Verdict
JBL reaches into new soil with one of its top speaker designs , making this roving party simple machine comfortable to settle down into the median living way . Does it go there ? That ’s up for debate , but it can sure enough give up the dwelling house hi - fi goods .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
The JBL Boombox 3 Wi - Fi must be one of the declamatory portable loudspeaker I ’ve ever reviewed .
JBL pushes the gasbag here on what people are unforced to carry around to outdoor events , without toss an factual PA utterer . The JBL Boombox 3 Wi - Fi is still very much a regular wireless speaker for sept await to simply love euphony , though .
It ’s a moment of a maven performer to that destruction too . Larger scale lets the Boombox 3 Wi - Fi dig down deep into the low bass registers . It has that Graeco-Roman JBL admixture of power and tasteful tuning . And in this Wi - Fi version the Boombox has half an eye on a semi - lasting spot in your home , and it ’s able to run as amulti - room speaker .
plan - wise I find out this one of JBL ’s least gentle - to - recommend wireless speakers , as the size of it , visual aspect and £ 549 price extort its mainstream appeal a little . However , this is still an impressive wireless speaker if it fit your want .
Design
The first matter you need to ensure before buy a JBL Boombox 3 Wi - Fi is whether you desire a wireless speaker this large . I ’ve always through of theJBL Xtremeas a turgid speaker serial , but it ’s dwarfed by the Boombox .
Having populate with the JBL Boombox 3 Wi - FI for a while now , though , it ’s not the size that persist in to stand out . It ’s the weight .
The Boombox 3 weighs around 6.6 kg , six times as much as theCharge 5 . This is not the sort of speaker you ’d desire to channel during , say , a 15 - minute walk to the local park . And unlike the step - down JBL Xtreme 3 there ’s no shoulder shoulder strap , just a jumbo alloy handle with rubbery strips underneath for surplus grip .
If this speaker is going to travel a way , you likely want to put it in a car boot or extra-(extra ) large haversack .
It is fair tough , though . The JBL Boombox 3 is rated forIP67 water and dust resistance , meaning it can be drown in water .
The main consistence is covered by a tough nylon weave , and the inactive radiator at each remnant are protected by chunky outcrops of plastic . These radiators are less vulnerable than you might guess . They are n’t traditional speaker system drivers , and can easily shrug off being leaf , pushed or lightly punched .
These also contribute to the JBL Boombox 3 ’s belligerent appearance , alongside the supernumerary - big JBL logo on the front . verify you are game for this manner , as well as the high free weight .
Features
old generations of the Boombox , and most JBL verbaliser I ’ve used over the old age , have been Bluetooth - only . There is a Bluetooth rendering of the Boombox 3 , but the Boombox 3 Wi - Fi has Bluetooth and , you judge it , Wi - Fi .
You use the JBL One app to set the speaker unit up , and can then stream audio to it overSpotify Connect , Chromecast orAirPlay . It can also mix with the Google Home for multi - way , although the JBL One app allow for multi - room lineament too . It also get you twin two of these speaker system in a stereo raiment .
I had no issues getting the Wi - FI features to work . But , as a long - term JBL Bluetooth speaker appreciator , I ’m glad the on - equipment control have been kept simple .
There are no annoying touch - sensitive controls . Each is an actual clicky button , and only the “ centre ” is specific to the Wi - FI features . you’re able to go under a favourite play list of piece of content to this “ favourite ” button , in gild to get listening with a unmarried button press .
The JBL Boombox 3 Wi - Fi does miss any style to link analog germ , though . Pop off the pencil eraser - sealed connection pother on the back and you ’ll only find a power connector and USB , which lets you charge other devices .
This is not a smart speaker either . There ’s no microphone , predominate out talking to digital supporter or taking calls . I do n’t cerebrate it ’s a great loss in a speaker that should spend a good amount of time out of Wi - Fi range , despite the name .
It uses a 72Wh assault and battery , similar capacity to a bigger laptop . Used for the speaker system alone , JBL order you’re able to anticipate a heraldic bearing to last up to 24 hour at moderate bulk .
JBL says it takes up to six hours to charge , which seems an years to wait . A quick top - up is n’t the way here . However , according to my power beat it take in 25 - 27W , which is not bad for a wireless speaker .
Sound Quality
The JBL Boombox 3 Wi - Fi justifies its size with its speaker unit array . Much of the front is fill up with speaker system number one wood . They include a 19 cm long orthogonal subwoofer , two 2.75 - inch mid - range drivers and two 20 mm tweeter that ride just in front of the mid gadget driver .
That does n’t let in the two big inactive radiators , one at each remainder , that give the Boombox 3 Wi - Fi its characteristic conga drum - flair figure . compare to the Boombox 2 , there ’s an additional central woofer , which JBL spend a penny space for using the concentrical design of the other equipment driver brace .
The Boombox 3 Wi - Fi phone is effectively a surmount - up version of that reach in the JBL Xtreme 3 . And , for the most part , that ’s very honorable newsworthiness . This is a JBL Pro sound speaker . As in other JBL framework , this lead to a more refined , grown - up and versatile sound signature than the outer appearance might initially suggest .
However , thick bass part is still its cardinal military posture . There ’s solid bass output flop down to the 40Hz sub - bass range , just as JBL ’s spec shroud promises . I tested it with a feeling generator just to make certain there ’s real deep bass part go on here .
Bass is n’t everything , creative thinker . There ’s a good sense of delicacy and legal separation in the upper registers , and while the bass is powerful , it does n’t sit around oppressively on the mids , making its way into places it should n’t be and choke up the auditory sensation .
Maximum volume is terrible , and apparently the speaker acquire even more power when plugged in . There ’s more than I ’d ever need when it ’s not . Like any expert speaker should be , the JBL Boombox 3 Wi - Fi is for the most part musical style - agnostic because it has a solid sense of tonal Libra the Scales . And when you work a podcast , it does n’t voice as though bestower ’ voice pose on a droop inflatable pillow of bass part . This is what you ’d get a line in an excessively bassy utterer .
As in the JBL Xtreme 3 , though , show me a tinge of a high - destruction approach and I end up wanting more . The default tuning of the Boombox 3 Wi - Fi does have some additional bass , for add together plummy bounce , and the mids can sound a feeling pushed back into the shadows .
The JBL app does offer EQ controls to let you fiddle with this , but they are fairly rudimentary and weak . you’re able to chant down the Boombox 3 ’s bass to make it more polite caller , but bass voice / mid / treble control do n’t allow you go all that far in tweaking the “ JBL Pro ” tone .
I ’d advise not put to much weight of expectation on the speaker ’s Dolby Atmos cred , displayed on JBL ’s site , either . This is only available through TIDAL , so wo n’t factor in for many .
Still , this is a very satisfying listen for all sorts of content . But , as with any speaker of this mode , you get a limited sentiency of stereo system thanks to how confining the drivers are together . Sure , it can fill rooms , no problem , but not in the same mode as a by rights space stereoscopic picture pair . I only bring this up because the JBL Boombox 3 Wi - Fi is more probable to be used as sept ’ chief home plate speaker than previous models in the serial publication , thanks to its Wi - Fi features and multi - room chop .
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Should you buy it?
This is a brawny loudspeaker that can be used both as a multi - way home whole and a political party - ready speaker with enough punch and volume to be used outdoors .
This would not be the first option for a grown - up , minimalist living elbow room , and you ca n’t plug in a cabled source like a platter actor as there ’s no aux input with this contemporaries .
Final Thoughts
The JBL Boombox 3 Wi - Fi is an excellent wireless loudspeaker system that can be used both as your elementary hullo - fi , and an out-of-door part loudspeaker . It has the bass power the name and design seem to foretell , without going too far and ruining what is a highly pleasurable heavy character with some higher - goal traits .
This is not the model I ’d personally beak out of JBL ’s line of credit - up . I find it a spot too big and heavy for my kind of portable usage . And it is not the kind of loudspeaker I ’d want to have rooted in my animation elbow room , largely because of how it depend .
However , we ’re dealing in some of the most immanent country of the revue here . If your arms are a little substantial , your taste sensation less pedantic , you ’re onto a winner here .
Trusted Score
How we test
We examine every wireless talker we review exhaustively over an extended full point of metre . We use industry standard tests to compare feature properly . We ’ll always secern you what we find . We never , ever , accept money to survey a mathematical product .
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FAQs
It has IP67 water electric resistance .
No , a form - of-8 lead plugs right into the back of the loudspeaker system .
There ’s no aux input signal here , so all connexion ask to be wireless .
