The Sony ULT Tower 9AC has satisfactory controls. Most of the commands are handled by a responsive and backlit touch panel, except for a physical power button and ‘ULT’ button (to quickly cycle through sound settings). There are also dedicated gain knobs for each of the two 1/4″ microphone/guitar inputs.

The controls are straightforward, labelled, and intuitive, which you can explore here. Many settings are instantly accessible without relying on the app, like playback, input selection, Stereo and Party modes for additional speakers, karaoke controls, and RGB lighting. A mixture of light indicators and chimes and a voice prompt alert you for functions like Bluetooth pairing, connection statuses for Bluetooth, as well as Party and Stereo modes. Each time the ‘ULT’ button is pressed, the speaker emits a chime, so you know it registered. Rather than chime with each command, the speaker uses lights to indicate the current input selection, volume changes, and min/max volume, and whether features like echo are on. If left idle for 15 minutes, it’ll silently power off without any audible warning, and some of the dedicated light indicators are a bit small, which might be hard to see in some settings.