The comparison here is between the two Bluetooth speakers from different brands, those are the Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3 and the JBL Xtreme 2. Both of these speakers are the updated version of their predecessors but their price range differs a lot and their features also differ a lot. To know which one is worth buying for its price, go to the detailed review.

Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3	JBL Xtreme 2
BUY NOW	BUY NOW
PROS	PROS
Class-leading battery life. Gets incredibly loud. Punchy sound.	Clean, clear sound. Balanced bass. Solid design.
CONS	CONS
Recessed mids. Bass sounds loose at high volume. Charging dock not included.	Big. No wi-fi or multi-room. Presentation too grown-up for some.

SPECIFICATIONS:

Detail Review:

INTRODUCTION:

Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3

Logitech’s Ultimate Ears Boom speakers have literally set the standard in the market and now the brand-new Megaboom 3 looks to continue that trend with a speaker system that has a lot packed into it. The Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3 is retailing in the price range of around two hundred dollars.

JBL Xtreme 2

This model speaker from JBL is the JBL Xtreme 2 is a hundred dollars less than the Boombox from JBL retailing at around three hundred dollars but it packs almost as much power. There different colors available in this model and each color retails for a different price, so you can choose the color on the basis of you your budget too.

DESIGN: 

Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3

It looks a little trimmer even though technically they said it’s the same size. The aesthetics around the brand-new Megaboom 3 or the UE Boom 3 is really nice and flush. You’ve got a nice fabric with the two-tone color set, you still have that very standard volume up and down buttons that are quite massive in front, letting you know how to close control it. That’s a cylindrical shape and build with 360 surround sound is nice.

You’ve also got a hook, which is now basically sewn in with the fabric on the edge so that you can actually lift up and carry it that way, or maybe hook it to your bike or something like that which is really good. On the top of the device has all the controls you’ve got your power control which is right in front closer to the volume controls, then you’ve got your Bluetooth button at the very back, and in the middle is the brand-new magic button and it does a lot of things.

JBL Xtreme 2

As far as size goes, this speaker is pretty massive but it’s not as huge as the Boombox and it does have a lot of weight to it. One of the things that’s pretty unique about this is it actually has hooks on the top, that allows you to tie this JBL strap to it. That just makes it easy if you’re going to take it on the beach or take it in the woods or take it wherever with, you just throw it over your shoulder. Especially considering the weight it makes it kind of inconvenient to carry and this actually helps.

It’s simple branding just a JBL logo on the front, on the back, there is Xtreme 2 which covers up your ports. Actually one of my complaints about this is. it’s pretty hard to open this thing. So when you’re trying to access the slots in the back which is where you have your charging port, you have your USB port where you can actually charge other devices, you have micro USB to plug it into the PC to update the speaker, and then you actually have an auxiliary input. So it has all you need in the back and it’s very nice and sealed tightly, almost to the point where it’s too tight and hard to get to.

FEATURES:

Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3

The brand new magic button that comes in the Megaboom 3 does allow you to control the music by tapping to pause and play but it’s also got added functionality through the brand-new UE Boom app which allows you to do so much more. We know this app allows us to pair up to 150 speakers which is a really nice feature. But new features on the application add a little bit more. There’s the ability to actually add your playlists to the UE Boom app, so you don’t have to go to your phone anymore you can actually cycle it through the match button.

It’s very simple, what you have to do is simply go ahead and add those playlists to your smartphone. What you can do is simply by pressing and holding out the magic button for two seconds, you will cycle from one playlist to another. You can go on continuously as you cycle through playlists which allows you to listen to music seamlessly especially, if you take this with you out of the go, at a park, or by the beach. You don’t want to get to your phone, it’s a really nice simple and unique feature and I definitely like that.

The charging port is no longer underneath but just at the bottom. We can flip and open that, it still charges via micro USB which I find as a downside because there’s a chance to use USB Type-C and also introduce quick charging in there. But you can still charge your device but it does have that adaptive wireless charging plate which you can use from the previous Megaboom speakers which are nice. The other cool thing is that this also floats. You might think why do I care I know it’s water and dust resistant that’s fine, but what if you are on a boat or you’re by the beach somebody tosses your speaker into the water then it doesn’t sink to the bottom, you can go ahead and pick up your device which is actually pretty nice.

JBL Xtreme 2

The speaker itself is pretty identical to all the other ones in the JBL line. This speaker is IPX7 waterproof, so if you do just happen to drop it in the pool or drop it in the mud because of this fabric material you just simply take it off and you’re good to go. This feature is important especially if you’re one that wants to take it to the beach or take it to many different places and just not have to worry about it. On the side of the speaker these have passive radiators, what that’s doing with bass is, it’s actually just kind of pumping air and giving that vibration and it’s just giving that feeling of having more bass. As far as bass goes, that’s one thing that this speaker does not lack at all.

As far as your buttons go, it’s pretty simple up on the top starting on the left you have your Bluetooth button, then you have your volume down, then you have your power button, then you have the JBL party mode button this allows it to link up to other devices, and JBL says that it can link up to 100 devices that have this feature, then you have your volume up button, and then you have your play button. So it’s actually really simple and front on the bottom below there is JBL Brandon and it has five little indicator lights which will show you your battery life.

You get 15 hours of battery life total which is more than enough for you to take it for the weekend or have it all day while you’re out, of the beach, or doing whatever. To charge this speaker you actually need the proprietary charger that comes with it. You can’t plug it via USB although it does have several ports inside of it this is the only possible way to charge it. One thing I do want to point out, it does list as 40 watts of power that is only while it is plugged in and when you’re using it through Bluetooth, it uses 20 watts but that’s what allows you to have 15 hours of battery life, so to me, it was worth the trade-off.

The JBL always seems to last, and the battery life is really good and it’s again one of those things you just don’t have to worry about. The unique thing that I did want to point out about this is, the legs that are on here kind of running a little bit of the back, it’s actually see-through, and that’s something a little bit different. As far as audio goes, this speaker has plenty of volume and plenty of presence when you’re listening to it. Depending on whatever size room you use it really doesn’t matter, this thing can absolutely fill a room. The fact that you can link it to other multiple JBL devices just makes it that much louder.

SOUND QUALITY:

Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3

The sound quality is one of the main things we care about speakers because that’s what they’re supposed to do. It sounds really good, the one thing I will say though is that on higher volumes when you get into the max volume at 100%, the speakers tend to start bleeding out a little bit more and that’s something that might be a driver issue, it could be something can be fixed with software. But that’s on my experience on the highest level but you don’t need to go max out to enjoy. Plus you’ve got also a lot of custom issues in the software to maximize how you want to listen to your music. The one thing I would like to see in the future is supporting AptX HD.

JBL Xtreme 2

As far as sound, because of the size of this speaker and the weight and everything it’s able to do, this thing can easily fill a room with audio, I mean a huge room with audio. That is why they gear it towards outside because even using this outdoors you can still feel bass and still hear clarity from a long distance. So actually using this thing inside can be almost too loud at times but as far as at any volume level that I tried it I felt like the bass was always there and always present. So I felt like that was the forefront of the speaker but it never buried any of the clarity of the treble or the mids.

Overall, this is one of those like real fun speakers to have. Obviously, if you’re a critical listener this isn’t going to be for you because this is pumping out a lot of low-end, that you’re not going to be able to control as much as you want. To describe the sound signature of this, this is really meant to have like that exciting sound signature, where your bass is pumped up very high, mids are pretty forward but that’s if anything I would say probably the one thing that’s pulled back the most, where treble actually really shines. I thought with this having as much bass as it would that the treble would kind of fall back and it never really did.

WHICH ONE IS WORTH BUYING?

In my opinion, the JBL Xtreme 2 is definitely a solid speaker and is worth to buy even though its price is more because I do like what they have here, this is a speaker that I do like because of its styling, it’s easy to carry around, it doesn’t look like a huge speaker, it’s something that you can take with you on the trip, you can take it to the beach and feels like it’s part of your lifestyle and it also provides really good audio quality as well and some really unique features.

Expert Reviews of Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3:

By Tech Radar
The UE Megaboom 3 doesn’t stray from the company’s tried and true formula but it doesn’t have to. The Megaboom 3 is one of the best waterproof speakers you can buy thanks to its rugged design, long battery life, and audio performance, plus the new DJ feature is a clever way to get your friends on the action.

By What Hi-Fi?
Punchy, exciting, and full of fun, the Megaboom 3’s design tweaks, and new features make it even more exciting to use than before.

By PCMag
The wireless Ultimate Ears UE Megaboom 3 speaker improves upon its predecessor with a sleeker, more rugged design and a lower price tag.

By Tom’s Guide
The UE Megaboom 3 has what you want in a portable Bluetooth speaker: good sound quality, long battery life, ruggedness, and more.

By Forbes
The Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3 isn’t a smart speaker. If you want Alexa to get involved without using your smartphone, the company has that covered with the Megablast (reviewed here). But if you’re looking for a portable Bluetooth speaker…

Expert Reviews of JBL Xtreme 2:

By What Hi-Fi?
One of the best portable speakers around, the Xtreme 2 offers sonic subtlety you wouldn’t expect from first impressions

By Sound Guys
The JBL Xtreme 2 is for a specific kind of person and if you got to this point in the review then chances are that person is you. If you want a speaker that gets loud, sounds good, and will last you a full day of listening to music then the Xtreme 2 is hard to beat. Its tough IPX7 build means you don’t have to worry about it getting destroyed at the beach or the park…

By PCMag
The portable JBL Xtreme 2 speaker can be submerged in water and still pump out loud tunes with intense bass depth, making it ideal for outdoor use

By TechHive
The JBL Xtreme 2 is an excellent portable Bluetooth speaker. Setup is a snap, and it sounds surprisingly good for such a small speaker, though the bass can be quite boomy. I wish the JBL Connect app included EQ (even if only simple treble and bass controls), which would help overcome that problem. The Xtreme 2 exhibits virtually no stereo separation by itself, but you can use two of them as a stereo pair. You can also wirelessly…

By cnet
The JBL Xtreme 2 is a jumbo-sized Bluetooth speaker that trades light and easy portability for much fuller sound, both indoors and outdoors.