JBL Xtreme 3

JBL’S rugged wireless speaker serves up a sonic surprise

JBL has produced some cleverly designed, competitively priced and impressive sounding outdoorsy wireless speakers over the years. Multiple generations of Flip and Charge models have received positive reviews, while the previous generation Xtreme secured five stars when we tested it back in 2019.

The Xtreme 3 is a wireless speaker built to deal with a range of listening scenarios, from powering a pool party or get-together at the park to providing the background music to a lazy Sunday afternoon at home.

Rugged good looks

It might be waterproof, dustproof and wrapped in a ruggedised shell, but JBL has also managed to give the Xtreme 3 a certain aesthetic charm. The material in which the speaker is wrapped gives a neat finish which is surprisingly pleasant to the touch. The JBL logo, elevated slightly from the front of the speaker, also looks smart with its gunmetal finish and orange edging, and you’ve got the option of black, blue or jazzy camouflage finishes.

Behind the grille are two 7cm woofers for low frequencies and two 20mm tweeters for the highs, while at either end of the speaker you’ll find a chunky passive bass radiator. These actually provide a bit of theatre for the listener – you can see them pulsing enthusiastically along with every bassline they’re fed. The fact they’re completely sealed around the edges, combined with the resilient exterior material means that, should the Xtreme 3 somehow find itself in a swimming pool or sandstorm, it should emerge unscathed.

The Xtreme 3 boasts 100W of total power, up from the 80W of the Xtreme 2. This power boost, coupled to improved drive-unit sensitivity caused by the move from ferrite magnets to Neodymium, means the Xtreme 3 is claimed to go a fair bit louder, too. On top of the 2kg speaker are physical buttons for pairing, power, volume and play/pause. Partyboost mode also allows you to connect compatible JBL speakers together for stereo sound, or for a basic multi-room set-up.

Two hooks attach a supplied shoulder strap that thoughtfully includes its own bottle opener, while underneath a flat base covered in strips of super-grippy material should give the speaker extra purchase on whatever surface you choose to place it. A rubberised cover on the back of the speaker hides a 3.5mm input plus USB Type C and USB Type A outputs so you can use the JBL’S battery to power any devices which might be running out of juice. Hook up a smartphone or tablet, and the battery indicator will glow to indicate charging. For normal play, the battery should give you around 15 hours, Bluetooth 5.1 is supported and you can have two devices connected at once so people can take it in turns to play their tunes.

Careful and considerate

You’d expect a speaker destined for the great outdoors to be more preoccupied with the amount of bass it’s producing than the quality of it, but the Xtreme 3 proves to be careful and considerate from the lowest of lows to the highest highs.

A healthy amount of bass is generated, but there’s quality as well as quantity and it never threatens the overall balance. The JBL performs confidently and never appears out of its depth no matter how complicated the musical arrangement is.

Self Esteem’s She Reigns demands delicacy and intimacy and the JBL delivers in fine style. There’s good separation around the lead vocal; you can picture just how close the voice is to the mic. Guitar strums sound precise and defined and intertwine perfectly with the expressive vocal. This track also showcases the JBL’S captivating dynamics. It’s a strong showing for a wireless speaker and we can’t think of many rivals at this money that are as deft at communicating such subtle shifts. The delivery is aided by a notable absence of background noise which allows you to hear the subtle differences in the track, whether it’s the weight of drum strikes or string plucks. The way the speaker presents the information to the listener really draws you into the performance.

We then set the JBL the task of following the funky upbeat rhythm of Kiss The Sky by Shawn Lee’s Ping Pong Orchestra. There’s a real swagger to the song which oozes out of every surface of the JBL, from the percussion to the strings to the soulful vocal. Dynamics and timing are top-notch. Wireless speakers don’t tend to produce the biggest or widest of stereo images, but the JBL delivers good separation and focus too, and its ability to time well helps to knit the different elements together.

This is a solid and sturdy product that should cope with anything you throw at it, but it also harbours a surprising level of sophistication and sound quality. We haven’t come across many wireless speakers at this price as sonically gifted. Sure, it can get the party started, but it will also soothe the hangover that follows.