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Read our full reviews of the JBL Charge 5 and JBL Flip 6 What’s the best JBL speaker? And two of our favorite JBL speakers in the portable category are the Charge 5 and Flip 6.Įngineered to deliver loud, articulate, pulse-pounding sound for both indoor and outdoor environments, the Charge 5 and Flip 6 are also long-lasting in terms of battery life, feature adjustable EQs that can be tweaked using the JBL Portable app, and are available in a number of different shell colors.
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If you’re looking for a sleek, well-armored, and powerful-sounding Bluetooth speaker, JBL is the way to go. Whether you’re an aspiring audio engineer, home cinema connoisseur, or the average listener who just wants a durable and weatherproof Bluetooth speaker that sounds great, JBL has reliable audio products that satisfy nearly every niche. When it comes to versatility, JBL is truly a jack of all trades and even the master of a few. Faltering a bit through the ’80s and ’90s, at least in terms of mass-market appeal, Samsung acquired Harman Kardon in 2017, which brought about a major resurgence for the JBL label. Sold to Harman International in 1969, the following year JBL would hit pay dirt with its legendary JBL L-100 loudspeakers, as well as its prolific line of professional studio monitors. The best cheap headphones and earbuds for 2023įast-forward 25 years or so to the ’70s, and JBL is bigger than ever.
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After a series of developmental collaborations with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s sound division, the tragic 1939 death of Decker in a plane crash, and a 1941 buyout from Altec Service Corporation (later changed to Altec Lansing), James Lansing left Altec in 1946 after his contract with the company ended, where he went on to found his own brand once more: Lansing Sound, and later JBL Sound.Īpple AirPlay 2: the wireless audio and video streaming tech fully explained With origins dating back to 1927, James Lansing and his business partner, Ken Decker, started in the radio business, producing drivers for at-home radio hardware. Lansing Sound (JBL) has seen a number of peaks and valleys in its many decades as a recognizable name in audio.
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JBL Accessibility meets performance The JBL Charge 5 Bluetooth speaker Ted Kritsonis/Digital Trends For each name, we’ve provided a brief history, some notable products, and accolades, along with what we consider to be the best singular speaker (or pair of speakers) from each company. We asked ourselves that question too, and after many long hours of research and testing, plus years of experience in the world of A/V consumer tech, we’ve come up with this list of the best speaker brands on the market right now.
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