JBL - Charge Essential

no, i was not happy with mine at all it sounds terrible because it's a mono speaker and the tweeter just sounds harsh and also way too much bass, so much to the point that it's unusable in a small room or a shower because it just muffles all the other sound and the shockingly poor build quality, the rubber on the bottom started peeling off within the first week of owning it there's no place in this world for a $150 mono speaker, stereo has been the standard for years, it's an obvious cashgrab from JBL and Samsung to get you to buy a 2nd one for stereo sound or upgrade to one that has stereo if you really need a JBL speaker with a power bank then just get a charge 3 or charge essential 1st gen instead of this hunk of JUNK!

I use a JBL charge in my truck and a JBL earbud when walking.

Until it's too hot and shuts itself off. In an ffv, the side window is possibly better

Yeah, realistically that isn't going to happen, replacing 10 speakers with 1-3 is tough as it is, much less when those 10 speakers were designed for the space they are in and those 1-3 are jammed into an enclosure with the amp and battery in a single unit... I mean the closest you will get is a one of the big JBL Party Boxes which honestly isn't very portable at like 75 pounds and 45 inches tall, not to mention they run a grand or so. If you just want decent sound quality -AND- portability the JBL Flip, Charge, or even the Extreme series are pretty decent, but for high end quality you are going to be going well over the $500 mark... KEF, Bowers & Wilkens, Sonos, etc. And Bose... Yeah, I am not a huge fan... I would take the Infinity system in my Hyundai over it in a heartbeat for sound quality.

I've been using the same JBL charge for probably 10 years. When/if it dies, I'll go buy another one just like it.

I wouldn't recommend any Earfun speaker to someone who isn't very tech savy. Every Earfun speaker sounds mediocre out of the box and they need EQing. I really like my UBOOM X, but I just can't recommend it to my mom. That's why my mom has a JBL Charge. Also, any of the stock (normal or OLUV's) EQs are way too focused on deep bass, which isn't the best with classical music. And it's not very portable I think, it's rather huge.

Two charges(maybe even the 6)

Charge has more bass. Flip is lighter more portable. One of my favorite speaker of all time is the JBL Clip 4. But the 5 is better because the power button doesn’t get hit by accident like the 4. Smaller speaker but it sounds great and extremely portable and great battery life.

I just use a JBL charge. Battery powered, easy to bring places. With units other than the digitakt that are usb powered you can use it to provide power as well.

I have Jbl charge don’t even know which version and it’s really good.

The charge series is usually the sweet spot in the lineup

This is what it's all about. The sweet spot. For me it's the charge, for others it's the flip or the xtreme, depending on what you're ok traveling with.

The charge is a little louder with more low end

Not a tip for a specific speaker but check if the people you want to train with, if you're a group that is, already have speakers. In my local group people generally have JBL-speakers and being able to link multiple ones is superb. I have good experiences with both JBL Charge-models and UE Boom-models in general but mostly older models and I know JBL changed their protocol for linking units so be sure to do your research.

I got the JBL Charge which has both Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity at Costco for $139 on sale. I love it!

The charge is great in an LLV, imo putting it between the windshield and dashboard is the best spot for sound quality.

I don’t think the JBL charge boxes do the bass any good. No deep bass at all. Crisp and Clear though. But bass? Nah

Tribit Micro is a great pocket speaker. Earfun Uboom X is a high value bass blaster. Bose soundlink flex is a nice middle ground speaker and the JBL flip & Charge have good bass for the size.

The cylinder are a safer bet with kayaking. The JBL Flip or Charge or UE Wonderboom or Boom. The Soundcore Glow should be good too.

Ah, when you said black and orange I immediately thought jbl. I have a jbl charge and the battery is amazing. My OG Bose soundlink? Still cranking after over 12 years.

Pool owner - have a JBL CHarge - going on 5 years of 3 daughter abuse pool side - splashed, dropped in pool, used as a charger, kicked across deck...drops etc - still sounds great.

Place it in a corner facing the room diagonally and it sounds much better. It's unfair to expect it to compare to something like a JBL charge (which I also have), but nothing beats that thing running all day on 1 bar of a 5Ah battery.

I love my old JBL charge. It takes a beating and sits perfectly in a water bottle holder, for biking, taking in your car, etc.  If it dies I’ll likely be looking for another of similar size. 

I’ve owned JBL Charge and Xtreme, and the Stormbox Blast blows them away. Bigger, heavier, but the sound is way more impactful and the battery life is immense.

What is your budget and use case. I chose the Charge because it was smaller and cheaper than the bigger ones, but sounded batter than the flip.

You mean a bluetooth speaker? The JBL lineup is relatively cheap, with the most value for your money a charge, second-hand they go for 50-75 euro, I believe they are new around 100 euro. It's weight is about 1kg (2,5lb), so ideal for a stroll in the woods!

Mine died and I contacted JBL, they sent me a new one for free.

I have the impression that my old JBL Charge has a better sound than my Marshall Stanmore. But NGL, I bought it because the brown "leather" is sexy af.