Sony has made good on its promise to expand the ‘bass-junkie’ ULT range that got us all riled up back in April. It showed off the new speakers in the flesh at a local event, including the ULT Field 3, ULT Field 5, and the beast that is the ULT Tower 9AC. And to sweeten the pot, it threw in the ULT Mic1 for good measure.
Jobin Joejoe, Sony Middle East and Africa managing director, said, “It is such a pleasure to introduce new additions to the ULT Power Sound range in the South Africa market. It is hard to imagine a market better suited for these products and a better time for it. We’re very confident that this launch will continue to cement Sony as a leader in the space.”
Sony’s playing the Field
Sony’s new ULT Field 3 is easily the one you’ll want to carry down to the beach, thanks to its fairly lightweight body and shoulder strap. Knocking the company’s SRS-XE300 off the shelves, the Field 3 gets by with an 86 x 46mm woofer and a 20mm tweeter, and won’t shout at you if you stand it upright. Still, unless you’re strapped for space on an overcrowded table, horizontal proved to be the more capable of the two options.
Up top sits Sony’s bass-boosting ‘ULT’ button, alongside the usual line-up of controls. ‘Round the back you’ll find a USB-C port to handle the charging, which Sony reckons can net two hours’ worth of playback from a quick ten-minute charge, though a full charge ups that to 24 hours. The Field 3 also features an IP67 rating.
Up a step comes the ULT Field 5, placed between the Field 3 and Field 7 in terms of power and budget. It’s a pretty weighty affair, and while still technically portable (that shoulder strap is a big help), it’s probably better off guarding the house than coming along for the trip. Not that the Field 5’s supposed 25-hour battery won’t fit in.
There are two ‘ULT modes’ to mess around with here, bolstering the Field 5’s two 46mm tweeters and 79 x 107mm woofer inside. Like Field 3, it houses a USB-C charge port that’ll fill up the 25-hour battery life, but throws an aux input jack and colourful lighting — all of which is lodged under an IP67-worthy flap in the rear.
Don’t get it twisted. This isn’t the battery-powered ULT Tower 9 you might’ve hoped for. This is the ULT Tower 9AC, which requires AC power wherever you are, severely hurting Sony’s description of this colossal noise machine. Yeah, it’s got wheels, but you won’t be blasting tunes as you drag this wherever you’re headed unless you also have a generator in tow. Look past that, and the Tower 9AC might just win you over anyway, despite the wallet-heavy R18,000 price tag.
Under the hood lives a single large 320 x 320mm woofer, two 120mm mid-range units, and four tweeters (two 50mm firing forward, while two 40mm face the rear). You’re getting the ‘ULT modes’, expanded EQ, and Sony’s ‘Sound Field Optimisation’ and a whole bunch of party tricks that will help round off your Jesse Pinkman cosplay.
If you’re one of the few people the party doesn’t groan at when the mic hits your hands, Sony’s ULT Mic1 might be worth your time. It’ll hook up to the rest of the ULT range with the help of a USB receiver and boasts a 20-hour battery life. Better yet, it’ll withstand a mic-drop power move, with the built-in silicone damper inside.
Sony ULT range local pricing:
Fortunately, those prices are a little lower than Sony initially expected back in April. A brief listen in a crowded room is all well and good, but we’ll let you know whether they’re worth the price once Stuff has got its hands on ’em for review. If you’d rather not wait, Sony and SMD’s newly launched sonyworld.co.za website can help you out. There might even be a couple of Black Friday deals on. Just saying.
