Any recommendations on a big bluetooth speaker for around 200?

[JamesTheFirst]

I recently purchased a Soundcore Motion Boom plus, so that i could have a powerful speaker that i could grab on the go and not worry about it.
Was never looking for the most high-end sound, just a good option with a good enough sound that itd be pleasant to listen to on the go.

However, even tho i really like the speaker, i couldn't overlook the lack of subbass. The bass roll-off is pretty okay up until about 55Hz - 60Hz (results may vary), bellow that there is nothing really.

Can anyone help me with any recommendations on big bluetooth speakers with decent and powerful sound for around 200 bucks?

PS.: I was tempted by the tribit stormbox blast and the tronsmart halo 200 (the latter one being a bit too awkward to carry), but id like to know if anyone knows about any brands that im not aware of or good deals in the 2nd hand market that i havent found yet.

Thanks for your time!

 

[sweetchaos]

Rtings has a decent database (131 speakers so far!) of Portable / Bluetooth speakers:

Speaker Reviews: Best of 2024

133 Speaker reviews. Start with our picks for the best speakers below. These are the ones we recommend based on our testing and in-depth speaker reviews.

www.rtings.com

for quick recommendations...but if you want to dive deeper into the data, look at their Table tool.

Here's the link that I customized for you, to include columns:
1. Low Frequency Extension
2. SPL at Max Volume
3. Bluetooth = YES
4. Filtered by 200 usd max

Speaker Table Tool

www.rtings.com

Result: 40 speakers

 

[Karmacoma]

Well asking sub bass for a 200€ bluetooth speaker might be asking for too much.
One of the best sound quality/money bluetooth speaker i've heard is the Audio Pro C10 , good build quality (nice brand overall btw), good output for the size, around 250€ at the moment, really worth a try, all their bluetooth speakers are nice.

Edit: it's a wired bluetooth speaker, no battery, for 200€ you won't get better than what you got with a battery.

Just for fun for around 850€ a lil' french company sells this

https://www.peopeo.io/product/enceinte-voodoo-plus-origine/

You'll get sub bass with this no doubt! You can even pair 2 lol

 

[kemmler3D]

I recently purchased a Soundcore Motion Boom plus, so that i could have a powerful speaker that i could grab on the go and not worry about it.
Was never looking for the most high-end sound, just a good option with a good enough sound that itd be pleasant to listen to on the go.

However, even tho i really like the speaker, i couldn't overlook the lack of subbass. The bass roll-off is pretty okay up until about 55Hz - 60Hz (results may vary), bellow that there is nothing really.

Can anyone help me with any recommendations on big bluetooth speakers with decent and powerful sound for around 200 bucks?

PS.: I was tempted by the tribit stormbox blast and the tronsmart halo 200 (the latter one being a bit too awkward to carry), but id like to know if anyone knows about any brands that im not aware of or good deals in the 2nd hand market that i havent found yet.

Thanks for your time!

If you want to go way deep in bass with BT speakers you're going to get mixed results around $200. The only truly serious portable BT speaker is the Soundboks. It claims that it goes down to 40hz and can put out 126dB SPL, supposedly. Only $999. A steal!

In seriousness tho, IIRC the JBL stuff had some of the best bass and overall SPL back when I was in the biz.

House of Markley also has really good sound for the money, maybe not the maximum bass tho.

 

[JamesTheFirst]

If you want to go way deep in bass with BT speakers you're going to get mixed results around $200. The only truly serious portable BT speaker is the Soundboks. It claims that it goes down to 40hz and can put out 126dB SPL, supposedly. Only $999. A steal!

In seriousness tho, IIRC the JBL stuff had some of the best bass and overall SPL back when I was in the biz.

House of Markley also has really good sound for the money, maybe not the maximum bass tho.

Ive looked at Soundboks and unfortunately, it is quite a bit out of budget for me. (126db is crazy for a BT speaker, damn!)

Personally, i am not the biggest fan of the JBL Boom Box series, even tho i think they sound quite decent! Good bass extension (a bit boomy but one can get over it) and the highs are pretty detailed, but the overall package just isnt supper appealing for the price point.

Do you think House of Marley speakers would be a decent candidate? The bass doesnt have to be overbearing or anything, i just dont want the lack of range to take away from the music I hear

 

[JamesTheFirst]

Well asking sub bass for a 200€ bluetooth speaker might be asking for too much.
One of the best sound quality/money bluetooth speaker i've heard is the Audio Pro C10 , good build quality (nice brand overall btw), good output for the size, around 250€ at the moment, really worth a try, all their bluetooth speakers are nice.

Edit: it's a wired bluetooth speaker, no battery, for 200€ you won't get better than what you got with a battery.

Just for fun for around 850€ a lil' french company sells this

https://www.peopeo.io/product/enceinte-voodoo-plus-origine/

You'll get sub bass with this no doubt! You can even pair 2 lol

Yeah i realize its a bit of a tall order. I am mainly trying to see if someone has found a "hidden gem" so to speak.
Money is tight for me, so i want to feel like i get the most i can for what i pay for, y'know?

1) Thanks for the audio pro recommendation! haven't looked at them in a while and they might have something that suits the purpose
2) that backpack speaker looks so funky ahaha absolutely love it

 

[JamesTheFirst]

Rtings has a decent database (131 speakers so far!) of Portable / Bluetooth speakers:

Speaker Reviews: Best of 2024

133 Speaker reviews. Start with our picks for the best speakers below. These are the ones we recommend based on our testing and in-depth speaker reviews.

www.rtings.com

for quick recommendations...but if you want to dive deeper into the data, look at their Table tool.

Here's the link that I customized for you, to include columns:
1. Low Frequency Extension
2. SPL at Max Volume
3. Bluetooth = YES
4. Filtered by 200 usd max

Speaker Table Tool

www.rtings.com

Result: 40 speakers

Thank you so much!

Had no idea about this platform; having a searchable database makes things so much easier

 

[LTig]

What about the Behringer PK112a or PK115a? No battery though.

 

[kemmler3D]

Ive looked at Soundboks and unfortunately, it is quite a bit out of budget for me. (126db is crazy for a BT speaker, damn!)

Personally, i am not the biggest fan of the JBL Boom Box series, even tho i think they sound quite decent! Good bass extension (a bit boomy but one can get over it) and the highs are pretty detailed, but the overall package just isnt supper appealing for the price point.

Do you think House of Marley speakers would be a decent candidate? The bass doesnt have to be overbearing or anything, i just dont want the lack of range to take away from the music I hear

Back when I worked at a company that made/sold BT speakers, we kept the House of Marley Bag of Riddim 2 around the office as our sound quality reference for anything under $300. We made sure to buy credible new speakers in the price range and test them out, but we ended up returning them all, the HOM stayed.

This was a while ago, so better speakers might have come out by now, but that one was the all-around favorite. Definitely a cleaner sound than the JBLs, but not quite as loud or perhaps a bit less bass.

 

[JamesTheFirst]

What about the Behringer PK112a or PK115a? No battery though.

Never had the chance to try them but both the reviews and the specs seem great for the price, so thanks for the recommendation! However, i was looking for something that i could take with me, which would require a battery

 

[JamesTheFirst]

Update:

Im pretty sure im going to pull the trigger on the Tribit Stormbox Blast. Both from people's reviews (mostly Olav really lol) and all the measurements, the sound seems to be more full and impactful at most volumes. Not only that but the treble is so clear for a boombox type speaker!

Either way, if anyone has any more suggestions please don't hold back, i will procrastinate and do copious amounts of research and consider every single thing you throw at me

PS.: thank you @kemmler3D for recommending HOM, i will try to find a way to give the Bag of Riddim 2 a listen before deciding on the Tribit

 

[sweetchaos]

I hear a while back that Olav stopped doing YouTube videos and went the route of Patreon?

Please correct me if I’m wrong.

 

[AwesomeSauce2015]

While I am not really an expert here, I will throw in my recommendation for the JBL speakers, though I do see your post about how they aren't your favorite. To me, they just sound good. I don't use them as a replacement for a proper speaker system, just as something that sounds pretty nice and can get decently loud when I am working outside, in the garage, or am out on the lake.

The truth of the matter is that physics holds. You can pick two of these three things: Loud, "efficient" (long battery life), or deep bass.
If you are looking for something portable or battery powered, most manufacturers sacrifice the sub-60hz bass in exchange for more 60-200hz bass.
You should also consider that in order to have strong output in the 30-60hz range, you need large speaker drivers with lots of power behind them (ie, a 12" subwoofer). Most bluetooth speakers don't have large subwoofer drivers because they are big and draw a lot of power.

Stuff like the Soundboks are basically PA speakers, just worse. They sacrifice basically all low bass extension to maximize efficiency. They also sound horrendous the few times I have heard them... If you are looking for something like that, then a proper PA speaker from someone like JBL would be a much better bet.

However, if you really want the sub-60hz bass, you will need subwoofers. There just isn't any other way to do it, and with your budget, I would just focus on finding something that sounds nice to you rather than solely chasing that last octave of bass.

 

[thewas]

I hear a while back that Olav stopped doing YouTube videos and went the route of Patreon?

Please correct me if I’m wrong.

That is correct, so for free only rtings.com comes to my mind as a good source for objective comparisons of such loudspeakers.

 

[kemmler3D]

Update:

Im pretty sure im going to pull the trigger on the Tribit Stormbox Blast. Both from people's reviews (mostly Olav really lol) and all the measurements, the sound seems to be more full and impactful at most volumes. Not only that but the treble is so clear for a boombox type speaker!

Either way, if anyone has any more suggestions please don't hold back, i will procrastinate and do copious amounts of research and consider every single thing you throw at me

PS.: thank you @kemmler3D for recommending HOM, i will try to find a way to give the Bag of Riddim 2 a listen before deciding on the Tribit

Olav is a real one and Tribit was always one to watch in the $50 or less range if I remember correctly. I haven't heard their newer stuff.

 

[JamesTheFirst]

While I am not really an expert here, I will throw in my recommendation for the JBL speakers, though I do see your post about how they aren't your favorite. To me, they just sound good. I don't use them as a replacement for a proper speaker system, just as something that sounds pretty nice and can get decently loud when I am working outside, in the garage, or am out on the lake.

The truth of the matter is that physics holds. You can pick two of these three things: Loud, "efficient" (long battery life), or deep bass.
If you are looking for something portable or battery powered, most manufacturers sacrifice the sub-60hz bass in exchange for more 60-200hz bass.
You should also consider that in order to have strong output in the 30-60hz range, you need large speaker drivers with lots of power behind them (ie, a 12" subwoofer). Most bluetooth speakers don't have large subwoofer drivers because they are big and draw a lot of power.

Stuff like the Soundboks are basically PA speakers, just worse. They sacrifice basically all low bass extension to maximize efficiency. They also sound horrendous the few times I have heard them... If you are looking for something like that, then a proper PA speaker from someone like JBL would be a much better bet.

However, if you really want the sub-60hz bass, you will need subwoofers. There just isn't any other way to do it, and with your budget, I would just focus on finding something that sounds nice to you rather than solely chasing that last octave of bass.

Thank you for the feedback!
I really like Jbl, most of their products make a lot of sense and sound pretty good! I cant give you a reasonable explanation as to why i dont buy stuff from Jbl, i guess one could say i like the feeling of paying half the price for 90% of the product, which is something I can do in many product categories with how the prices are in my country (very inflated for popular brands like Jbl).
And yes, i understand that the bass extension in anything with small drivers will never be as good as having a proper sub. I mean, hell, my mom's crummy logitech 2.1 setup might sound awful, but it does have some punch lol.
The thing for me is the portability - I am in College in a mountainous area, which means me and my friends go on hikes and cliff jumping often enough for me to want decent portable sound. Been looking at boombox-type speakers and tbh the Jbl Boombox 3 is pretty much unbeatable. But i do not have that kind of budget, so the tribit seems like the way to go

Either way, thank you for your feedback and concern. I am quite new to this and im always a bit shy about saying something wrong in these forums where everyone seems to be much more knowledgeable than me (and especially with english not being my native language)

 

[JamesTheFirst]

While I am not really an expert here, I will throw in my recommendation for the JBL speakers, though I do see your post about how they aren't your favorite. To me, they just sound good. I don't use them as a replacement for a proper speaker system, just as something that sounds pretty nice and can get decently loud when I am working outside, in the garage, or am out on the lake.

The truth of the matter is that physics holds. You can pick two of these three things: Loud, "efficient" (long battery life), or deep bass.
If you are looking for something portable or battery powered, most manufacturers sacrifice the sub-60hz bass in exchange for more 60-200hz bass.
You should also consider that in order to have strong output in the 30-60hz range, you need large speaker drivers with lots of power behind them (ie, a 12" subwoofer). Most bluetooth speakers don't have large subwoofer drivers because they are big and draw a lot of power.

Stuff like the Soundboks are basically PA speakers, just worse. They sacrifice basically all low bass extension to maximize efficiency. They also sound horrendous the few times I have heard them... If you are looking for something like that, then a proper PA speaker from someone like JBL would be a much better bet.

However, if you really want the sub-60hz bass, you will need subwoofers. There just isn't any other way to do it, and with your budget, I would just focus on finding something that sounds nice to you rather than solely chasing that last octave of bass.

Just a fun something to add to what you said, i recently saw the insides of some Vifa bluetooth speakers and i was legitimately impressed with their range and output considering the size of drivers they use! They can have something like 2 small woofers and 2 tweeters and something like 4 small passive radiators (which is a very weird setup) and still sound great and with very good bass extension - took me by surprise.
Legitimately producing enjoyable sound below 60Hz to 50Hz from such a setup shocked me in a good way! Take a look at some teardown vids if you have the chance