Jam - Hang Tight Portable Bluetooth Speaker - Blue Review

Joining a crowded field, the Jam Xterior Max is a $119.99 portable Bluetooth speaker with a tough, rubber-covered await nosotros've go quite familiar with. It offers reasonably stiff audio performance for its size and cost, and is truly is built like a tank. Merely while there isn't much to complain near, the Xterior Max does footling to distinguish itself from the glut of rugged Bluetooth speakers on the marketplace, some of which offer more than rewarding sound performance.

Pattern

At three.iv by 7.9 by 2.8 inches (HWD), the Xterior Max is essentially the size and shape of a brick. It's portable, merely at one.nine pounds, it'll weigh down whatsoever tote you throw information technology in. Available in black with gray accents, it seems mostly geared toward backpackers, campers, or poolside loungers. It'due south rated IP67 waterproof upwards to one meter, and it's both dust and shockproof.

The front and rear panels are all speaker grille, the surface of which looks similar a pickup truck bed. Beneath the grilles, there are two forepart-facing drivers and a rear-facing passive bass radiator (another almost standard inclusion on portable speakers these days).

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Across the meridian console are controls for power, play/intermission, rails navigation, and volume (these work in conjunction with your mobile device's master volume levels). Up peak is too where you'll discover the pinhole mic for speakerphone calls, likewise as Bluetooth and battery condition LEDs.

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The right panel houses connections for the included micro USB charging cable (which comes with a wall plug adapter, as well), a USB port for charging mobile devices using the Xterior Max's battery, and a 3.5mm aux input for wired listening. The port area is protected past a thick, rubber snap-shut embrace. No audio cable is included, which feels like an omission in this price range.

The bottom panel of the speaker is all thick safe, with some anxiety to keep it from scooting across tabletops due to intense bass vibrations. There'south as well a screw mountain for fastening the speaker onto a wheel.

Jam estimates the Xterior Max'due south bombardment life to be roughly 12 hours, just your results will depend on your mix of wired and wireless playback, as well as your volume levels. The speaker will shut off automatically afterward sitting idle for an extended menstruum. It automatically pairs when powered up and in range of your mobile device.

Performance

On tracks with intense sub-bass content, like The Knife'due south "Silent Shout," the Xterior Max delivers good for you bass response. At maximum volumes, the drivers seem equally though they're on the edge of baloney, but the speaker never actually distorts, information technology just produces vibrations that, impressively, the rubber footed base of operations is able to proceed in check. At more modest volumes, the bass still feels powerful, only anyone looking for true subwoofer-style response will need to spend more money on a bigger, more powerful organization. For its size, all the same, the Xterior Max fares quite well in this department.

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Bill Callahan'south "Drover," a track with less deep bass in the mix, gives a meliorate sense of the Xterior Max'south overall sound signature. The drums on this rails can sound unnaturally thunderous on speakers that over-boost the low frequencies. Here, the drums have a strong presence, just null is too enhanced. Callahan'southward baritone vocals have a strong, rich low-mid presence, and the high-mids are also dialed upwards a fleck, lending the vocals some treble edge and accentuating the brilliant attack of the acoustic guitar. Generally speaking, this is a nicely counterbalanced sound signature, with a focus on the depression-mid to high-mid range—seriously deep bass is non actually part of the equation.

On Jay-Z and Kanye West's "No Church in the Wild," the kick pulsate loop gets enough of high-mid presence, and so that its assault has a precipitous punch that slices through the layers of the mix. The sub-bass synth hits are delivered with a decent sense of bass, only we hear far more of the depression-mid button and their raspy top notes—there's not really much sub-bass to speak of. Regardless, this is a full, rich audio with stiff joint in the highs—the vocals are delivered clearly without much added sibilance.

On orchestral tracks, like the opening scene in John Adams' The Gospel Co-ordinate to the Other Mary, the lower register instrumentation gets a slightly boosted presence, but the spotlight belongs to the higher register brass, strings, and vocals. Beyond all genres, the Xterior Max is primarily focused on the the mids This mix could audio brighter, merely it never turns into a muddy, undefined mess, as the highs are not relegated to the groundwork and they still provide some clarity and definition.

One annotation: The sound signature tin vary drastically depending on your proximity to the speaker, and whether the drivers are angled at your ears. The speaker would benefit from fishing the drivers upward, or a built-in kickstand. Every bit it is, the speaker should be propped at an angle in order to align the drivers with your ears—doing then makes the sound signature significantly brighter.

Conclusions

For the money, the Xterior Max delivers strong audio functioning in a truly rugged form factor. It's hard to say anything too critical of the speaker, and yet, information technology's difficult to robustly endorse it. The Xterior Max does fiddling to separate itself from the bunch—it's some other solid option among many. Our favorite rugged Bluetooth speakers in this price range include the EcoXGear EcoCarbon and Nyne Edge, which offer a little more in the audio department. The JBL Charge 3 is less rugged, but nonetheless outdoor friendly and also delivers a improve sonic experience. And if you're looking to save money, check out the small simply deceptively powerful JBL Prune 2—it doesn't get as loud as any of the aforementioned speakers, only for its size, it'south a winner, and is like shooting fish in a barrel to shove in a pocketbook or backpack.

Jam Xterior Max

Cons

The Bottom Line

The outdoor-friendly Jam Xterior Max is a Bluetooth speaker built to take a beating. Its sound performance is solid, merely not exceptional.

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Source: https://www.pcmag.com/reviews/jam-xterior-max

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