Today’s homes are inundated with Bluetooth devices, with smartphones and smart speakers in every corner of the house. It might seem that you can only connect one Bluetooth speaker to one device at a time. However, with the emerging technology, this is no longer the case, and you can pair multiple speakers to one device using Bluetooth technology.

To connect two Bluetooth speakers to one device, you can use one of the many apps available in the market today. These apps are capable of sending audio to two devices at once. iPhones running on iOS 11.4 or later versions and Bose Connect are some of the technologies that make it possible.

With the manuals that the new Bluetooth speakers come with, it is no longer a complicated process to connect two or more Bluetooth speakers to a single device. Keep reading to understand how Bluetooth functions and get an idea of the various brands that are at the forefront of this technology.

Bluetooth Limitations and Evolution

Bluetooth features had limitations previously. For instance, it allowed for only one to one device pairings and had a shorter range of 30 feet (9 meters), which meant that using the Bluetooth would be restricted to one room only, or at the most, to the next room.

For an open house party where people would flow out to the deck area or in places where the entertainment area is huge, these limitations would pose a problem.

With the evolving technology, smartphones and tablets are getting sleeker in design and becoming more and more easier to carry around. Portable Bluetooth speakers are also becoming quite the rage. In fact, I recently purchased a JBL FLIP 5 Bluetooth speaker for my own convenience purposes. Portable Bluetooth speakers make it possible to set up mini home stereo systems by allowing us to connect two or more Bluetooth speakers to a central device.

Why Would You Want to Pair Bluetooth Speakers?

Pairing Bluetooth speakers will allow you to create a home theater-like ambiance even in a relatively smaller space. Especially when you are in an apartment or even a dorm room or when you are cycling, a pair of connected Bluetooth speakers will give you a surround sound quality like no other. Due to its highly portable nature, these speakers can be carried around in your pocket.

It is simple and easy to set up and gives a nice stereo quality sound. And two Bluetooth speakers are always better than one.

How Does Pairing Bluetooth Speakers Help?

Pairing two Bluetooth speakers will give a more impactful sound effect than just a single speaker. Good quality Bluetooth speakers will also create a more immersive surround sound experience. Aside from this, having portable Bluetooth speakers are helpful in many other ways too.

It is simple and easy to set up whose positioning you can easily change. Generally, with large amplifiers and speakers such as the tower speakers, it takes a lot more time to move it around the room, but with Bluetooth speakers, you can easily carry it around. Unlike the large speaker, Bluetooth does not take up a lot of space. You can also carry it around in your travels.

The Simplest Way to Connect Bluetooth Speakers

It is recommended by many to go for the same brand and model of speakers if you are to pair them with a device. This allows for consistency in the sound quality and allows for much better listening.

Pairing the Bluetooth speakers is a fairly simple process where you turn on the speakers and locate them using your phone. You will need to click on the pairing button on the device, and the speakers will get automatically connected to your phone.

Note that you may be required to go to the phone’s Bluetooth menu to connect the speakers to the device in certain cases manually. This is how pairing is usually done in most devices, and some of the devices that still run on relatively older technology may not have the facility to connect it to two or more Bluetooth speakers. In such cases, you will need to connect via apps to avail of this feature.

Create a Bluetooth Hub

Earlier Bluetooth technology has had a significant drawback because it can only be paired on a one-to-one basis. Also, it has a very limited range of 30 feet (9 meters) only. One easy solution to this is by creating a Bluetooth hub. Bluetooth hubs help in connecting multiple speakers to a device. It can be linked directly through the Wi-Fi network of your home.

As long as the speakers have Bluetooth receivers, all you need to do is turn on all your Bluetooth speakers to be discovered and connected by your device’s Bluetooth network. Then you can place the speakers all over the house and entertainment zone to flood the area with a rich sound experience.

Pair Your Bluetooth Speakers With Mac OS

Mac usually has an in-built function that helps you to play music through two separate speakers. The function is designed in such a way that it is not brand specific and will work on any Bluetooth speakers irrespective of their manufacturer.

As with any other device, the first step is to follow the instructions that came with speakers’ set to connect them with your computer.

To pair your Bluetooth speakers with Mac OS, follow these steps:

  1. You will need to click on the “Open Finder” icon on your dock and click on the Go menu button. This button will appear at the top of your screen.
  1. An option called “Utilities” will appear here.
  1. Once you click on “Utilities,“ you will have to double click on the Audio MIDI setup.
  1. It will open a window called “Audio Devices.”
  1. Click on the plus symbol that you will see in the left panel below.
  1. This will lead to a short menu where you will see a button with an option, “Create Multi-Output Device.” Click on it.
  1. You will see a list of connected speakers appear on the right panel. Select the Bluetooth speakers from that list by checking on the box that appears on the left side of each speaker’s name. The speakers that you will select will play audio from your Mac at the same time.
  1. To save this setting, consider renaming the multi-output device to find them in your sound settings easily. Double-click the multi-output device in the left column to give a name to the selected Bluetooth speakers.
  1. Save this setting as your Mac’s default audio output channel and then click the Apple Menu to select system preferences and click on “Sound.”
  1. After that, click the Output tab that appears as the second tab at the top.
  1. The Bluetooth speakers you had selected in the previous steps will appear here under the name you had previously selected for them. Click on that so that your device is connected to the speakers as default.

Pair Your Bluetooth Speakers With Windows

If you are going to use Windows, you will need to use two speakers that are compatible and can be paired with one another. It is recommended to use speakers that are usually of the same type.

To pair your Bluetooth speakers with Windows, you will need to:

  1. Choose Bluetooth speakers that work together and then turn them both on. You could try using identical speakers, or use those from the same brand.
  1. Next, you will have to pair both the speakers with your Windows computer by clicking on the Windows search icon that looks like a magnifying glass and can be found in the bottom left corner of your screen.
  1. Type in the word “Bluetooth” in the search bar. An option called “Bluetooth and other devices” will appear. Click on this box.
  1. Switch on the Bluetooth if it is off.
  1. Now go to your speaker and press the pairing button on the speaker. It may take a few moments for it to enter the pairing mode. Once it does, a plus sign will appear on your Windows screen.
  1. Click on the plus sign to add the Bluetooth.
  1. Click the speaker that you wish to connect through this Bluetooth. You will get a few on-screen instructions and prompts, which will be self-explanatory. Follow these prompts to complete the pairing.
  1. Follow the same process to pair the second speaker to the computer.

Alternatively, you can use the manufacturer’s app for the speakers to pair two speakers with a single device. Some speaker manufacturers even provide a Windows app that you can use to connect two speakers. Usually, these apps have an option for multiple speakers or outlets.

To connect speakers using this method, you will need to follow this set of instructions:

  1. Click on the Windows search icon, which appears like a magnifying glass, and can be found next to the Start button.
  1. Type in the word “audio” in the search bar.
  1. An option called “Manage Audio Devices” will appear. Click on it.
  1. Select the speakers you would like to pair with the device and then click the “Set Default” option, which will appear at the bottom of the screen.
  1. Then click on the “Recording” tab, which appears at the top of the window.
  1. A few options will pop up. You will have to press the right-click on the “Stereo Mix” option.
  1. In case this does not show up as an option, right-click on a blank area of that window. A box with a few different options will appear. Choose “Show Disabled Devices” from the box. Now you will be able to see the Stereo Mix option. Click on Enable.
  1. As a next step, you will need to select “Stereo Mix” and then click on the “Set Default” button. You will know that the settings have been changed when you see a green and white check mark that will now appear over the ″Stereo Mix.″
  1. Once the settings have been finalized, you can click on the “Properties” button which you can find on the right side of the ″Set Default″ button.
  1. In here, you need to navigate to the “Listen” tab and a box namely, “Listen to this device” will pop up. Check the box.
  1. Select the second speaker by clicking on the ″Playback through this device″ box. Choose the second speaker. This speaker is currently not your default speaker. You will need to click on “Ok” in this box, and then a second pop up will appear now. Click Ok on that box as well. The audio settings now include both the speakers.
  1. Now all you will have to do is restart your computer, and you will be able to listen to the audio from your device through the paired Bluetooth speakers at the same time.

Use the Dual Audio Settings in Samsung Galaxy Devices

Since the Samsung Galaxy S8, there has been support of Bluetooth dual audio settings, and it works with pretty much any type of speaker. To set up the connection with the Bluetooth speakers, go to the Bluetooth settings on the phone, or if you are using Android Pie, you will need to go to advanced settings where you will find a setting called Dual Audio.

This tab will have a switch that can be turned on and off by simply tapping the screen. You can use this setting to connect your phone to two Bluetooth speakers. This option is especially useful if you have your speakers located in two different rooms.

The Samsung Galaxy phones S8 and its subsequent versions will allow you to enable this dual audio mode. You will be able to control two speakers simultaneously, in much the same way as if it were being used to control one speaker. You can select the advanced Bluetooth option on the Bluetooth function and toggle the dual audio switch on.

However, it must be borne in mind that Samsung’s Dual Audio has certain limitations. Only two speakers can be connected at a time. You can still go ahead and try connecting it to a third speaker, and your device is likely to connect with this third speaker, but it will automatically drop connection with the first speaker in the process.

Use the SoundTouch App to Connect Multi Speakers

The SoundTouch app is designed to link directly with the radio or other online audio platforms. The technology is built right into the app, allowing your SoundTouch speakers to directly play the audio from the network (Ethernet) without needing an external audio device.

All you will be needing is the SoundTouch app, the SoundTouch speakers, and a reliable Wi-Fi network, and you can easily stream music and audio files from your online sources.

This app is available for both iOS and Android devices, as well as for Windows and Mac systems. The app has six personal preset slots. They correspond to six pre-set buttons on the physical SoundTouch speakers.

You can set your preferences on the SoundTouch app, choose your favorite six music choices, and choose the corresponding buttons on the speaker or the remote to recall these pre-set preferences.

The app is incredibly easy to use and requires you to slide the audio source merely you would like to listen to, and it will be automatically saved as your preference on the device. These audio sources could be anything, from your favorite band or artist to a radio station. You can even include other music and sound platforms such as Spotify and Soundcloud in these slots.

Once you have decided on the settings, you can now enjoy them directly on your SoundTouch speakers without using external audio sources. You can play music on these speakers using the in-built buttons or the remote that comes with the speakers even when your laptop or MP3 player is unplugged.

An additional advantage of owning the SoundTouch speakers is that you can have a multi-room experience around your home by connecting multiple speakers through this app and positioning them in different rooms. You can connect speakers via your Wi-Fi network and keep adding more speakers.

Once the total number of speakers that you wish to connect is all linked, you can play the same music through all these speakers at the same time. Alternately, each speaker can be differently customized and used independently of the other speakers.

As your family grows, they can choose different music that suits their taste and play it independently, or you could have a massive party at your house and connect all the speakers to play the same music.

Use Apple’s HomePod Stereo to Join Speakers

Use Apple’s HomePod Stereo pairings to connect different speakers. It functions a lot like the Samsung Galaxy dual audio setup, but you will need iPhone iOS 11.4 or a later version of the software to pair the different speakers. When pairing the speakers, you need to ensure that both the speakers are in the same room.

To connect, go to the HomePod button on the application and hold the button for more options. The menu button will appear, which will show you an option to create a stereo pair. Tap on this option, and the app will prompt you to choose a second speaker. Once you have selected the second speaker, click on Done, and your device is now connected to two speakers.

Use the AmpMe App

With the AmpMe application, it becomes easier to connect multiple speakers to a single smartphone. This application does not require matched brands to connect two or more speakers to the device.

To use this app effectively, you will need a second smartphone as well. First, you connect your device to a speaker and then ask a friend to join in. This friend can join in and connect their phone to another speaker, and then another friend can step in and connect their phone to yet another speaker.

This app is great if you are planning on throwing a virtual party. Alternatively, you could use this app to find out about parties near you.

Use the Bose Connect App

The Bose Connect App is a little less versatile than AmpMe because Bose Connect is brand-specific and will not work with all speakers. Nonetheless, this app also helps in connecting multiple speakers to the device. The devices on which this app is compatible are listed in the official pages of the app stores of Android and iOS.

The Bose Connect app helps you by connecting two SoundLink Micro Bluetooth speakers to a single device. All you will need to do is turn on both speakers, and connect them with Bluetooth using the Connect app.

To break the pairing, simply press and hold the Bluetooth button on the app. You will hear a confirmation once the speakers are unlinked. This app works well with Bose’s Bluetooth headphones, allowing you to connect to two pairs of headphones but connecting one pair of headphones and one pair of speakers as well.

Make Use of the Boom and MegaBoom Apps

The Boom and Megaboom Apps created by Ultimate Ears also help connect more than one speaker to the device. Both work on brand-specific compatible devices and speakers. But the great advantage is that these two apps can connect up to fifty speakers at a time.

Ultimate Ears has designed this app, and it connects over a hundred and fifty Boom and Megaboom speakers and has a party mode that allows you to connect your friends’ speakers to a single source of the sound.

This is how you can connect the speakers to a single device using this app:

  1. Start with connecting the first speaker to your device with the help of Bluetooth.
  1. Next, press the Bluetooth function and the volume up button simultaneously. You will hear a tone.
  1. Now turn on your second speaker and press the Bluetooth button twice.
  1. Repeat this process to connect additional speakers.

Use the Tempow App

Tempow is a French start-up company that replaces the Bluetooth driver on your phone and enables your phone to simultaneously connect to multiple speakers. However, this only works with Android.

All you will need to do is pair the Bluetooth devices with your phone one by one and choose the stereo and adjust the volume individually. You can do all this from one single controlling device. The Tempow eliminates the need to switch between devices in order to control the speakers continuously.

Use the Bluetooth 5 Technology

Bluetooth 5 has a much broader range of 120 feet (36.5 meters) and connects two speakers simultaneously. More device manufacturers are expected to have this technology in-built into their devices as we move forward. You can either switch the toggle button on and off in your phone’s audio settings or by configuring your connection through an app.

As more manufacturers adopt this technology, it will enable more speakers to be paired to a device. However, much like newer versions of Wi-Fi, it may still be a few years before this becomes a commonly found feature in all smartphones and other devices.

Bluetooth 5 has an added advantage over the more traditional sound systems because it can integrate a wide variety of devices and is not limited to just speakers, such as your headphones, or even Alexa and Google Home.

Many modern smartphones and other devices have in-built Bluetooth 5. This new version of the Bluetooth comes with various new improvements. One thing to note here is that most of these improvements will only work if there are other Bluetooth 5 compatible components in the phone.

Other phones and tablets also advertise their support for Bluetooth 5; however, they do not have the upgraded components on their specifications list. So, even if they adopt the latest Bluetooth technology, it will not really be helpful until the other peripherals get updated accordingly.

In this video, the host talks you through the Bluetooth 5 features. He explains the technology and how it is used in Samsung Galaxy 8. The Samsung Galaxy 8 is the first phone in the world that is commercially shipped with the Bluetooth 5 technology in-built in it.

YouTube video

Use JBL Connect

If you are purchasing a JBL Bluetooth speaker like I did, it is likely to come with an in-built Connect, Connect+, or PartyBoost feature. This allows the device to connect to multiple speakers one by one.

First, you will need to connect a device to one of the speakers, and then turn the second speaker on and press the Connect, Connect+, or PartyBoost option to connect to the second feature. You can also use the JBL Connect app to link your stereo to two speakers.

Conclusion

Bluetooth’s growing popularity in setting up smart homes has drawn efforts from more and more developers to enhance the application, better its functionality, and upgrade them to scale up technologically with the ever-growing demands of the consumer market.

It is not rocket science and does not take a genius to figure out how to connect two Bluetooth speakers to one device. As smartphones and other devices are increasingly adopting new technology, the new device models are becoming capable of connecting to multiple Bluetooth speakers.