JBL Charge 5 Portable Bluetooth Speaker with Deep Bass, IP67 Waterproof and Dustproof, 20 Hours of Playtime, Built-In Powerbank, Black

Update: March 2024.I have now bought a second Charge 5, to allow stereo pairing. To say the sound blows me away is an understatement. Individually, the Charge 5 is a fantastic speaker, and I raved about it in my original review below. As a stereo pair, the sound is taken up to another level! For around £250 for both speakers, you have room filling separation, fabulous open clarity, rich bass, and of course the total versatility that portable Bluetooth speakers can bring! The pairing process is easy, via the JBL Portable App, and takes seconds. The reward is immense. I urge you to buy one. Then I urge you to buy a second.Original review:I really love this speaker for so many reasons. Mainly of course the sound quality. That’s the most important aspect of any speaker for me. The sound from the Charge 5 is open and clear, I hear so much detail, even in complex musical passages.There was plenty of charge when firing it up for the first time, pairing was immediate, and the JBL portable app was also an immediate success. The unit feels substantial and robust, even though I have no intention of taking it to the beach, submerging it in water, and my pool party days are long gone!! Hang on, I’ve never been to pool party!!From playing my first tracks, I was aware of a wide grin on my face! This unit may be top quality, but it’s also fun! It makes you smile. The opposite was true for me, with a Sony SRS-XG300 that I bought at the same time - tempted by a great Black Friday deal on the Sony. I returned the Sony and will buy a second Charge 5 to have the option of stereo pairing.Back to the Charge 5. I was very happy with the clarity of the sound fresh from the box, and even happier with some mild tweaking of the app equaliser. It didn’t make a huge difference, but a subtle one. I do have various other portable Bluetooth speakers, including a Soundcore motion boom plus, but I can already tell the Charge 5 will become my go-to choice. My Audio Pro Addon C5A has beautiful rich sound, but is of course mains only.I’d read so many reviews of various speakers, and the Charge 5 usually is very favourable reviewed, especially by What Hi-Fi, where it gets many awards. I can now understand why. This is an absolute joy, and will make me listen to even more music than I already do! I’m a very VERY happy buyer.

I am a bit into hifi and things, so I have always been sceptical about bluetooth speakers and even more so about boom boxes with lights etc.The hifi is nice, but you wouldn't take it to your bathroom while having a shower, or next to your bed while reading, or to the park. So, I decided to give this speaker a go.I investigated first and a few key points made me go for this option:- no lights and other unecessary things- clean and nice design (related to the above)- has a mid woofer and separate tweeter which should increase clarity and range- long battery lifeOk. I got it out of the box and I was impressed. It would be completely stupid to compare it with the hifi sound on Focal floor standers and class B amplifier.So I will be referencing my impressions for what it is,a portable speaker. And man, this thing delivers.My view.The speaker sounds clear, it plays well with many different genres of music, playing rock tunes lovely and clearly (the dedicated tweeter surely helps).The sound signature is V shaped, which means it is slightly equalized to increase the highest and lowest frequencies. This is normal for regular listeners, a flat response would not sound nice on such speaker. Having said that, the bass is not exagerated and the extra bit helps when using it outside, for sure.The sound is directional, so the best sound comes from the front (where the JBL logo is).The speaker maintains a really good sound signature at low volume, which is perfect for when going to a park and you don't want to disturb others, or while reading with some background music.It does have plenty of volume to fill up a room with sound. I haven't tried pairing it with another speaker, something you can apparently do. I do not have another one, I expect the result to be satisfying. But for bigger setups I would always recommend an hifi set, even with bookshelf speakers.Me and my girlfriend used the speaker for a few hours so far and the battery hasn't yet even dropped below 50%. In fact, we haven't yet had to charge it since it came out of the box!The speaker can be updated using the JBL app using the mobile phone.It is rated to be water and dust resistant, but I haven't tried that. I guess it is a bonus for when using it in the misty bathroom while showering, or if it gets a bit wet carrying it in the park. I don't see any point to put it on water on purpose.In short.It is an expensive speaker, no doubt. But if like me you listen to some variety of music that doesn't need just bass, you find rgb and lights to be a minus rather than a bonus, you like sometimes to listen to it at low volume... This speaker is absolutely perfect for that and it is worth the small extra investment.Consider also that bluetooth is a constantly evolving technology, so it lasts less than an analog system. This speaker uses the latest bluetooth standards, so it will last you for a bit longer.You always have your hifi when you want to get the full listening experience, but this thing will get a nice smile on your face :)

Love it, amazing bass, impressive sound quality from an impact size, it can goes really loud and still very rich and smooth. Connect within 5 sec once you turn on and paired previous. Great size, good weight, portable and easy to carry around. Smart looking, very pleased overall.