[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I find myself repeating time and time again that JBL never ceases to amaze me with their products. Every time I get something new, I'm impressed all over again and left wondering how they manage to keep topping their selves. The PartyBox Club 120 is no different - super impressive sound (and lights).
For starters, what I probably love the most about this is that it can run off an included battery. When mine was delivered, the battery was a little above 75% charged and I listened to this for several days on just the battery alone. I finally have it charging now through the included AC-power cable, but the battery is definitely long-lasting.
This speaker is just under 2 ft. high and comes just above my knee-cap. The weight as shown on the site says 24.35 lbs., but it doesn't feel that heavy to me - maybe because of the sturdy handle on top that makes it convenient for carrying.
The material it's made of feels strong and high quality. I think even playing music at its loudest that you wouldn't have to worry about it sliding or falling over.
It connects via Bluetooth quickly and easily and there's even an option to pair it with identical speakers for true stereo/surround sound.
Sound-wise, this thing is great. I work as a Audio Mixer and Sound Engineer and this definitely meets my standard of great sounding audio/music. It can get really loud - so loud that I normally only listen to it at under 50% volume. Whenever I throw my next party I'll be able to really crank it up, but until then if you're just listening at home or at a fairly small outing, listening between 30%-40% will do. On the top panel of the speaker itself, you are able to turn the volume up/down, pause and skip forward/back songs, as well as boost the bass between the options of Deep or Punchy.
Like most JBL products I've used, the real magic happens when you use their app. For this, you'll need to download the JBL PartyBox app. It works with both iOS and Android and the app performs the same on both from my tests. In the app, there's some bonus features for the sound that allows you to choose from some EQ presets or create your own with a 5-band Equalizer.
This speaker also features a really cool set of light options that will really make your party that much more fun and you can alternate through the different light settings via a knob and button on the top panel, or for more control you can control the lights and colors/patterns through the app as well.
This does serve as a karaoke type of speaker as well, so you're able to hook up a microphone or guitar via connection inputs inside of the rear panel on the speaker. There - you have input control as well, which can also be controlled via the app, too. I don't have a guitar to hook up and test, but I did record a video demonstrating a microphone test as well as showing the different light settings you can choose from. There's a separate Equalizer specifically for your microphone which allows you to adjust the bass, treble and echo - which I loved as different microphones sonically have a different characteristic about them, so I thought it was great that JBL thought to include that.
Additionally, there are some DJ-like party effects such as record scratch sounds, vocal effects, music fx and sound fx that you can control from within the app or by 3 buttons on the top panel. I loved the record scratch sounds and the music fx, though I thought the vocal effect choices could have been better. Nonetheless, I think it's cool to have such features included.
All-in-all, I'd give this speaker 10 out of 10. Out of the different JBL products I have, this is definitely one of my favorites and I can't wait to throw a party so I can turn this baby all the way up to 100% volume.
Great job, JBL - well done!
Customer reviews for JBL PartyBox Club 120 Portable Party Speaker for