Electrotec Stage One Battery-Powered Speaker Review

Video Review

First Impressions / Setting up

The Stage One makes an immediate statement with its substantial build, and frankly, for a portable speaker, it’s huge! The reinforced cabinet feels properly professional, with aerospace-grade materials reflecting the premium price. At 20 kg, it’s definitely portable rather than lightweight, and that centred handle becomes essential for moving this beast around.

The three-way driver configuration looks impressive through the open grille – a proper 10″ woofer, 8″ midrange and 1″ compression horn set-up that promises real PA performance. The removable logo plate is a thoughtful touch for rental companies or DJs wanting to customise their gear.

Build quality feels exceptional throughout. The powder-coated steel grille, rubber corner bumpers, and recessed rear panel all suggest this will handle professional abuse. The dual battery system with metal latches inspires confidence for mobile use.

Setting Up

Initial set-up proved straightforward, but there were some quirks. The batteries ship upside down for safety – a note in the box explains this, so don’t panic when nothing happens on first power-up. Once flipped and inserted, the speaker fired up immediately with fully charged batteries.

The rear panel offers multiple connection options, but understanding them is crucial. The combo XLR/TRS inputs work differently than expected: XLR accepts microphone level signals, while TRS (quarter-inch) handles line level from DJ gear. This wasn’t immediately obvious and required checking with Electrotec.

Pairing via Bluetooth worked instantly for casual listening. For DJ use, the SKAA wireless option requires a compatible transmitter but delivers the low latency (19ms) essential for mixing. The input selector cycles through Bluetooth, Aux, Play-All and SKAA modes with clear LED indicators. If you don’t want to use SKAA, again, you can wire them to your mixer just fine.

Or you can combine the two – a wired connection to one speaker, then low-latency SKAA to the other (they can both receive and transmit over that protocol). This does make them pretty flexible, yet they still require a little understanding, and the instruction manual isn’t very good. Luckily there are a series of YouTube videos from the company that go into greater depth, but this onboarding could definitely be improved.

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To tune the sound, there is a five-band EQ with presets, but there’s no way of accessing this via the speakers themselves. You need the app, and you need to pair via Bluetooth to one speaker and SKAA to the other (assuming you’re using two as I was). It’s all simple enough, but again…not clearly explained in anything that comes in the box.

A way of cycling through the EQ presets on the unit itself as a minimum would have been good. The speakers do “remember” their EQ settings, though, so you wouldn’t have to do this every time. A bass and treble control on each unit would have been even better.

In Use

In real-world use, the Stage One is a serious contender with any equivalent-sized PA. We’re talking sound reinforcement here, not home hi-fi! The sound is massive, clear, and carries tremendous distance – these aren’t nearfield monitors; they’re proper public performance tools. At an outdoor event (where we tested them), a pair on stands easily covered an area that would normally require mains-powered systems.

The true three-way design with dedicated amplification (200W for bass, 60W each for mids and highs) produces well-balanced output across the frequency range. Bass response is genuinely impressive for a battery-powered system, while the midrange clarity and high-frequency detail remain tight even at extreme volumes. They’ll blow your face off at close range though, so be aware.

Indeed, volume-wise, these significantly outperform the Soundboks units that clearly inspired them (which are no slouches themselves). The “30-step volume control with individual loudness curves” does indeed maintain tonal balance; it’s like having a loudness button that actually works properly at every level. Battery life proved exceptional, lasting an entire weekend of testing without fully depleting.

What impressed me most was the professional connectivity. Those combo inputs handle everything from microphones to DJ mixers to guitars, though remembering to use TRS for line level is essential. The SKAA wireless performance was flawless too, enabling cable-free DJ sets with barely perceptible latency, and if you own a SKAA transmitter, allowing completely wireless setup.

The hot-swappable dual battery system is brilliantly implemented. You can run on one battery while charging the other, effectively giving unlimited runtime with spare batteries. The 18-100 hour battery life (depending on volume) certainly beats any competitor.

The speakers demand respect for their size and dispersion pattern. Set them up too close or in small spaces and they’ll overwhelm. These are genuine PA speakers, not oversized Bluetooth boxes.

Conclusion

The Stage One delivers professional PA performance in a battery-powered package. Sound quality, build quality, and battery life all justify the premium price. The SKAA wireless capability and hot-swappable batteries solve real problems for mobile DJs. However, the way the app works and the input configuration quirks could be better explained.

The Stage Ones would be a good choice for mobile DJs, outdoor event professionals, and anyone needing serious sound without mains power. They could also suit rental companies wanting premium battery-powered options. However, they’re definitely not suitable for bedroom DJs or those wanting nearfield monitors – these demand space to breathe.

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The obvious alternative is Soundboks 4 (£850) – smaller and lighter, but less powerful. For those wanting a more traditional PA, consider sticking with mains-powered options like QSC’s K12.2 (£750 each), and for an all-rounder that lacks SKAA but is more forgiving to people sitting close, JBL’s Eon One Mk2 is a favourite of ours.

However, if you like the idea of the loudest imaginable Bluetooth PA speaker, one that can also operate with a professional wireless protocol (SKAA) or as a “normal” PA speaker, and find both great sound quality and truly impressive battery power to be an attractive proposition, I think you’ll love the Stage Ones.