JBL Clip4 Portable Bluetooth Speaker Review

So many of us get busy, we also need time to relax. One great way to relax is going outdoors, such as the mountains, lake, or beach. Since most of us like music, we tend to take it with us on the go. We also tend to take our smart-phones everywhere with us. After all, they can do so much. But face it, playing great sounding music is not one of them. Enter the JBL Clip 4.

 

Features and specs:

 

General Specifications

Output power (W): 5

Frequency Range Hz (-10 dB): 2400 – 2483.5MHz

 

Audio Specifications

Dynamic frequency response range (Hz): 100Hz-20kHz

 

Dimensions

Dimensions (in): 3.4 x 5.3 x 1.8”

Weight (kgs): .24

Weight (lbs): .53

 

Control and Connection Specifications

Bluetooth profiles: A2DP 1.3, AVRCP 1.6

Bluetooth transmitted modulation: GFSK, π/4 DQPSK, 8DPSK

Bluetooth transmitter power: ≤ 10 dBm (EIRP

Bluetooth version: 5.1

 

Battery

Maximum play time (hours): 10

Charging time (hrs): 3

 

Features

Bluetooth: Yes

Waterproof: Yes

Wireless: Yes

IP67: Yes

 

The JBL Clip 4 come in a great looking color printed box, with specs and features printed on the box. The front also included a clear plastic window so you could see the JBL Clip 4. The JBL Clip 4 was held protected in place with custom molded plastic. Materials used was mostly plastic with some cloth and metal in the clip. Quality of materials used was very good, as was the fit and finish. Also included was the charging cable and owner’s manual.

 

I really liked the minimalist approach to the JBL Clip 4. There are a lot more wireless speakers out there that are waterproof. They also sound really good, but they are also much larger in size. This means that they are not nearly as portable as the JBL Clip 4. But if portability is the greatest concern, like if you are going hiking for a long trip, the JBL Clip 4 could be perfect. It’s very small, yet still sounds much better than turning on the anemic speakers in your phone. Now let’s see how they sound.

Toto- Africa:  kick drums had good impact, depth, and authority.  Congas had good resolution of the pad.  Cow bell sounded a little recessed, as if it was in the background, but it had good tone.  Cymbals were crisp and clean, but also a bit recessed.  Recorder had good air, and piano sounded natural.  Vocals were very smooth with good harmonics.  Vocals sounded excellent front and center.  There are a lot of instruments in this track, and they were resolved very well.

AC/DC- Thunderstruck:  cymbals were crisp and clean, guitar rift had good definition of all the notes even with how fast they were played.  Kick drum had good dynamics, and played with better-than-expected authority.  Vocals sounded nice and raw as they were supposed to, with good resolution of the timbre.

Guns N Roses- Paradise City:  cymbals were crisp and clean, although sounded a little recessed.  Guitar was crisp with good resolution of the strings.  Kick drum shockingly did not just have good depth, it also revealed a deep soundstage which I was not expecting to hear from this small speaker.  Vocals were also smooth with good texture of the timbre.

 

All-in-all, I was not expecting much from the Clip4 based on its size.  Boy was I wrong!  It had a little difficulty at times resolving some instruments, but did a better-than-expected job of it, being able to typically resolve a lot of different instruments in a track like Toto Africa.  Bass performance was also better than expected providing good depth and output.  The whole housing vibrated from the bass output. It’s extremely small, yet the JBL Clip 4 has earned our Highly Recommended Award. It’s a well-built good sounding speaker, that is designed to give years of use. For more info and complete specs, check out their website at www.jbl.com.