JBL Xtreme 2 Speaker Review

Estimated read time 5 min read

The JBL Xtreme 2 is a portable Bluetooth speaker that’s fairly good for most uses, thanks to its portable build and well-balanced mid-range that can clearly produce vocals and lead instruments. It has an IPX7 rating for water resistance, although we don’t currently test for this. There’s also a bottle opener built into its carrying strap, so you can enjoy drinks while listening to your audio. Unfortunately, it lacks some low-bass and doesn’t have a graphic EQ for tweaking its sound. However, it’s suitable for use in large or crowded rooms since it can get quite loud, although there is some compression at max volume.

JBL Xtreme 2 Speaker Review

Design & Build Quality

JBLXtreme2 thmb

The JBL Xtreme 2 is a medium-sized cylindrical speaker that’s meant to sit horizontally. Each side of the speaker has a bass radiator, which helps produce a resonant bass sound. There are two low-profile hooks on top of the speaker for attaching the carrying strap. The carrying strap also has a built-in bottle opener, so you can enjoy drinks while listening to your audio content. It also comes in five colors, so you can find the look that best suits your taste.

The JBL Xtreme 2 is remarkably portable. It’s lightweight, and it uses a battery, so you can use it outdoors. You can also carry it with one hand thanks to the carrying strap that you can attach to it.

The JBL Xtreme 2 has a good build quality. Most of the speaker is covered with a tight fabric that makes it feel sturdy. It has an IPX7 rating for water resistance, although we don’t currently test for this. There are also two built-in hooks on top of the speaker that let you attach its carrying strap. The strap includes a built-in bottle opener, so you can enjoy drinks while you listen to your audio. The plastic sides of the speaker can attract fingerprints, although they’re easy to wipe off.

Sound Quality

JBL Xtreme 2 - Sound Quality

The JBL Xtreme 2 has reasonable frequency response accuracy. It has a balanced mid-range, so it can reproduce vocals and lead instruments clearly. The treble range is a bit underemphasized, so higher frequencies may sound dull or veiled. It struggles to produce low-bass, so you don’t feel the deep thump and rumble in bass-heavy genres like EDM and hip-hop. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have an EQ to let you adjust its sound profile.

The JBL Xtreme 2 has a decent soundstage. It can play stereo content without downmixing it to mono, but its soundstage is slightly directional, so it doesn’t sound very immersive. There’s also an overemphasis in the treble range, which can make the soundstage seem uneven.

The JBL Xtreme 2 has okay dynamics. It can get fairly loud, which makes it suitable for use in large or crowded rooms. However, there are some compression artifacts present at max volume.

Battery Life

JBL Xtreme 2 - Battery Life

The JBL Xtreme 2 has a remarkable battery performance. It can last almost fifteen hours off of a single charge, and it takes just under three hours to charge from an empty battery. That said, battery performance can vary based on usage, so your experience may differ. It also saves battery by shutting off automatically when there’s no audio input.

Function & Controls

c0e6be196975ad54eaf33a1e25dc15cb

The JBL Xtreme 2 has poor voice assistant performance. It doesn’t have a built-in voice assistant, so it relies on the voice assistant from your smartphone. Although you can reconfigure the speaker’s play/pause button into a voice assistant button, you need to connect to the JBL Portable app and switch on ‘Voice Assistant’ mode to do this. Fortunately, the speaker can understand you even if you’re far away, although it may have trouble hearing you in a noisy environment.

The JBL Xtreme 2’s companion app, JBL Portable, is okay. It lets you link it to other speakers to form a stereo pair, and its Party Mode feature lets you pair multiple speakers to create a more amplified sound.

The JBL Xtreme 2 has adequate controls. The buttons are easy to press and most are texturized, so you can feel them by touch. The triangular play/pause button can be pressed twice to skip tracks, or it can be reconfigured into a ‘Voice Assistant’ button, but you need the app to change it back and forth. On top of the speaker, there are also buttons for adjusting the volume, a Bluetooth pairing button, and a Connect+ button, which lets you link up to 100 compatible speakers. The power button has a light that turns solid blue when a device is connected over Bluetooth. There are also lights at the bottom of the speaker that indicate the battery life.

Connectivity

JBL Xtreme 2 - Connectivity

The JBL Xtreme 2 has an outstanding Bluetooth performance. You can pair two devices at once, which makes it easy to switch your audio source between your phone and your laptop. It has an outstanding range, so it can still receive audio input even if you’re far away. Its latency with iOS and Android devices is also very low, which makes it suitable for watching videos. However, some apps compensate for latency differently, so user experience may vary.

145677 speakers review jbl xtreme 2 review image1 jcn3r67fyh

In conclusion, The JBL Xtreme 2 is decent for outdoor use. It has an IPX7 rating for water resistance, although we don’t currently test for this. Thanks to its lightweight build and carrying strap, it’s easy to take with you on-the-go. It also has an exceptionally long battery life, lasting almost fifteen hours on a single charge. While it can get quite loud, there’s some compression present at max volume.

You May Also Like

More From Author