Majority audio is a brand you might recognise most from the award-winning and affordable soundbars such as the Majority Everest 5.1 surround sound system. However, they don’t just do soundbars they produce speakers, USB Microphones, Headphones and Radios. Such as the Majority Belford compact radio we recently reviewed.
In this review, we take things up a notch with the Majority Homerton 2 which is a stylish device that allows you to connect to Bluetooth Internet, DAB and FM radio that allows you to listen to any station across the world. The Homerton 2 also comes with Spotify Connect and a CD Player which will allow the user to listen to their favourite radio station, favourite playlist or that cheesy album that hides in the guilty pleasure zone.
First Impressions
The Majority Homerton 2 comes in two colour options black & Oak and costs £139 and Majority keep things simple by providing the main device, power supply and remote control.
What Majority continue to do is be cautious about the environment so for every purchase Majority plant a tree plus they have removed the paper user guide and put this online for you to view or download. I highly recommend you give the user guide a quick read as you need it, especially when it comes to setting up. An easy way to get to the online user guide is to scan the QR code printed on the box.
Design
The Majority Homerton 2 is a well-built device with a wood material which we expect to be a chipboard material that runs around the whole of the device. The Homerton 2 will take a bit of space on your kitchen side or in the bedroom and comes in the following size: 23 x 20.2 x 12.8 cm and weighs 2.3 kg.
The Homerton 2 also comes with 4 little feet that raise it off the surface and also keep it stable on the surface.
Moving to the rear you have the USB and AUX and 3.5mm inputs and that power port and seven-section telescopic antenna to help adjust the signal strength.
On the top of the case is an upwards-facing speaker that provides a crystal clear sound that also packs a punch. As the sound develops in height and not frontally the result sounds very good.
On the front, you have clean looking interface with 2 dials one for volume with numbers indicating the volume with the max being 32. Pressing the dial is will control the power.
The other dial is for tuning radio stations or manual navigation. There is also a colour LCD display in the middle and just under the display is the integrated CD player. Finally, you have 2 sets of 6 buttons which control the likes:
6: Press to select a previous track in CD/USB/FM/BT/Internet Radio mode.
7: Press to play and pause in CD, USB, BT and Internet radio.
8: Press to select the next track in CD/USB/DAB/FM/BT/Internet radio mode.
9: 1/2/3 – IN DAB/FM mode, press to select preset favourite stations. IN DAB/FM mode, long press to set current station to favourite station. In CD mode, short press to select number 1/2/3. Press to change the source.
10: Press to change the source.
11: MENU – Press to display the Menu.
12: EQ – Press to select sound characteristics: Normal/Jazz/Rock/Classic/Pop/My EQ
13: PRESET – Short press to call preset list.
14: INFO – Press to return to the previous menu. Press to show the information in CD/ USB/DAB/FM and Internet radio mode.
15: PAIR/EJECT CD – Press and hold to activate the pairing function in Bluetooth or disconnect the existing paired Bluetooth device. A short press of the button will eject the CD.
The accompanying remote control also comes with the following controls:
- Turn the unit ON or in STANDBY mode.
- CD /USB/DAB/FM/BT/PODCASTS/AUDIO – Press to select the corresponding AUDIO source. (CD/USB/DAB/FM/BT/PODCASTS/AUDIO/INTERNET RADIO/SPOTIFY)
- INTRO/AMS – Press to start browsing all tracks on CD/USB. Press to automatically search for a channel in DAB and FM; when in searching, press again can stop it.
- REPEAT – Press to select a repeat playback mode in CD/USB.
- EQ – Press to select sound characteristics: Normal/Jazz/Rock/Classic/Pop/My EQ
- BASS+/- – Press to adjust the BASS in USER mode.
- USER – Press to allow you to adjust the Bass and Treble in USER mode.
- MENU – Press to display the Menu.
- Press to move up on the menu screen
- OK/ – Press to play/pause in Bluetooth/CD/USB and Internet Radio. To select or skip to the subsequent menu in Bluetooth/CD/USB and Internet Radio.
- Press and hold for fast backwards in CD and USB. Press to select the previous track in CD and USB. Press to display the channel list in DAB, FM and Internet Radio. Press for fine-tuning in FM. Press and hold for manual tuning in FM.
- Press to move down on the menu screen.
- Press to stop playing in CD/USB Mode.
- CLOCK – Press and hold to set the clock.
- P+/- – Press to skip the beginning of the current/previous/subsequent album. Press to select the previous/next preset channel in FM and DAB.
- 0-9 numeric
- INFO – Press to show the information.
- INTERNET RADIO/ SPOTIFY – Press to select Internet Radio/Spotify.
- SLEEP – Press to set the sleep timer.
- RANDOM – Press to play tracks randomly in CD.
- TREBLE+/- – Press to adjust the TREBLE in USER mode.
- PROGRAM – Press to program in CD/USB and preset channel in DAB, FM and Internet Radio. Long press to save preset channels.
- PAIR/EJECT – Press to return to the previous menu. Press and hold to activate the pairing function in Bluetooth or disconnect the existing paired Bluetooth device. A short press of the button will eject the CD.
- Press and hold for fast forward in CD and USB. Press to select the next track on CD and USB. Press to display channel list in DAB/FM and Internet Radio. Press for fine-tuning in FM. Press and hold for manual tuning in FM.
- Press to mute or resume the sound.
- V+/- – Press to increase/ decrease the volume level.
- TIMER – Press to set the Timer.
- DIM – Select the brightness level of the display.
Setup
The Homerton 2 is not just an internet radio it offers many options in terms of use when you plug this in it will automatically switch on and then you need to select the language and also the timezone as well this is very simple to do. This device allows for either a 12-hour or 24-hour clock configuration. The next step is to connect the Homerton 2 to your Wifi network it will ask for your password which you can input using the remote control with ease.
Then it’s time to configure the internet radio, DAB Radio, and Podcasts once connected to the Wi-Fi network when you press the internet radio option it will start searching for stations the same can be said for DAB radio and the podcast option.
We found the interface of the LCD display very functional and easy to navigate. The remote control allows you to navigate with even more ease.
Functions
The Homerton 2 has a number of features such as Internet radio, FM DAB Radio, Podcast player and Spotify Connect to name a few and we will discuss in more detail these features. First up is the CD player its not very noisy when it’s in use and can be controlled either by the buttons on the front of the device or via the remote control. Unfortunately, the CD when played does not state the track name it just displays the track number.
The Homerton 2 also allows you to connect your phone or tablet via Bluetooth which is very easy to pair you will see a flashing Bluetooth logo in the bottom right this indicates it’s ready to pair and you connect like you would connect a pair of headphones on your phone. The Homerton 2 also allows you to use Spotify Connect. The features work well with very little latency between selecting the song and it starts to play.
The Homerton 2 is also a radio and you can get FM or DAB+ which allows for both local and national radio stations. The FM radio uses an extendable antenna to help with station tuning. The dial on the right allows you to tune in to the radio stations the old fashion way or you can automatically tune in stations. You can also preset stations for easy access. In the settings you can also put the list of stations in alphabetical order, adjust the level of DRC (dynamic range compression) and also turn on/off the mono mode.
You also have the feature of Internet radio which just like the DAB radio needs a Wi-Fi connection. The internet radio allows you access to over 25,000 global stations so that radio stations you enjoyed when on holiday can be listened to when back home and in the kitchen. What you will notice is some stations will display a logo. We found regardless of the station and the country we got a very strong signal.
UK Radio Station
Radio Station Options in the Bahamas
You also have the option of searching for your favourite podcast which comes with a similar menu for example location and genre. When you found your favourite podcast or favourite internet radio station you can also set preset stations just like you can do with the DAB radio.
Selection of popular Podcasts
In addition to picking the station, you can also select an EQ setting to get the right kind of sound quality you have 5 EQ presets:
- Normal
- Jazz
- Rock
- Classic
- Pop
There is also a My EQ setting which allows you to customise the bass and treble and allows you to save that custom setting so next time you use the Homerton 2 your EQ setting is here. Once you have selected the EQ you will find you get an excellent sound quality that depending on the EQ selected will provide a fairly powerful bass. The overall sound quality is great just not sure about the wife’s singing voice when this was kept in the kitchen.
In addition to the functions I have already mentioned, there is also a clock and alarm on the Homerton 2. When the device is inactive the digital clock will show on the screen and can not be deactivated which might annoy a few users especially if this is located in the bedroom as it can be a little on the bright side and unfortunately the brightness does not change at night. The Majority Homerton 2 also comes with dual alarms so just in case you turn one off you have a backup that will play a selected radio station to wake you up.
Verdict
The Majority 2 is a versatile speaker that comes with a lot of features and it does everything from providing a simple FM radio to providing podcasts and internet radio stations from across the world very well. My only slight negative was I struggled to make the Spotify Connect feature work and in the end, just run Spotify via the Bluetooth option on the device.
If you are looking for modern DAB radio for under £150 that comes with a streamlined appearance and sleek design this is a fantastic option. The fact this device comes with so many functions it could easily be the main music device in the house.
I found the provided remote control offers you excellent control of the device regardless of the function you use. I also liked the option to adjust the audio settings in regards to the EQ and it makes for an excellent home audio offering, especially with the level of volume you can get out of the Homerton 2.
The Homerton 2 also comes with an extended 3-year warranty to provide that peace of mind.
Product Rating:
Design: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0
Set up: 4.0 out of 5.0 stars
Features: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0
Overall Rating: 4.6 out of 5.0 stars – 4.6 Star review
The Homerton 2 is available directly via the Majority Audio website or via Amazon.
Thanks for reading this review, please continue to support us and check out our other reviews and follow us on Social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Linkedin don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter below.
Nice review. You can turn the display right off when the unit is in standby and activate it briefly by pressing any button on the unit. I agree that the display is too bright for the bedroom at night, which is why I found turning it right off the best option. By setting the timing of the display when in standby, when you want to see the clock, it will stay on for anything between 10 seconds and a few minutes, depending on what you’ve selected.
So far I have found the Homerton 2 a really good piece of kit.