Sony ULT speakers & headphones - The Ultimate Bass Experience!
Sony has just launched a brand new line of Audio products in 2024. And if you're a Sony fan, you'll love this: the codename ULT.
I'm told that ULT is not exactly an acronym. Ultimately, one thing is clear: these new Sony products focus on ultra-bass. I do have an interesting theory about the code name. I'll come back to that. So, let's kick this off with the big boy—
Sony ULT Tower 10
This party speaker is roughly the size of a small fridge-freezer combo, and it's pretty cool. It is a powerhouse, and because of that, it runs off AC power.
Ultimately, if you want to turn the party to eleven, the ULT Tower 10 has you covered.
• 4 tweeters ( 2 front 2 back )
• 2 mid-range at the top
• giant X balance speaker at the bass
So you get the picture: this speaker has massive energy. Like...me after 3 morning coffees. I didn't get to play around with it much, but the touch controls on top looked pretty cool. It also comes bundled with a proper wireless mic for rap battles.
There is also a nice little mic holder on the side. There are also some nice 360 LED lights up top and around the speaker's base. Regarding the sound, the bass is precisely what this speaker is built for—ultra bass. There are two levels.
Deep bass is level 1, and attack bass is level 2. As you might expect, it packs a punch; if you stand too close, you might start to feel like Captain America's punching bag.
You should know A couple more things about Tower 10: you can stereo pair these with another Tower 10. Also, Sony's party connect feature is available, so you can pair it with hundreds of other Sony party speakers. There is a TV sound booster feature that basically turns the Tower 10 into a giant subwoofer for your TV, and in this mode, the rear tweeters also fire up so you'll get clear vocals, which means this mode could be suitable for watching sporting events with larger groups of people.
You can also plug in a guitar.
Sony ULT field 7
Alright, here's the second ULT speaker from Sony. It's ULT field 7. It's designed to be taken into the field with you and wherever you go, so you could get someone to carry it for you while you can dance down the street, Bully McGuire style.
2 X balanced drivers
2 midrange drivers
2 passive radiators at either side
Again, you have the two ULT modes—deep bass and attack bass—and it does sound really nice. It also has Sony's sound field optimization, and it can use its built-in mics to measure the noise levels and adjust the EQ to match the environment.
It's also IP67-rated and Rustproof…which suggests you could leave these outdoors much longer than your average party speaker. It can also be used to charge devices via USB. And whilst a microphone is not provided for this one, There is a mic input; again, if you want to show off your super lyrical skills...you can
Wireless stereo connectivity is possible with two ULT 7’s, and Sony's party connect feature.
It has carry handles at the side, and it can stand horizontally or vertically. It also has some ambient lights, and Sony's ULT 7 has an exceptional battery life of up to 30 hours.
In terms of size, the ULT 7 is like a modern-day boom box. It's pretty large, but you could walk around with it on your shoulder like one of those old boomboxes from the 80s. If you want to
ULT Field 1
Okay, now for the smallest of the ULT speakers: field 1. This one has been designed to be thrown in a bag and carried around. It is IP67-rated and shockproof; it also comes with a rope-like tether. The ULT field 1 has a 12-hour battery life and 10 minutes of equal 3-hour playback.
Stereo pairing is possible, and party connect. And there are some nice colour options on these. You got the regular black and white, and there's the forest grey colour, which is my favourite. There's one more: a very vibrant orange that's quite striking and will likely capture your attention like a slap in the face.
And even more so with the ULT sound mode enabled. There is only one ULT level on this one, but it will be more than enough bass for most people. Voice mics are built in for calls and have a fast pair for quickly switching between BT devices. This could be a good one for day-to-day use while on the move.
ULT wear headphones
Alright now my favourite of the new ULT line up is the ULT wear. These are modelled on the XM5, and Sony has used a lot of the same tech as the XM5. And in some ways, the ULT wear may be better.
Design-wise, they look similar to the XM5. They are available in forest grey, which is again my favourite. They are also available in white and black. My first impressions when trying them on were that they were surprisingly light, ideal for everyday use and longer-wearing sessions.
But you shouldn't let the lightweight nature of the ULT wear fool you; they are bass-heavy, and that's what they are really all about: power and bass. And you'll notice the ULT button here, for when you want to send more power to the thruster and engage the ULT bass mode.
On top of the insane bass that they have, they also have excellent ANC, as they use the same V1 integrated processor as the XM5. However, the XM5 is still at the next level regarding ANC as they use two processors for ANC and have more ANC mics for better adaptive ANC and things like that. But the ANC is still excellent here on the wear.
Multi-point pairing is possible. And you can get up to 50 hours of playback on a single charge. With ANC off, and 30 hours with it on. If you run out of juice, you can wire in the headphones and listen passively until the end of time.
Here are a couple of things I prefer on the ULT wear compared to the flagship Sony noise cancellers and the XM5s. The earcups can rest flat against your chest around your neck and collapse into a more compact footprint when not in use. Just like the old XM4s did & they use the same carry case as the XM4, which some people preferred in comparison to the XM5's case.
So here's my theory on the ULT codename. Did you know Sony's brand name is derived from the Latin word for sound? Well, with that in mind, the root word ULT in Latin means beyond… Or it could just be ultra or ultimate.
You probably noticed that kind of colour-shifting branding on all of them. This is known as a di-cro-ick effect. It's definitely eye-catching, but the reality is that it's the heavy bass that hits you in the face that will really take you by surprise.
So listen here: these Sony ULT products are for music lovers. They are tailored for bass which makes them perfect for hip-hop and other bass-heavy styles of music.
But if you're more about music in its purest form and prioritise accuracy in your audio, Sony does have some lesser-known NEW headphones that sound better than the legendary XM5s, but with a few compromises. If you want to check that out, there's a thumbnail on the screen.