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The JBL PartyBox 300 is a beast of a speaker… its battery powered and it has a really good looking built in light feature. But when it comes to price, the Partybox 300 retails for the same price as the JBL boombox. Now obviously you’ll might be tempted to go with the Partybox cause its bigger and it has that light feature… but depending on your needs and what you plan on doing with your speaker you’ll might be better off with the Boombox. So lets see which ones right for you.
So first off let's go over pricing. Both the Partybox 300 and Boombox retail for $500. But the Boombox routinely goes on sale. And also keep in mind there are smaller and cheaper Partbox’s to choose from. But regardless if you want to pick any of these speakers up they’ll be linked down below.
But now lets go over the designs of these speakers. The boombox just looks like a larger version of the Xtreme 2 but just with a built in carrying handle. Its significantly smaller and lighter than the Partybox weighing in at 11 and a half pounds making it way easier to carry around compared to the Partybox which weighs in at 35 pounds.
So if you’re looking for a speaker to constantly take on the go with you or to use on a camping trip then you’re going to be better off with the Boombox not just cause its significantly more portable… but also cause its way more durable. The Boombox has a fabric body which doesn’t scratch easily and it also IPX7 water proof.
Where as the Partybox isn’t waterproof and due to its mostly plastic body this speaker can get scratched very easily. So overall due to its sheer weight and not so durable body the PartyBox wouldn’t be my first choice if I was looking for something super portable. You can certainly take it places thanks to its built in battery… but its a hassle.
But what the PartyBox lacks in portability and durability its makes up in looks. Mainly cause the Partybox has a built in light feature. Now this light feature is actually very vibrant and you can easily see during the day time. And personally I think this light feature look way better than the light feature found on Sony’s similar speakers.
Now when it comes to the battery lives of these speakers… the Boombox has an advertised battery life of 24 hours and the Partybox has an advertised battery life of 18. But keep in mind those number are for when these speakers are playing at around 50 percent volume. If you’re using these speakers at higher volumes between 80 percent to maximum volume the Boombox has a battery life of around 8 to 10 hours where as the Partybox has a battery life of around 4 hours if you have the bass boost on. But you can also stretch that out if you turn off the bass boost on this speaker. Non the less if you need something with a longer battery life you’re also better off with the Boombox.
But also keep in mind that the Partybox comes included with a car charger… so if you’re crazy enough to lug this speaker out to the woods or something if you run out of battery you can still power this speaker with your car. Which I think is a pretty nice touch on JBL’s part.
But now lets talk about listening to music with these speakers… first off these speakers have identical sound signatures. They both put and emphasis on the mids and vocals so that they don’t get overpowered by the bass. They even have the same amount of instrument separation and sound stage. Even the JBL Xtreme 2 sounds the same as these two speakers expect it doesn’t get as loud or have as much bass. But so that you can see for yourself we’re going to jump into a sound test.
Like you may just heard… all three of these JBL speakers sound identical which isn’t surprising at all. The main difference between these three speakers is how loud they can actually get and how much physical bass they have. Now the Partybox has way more physical bass than the Boombox… but unfortunately its doesn’t get all that much louder. So to my surprise the Boombox does a very decent job of actually keep up with the Partybox given its size.
But don’t get me wrong, the Partybox gets plenty loud but the major differentiating factor between these two speakers is mainly going to be the amount of physical bass that you feel… cause the Boombox isn’t all that far off from the PartyBox when it comes to max loudness.
But finally let's talk about connectivity. Both of these speakers are using bluetooth 4.2 and they can both be connected to two devices at the same time so you and a friend can both be DJ. But if you want to use a wired connection both of these speakers also have an AUX. Somethings that I know sounds basic but I got to point it out cause some speakers are starting to get rid of the AUX jack which I think is stupid.
Both of these speakers also USB A out ports so that you can charge your own devices… but you can only play music through a thumb drive on the PartyBox. The USB A port on the Boombox is strictly only used for charging your phone.
Also the Partybox has RCA inputs and outports so that if you want you can hook this speaker up to a receiver or to another speaker. But the Boombox has JBL connect plus so you can easily pair this speaker up to other JBL connect plus speakers. Where as with the Partybox you can only wirelessly pair it up to one other Partybox.
But keep in mind the JBL Boombox has JBL connect plus so you can only pair it to a Flip 4, Charge 3, Charge 4, Pulse 3, or Xtreme. You can’t pair it up to new JBL speakers using Partyboost like the Flip 5, Pulse 4, or soon to be released JBL Boombox 2.
But over all if you’re trying to choose between getting a Partybox or Boombox the main question you got to ask yourself is how portable to you need your speaker to be. If you’re looking for a speaker that you plan on constantly taking somewhere then you’re defiantly better off just going with the Boombox just cause its significantly way more portable and durable. And not to mention it has a way better battery life. And it surprisingly keeps up very well with the Partybox when it comes to sound. But if you don’t plan on moving your speaker around too much, maybe its a speaker that you’re mainly going to keep in your man cave than the better investment here is definitely the Partybox cause of all of the extra bass and the light feature.