JBL Go has been one of the most popular small bluetooth speaker, and this is JBL Go 2, and this has some upgrades, in addition to improvement in quality, that might make it the small Bluetooth speaker to ‘Go’ for.
I really like the design of this speaker, and after using it for some time, I can see why it is so popular. The new version is coated with this rubber like material, which feels very nice to touch. This will catch oils from your fingers easily, but a solution I found for this problem was to not touch it when your hands are oily. The white LED it has also looks very nice, and turns red to tell you that it’s charging.
This champagne color looks very nice, but it also comes in many different colors, which are quite unique for Bluetooth speakers.
It has this big JBL branding on both sides, so they really seem to be proud of this product, it doesn’t look bad though, and on the back it also adds to the grip. This new version is curvier than before, and I think that it looks better, the front has a metal grill, and the buttons are under the outer layer, so that makes them accessible but protected from water.
And yes, the biggest upgrade from the previous model is that this is now IPX7 waterproof, so you can use it in the bathroom, or on the beach, or in a bathroom on the beach (text) and you don’t have to worry about rain or other wet things that you might have around you. This also means that the charging port, which should’ve been USB type C, and the 3.5mm AUX input are also sealed with this tight flap that you’ll have to use every time you want to charge this.
The second upgrade this model has is that, in addition to the single 40mm driver, it now also has a bass radiator, while keeping the same size, so that’s great to see. It doesn’t make a big difference in sound quality, but it does make a difference, and because of how it’s laid out, I found that it sounds better if you keep it like this, instead of this.
It has some metal pieces inside, which makes it heavier so that it doesn’t move while playing loud music, but it’s still very portable and pocketable. You can also play music with it in your pants pocket, or on your chest while using it in bed.
This speaker is very easy to operate, The power button and bluetooth pairing button are separate, so just a single press can make it turn on or off with these cool sounds, and it doesn’t require any pressing and holding like cheaper bluetooth speakers, which makes it much more convenient to use.
The other buttons are used for increasing or decreasing volume, and there’s a play and pause button, which will skip to the next track, if you double press it, and if you hold it, it’ll launch Google Assistant . There isn’t a way to go to the previous track, but I don’t miss that.
The battery lasts for 5 hours which isn’t a lot, but should last for longer if you’re listening to something that doesn’t have a lot going on,
Pairing with your phone is very easy and it connects very fast to the last connected device.
Now coming on to the sound quality, it’s great for its size, but it is not that great for its price. You are buying this speaker, for it’s portability, waterproofing, design, JBL branding, and the general quality of electronics inside that come with that. But you shouldn’t buy it for its sound quality.
[WATCH THE VIDEO REVIEW ABOVE FOR SOUND AND MIC TESTS]
The bass is good for it’s size, but this definitely isn’t great for electronic music. Only the mids will be audible, and it won’t have the impact that you can have with bigger Bluetooth speakers in the same price range.
The mids are very good, and it is really great for watching TV shows, movies, and YouTube videos like this one. Vocals sound great too, and so does Indian music.
The highs are good, they are very present, but their quality and definition isn’t very good.
It has a single 3 watt 40mm driver, which isn’t big even for it’s size, and the problem with having only a single speaker for stereo playback, is that both channels have to be handled by a single driver, so there’s more distortion. And if there’s a lot going on in your music, this single driver won’t be able to handle it well, so this is good for music, but not that great.
Again, this speaker is really good for podcasts, youtube videos, and similar stuff where voice is the main focus, but it isn’t that great for music.
The volume of this speaker is really good for its size, and it can fill a small room with sound, the sound also doesn’t distort at highest volumes, which is very impressive, and it’s also fun to feel the vibrations in your hands or on your body, as the driver really pushes itself to its limits when music is played loudly.
So in conclusion, I think that if you’re looking for a speaker of this size, which also has waterproofing, and will be long lasting, you should go for it, it sounds very good for its size. But if sound quality is your priority, you could go for something like the Anker Soundcore 2 at the same price point but somewhat larger size, which I’ll be making a review on soon.
If you do not need waterproofing, the JBL Go 1 is probably a better option, and it also has the ability to be attached to a strap, which they removed in this new version for some reason. It doesn’t sound much worse than the Go 2, and should perform similarly well in all areas.
Buy or check prices:
Amazon India: https://amzn.to/2nOXZcr
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2L9mydg