(Credit: René Ramos; Amazon, Astell&Kern)
The Amazon Echo and Echo Studio offer great sound quality, but the Dot, Pop, and Spot cost less and deliver inferior audio. If, like me, you're unhappy with the sound on your Amazon smart speaker, you can easily connect it to an external speaker and give it a boost. In my experience, I found it to be an easy process overall, though your options will vary with the age of your device. Older models with a built-in output jack can be connected over audio cable. Otherwise, you'll need to make the connection over Bluetooth using the Alexa app. Here's how I connected my Echo device to another speaker.
Connect a Speaker With a Wired Connection
If you want to plug a speaker into your Echo, you'll need a standard 3.5mm audio cable with male connections on both ends and a compatible device. Unfortunately, the Echo Dot (5th Gen)—with or without the clock—and the Pop and Spot don't have audio output jacks. For all other models (Echo Studio only has an input option), you'll be able to go the physical route.
(Credit: Amazon)I had an old Echo Dot and a Bose Bluetooth speaker laying around, so I was able to set this up. I plugged one end of the audio cable into my speaker's Aux In connection and the other end into the Echo's Aux Out, right next to the power cable's connection. When I powered on my connected speaker, the audio was redirected to it instead of going through the Echo.
(Credit: Lance Whitney)Pair an Echo Device with a Bluetooth Speaker
If you don't have an output jack on your device, or just don't want to futz around with cables, you can instead stream the sound to a speaker over Bluetooth. Amazon certifies compatible speakers with the Works With Alexa label, so you know which devices to buy. To set this up on the Echo in my office, I turned to the Alexa app.
(Credit: PCMag / Amazon)In the app, I tapped Devices, then chose the Echo I wanted. I then selected Connect a device under the Bluetooth Connections section to search for nearby Bluetooth devices. When my Echo appeared, I tapped it to complete the pairing. The speaker then showed up in the Alexa app as a Bluetooth connection for the Echo device and Alexa announce the connection.
(Credit: PCMag / Amazon)Now I can ask Alexa to play music and perform other tasks, and the sound is piped through the Bluetooth speaker. If I want to disconnect the speaker, I can select the device's name in the Alexa app and tap Disconnect. I can also say "Alexa, disconnect."
(Credit: PCMag / Amazon)To re-establish the connection, I'd say "Alexa, connect" to connect the Echo to the last connected Bluetooth device. To permanently remove the speaker, I'll need to tap its name in the Alexa app and select Forget Device.
(Credit: PCMag / Amazon)