JBL Boombox 2 speaker system review: powerful bass on land and in water

One of the recent developments is the Jbl Boombox portable speaker, which features powerful sound and moisture protection. Despite its large size, the Bluetooth speaker has a stylish design and unusual shape. The plastic coating has a waterproof layer, protecting the speaker from rain and moisture.

Review

The developers promise loud sound with impressive bass, music playback for 24 hours.

For user convenience, the Boombox speaker is equipped with a carrying handle.

Rich sound is a feature of the Jbl portable speaker.

Low and mid frequencies stand out.

The highs are not expressed so brightly and purely, but they are enough for dance compositions and pop music.

The emphasis is on bass, which means it’s suitable for heavy music, rock, and dancehall.

Thanks to its moisture resistance, the sound comes through even in the pool and is not greatly distorted.

Bottom line

The JBL Boombox 2 is a beautifully designed Bluetooth speaker. The bass here is simply amazing, and although you're now limited to just one audio setting, the unit sounds great both indoors and out.

Is it worth buying?

If you have the original Boombox, I'm hard pressed to find anything in the second version to recommend an upgrade. Of course, you get PartyBoost, a more stable Bluetooth connection, ergonomic handles, and slightly louder speakers with better overall sound quality. But, $500 is too much when there is something similar for much less money.

However, if you don't have the first generation JBL Boombox and want a speaker that will let you play your music anywhere, rain or shine, the Boombox 2 is worth a look.

Modes

The portable Jbl Boombox Green has several built-in sound modes for the user:

• Home mode allows the owner to comfortably listen to music indoors. The sound is adjusted thanks to this mode. Provides softer bass;
• Street mode allows you to feel the power of bass and the volume of music at parties;
• Speakerphone - allows you to talk on the phone.

Power and sound can be increased by connecting multiple Jbl portable devices through the app.

Sound quality

When it comes to genres of music with a lot of bass, the JBL Boombox 2 performs admirably. At maximum volume, which is really powerful, the bass is not distorted, although the DSP (Digital Signal Processing) system comes in and makes it a little softer. However, even with DSP, the bass sounds deep and powerful, and this interference is not noticeable even at very high volumes.

Baritones are aided in their performance by rich reproduction of the lower midrange frequencies. Fortunately, they do not steal all the attention, and everything is balanced by emphasizing the upper frequencies. That is, the updated Boombox 2 reproduces the entire range well, and does not just try to fill the surrounding space with heavy bass.

The performers' voices are also very clear and distinct. When combining low frequencies with high frequencies, whistling often occurs, but JBL manages to cope with this. Even orchestral compositions sound natural, although, again, audiophiles will find many inaccuracies here.

Overall, the second version of the JBL Boombox manages to produce clear, balanced and spacious sound regardless of the genre.

Characteristics table

Dimensions

The dimensions of the Boombox speaker are impressive - 25.45 cm x 45.85 cm x 19.55 cm.

Although the Jbl developers took care of the presence of a carrying handle, the weight and dimensions are not suitable for small rooms.

How to turn on and use Boombox

It's easy to connect the portable Jbl boombox speaker to your smartphone.

The connection is made using the Bluetooth function, reminiscent of standard pairing of headphones with a smartphone.

Connection:

• turn on Bluetooth on your smartphone;
• press the power button on the Boombox portable device;
• detect the column in the list of found smartphones;
• activate pairing.

Jbl connect

The developers of the Jbl portable speaker are promoting their own application, which gives users advanced configuration options and system updates.

The application is installed on the phone and updated as developers introduce new functions.

The application allows you to activate Stereo and Party modes, which helps to diversify the sound of Boombox.

Using this application, you can also connect about a hundred portable speakers from the same company Jbl for sound.

To ensure the application works properly, it is recommended to update the Jbl speaker system.

Sound

For good sound, there are as many as 4 speakers installed here - two at 100 m and two at 20 mm. The boombox sounds like a real blow to the brain - very powerful and cool.

Neighbors from all nearby yards will come running to hear what kind of miracle this is playing.

At the same time, it is difficult to imagine which track and with what parameters need to be launched in order to cause overload.

It seems impossible. At least, we and other reviewers were unable to achieve such a result.

Just try turning on the JBL Boombox in the forest! You will be shocked by how strong the sound this unit produces. Even on the outskirts of the forest, everyone will be aware of what music you listen to.

If you turn on a speaker in a room, all the glass can actually crack. At the very least, the chandelier will definitely shake, as will the walls.

The sound is very dynamic, loud, bright, clear, and the bass is simply mesmerizing. Huge respect to the developers for such a cool product!

Rice. 5. Speaker on the street

You can connect any sound source to the device, be it a smartphone, tablet or miniature player. You can even use Apple technology and listen to tracks from iTunes.

There will never be such variety in apple products. In terms of sound, it can compete with JBL, but in terms of usability, Apple is far behind JBL.

It is noteworthy that there is a mode switch on the back. The device has outdoor and home modes.

In the first, the speaker makes the sound more spacious and loud, and in the first, it makes the sound moderate and less bassy.

It is the street mode that allows you to make every forest dweller feel the full power of such a boombox.

Accordingly, with this approach the battery is consumed much faster. It is worth talking about this aspect of the operation of the device in question in more detail.

Battery

With 24 hours of continuous music listening on a single charge, the Boombox allows you to avoid running out of charge, although users note a decrease in battery life after prolonged use.

How to charge the speaker and how much

The Jbl Boombox is charged in two ways: from the charging power supply or via a cable.

The charge lasts for 6.5 hours, it is recommended to leave it overnight.

The power bank will not charge, since the connector is designed to charge the charging units themselves.

Water protection level ipx7

The coating protects against water so much that Jbl Boombox can be safely immersed in water.

Rain is also not terrible, regardless of the strength of the drops. This removes restrictions on the use of the speaker for users.

Design

The JBL Boombox did not bring any major update to its appearance. The company remains true to its design as a distinctive feature of the brand. And it must be said for good reason. The design, which is already four years old, allows JBL devices to look very fresh and stylish even in 2022. In addition, it sets the company apart from its competitors.

Distinctive features of the design are specially processed rough fabric, which is used instead of the usual plastic from other manufacturers, emitters at the ends, which are quite massive in size, and the company logo, which is visible from afar. Even the power supply did not go unnoticed and received a proprietary design.

All these seemingly insignificant nuances are very captivating when you see the column for the first time. There is a desire to try it out in action as soon as possible. The buttons deserve special attention here. There are no inconvenient sensors; the function keys are easy to find with your hand. There is also a button that allows you to select a playback mode depending on whether you are outdoors or indoors.

The plug covers two USB ports at once. They are needed so that two devices can be charged from the speaker at once. There is also a service connector and a charging input.

Comparison of which is better: Marshall Tufton, Boombox 2, Xtreme 2, Partybox 100, Harman Kardon Go Play

How to distinguish an original from a fake

To purchase an original Boombox portable device, it is recommended to contact only trusted audio equipment stores:

• analogue wireless acoustics Jbl Boombox has documentation in different languages;
• the fake does not have the JBL logo on the outside of the speaker;
• there is no Harman inscription under the logo of the fake;
• The original box is solid and made of high-quality materials;
• the original logo is recessed into the body;
• The fake has worse quality materials;
• The original does not have a micro-USD card slot.

How to turn on a flash drive

In original Jbl speakers, you cannot connect a flash drive directly via a USB port.

The only way is to connect the drive to your smartphone via an OTG cable and set up the connection using Bluetooth or AUX connection.

It’s easier to transfer music to your smartphone and play it via Bluetooth.

Firmware, what is it for?

The firmware of Jbl portable equipment allows you to increase the bass, adjust the volume, and protect against malfunctions.

The firmware also extends the life of Boombox, the speaker works better.

There are several types of substitutions.

Types of replacements:

• power supply;
• battery;
• motherboard;
• Bluetooth;
• speakers;
• cables, connectors.

Control

Under the massive handle you can see the buttons. The largest one is responsible for turning it on and off.

There are also keys for volume up and down, pause/play and Bluetooth on/off.

They are mechanical, there is nothing touchy here, and this is correct, since touch buttons break faster.

It is also worth considering that the boombox is designed for outdoor use.

And there the touch keys may simply stop working. And the mechanics are an eternal and very reliable classic that will remain relevant in many years to come.

Rice. 6. Buttons under the handle

At the back you can see a flap, and behind it there are three USB ports - two for output and one for input (this is if you connect the device with a microUSB-USB cable).

To put it simply, there is one microUSB and two regular USB .

Thanks to them, you can connect a smartphone, tablet, mp3 player or any other similar device to the speaker.

For some reviewers and users, the presence of an AUX input on the same panel seems very surprising.

For reference: AUX is the input that is used for headphones, in other words 3.5 mm or miniJack.

It seems that no one will insert headphones into such a massive speaker to listen to music through them. But it’s worth remembering that there are cables that have a miniJack tip on both ends.

With their help, you can connect any device with a headphone input to the gadget in question. Figure 7 shows such cables.

Rice. 7. Cable with miniJack lugs on both sides

It turns out that the JBL developers simply took into account everything they could take into account! Huge respect to them for this.

Next to the plug is the aforementioned mode switching button.

The currently selected mode lights up. Also a very convenient and simple option.

Rice. 8. Connectors behind the plug

The JBL Connect app is used to work with smartphones and tablets. It is currently available for iOS and Android.

It's sad, but like other applications for setting up various devices on smartphones and tablets, JBL Connect has an extremely low rating in app stores.

Users traditionally complain about glitches and freezes.

In addition, it is not always possible to establish a connection. You can read about it yourself using the above links.

But if you still manage to connect, various operating modes will become available.

For example, there is a "Party" mode , in which all available devices are connected.

That is, your friends can bring their speakers, and together you will have a bomb party!

The cops will show up...and be forced to join the party because the sound is really cool.

Rice. 9. JBL Connect