The smallest of Sony's new party towers costs $449.99, weighs 29 pounds and hits bass that reviewers compare to a dedicated subwoofer. Here is the catch list too.
Sony's ULT Tower 5 is the smallest and cheapest of its new party towers, at $449.99 in the US and £349 in the UK. Reviewers say its new round woofer and 300W of power deliver bass that sounds far bigger than the speaker, without drowning out vocals.
It is also unusually flexible. You get Bluetooth, USB-A, USB-C, RCA, XLR and a mic input, karaoke effects, a sound-effects pad and Party Chain linking with other Sony towers.
The main downsides are its weight, the lack of 360-degree sound and modest water protection. For parties and karaoke, reviewers rate it as strong value.
Sony’s smallest new party tower is still almost two feet tall, and its bass is what has reviewers talking. The ULT Tower 5 costs $449.99, and early testers say its low end sounds like it is coming from a speaker twice its size.
That matters if you want one box that can handle a backyard barbecue, a karaoke night and a turntable without buying a separate subwoofer, mixer or PA system. Party speakers in this class are often loud but muddy, or clear but thin. The ULT Tower 5 appears to avoid that trade-off, though it has a few compromises you should know about before buying.
Reviewers agree the ULT Tower 5’s bass is its standout feature. Sony replaced the nearly rectangular woofers of its older ULT speakers with a new round woofer, about 230mm (roughly 9 inches) across, in a bid to push out deeper bass. One reviewer called it among the few party speakers that rival a dedicated subwoofer for low end.
Better still, the bass stays tight rather than boomy. Testers found house and electronic tracks punchy and rhythmic while vocals and mid-range sounds still came through clearly. With 300W of output, it also gets very loud, so it can fill a large living room or a busy yard without straining.
Sound modes change the character a lot:
One limit: unlike the bigger Tower 7 and Tower Max, the Tower 5 has no rear-facing drivers, so it lacks Sony’s 360-degree party sound. Testers noticed it sounds noticeably thinner from the side or back, so place it facing your guests.
The Tower 5 has more inputs than most Bluetooth speakers. There is Bluetooth 5.3, USB-A for playing music from a thumb drive, USB-C for phones and laptops, RCA for a turntable, XLR in and out for a mixer or DJ controller, and a quarter-inch microphone jack.
Karaoke is built in. You can plug in a mic and add echo, change the key or use a voice changer. A party pad in the app fires off sound effects such as drum hits, robot noises and an airhorn.
On codecs, the reports differ. One reviewer streamed using LDAC, Sony’s higher-quality Bluetooth format for compatible Android phones. Sony’s launch details list SBC, AAC and Auracast, so check the final spec sheet if LDAC matters to you. iPhones do not support LDAC anyway.
Party Chain links several ULT towers using Auracast, the newer Bluetooth broadcast standard. One tester paired a Tower 5 with a Tower 7 with a single button press on each. Each speaker plays in mono on its own, but two can be set up as a stereo pair.
Sony has given the new towers a look closer to a professional PA speaker, with rounded corners, a metal grille and four chunky metal corner handles. It stands upright or on its side, thanks to rubber feet on two faces.
A ring of 56 LEDs around the grille glows inward for a halo effect, and the lights double as a volume meter when you turn the front dial. There are three music-reactive lighting styles, plus color choices, but no static lighting mode, which some rivals offer.
Sony rates the battery at up to 20 hours with the lights off and about 12 with them on. Nearly everything can be controlled from buttons on the speaker, so the Sony Sound Connect app is optional. Reviewers found the app simple and reliable, with extras like Sound Field Optimization, which listens to background noise and adjusts the sound to suit.
For most households, the Tower 5 is the size that makes sense in Sony’s new lineup. At 29 pounds, one person can carry it to the patio or a friend’s house. The Tower 7 costs $649.99 and weighs about 50 pounds, while the Tower Max is $1,499.99, 121 pounds and needs a wall outlet.
The catches are practical ones. There are no wheels and no carry strap, so long walks get tiring. Its IPX4 rating means it can handle splashes and light rain while standing upright, but it is not one for the edge of a pool. And if you mostly want background music in a small room, its ULT modes are more bass than you need.
If you throw parties, sing karaoke or want a speaker that can plug into a DJ setup, reviewers say it is strong value. It has already seen its first notable discount in the US, so it is worth watching prices before you buy.
It launched at $449.99 in the US. UK reviews list it at £349.
Not fully. It is rated IPX4, which means it resists splashes and light rain when standing upright.
Yes. It has a quarter-inch mic input plus XLR, along with built-in karaoke effects like echo and key control.
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