Samsung R3 Wireless Audio (WAM3500) review – Music for any room & for every room

Sound Quality

As the drive units inside the R3 are so similar to the R5, their sound signatures are very similar. There’s less emphasis on the low frequencies, but this is to be expected given its difference in woofer size. Both speakers operate in the same manner as well, with a tweeter firing into an acoustic lens on one end and the woofer firing into another acoustic lens on the other. The sound then emanates out of gaps in the cabinet, which Samsung calls its ‘Ring Radiator’ technology.

The result is the even dispersion of mono sound in every direction in a horizontal plane. It’s not quite the same on the vertical, so ideal placement will still see the speaker placed off the ground and closer to your ear height. The sound isn’t the most detailed or delicate, but it’s more than respectable.

Putting the speaker through my bass test track of choice, Tidhar by The Toure-Raichel Collective, the speaker acquitted itself well. Bass was tight and controlled, without any disturbing resonance from the speaker cabinet until you really pushed the speaker to near its maximum volume, at which point it did distort and become muddy. There was enough presence in the more delicate piano and percussion instruments as well, and in terms of sheer volume, the R3 will easily fill a medium to large-sized room.

Conclusion

If you’re not quite so fond of bass, the R3 makes for a compelling choice, especially when it’s around £100 cheaper than the R5. It won’t leave you wanting for the lower frequencies, either, so I would argue it’s a better general-purpose speaker than its big brother. The R5 felt a little expensive for the sound it delivered, but the R3 does a better job of living up to its price, particularly when it includes all the same great features. 

However, it’s worth noting that if you’re not intending on having the speaker take a central position in your room, then the omnidirectional sound will be a bit of a waste, so you’ll be better served by a more standard stereo speaker such as Sony’s SRS-X77. This not only saves you some money but also sounds fantastic. However, there’s no denying the R3 is still a great multiroom speaker in its own right, and for this reason it wins a Recommended award.