Get Them Here:
JBL Partybox 120: https://geni.us/GC-JBLPartybox120
JBL Partybox Encore 2: https://geni.us/GC-JBLPartyboxEncore2
JBL Boombox 4: https://geni.us/GC-JBLBoombox4
One of the biggest upgrades on the JBL Boombox 4 is that it gets impressively loud and it has a lot of bass for its size. Honestly, the max volume performance on the JBL Boombox 4 is up there with the max volume of either the JBL Partybox 120 and JBL Partybox Encore 2. But the bass is a different story. Nonetheless today we’re going to compare the JBL Boombox 4 to both the JBL Partybox 120 and JBL Partybox Encore 2 and lets see which one is right for you cause these speakers are very different from one another.
Regarding pricing, we’ve got a big spectrum here. For starters the JBL Boombox 4 has a retail price of $550, which is a price increase from the Boombox 3 and its the same as the JBL Partybox 320. Where as with the JBL Partybox 120, this speaker now has a retail price of $450 and then theres the Encore 2 which has two versions. Now this is the Encore 2 essential which has a retail price of $330 or you can get the nonessential version for $430 which comes included with two wireless mics. But for some reason, the nonessential version of the Encore 2 is super hard to get. Nonetheless if you want to pick any of these speakers up they’ll be linked down below, or you can always press on the YouTube shopping button, and if 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, one of the main selling points of the Boombox 4 is that its super durable and portable plus its also water proof. So this speaker can take a beating. Now both the Partybox Encore 2 and Partybox 120 are also portable… but they aren’t as durable cause they have plastic bodies that can get scratched easily and they aren’t as water proof as the Boombox 4. Now unless you’re planning on being super obnoxious and throwing your speaker into a pool… some water shouldn’t be a problem for any of these speakers.
But then theres the light feature, now the Boombox 4 now has a built in light feature, but this light feature only flashes white or orange deepening on your bass boost setting. Its not at dynamic or as impressive as the light feature found on these other two party boxes. And given that the Boombox 4’s light feature is tucked away in the passive radiator, it hard to see, so I dont even think that its worth it and I think it was pointless for JBL to even add a light feature to the Boombox 4.
But then theres the batter life on these speakers. Now the Boombox 4 has the longest lasting battery here cause real world use with this speaker playing at 75% Volume and with the bass boost feature turned on, its good for about 10 hours of playback time. Where as with the Partybox 120, if you use it while at 75% volume, with the bass boost feature turned on and with the light feature turned on, its good for about 6 hours of playback time, and under the same conditions, the Encore 2 is good for about 8 hours of playback time cause it has one less woofer to power.
But the super important thing with all of these speakers is that you can remove the battery and swap them out if you want or need to. Now if you have a Partybox 120 or Encore 2, the one that comes with the two wireless mics, your battery is super easy to remove. Where as with the Encore 2 essential, which is the one we have here, you can remove this battery but you do have to undo some screws and the battery isn’t the neat one that you’ll find on the 120. And then theres the Boombox 4 which you also have to unscrew some screws and there’s a thick rubber grommet that you have to remove as well… but the battery on the Boombox 4 is one of the neat ones.
Now the JBL boombox 4 is using a JBL 600 batter, which is the same battery that you’ll also find on the Partybox 520 or Partybox 720, so you can match batteries between these three speakers. Where as with the Partybox 120 and Encore 2, these are using JBL 200 batteries… and for those curious, the JBL Partybox 320 and JBL Xtreme 4 are using JBL 400 batteries.
And to charge these speakers, they all charge via a Double barrel AC port, which is good cause that means none of them have an external power brick that you have to worry about. And with all of these speakers, if you use them while they are plugged in, you are going to get a performance boost out of them, they are all going to get louder and they are all going to have more bass. And for those curious, the battery does need to be installed in these speakers so that they turn on even if you have them plugged in.
But then there are the ports on these speakers, now the ports on the Boombox 4 is very underwhelming, you just have a USB C port which you can use to charge your own devices, and you can use it as a wired connection with your phone, and thats it. Now the Encore 2 also has a USB C which I really like cause its super useful… but the Partybox 120 doesn’t have a USB C port, it has a USB A port which I feel isn’t as useful in 2026.
But something that both Partyboxe’s have over the Boombox 4 is that they both still have and audio jack so you can use them with a wired connection that way… but the Partybox 120 also has an audio out jack, so you can daisy chain any other speaker to this speaker and get them to play in sync.
Another thing Both Partyboxes have over the Boombox 4 is that you can plug in a mic for karaoke. Now the Encore 2 essential has one quarter inch in put, where as the Partybox 120 has 2 mic inputs. And with both of these speakers you can go into their apps and adjust the sound of your mic.
Now if you were to get the Encore 2 that comes with 2 wireless mics, the receiver is plugged in, where as the Partybox 120, you have to plug in the receiver into the speaker. But nonetheless, both Partybox’s are great options for kakroke… and I do feel that its a shame that the Boombox 4 doesn’t have at least one quarter inch input cause this speaker is just too loud and too expensive to not be able to do karaoke with it.
And when it comes to bluetooth connectivity, all 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 any of these speakers so you can use them to watch videos with on your phone, and when it comes to audio codecs, all of these speakers have support for SBC and AAC and none of them have wifi support which I personally dont care.
But with all of that out of the way, lets talk about sound. Regarding speaker set up, the JBL Partybox Encore 2 has a single frontward firing woofer with an exhaust port that shoots out the back and dual frontward firing tweeters. Where as the Partybox 120 has dual fronted firing woofers with an exhaust port that shoots out the back and dual frontward firing tweeters. And then theres the Boombox 4 which has dual frontward firing woofers, dual frontward firing tweeters and dual passive radiators that shoot out the sides… and it also has a new rear firing passive radiator for added bass. Now all of these speaker also have a bass boost button, deep and punchy. And personally I do prefer deep cause you’re going to get more kick in your bass, whereas with punchy I feel that it added to much resonance, so it messes with the rest of your music. But now we’re going to jump into the sound test. Where going to use all of these speaker at 75% Volume with bass boost set to deep, but we’re also going to use the Boombox 4 while its unplugged and plugged in.
Sound test
So when it comes to sound, one of the most shocking things about the JBL Boombox 4 is just how loud it gets for its size. The JBL Boombox 4 gets louder than the JBL Partybox Encore 2… and it gets almost as loud as the JBL Partybox 120. Now the JBL boombox 4 does a really good job of keeping up with the max volume on the Partybox 120 cause its highs are very pronounced… but the JBL Boombox 4 just doesn’t have as much kick in its bass, which is to be expected. But still, the bass that comes out of the Boombox 4 is also super impressive thanks to that new rear firing passive radiator… but the 120 still has more… so the JBL Partybox 120 is going to sound fuller at those higher volumes. Nonetheless, I feel that both the JBL Boombox 4 and JBL Partybox 120 are going to get good for like a 15 to 20 person party where as the Encore 2 is better for a 12 to 15 person party. And like I mentioned earlier, with all 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 are going to get louder and they are going to have more bass. But still the Boombox 4 gets a little louder than the Encore 2 cause of its pronounced highs… and the Partybox 120 is going to get louder and its going to sound fuller than then Boombox 4.
But when it comes to the overall sound quality of these speakers, Both Partybox’s sound better than the JBL boombox 4. With the JBL Boombox 4, this is a violent sounding speaker, it get very loud and its has a lot of bass, but the highs are a little to over pronounced. Where as with these other two speakers, they sound more open and balanced and their bass is much deeper… so as a result both Partyboxes sound fuller. Where as with the Boombox 4, it can sound a little narrow and nasally by comparison, but it still sounds and performs good.
But finally lets talk about pairing these speakers up with other speakers. Now with all of these speakers if you have two 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.
But all of these speakers are also using aura cast, so you can pair them with other aura cast speakers like a Charge 6, flip 7, clip 5, go 4, a grip or an extreme 4 and get them to all play in sync…. Or you can also pair them up to your larger Partybox like as Partybox 320, 520, 720 or ultimate.
But with both the arty box Encore 2 and Partybox 120, you can pair them up to JBL’s older party boxes that are using Wireless party chain, but you can only have a total of 2 speakers paired together… and keep in mind, if you have either of party boxes wirelessly paired to any other speaker, if you have mic plugged in, your mic audio is only going to come out of your main speaker.
And like I mentioned earlier, you can use the audio out jack on the Partybox 120 to daisy chain it up to any other speaker and get them to play in sync. Which is super useful. Just keep in mind that you cant wirelessly pair any of these speakers up with JBL’s older speakers that are using Partyboost. So if you have lets say a Boombox 3, you cant pair it up to your Boombox 4 or new Partybox.
But with all of that being said, if you’re trying to choose between the three speakers, with the JBL Boombox 4, you are paying a premium for the added durability and portability of this speaker. and the Boombox 4 also has a longer last battery. And thats pretty much it really. With both the JBL Partybox 120 and JBL Partybox Encore 2, both of these speakers are more affordable, and they sound better as well. Plus you can use them for kakroke cause they both have Mic Inputs. But also both party boxes have a great looking light feature. The JBL boombox 4 is good, but you get a better bang for your buck with the JBL’s Partyboxes, I just hope size don’t matter.