The Best Portable Speakers on Amazon, According to Hyperenthusiastic Reviewers
The well-reviewed JBL Charge 3 can also connect to other JBL speakers via PartyBoost Mode, though it’s slightly less powerful (in volume and in bass) than the Xtreme 2 above. One reviewer who used to own the original JBL Charge model says the Charge 3 “blows the older out of the water.” They also prefer the smaller Charge 3 over the JBL Extreme, which they purchased and returned. “I wanted a more intertwined and seamed-together theater sound,” they write. The Xtreme had too much bass, but two Charge 3 speakers felt just right. After connecting the two to create a kind of surround-sound setup, the speakers make you feel as if “the singer is directly in front of you,” they explain. “JBL hit it out of the ballpark on these guys.” Another reviewer says this quality is something all JBL speakers share. “JBL is in it, to win it. I own the JBL Xtreme, the Charge 2+ and now the Charge 3. If I had to pick one it would be the Charge 3,” they write. They say this is because the Charge 3 is louder than the Charge 2+, yet smaller than the Xtreme, making it the Goldilocks option in terms of sound and portability. “The sound is very well-balanced with an emphasis on midrange and vocals … yet the volume can go twice as loud as the Charge 2+ and almost as loud as the Xtreme,” they write. “Kudos to JBL for making an already great speaker even better.”