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JBL Boombox 4: https://geni.us/GC-JBLBoombox4
Sony ULT Field 7: https://geni.us/GC-SonyULTField7
So for the last few years, the Sony ULT Field 7 has been a sleeper hit, this speaker has better instrument separation and better bass than the JBL Boombox 3, plus you can use it with a mic for karaoke and it even has a built in light feature, but we don't talk about that. But a lot of people just looked over it. But today we’re going to see how the JBL Boombox 4 compares to the Sony ULT field 7… Is JBL back on top? Or are you still sleeping on the Sony ULT field 7?
Regarding pricing… this right here is going to be a deciding factor. The JBL Boombox 4 has a retail price of $550, which is a lot and its the same as the JBL PartyBox 320, just let that sink in. Where as with the Sony ULT Field 7, has a retail price of $500, but it likes to go on sale for $400 on a regular basis. Nonetheless if you want to pick either of these two speakers up they’ll be linked down below, or you can always press on the YouTube shopping button, and it you want to further support the channel then you can always watch some of the related videos in the description below.
So first theres the design of these speakers, now both of these speakers are large bluetooth speakers, they’re both super durable thanks to their fabric wrapped bodies so bumps and scrapes aren’t going to be an issue, they’re both water proof and they both weigh in at around 13 pounds. But unfortunately, if you want a shoulder strap, you’re still going to have to get a third party option cause neither of these two speakers come with a shoulder strap, even though both of their smaller brothers, the JBL Xtreme 4 and Sony ULT field 5 do.
Now both of these speakers also have built in light features, but I don't think that these light features are worth using. Cause with the Boombox 4, this light feature only flashes orange or white depending on the Bass Boost mode that you’re using. Now it still flashes to the beat of your music, but its not color changing. Now the light feature on the Sony is color changing, but I feel that since its so tucked away in the passive radiator… its not worth using. So with both of these speakers, they have light features, but personally I just turn them off when I can.
But when it comes to battery life, this is where these speakers are very different from one another. Now the Sony ULT Field 7 has an advertised battery life of 24 hours with it playing at 50% volume, and with the light feature turned off, but with the ULT feature turned on, which is good. Where as the JBL Boombox 4 has an advertised battery life of 34 hours, which is a lot, but thats with this speaker playing with stamina mode turned on which is going to severely reduce your bass.
With stamina mode turned off, which is how you should be using this speaker, the JBL Boombox 4 is going to have an advertised battery life of 28… but real world use with both of these speakers playing at 75% volume, and with their bass boost or ULT Feature turned on, both of these speakers are going to be good for around 10 hours of playback time. And 75% Volume on the Boombox 4 is noticeably louder than 75% Volume on the Sony.
But the main difference between these two speakers is that you can actually remove the battery on the Boombox 4 if you want. Now removing the battery on the Boombox 4 isn’t as easy as with JBL’s Partybox’s cause you do have to use an Allen key to undo some screws and you do have to remove a rubber grommet, and JBL did it this way so that the Boombox 4 can have its IP68 ratting. But the important thing is, if you want to swap out the battery, you can.
Now the JBL Boombox 4 is using a JBL 600 battery… which is the same battery found in either the JBL PartyBox 520, or 720… so if you want you can actually mix and match batteries between these three speakers. And for those curious, both the JBL PartyBox 320 and Xtreme 4 are using JBL 400 batteries and the JBL PartyBox 120 is using JBL 200 batteries.
And to charge both of these speakers, they charge via a double barrel AC port and theres no external power brick that you have to worry about, which I really appreciate. And with both of these speakers, if you use them while they are plugged in, you are going to get a performance boost out of them, they’re going to get louder and they are going to have more bass. And yes, in order for the Boombox 4 to actually turn on, the battery does need to be installed.
But when it comes to ports, this is where things get very interesting. Now with the Sony you can plug in a microphone for karaoke, which I really like, and unfortunately you cant with the Boombox 4 which is a shame just given how loud this speaker gets.
Now with the Sony, you can only plug in one wired mic or pro tip, you can get Sony’s wireless mic kit and this way you can get two mics going. So with the Sony ULT Field 7, not only does it sound good, you can also use it for karaoke which is something you simply cant do with the Boombox 4.
But something that I really like about the Boombox 4 over the Sony is that it has a USB C port which you can use to charge your own devices, or you can also use it as a wired connection with your phone. Where as with the Sony, this speaker has a USB A port which I dont feel is as useful in 2026. But another thing that the Sony has over the Boombox 4 is that it still has an audio jack, so you can still use it with a wired connection that way. But overall, I am underwhelmed at how basic the ports on the JBL Boombox 4 are.
Regarding Bluetooth connectivity, both of these speakers can be connected to two devices at the same time so you and a friend can both be DJ. Latency is not an issue for theses speakers so you can use them to watch videos with on your phone. And when it comes to audio codecs, both of these speaker have support for SBC and AAC, but the Sony also has support for LDAC which is Sony’s own high res audio codec. But if you want to use LDAC you do have to be an android user cause iPhones top out at AAC, but still the Sony sounds great if you’re using it with AAC. And neither of these speakers have wifi support, which personally I dont care… but maybe JBL will make a Wifi version on the Boombox 4 which I will ignore cause it think those would be pointless.
But with all of that out of the way lets talk about sound. Regarding speaker set up, the Sony ULT Field 7 has dual frontward firing woofers, dual frontward firing tweeters and dual passive radiators that shoot out the sides. And this is a very typical speaker set up, but sony does a lot with it. Now the JBL Boombox 4 also has dual frontward firing woofers, dual frontward firing tweeter and dual passive radiators that shoot out the sides… but what is new is that this speaker now has a passive radiator that shoots out the back for added bass. Another new feature on the Boombox 4 is that it now has its bass boost button like JBL’s party boxes, and theres two settings, deep and punchy. Personally I prefer deep cause it gives you more kick in your bass where as with punchy I feel it just added too much resonances so it messes with your music. And then theres the Sony which has its ULT mode. ULT 1 is going to increase your bass, and this is the setting that you want to use while indoors, and ULT 2 is going to increase both your sound pressure and bass, so you’re going to get the most out of this speaker. But now we’re going to jump into the sound test, both of these speakers are playing at 75% Volume while unplugged, and we’re going to use the Boombox 4 with bass boost set to deep and the Sony playing with ULT 2.
Sound Test
So when it comes to sound, these two speakers sound and perform very differently from one another. Now I still feel that the Sony ULT field 7 sounds better than the JBL Xtreme 4 cause this speaker has much better instrument, it sounds more open and it has better instrument in the mids than the Boombox 4. With the Boombox 4, this speaker is putting so much emphasis on the mids and highs, it does start to sound a little nasally. Now distortion in the highs hasn’t been an issue for me, but the JBL Boombox 4 cause sound a little narrow when compared to the Sony ULT Field 7 which does sound more balanced. But when it comes to max volume performance and bass… the JBL Boombox 4 get noticeably louder than the Sony ULT field 7. The max volume on the JBL Boombox 4 is up there with lets say the JBL PartyBox 120, which is shoocking, and thanks to that new rear passive radiator, the JBL Boombox 4 has noticeabley more kick in its bass than the Sony. So I feel that the JBL Boombox 4 is going to have no problem with lets say a 20 person party, where as the Sony ULT field 7 is going to be better for like a 15 person party. If you even know that many people. And with both of these speakers, if you were to use them while they are plugged in, you are going to get a performance boost out of them, they’re going to get louder and they are going to have more bass. But still the JBL Boombox 4 gets much louder than the Sony ULT Field 7. But overall, get the JBL Boombox 4 if you want the most bass and highest max volume in a small package, but I still maintain that the Sony ULT Field 7 sounds better than the JBL Boombox 4 cause it sound more balanced and more open.
But finally lets talk about pairing these speakers up with other speakers. Now with both of these speakers if you have 2 of the exact same speakers then you can wirelessly pair them up and get them to play in left and right stereo mode, but they have to be two of the exact same speakers.
Now the the Sony ULT field 7 is using wireless party chain so you can pair it up with any other Sony speaker that also using wireless party chain like either an ULT Field 5 or to and ULT field 3 and you can also pair it up with Sony’s older speakers like lets say the XG500 or XE300… or you can also pair it up with Sony’s larger Box speakers like either a Tower 10 or the Tower 9. The only thing is, you cant pair your ULT field 7 with an ULT Field 1 cause it doesn’t have wireless party chain.
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But then theres the JBL Boombox 4 which is using aura cast, so you can pair it up to other aura cast speakers like lets say the JBL Charge 6, or Flip 7, Clip 5, go 4 or to the grip and you can get them to all play in sync… but you can also pair up your JBL Boombox 4 to any of JBL’s party boxes that are also using Auracast like lets say the JBL PartyBox Encore 2, Partybox 120, 320, 520, 720, or to the ultimate and you can get them to play in sync as well.
But unfortunately, since the JBL Boombox 4 is using aura cast, you cant pair it up to any of JBL’s older speakers that are using Partyboost like either the JBL Boombox 3, Boombox 2, Xtreme 3, Charge 5, Pulse 5, Pulse 4, Flip 6 or Flip 5.
The JBL Xtreme 4 is the only JBL Auracasrt speaker that can connect to both Auracast speakers and Partyboost speakers. And also, even though the JBL Boombox 4 is using aura cast, you cant pair it up to JBL’s Partylight sticks and get them to play in sync like you can with a partybox. But nonetheless, if you are planning on going your collection of speakers, the Boombox 4 gives you a lot of options… but just keep in mind, if you’re upgrading from a Boombox 3 or any other Partyboost speaker… you cant pair them up.
But with all of that being said, if you’re trying to choose between these two speakers, with the JBL Boombox 4, I do feel that you’re paying a premium for this speaker… but you are going to get way more bass thanks to that new rear passive radiator and its going to get louder… but I dont think that it sounds as good as the Sony ULT Field 7 cause the Sony sounds more balanced and open. It just doesn’t get as loud or have as much bass, but it still has a lot. But the really cool thing about the JBL Boombox 4 is that you can easily remove the battery if you need or want to. But a cool feature that the Sony has that the JBL doesn’t is that it can be used for karaoke. Overall, I think that choose between these two speakers is personally preference, but I still gravitate towards the Sony ULT field 7 cause you get more bang for your buck. But the Sony ULT field 7 still has room for improvement.