JBL Authentics 300

Verdict

A fun, loud, and bassy wireless speaker. If you’re interested in having a fun time, the JBL Authentics 300 offers plenty of that.

Introduction

The Authentics range of speakers calls back to JBL’s history – a retro-looking speaker with modern features.

The Authentics 300 sits in the middle of the range, leaving out the Dolby Atmos audio of the flagship Authentics 500 but integrating a handle for portable use as well as boasting built-in 8-hour battery life.

The range offers several options to cater to those who want a home experience or a portable one, and the Authentics 300 might just offer the best of both worlds.

Design

• Big size
• Retro looks
• Switch for microphone

The Authentics 300 looks big, is big, and tips the scales at 4.49kg. Let’s be thankful for the handle as this speaker would be a pain to lug about the house if it didn’t have one. Though it comes with that handle there’s no mention of an IP rating, so if you do want to take outside, make sure it’s on a clear and sunny day.

The aesthetics recall JBL speakers from yesteryear with its Quadrex grille on the front, as well as its black and gold stylings. It’s a distinctive look and will catch the eye of anyone who walks into a room.

On top of the speaker are rotary dials for controlling volume, treble and bass, all of which are very nice and smooth to operate. There’s a light with each dial that shows how much you’ve increased or decreased it – I like that visual feedback.

In between are buttons for saving playlists, enabling Bluetooth connectivity, and powering the speaker. Around the rear is a switch for turning the microphones on or off in a similar fashion to the Sonos Era speakers, and below are Ethernet, Aux and USB-C ports. The US version of the speaker has USB playback.

Features

• Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support
• Dual voice assistants
• JBL One app

JBL has pulled a neat trick with its Authentics range as you get a choice of Google and Alexa voice assistants – you can set up both and switch between them simultaneously. I don’t think I’ve seen that feature implemented before.

And interaction with voice assistants is hands-free, so all you have to do is say the ‘Hey Google’ or Alexa wake-up words, and away they go.

There is Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support, and through Wi-Fi there’s Spotify Connect, Google Cast and Alexa Multi-Room Music to fling audio to the device. Set-up through Google Home is breezy and gets the Authentics 300 up to speed within a few minutes. You can switch instantly from Wi-Fi to a Bluetooth connection but not vice versa (or at least that hasn’t been the case for me).

The Authentics 300 can be plugged into the mains via the power cable, or you can take it around the house thanks to its built-in rechargeable battery, which is good enough for eight hours according to JBL. Via the USB-C port you could even charge another device, turning the Authentics 300 into a powerbank.

The Authentics 300 supports the JBL One app, and through it, you can set up Alexa voice control, create a stereo pair, adjust the EQ, monitor battery life, control and stream music directly from the app.

The likes of Tidal, Qobuz and Amazon Music are supported by logging in and accessing your music library. If you’ve got multiple streaming services, it saves you from having to jump in and out of several apps.

You can also sort out whether the speaker automatically reconnects to a Bluetooth connection and enable a battery saving mode that optimises volume and bass output. There’s no room-tuning a la Sonos Trueplay, but there are treble and bass adjustments you can tweak.

There’s also the Moments feature. This is something I first spotted on the Charge 5 Wi-Fi speaker, and it’s a button you can assign your favourite track, playlist or radio station to with a tap of a button. Think of it as a bookmark button.

Sound Quality

• Big bass
• Struggles with complex tracks
• Can go very loud

The JBL Authentics 300 has that same JBL sound present across a number of its products. The output is smooth and furnished with solid levels of detail, though it lacks a degree of sharpness. Regardless, there’s an emphasis on bass weight with this speaker that makes for an enjoyable sound.

While there’s a sense of dynamism it’s on a small scale than a large one. Like a number of wireless speakers, the soundstage doesn’t feel wider than the speaker itself but for the most part it doesn’t feel cramped in size for the most part. However, when playing complex tracks it does feel as if the JBL doesn’t have the levels of detail and clarity to sift through it giving the impression of being hemmed in.

The bass weight is strong in a track such as Bittersweet, but it doesn’t affect the clarity or definition of Lianne La Havas’ voice in the song. It’s the type of power and depth in the low frequencies that’s large enough to send vibrations through the table thanks to the downward-firing port. There’s a robustness and beefiness to the bass that serves the Authentics 300 well as a party speaker.

Streaming Lily of the Nile album from Qobuz and it’s clear that while the levels of clarity are good, they’re not as high as that of the Audio Pro C20 or Sonos Five. Then again, those are more expensive speakers.

It describes tracks with energy but the speaker does feel as if it could be sharper and more defined. With the volume turned up, there’s less detail to be found and when the volume is turned down it’s not a particularly interesting listen either. This isn’t a speaker that scales quite as well as others in terms of volume. It gets loud at about 30% volume and I wouldn’t even want to go beyond 50% – at that point the neighbours might start knocking.

Its Bluetooth performance has a similar character to its Wi-Fi output but with a drop in overall clarity. Clarity with vocals is good but it’s not the most detailed performance, with more smoothness and a bigger emphasis on bass than is present in its Wi-Fi performance.

All that said, I like the sound of the Authentics 300. There’s a strong sense of bass to its sound, with plenty of power and slam to those low frequencies that makes for an exciting listen. As long as you’re not looking for the most refined and detailed sound, the JBL Authentics 300 is another speaker to put squarely in the category of fun.

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