Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin Wireless review

In order to use Apple AirPlay and Spotify Connect, you’ll need to connect the Zeppelin Wireless to your home network using the iOS Bowers & Wilkins Connect app, or the desktop software for Windows or OS X. The setup process is nice and simple, with good guidance throughout.

A remote control is no longer included, but you can use the Connect app in order to adjust the volume if you don’t want to use the buttons on the speaker. Subtle buttons are built into the Bowers & Wilkins logo on the front of the speaker for switching to the auxiliary and Bluetooth connections. Pairing over Bluetooth is straightforward, but it’s a shame there’s no NFC support to make it even easier. At least the less-lossy aptX codec is supported.

Spotify Connect integration works as well as expected, and means that if you’re a Spotify Premium subscriber you can use the speaker to play music directly through the Spotify app. With the inclusion of Spotify Connect and Bluetooth, it now means you have vastly more options for getting music out of the Zeppelin Wireless. The auxiliary connection also means you could feasibly pick up an inexpensive Google Chromecast Audio or hook up to your television to use as a rather large soundbar. If your television is wall-mounted, it’s certainly an option.

All the inputs are upsampled to 192kHz/24-bit through the Zeppelin Wireless’ DAC. In terms of sound quality, the Zeppelin Wireless certainly delivers the clarity and control I’ve come to expect from Bowers & Wilkins’ speakers. There’s a delicate refinement to the sound, especially in the mids and trebles. The vocals in Carlos Santana and India Arie’s cover of While My Guitar Gently Weeps sounded wonderful with the vocals floating delicately over the instrumentation.

Listening to hip-hop, electronic bass had the kind of impact that hits you in your core, but remained tight and focused without muddying the rest of the music. The forward-firing subwoofer really made its presence felt. There’s a decent amount of stereo separation, too, helped by the distance between the drivers inside, which helped to widen the soundstage to fill the room. The Zeppelin Wireless can also achieve loud volume levels without any distortion as the volume increases. 

Conclusion

The Zeppelin Wireless builds upon its rich heritage with improvements across the board. The new design is fantastic and with improved connectivity options it’s exceedingly more versatile than its predecessors. It is undeniably expensive, but its sound quality and wonderful design goes some way to justify the price. The only thing lacking is true multiroom abilities. AirPlay still isn’t a replacement for proper multiroom integration and it can still be finicky, and Spotify Connect only lets you play from one speaker at a time, but if you want a speaker to deliver pitch perfect audio for a single room the Zeppelin Wireless is an excellent choice.