bluetooth speaker review.....

CliffA

CliffA

Well-Known Member
Dec 29, 2009
4,712
Lake Norman, NC
Boat Info
2001 Sea Ray 340DA
Name: 'Happy Place'
4.5kW West. Generator
Purchased Nov. 2014
Fresh Water Use
Engines
Twin Merc. 6.2L (MPI)
640 hp (Total)
Raw Water Cooled
V-Drive Transmissions
the Admiral asked me to find a way to have music on the bow of the boat when she is 'getting some sun' and also at the rear of the boat when we are floating behind the boat while at anchor.....

the current stereo system is not expandable...it is driving 8 speakers now...so i gave some thought to installing a second head unit to power some bow speakers and some transom speakers....

that was going to be a lot of work and somewhat expensive so i then thought about using a portable bluetooth speaker that could be moved to the bow or transom as needed....so as usual i researched this to death and made the decision to buy the bluetooth speaker shown bellow...

i received the speaker yesterday and tested the sound quality, sound volume, and the bluetooth range.....i must admitt that i agree with the majority of the reviews i have read that say this speaker has excellent sound quality and volume for such a small speaker.....while playing the built in FM radio i turned the volume all the way up and the speaker was very loud and had absolutely no distortion...and the range was excellent....i maintained a bluetooth connection between my ipad and the speaker of at least 30 ft and that was going through two walls in my home...what really impresses me is the flexibility of music sources this speaker supports....it has bluetooth, FM radio, USB port, mini SD card port, and a 3.5mm AUX IN port.....i guess one way to look at this speaker is it is a modern day 'jam box'....it can even be used as a speaker phone when using bluetooth with a smartphone....if a call comes in while listening to music you can push a button on the speaker and interrupt the music and use the built in microphone to talk to the caller....the build quality of the speaker seems to be very good.....this same speaker is branded by various companies, but it is easy to identify from other speakers by the unique shape of the shell....the manufacturer claims the battery charge will last anywhere from 5 - 9 hours depending on the volume level being used....

just thought i would share my thoughts on this speaker in case anyone may also be looking for one....the Admiral likes it so much she wants to buy a second one to use around the house.....don't expect this speaker to 'rattle the windows' but it does have a very crisp and clean sound and a decent bass sound....for this price point of around $35 i think it is an excellent buy....

i have no connection to the manufacturer of this speaker....

http://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Port...97&sr=8-2&keywords=bluetooth+speaker+wireless

61iR74vkkTL._SL1001_.jpg
 
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I like it Cliff... We have three amps on my boat... One Amp powers the cabin speakers, one the cockpit, and one for large bass speaker in the cockpit... We don't have problem hearing the music... I do like you new speaker, but if I had it on my boat, it would join my multiple sets of prescription sunglasses in lost overboard...
 
rcknecht said:
I do like you new speaker, but if I had it on my boat, it would join my multiple sets of prescription sunglasses in lost overboard...
Click to expand...


....:smt043.......


you're right...i'll need to secure the speaker down to avoid it sliding into the lake when the boat gets rocked....


cliff
 
Nice little unit. I just bought a Schosche BoomBottle (not to be confused with BoomBox) on sale at West Marine. It's the size of a coffee travel mug and is designed to fit in a cupholder (car, bicycle, boat) or it can hang from whatever on its carabiner. Its also water resistant. Doesn't have a radio but it does have the 3.5 mm input jack for my ipod (which is where I keep all my music). Both the ipod and internet radio/Bluetooth work great, good volume, okay bass. Incidentally, the range of all Bluetooth speakers is 10 meters = 33 feet.
 
Looks nice Cliff - so is the party on the deck of the 340 this weekend? We have had a couple of things go in the drink - most recently an iPhone - we have renamed the cove at the mouth of Mountain Creek to "iCove".
 
BillK2632 said:
Looks nice Cliff - so is the party on the deck of the 340 this weekend? We have had a couple of things go in the drink - most recently an iPhone - we have renamed the cove at the mouth of Mountain Creek to "iCove".
Click to expand...

there will be a 'field trial' of the speaker on the 340 this WE....it will be hot so there will be 'cold beverages' as well.....:thumbsup:.....come on by....

cliff
 
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kilroy said:
Incidentally, the range of all Bluetooth speakers is 10 meters = 33 feet.
Click to expand...

did not know that....thanks....i had a cheap bluetooth speaker once before but it seemed like the range was much shorter than 30 ft but maybe i was using it in a area with some electrical interference...

cliff
 
I bought one (different model) a couple of years ago & that is all I use on the boat. I use it at home as well as I can set it up indoors or out on the deck. Sync it to one of our pads & have at it. I set it up on the dash while we are anchored & it performs perfectly.
 
KnotEasy said:
Looks good, especially for the price.

I have one of these, it's even smaller than the one Cliff posted, of course more expensive, but the sound is incredible.

http://www.bose.com/controller?url=...s/bluetooth_speakers/soundlink_mini/index.jsp
Click to expand...

Ugh, Bose. For the money you can get much much better. They work fine, but are not exceptional quality and are never a good deal. They spend a ton of money on advertising and have to recoup that money through their high prices. My parents fell into the Bose trap once and it made me sick. Please don't buy any more of their products.
 
Sorry, I will buy what I like. Thanks for the enlightenment, never would have thought Bose was anything but quality, until your post.
 
I have an ecoxgear ecostone. Waterproof, floats, has a built in flashlight and charging port for anything USB.

Not the cheapest thing on the water but one of the only truly waterproof options out there. Caught a great deal at Costco for about $70.
 
We went with a Braven waterproof speaker and battery bank. The best thing is that if you want a bigger sound you can link up to 6 units for a real party. http://www.braven.com/

Braven 2.JPGBraven.JPG
 
KnotEasy said:
Sorry, I will buy what I like. Thanks for the enlightenment, never would have thought Bose was anything but quality, until your post.
Click to expand...

If you do a google search you will be very enlightened about Bose. For example take a read through this:http://nyet.org/bose/ If you do the research I can assure you that you will never buy Bose again.
 
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