ELI5 how to upgrade my Amazon Echos

October 7, 2023 12:37 PM

I have one Echo and several Echo dots of various "generations." (Pretty old. I don't know which generations, nor how to determine which generations they are. Nor can I tell you when I bought them.) I'd like to upgrade the music I get via Alexa. Specifically, I want better bass response.

I see that each unit has a jack where I could plug in another unit. If that's the way to go, what would I buy and plug in there?

OTOH, I could completely replace all the units. Are there (newer?) Echo models that give great music including great bass?

Is there any value to having stereo at each location? (I'm not going to be sitting right in front of a pair of stereo speakers.)

Many thanks for any help on this.

posted by JimN2TAW to Computers & Internet (6 answers total)

Best answer: According to PC Mag, yes, you *can* plug in any sort of powered speakers to the Echo Dots.
posted by kschang at 12:53 AM on October 8, 2023

Best answer: https://www.amazon.com/hz/mycd/digital-console/alldevices will give you a list of Alexa devices associated with your Amazon account. At first blush I don't see generation numbers but it will tell you how old they are and what serial numbers they have and if they are still supported.
posted by mmascolino at 6:31 AM on October 8, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: We just got an Echo Studio. Great sound compared to the other Echoes, and it’s on sale right now. There’s also an optional bass unit, though the bass on the Studio itself is pretty good.
posted by schrodycat at 5:44 PM on October 8, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: You plug in a set of powered multimedia speakers (or feed it into an AV receiver with a y-cable). It’s a headphone output, not a line level, so leave the dot at a moderate volume and let the speakers/receiver do most of the amping for better sound and to avoid clipping and distortion.

Don’t spend too much on the speakers, the output is only ever going to sound so good. Logitech makes some with a little subwoofer and satellites. 2.1 is fine for music only (rather than 5.1 surround). The sound isn’t refined but it’s good enough.
posted by snuffleupagus at 10:07 PM on October 8, 2023

Best answer: And if it’s all hard plastic and the sides are vertical like a hockey puck it’s older, if it has the squishy fabric material covering the sides and is more rounded but still flat it’s newer but not newest. The most recent ones are orbs.
posted by snuffleupagus at 10:13 PM on October 8, 2023

Response by poster: Many thanks for your helpful answers.
posted by JimN2TAW at 10:35 AM on October 9, 2023