweeter and a 135mm driver to handle the mids and bass of whatever audio you throw at them. They have metal brackets for wall mounting and the familiar set of positive and negative terminals on the rear for hooking up an amplifier.
5. Q Acoustics Qi45EW
(Image credit: Q Acoustics)
(Image credit: Q Acoustics)
For that you get a speaker that is safe to install outdoors and use in any weather. As always, there’s a versatile bracket included for wall mounting, and all you need to do is connect an amplifier with speaker wire and it’s time to start the decking disco.
How to make wired outdoor speakers smart
If you want to smarten up a wired outdoor sound system you’ll need to install an internet-connected amplifier (indoors, remember) and ensure it can be controlled from outside – via a phone app, for example. You might need to invest in aWi-Fi extenderor two to ensure the amp can be reached from the garden.
Just don’t expect Alexa to bring out another plate of sausages. The voice assistant is limited to serving up sizzling summer playlists, at least for now.
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