First impressions of the JBL Partybox 100 portable speakers

4.5/5 — (25 votes)

The Jbl Partybox 100 Bluetooth speaker can also be called portable, since it is a stand-alone multimedia device, portable - there are two handles on the body, by holding which even a teenager can move it over short distances due to its heavy weight.

Review

With the help of the Partybox 100 speaker, thanks to the built-in battery, you can arrange not only a disco with lighting effects, but even a small concert with vocals accompanied by an electric guitar.

The body of the Jbl 100 speaker is made of shockproof polystyrene. On the front part there are 2 high-frequency and low-frequency speakers.

Each of the woofers is enclosed in a ring of LED backlighting, and strobes are located at the bottom and top between the HF speakers.

Sound and light devices Jbl Party Box 100 are protected by a durable metal mesh.

Both sides have rubberized inserts, which allows you to use the speaker in a horizontal position.

On the back of Partybox 100 in the upper part there are connectors:

• USB - for recharging a smartphone or tablet, as well as connecting an external storage device;
• input, AUX output;
• connectors with volume controls for microphones and electric guitars.

At the bottom of the rear side there is a bass reflex bell and a connector for the network cable.

At the bottom of the column there is a carrying handle and a hole hidden under the cover for installing Partybox 100 on a stand.

The upper part of the device is occupied by a groove for installing a speaker, a carrying handle, a control panel consisting of an LED charge level indicator, and mechanical control buttons, which are designed to:

• turning on the network;
• turning on Bluetooth;
• turning on light music, switching its three display modes;
• start/pause track;
• decrease volume;
• increasing the volume;
• turn on BASS BUST.

What does the JBL Partybox On-The-Go look like?

The speaker is moderately angular, and on the back wall it has a soft insert with a leather-like finish . This is probably done to make it more pleasant to carry on your shoulder. There is nothing on the sides except the brand logo, and I would not recommend installing On-The-Go on the side edges - there are no adjustments on them , unlike the bottom part with its rubber feet.

All controls are located on the top between the strap eyelets, and the connectors are on both the top and bottom. The only mystery for me for the first few minutes were the small stretching loops on the back wall . I even pulled on them, trying to remove the wall, but it’s good that I didn’t put much effort. These are actually places to mount microphones.

The microphone mount on the body is brilliant!

Sound

The sound of the Partybox speaker, like all audio systems produced by JBL, is powerful and clear.

For the Jbl speaker, all genres, from hard-rhythmic to gentle, melodic, sound of unusual quality.

The BASS BUST street mode will captivate fans of heavy, danceable electronic music.

What makes the sound special is the low-frequency section, which is built on a bass-reflex circuit.

Fans of loud sound will be pleased that at a volume level of 90%, detail deteriorates slightly, but wheezing and blocking do not appear throughout the entire frequency range.

When connected directly to the mains, the Partybox 100's sound volume increases.

Attention! Since the bass reflex hole is located on the back of the Partybox 100 speaker, it should not be placed close to the wall.

Characteristics table

Battery

The operating time stated by the company (12 hours) is a bit exaggerated.

Verification tests with the backlight turned off show that the maximum operating time of Jbl at a volume level of 50% is 8 hours, and at 100% it falls short of 4 hours.

But this battery also has an advantage - it charges quickly.

Connection

Reference. JBL Partybox 100 clearly synchronizes with smartphones, tablets and laptops with a Bluetooth version of at least 2.1.

Connection to the signal source occurs in the following order:

• turn on the transmitting device;
• on the switched-on speaker, press the button with the Bluetooth icon;
• find the speaker on the device in the list of Bluetooth devices;
• connect by clicking on the line with the name Partybox 100.

The next time you connect Partybox 100, pairing will occur automatically.

Powerful portable speaker

The maximum power of On-The-Go is quite high - 100 W , and inside it has one large woofer with a diameter of 133 mm . , two 44 mm tweeters work with him . Together they are capable of producing frequencies from 50 to 20,000 Hz .

Naturally, you have to listen to the sound to form your own opinion about it, but if you describe it in a few words, you can say that this is the signature JBL sound. If you've owned and liked speakers from this brand before, you'll likely be pleased with the sound of the JBL Partybox On-The-Go.

These handles are very comfortable to carry. They are on both sides

Functions

In addition to the basic functions of portable acoustics, such as playing music tracks offline via wired and wireless communications, Jbl

Partybox 100 has other features:

1. Light and music accompaniment using LED ring-shaped panels, stroboscopic lights (3 operating modes with separate, complete shutdown).
2. True Wireless Stereo - the ability to synchronously connect another similar speaker to the device.
3. BASS BUST - Boosts low frequencies when playing music in an open space.
4. Availability of a USB port for connecting an external drive onto which you can record a pre-prepared music program.
5. Possibility of connecting a microphone for karaoke and electronic guitar.

What does the JBL Partybox On-The-Go sound like?

The sound is powerful and assertive. If the low frequencies aren't enough for you, there's a Bass Boost mode. When I listened to music from this speaker at home, I wanted to turn it off, but on the street this function really saves. If you already lack power, volume and volume, ask your friends. What if someone has a similar speaker? Then it will be possible to combine them into a TWS pair and accordingly double the power of the system. And if On-The-Go are placed on different sides, this will further enhance the sound effect. True, such a combination (like one speaker) will work for no more than 6 hours on a single charge. But for many this will be enough.

When the music is powered by a battery, you can take it with you anywhere. A bottle opener on your belt will become an important attribute of a picnic.

Personally, I really like bright elements on the body of any product. In this case, they were the branded orange rubber inserts on the handles. They are not conspicuous, but coquettishly peek out from under the massive plastic, creating exactly the effect that I like.

Convenient speaker with a carabiner - JBL Clip 4 review.

And also, like the larger speakers in the series, On-The-Go can work with color music. There is an LED ring around the main speaker. You can turn it off completely or choose one of three operating modes - the lights will run to the beat of the music in a circle, chaotically or from top to bottom. The effect is quite interesting, but I didn’t have enough strobe lights, like in the JBL Partybox 310.

Such lighting will definitely not be superfluous. But, if anything happens, you can turn it off.

Which is better Jbl Boombox, Partybox 100 or Partybox 300

Comparison table of JBL analogue speakers:

Each of the Jbl speakers under review has its own advantages and disadvantages.

Party Box 100 is much inferior to the other two in terms of autonomy, especially Boombox.

However, for an outdoor disco, a concert in the forest or on the beach, 4 hours of continuous operation at 100% volume is enough, and when using the speaker indoors, it can be connected to the network.

The battery capacity of Partybox 300 is increased by 4 times. There is also the possibility of connecting to a car battery, but energy consumption also increases due to the higher power of the speaker.

In addition, not everyone will be able to pay an additional 8 thousand rubles for all these benefits.

Each of these models is good, and the merit of JBL is that the variety of products will satisfy any owner.

First impressions of the JBL Partybox 100 portable speakers

Over a long period of time, I have owned a large number of speakers. Originals and copies, some speakers were very disappointing, even though they were expensive, while others surprised us with their sound quality. Today I will tell you about the rather large and not cheap JBL Partybox 100 speaker. It fell into my hands by accident, and immediately amazed me with its advantages. And now more details.

Specifications

Packaging and equipment

Since the speaker came into my hands unexpectedly, I did not keep the box and packaging. But, I want to note that the speaker was securely packed in a cardboard box with foam inside, so the speaker was not damaged during transportation. Along with the speaker there is also one power cable and instructions, which, in principle, I never needed. I don’t think it’s worth focusing on the cable either.

Appearance

This acoustics is of an unusual size. It is much larger than the usual speakers that we are used to, but it is not huge either (dimensions at the beginning of the publication). The column can be placed both horizontally and vertically. It is convenient to carry from place to place, and if you place it vertically, it will take up very little space. The sides of the speaker are rubberized, so it is convenient to place it on almost any surface.

On the front of the speaker we see speakers that are protected by a special mesh. On the back are all the necessary connectors and a sticker with brief characteristics and the name of the speaker. On the side there are music control and on/off buttons.

You should also not forget about the speaker illumination. The backlight is quite bright and changes colors to the beat of the music. You can turn the backlight on and off by pressing just one button.

Functionality and autonomy

The column has 4 speakers: two 5.25 13cm woofers and two 2.25 tweeters, and there is also a buffer. The speaker system literally produces power up to 160 watts.

Now let's take a closer look at the connectors on the speaker.

• USB connector. You can connect various flash drives or external batteries to recharge the speaker.
• AUX input and output, there is no need to even explain here, you can connect a lot: from a laptop to an additional speaker.
• Microphone input size 6.5. You can adjust the volume, you can turn on echo. (Yes, yes, you can also play songs using a speaker).
• 6.5 mm guitar input with volume and preamp adjustment.

I would also like to note that the guitar and microphone can work either separately or together.

The control buttons are also simple. There are all the standard buttons: on/off, volume control “+” and “-”, turning on Bluetooth, backlight and also a Bass Boost button, when pressed the bass will be heard more clearly. It is better to turn on this button outdoors. There is also a speaker charge indicator. It only lights up when the speaker is running.

The speaker reproduces sound perfectly in large and small rooms, and also works quite well and loudly outdoors. The speaker can last up to 12 hours without recharging (not at the highest volume). The speaker is fully charged in about six hours. The speaker quickly “connects” to devices. Unfortunately, I couldn’t check how well it works with other speakers or a guitar. But if you have had such experience, then share it in the comments.

Impression and conclusion

I am very glad that such a speaker fell into my hands, and I was able to fully enjoy loud music. The speaker will really appeal to those who like to relax in nature or at sea, but sometimes the volume is not enough. It is worth remembering that the speaker weighs as much as 10 kg, but this is a small minus for such good acoustics. The speaker has already been with us outdoors and has never disappointed, it worked without glitches, did not freeze, and lasted quite a long time at medium volume. For those who like to sing, such a speaker will also be suitable, and there will be no need to go to karaoke. The speaker is loud and bright, a separate plus is the backlight, I am quite pleased with such high-quality acoustics.

JBL Partybox 100

Well, that's all for today. I hope my first impressions of the column were useful to you and that it was interesting to read. And if you want to find more similar reviews, then go to my blog on the site, there is also a lot of interesting stuff there.

Minuses

• Heavy weight (for long-distance transportation you will have to use a cart).
• The battery capacity is not sufficient for long-term operation of the speaker at maximum sound volume with the strobes and BASS BUST mode turned on.
• There is no dust or moisture protection.
• No JBL Connect+ feature.
• No display.

Reference. When connecting the drive via a USB port, it is impossible to fully manage the playlist. Jbl tracks are played in the order they were recorded on the playlist, but by double-clicking on the “Start” button you can immediately go to the next one.