As the good ole shock jock Plato so eloquently put it, music is the movement of sound to reach the soul for the education of its virtue. Loudspeakers are instrumental for that kind of education.
A crossover network, transducers, an enclosure, additional parts and the complicated interactions of the aforementioned parts form the system of a loudspeaker.
A system more complex than the aforementioned paragraph would have you think: Each and every facet of a loudspeaker’s performance and the resulting cost comes with a trade-off, which makes it difficult to come loudspeakers from different manufacturers.
Sure, one might be able to compare single specifications, but then again it does not speak for the performance as a whole.
As I spend quite a bit of time on the road and enjoy the odd tune, I have used a range of speakers, most wireless / Bluetoothy ones, some good, some bad, ones that will make high fidelity aficionados cringe and others that would audiophile fascists smile.
If you are what the French refer to as a melomane and are used to the emissions of your Wilson Alexandria XLF speakers amplified by VTL Siegfried Reference II monoblock amps, a portable Bluetooth speaker might not be the one for you, but speakers that can be connected via Bluetooth are for sure an interesting breed – especially for travel.
Let’s see what is out there:
Bose
What has Bose come to stand for?
Well, for me at least “Bose” means excellent design, great sound and a bigger price tag.
Bose’s SoundLink Revolve Plus Bluetooth speaker ticks all the boxes and fits the stereotype: Emitting excellent sounds for its compact size, comes with a built-in handle and is hence easy transportable and resistant to water. Battery life is not bad at 16 hours; comes with the added bonus of a threaded tripod mount on the bottom of the speaker and an inbuilt microphone to attend to phone calls.
As with most Bose products, it’s a device at the premium end of the scale. Design-wise, it is reminiscent of a lantern emitting sound instead of light and the merits of its design lie in its ability to produce clarity in terms of sound clear without distortion. A cool feature, however, I rarely find opportunity to crank shit up to 11 when on the road and unless you want to make sure that the Trap part of your intoxicated DJ-set hits the nooks of the Stinkdrüse youth hostel you are residing at, it is not essential.
Summa summarum, Bose as Bose can.
Marshall
Marshall, the English company commonly known for designing and manufacturing music amplifiers and speaker cabinets, moved into the headphone space quite a while ago and adding loudspeakers to the mix as well: Enter the Marshall Kilburn.
With its timeless design—referred to by some people as “nostalgic,” Marshall’s line of speakers will appeal to both the design and fashion conscious, just as much as it will to the audiophile crowd.
Spoiler alert: It sound as good as it is sturdy too.
The speaker is styled after Marshall’s iconic guitar amps with the iconic logo on front, and the trademark grille. It features two tweeters and a single woofer crammed in its rather large 242 x 140 x 140mm chassis. Weighing in at 3 kg, this one is on the heavy side of things when it comes to traveling, yet is comparatively light given the quality engineering and its power: Clear midrange and extended highs for a sound that is both articulate and pronounced. The analogue brushed metal knobs (with the right level of resistance, no flimsy crap here) allow to fine tune the controls.
Battery life is rated for a solid 20 hours of playback action. The battery can be replaced, which is a feature that a lot of other portable speakers lack.
Ultimate Ears
Sure, a lot of Bluetooth speakers are water-resistant – an ideal attribute to use them close to the sea, your local lagoon and when Hugh Hefner invites you to get groovy in the grotto in the Playboy Mansion.
Enter the Wonderboom: A floating, waterproof device with 10-hour battery life and basic yet respectable sound quality for a speaker of this size.
Bang and Olufsen
Oh, you are into design? Got it.
Peep the B&O Play Beolit 17.
Bang and Olufsen do not fuck around when it comes to design: Anodized aluminum grille, authentic full-grain leather handle, durable polymer, dished rubber top for your mobile phone -- crafted to near perfection.
With a battery life of up to 24 hours and a feature that tells you how much juice is left along with being able to be charged via a USB lead, it is a practicable thing of beauty.
Sound-wise it destroys: 240 watts of peak power dispersing an authentic and clean sound at a full 360 degrees, with minimal distortion even at high volumes, even to fill a large auditorium.
Expensive? Yes, but probably one of my favourite Bluetooth speakers.
Let’s look into more affordable options:
The Jam Heavy Metal HX-P920 is value for money.
With up to 8-hour battery and a comparatively sleek design reminiscent of the Bose SoundLink Mini, its dual drivers and a dual passive bass radiator generate a bold, crisp, detailed treble and bassy sound out of its small aluminum frame.
Into affordable retro rock vibes? Then the guitar amp-themed GPO Westwood Bluetooth Speaker Jam Heavy Metal HX-P920 was made for you.
Via Bluetooth or an RCA audio cable, 25 watts of sound can instantly be added to all your favorite tunes. It looks like a proper classic guitar amplifier from the cloth grille to the faux leather skin over its carefully crafted frame. Beautifully built frame, with the working and sturdy EQ knobs adding a particularly nice touch, yet only a lean (26 x 11 x 17.5cm) weighing in at only 1.8 kg. It sounds great and offers an impressive scale from such a small box, reaching high volumes with minimal distortion and decent stereo separation.
Like it small?
Look no further, the palm sized Creative Muvo 2c Bluetooth speaker comes with a splash-proof shell, passive radiator and includes an MP3 player via microSD.
Very affordable and compact in size, it does not lack in oomph. The output is much bigger than the taut size would have you think at first glance. 6-hour battery life won’t get you coast to coast but small size comes with its limitation. They come in flashy colours, fit in the smallest of bags and come with a rubberized finish for extra grip when you are all greased up with sun lotion.
If you pair two of them up, you got some serious stereo vibes going.
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Bose, Marshall, Ultimate Ears, Bang & Olufsen, Jam Audio, Rockit / GPO and Creative sell a variety of speakers available at their respective websites:
