If you’re looking for a small and durable bluetooth speaker, then both the JBL Clip 5 and Bose Soundlink Micro 2 are perhaps the two most popular options… however these two speakers are very different from one another and one is simply superior over the other. So today we’re going to compare the JBL Clip 5 to the Bose Soundlink Micro 2, and lets see which one is right for you.
So first there’s pricing… and this is a big deal, the Bose Soundlink Micro 2 has a retail price of $130… which I feel is a lot, and even though Bose is already discounting this speaker for $100, its still very hard to justify, where as with the JBL Clip 5, this speaker has a retail price of $80 and it also likes to go on sale from time to time. 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, and if you want to further support the channel then you can always watch some of the related videos in the description down below.
So first there’s the design on these speakers. Now both of these speakers are fairly small and portable cause they are smaller than other small sized speakers like lets say the JBL Grip or the JBL Flip 7, just to name a few. Now we can also include the bose flex 2 here.. but this is almost a mid sized speaker. But nonetheless, the Bose does feel more premium than the JBL cause it has a siliconed wrapped body which feels very luxurious… where as the Clip 5 has a fabric wrapped body which might not feel as premium… but regardless both of these speakers are very durable and they are both water proof but they dont float, which ight matter to some people. And I also want to point out that both of these USB C ports are exposed, so you do have to make sure that they are dry before you can actually charge them.
But more importantly, there are the clips on these speakers, now the Clip 5 has a built in carbine, so its easy enough to clip this speaker to your back pack… where as with the Bose, this speaker has a built in fabric loop which is a little elastic, so the loop on the Bose is a little more versatile than the clip found on the clip 5… but I think the clip 5 will get the job done just as well as the Bose… but the bose might be the better option if you’re trying to attach your speaker to your handle bar.
But when it comes to battery life, both of these speakers have an advertised battery life of 12 hours… but real world use, the Clip 5 is going to have a longer lasting battery life cause you’re not going to have to use this speaker at max volume on a regular basis like you’ll might have to with the Bose Soundlink micro 2. Cause if you were to use the Clip 5 at 80%, which is a decent listing volume, its going to be good for about 6 hours… where as with the bose, you’ll have to use it at max volume to get the same amount of sound out of it.
And to charge both of these speakers, like I just said they both charge via a USB C port as they should, but you can’t use these USB C ports as a wired connection or use it to charge your own devices like you can with the USB C port found on more premium speakers like lets say the Flip 7 or Charge 6… which is okay given these speakers sizes… but I dont think that its okay given the Bose Soundlink micro 2’s price.
But when it comes to 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 these speakers so you can use them to watch videos with on your phone… and when it comes to audio codecs, both of these speakers have support for SBC and AAC but the Bose also has support for snap dragon sound.
But with all of that being said, lets talk about sound. Regarding speaker set up, both of these speakers have a frontward firing driver and passive radiators… and that’s it. And for the Clip 5’s price, that’s acceptable… but for the Bose Soundlink micro, not so much cause with the same price of the bose you can gets lets say the Sony ULT field 1 which as a driver and tweeter setup and dual passive radiators that shoot out the sides. What im say is, you’re paying a Bose Tax Here. And through their apps you can go in and adjust their sound to your liking. But now we’re going to jump into the sound test. We’re going to be using the Bose Soudnlink micro 2 at max volume and a t 75% Volume where as the JBL Clip 5 is just playing at 75% Volume.
Sound test
So first off we have to talk about the max volume performance of these speakers. With the Bose Soundlink Micro 2, its volume performance is very poor given its size and especially compared to the JBL Clip 5. The Bose Soundlink micro 2 playing at 75% volume is very low, and even when its playing at max volume… the Clip 5 is still louder than it while its playing at 75% volume. So with the JBL Clip 5, this speaker is just going to get louder than the Bose, simply put. And when it comes to sound quality… the JBL does sound fuller in the mids cause the Bose can sound a little hollow at times and the Clip 5 has more bass as well. Overall for me it is very hard to justify the Bose Soundlink micro 2 cause the JBL Clip 5 just sounds better and get much louder than the Bose while costing much less.
But finally lets talk about pairing these speakers up with other speakers. Now with both 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 same speakers. Or with the Bose you can also pair it up to lets say a Bose Flex 2, a soundlink plus or a soundlink max and get them to play in sync, but you can only have a total of 2 speakers paired together.
Where as the Clip 5 is using Auracast, 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 Boombox 4 and you can get them to all play in sync… but you can also pair up your JBL Clip 5 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 Clip 5 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 Clip 5 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 growing your collection of speakers, the Clip 5 gives you a lot of options… but just keep in mind, if you’re upgrading from any part boost speaker, you won’t be able to pair it up to your grip.
But with all of that being said, if you’re looking for a small portable bluetooth speaker for your hikes or for the shower, and you’re trying to choose between these two speakers, I can’t justify the Bose Soundlink micro 2 when the JBL clip 5 is just as small and portable, but more importantly its sounds better and gets much louder, it has a better real world battery, and its a little more affordable as well.