soundcore Select 4 Go
JBL Go 4
Design & Features
There’s no denying that both speakers look very similar with their respective company logos embossed across the front, a speaker grill fabric predominantly covering front and back, and rubberized strips, or nubbins, helping to stop both speakers from moving around whilst playing music .
They also both have fabric loops enabling you to hang each speaker, with or without the aid of a carabiner, off bags, ropes, tree branches, or pretty much whatever you want.
The soundcore Select 4 Go is about an inch longer than the JBL Go 4 and weighs 265g compared to the Go 4’s 190g. So neither speaker is particularly heavy. The more compact size of the JBL Go 4 though does mean it’s easier for putting it in your pocket.
The controls on both speakers are easy to use and allow you to change the volume, play and pause music, and also skip tracks both forwards and backwards.
The JBL Go 4 goes one step further though by including an Auracast button which allows it to sync up with an infinite number of Auracast compatible speakers so they can all play the same music at the same time. As Auracast is a Bluetooth standard rather than a JBL proprietary format, it’s not limited to only JBL speakers. I’ve had this paired up with a pair of Earfun earbuds and this speaker at the same time playing the same music.
Both speakers support multi-point so you can connect to two devices at the same time. They can also both pair to another like speaker for true stereo playback.
From a weatherproof persective, both speakers are IP67 rated. So not only are they dustproof but can also be submerged in a meter of water for up to 30 minutes. Not that these need it as they both float! So if you lose them off the side of a boat they’re going to be easy to fish out.
Battery Life
The JBL Go 4 has a respectable 7 hours of battery life, and takes 3 hours to fully charge. You can increase that by an extra 2 hours if you enable ‘playtime boost’. However, that mode kills the bass so I wouldn’t recommend using it.
However, the soundcore Select 4 Go can play music for up to 20 hours before running out of power! That’s really impressive for a speaker this size, although that does mean it takes 4 hours to charge. But when the battery lasts this long you’re not going to be charging it as often.
Mobile App Support
Both speakers offer mobile app support which allows them to get firmware updates and where you can also adjust the EQ if needed. There is a five band EQ available for the JBL Go 4, and a nine band EQ for the soundcore Select 4 Go.
The Sound
Both speakers come with a 45mm full range driver and a single passive radiator. They also both support a frequency range of 90 Hz to 20 kHz. Although the soundcore does go slightly louder at 5 watts compared to the JBL’s 4.2 watts.
Despite the same frequency response range in both speakers, it’s the JBL that sounded the bassier of the two. Conversely the mids and highs sounded more detailed on the soundcore. The soundcore also sounded wider and more open, as though the sound was coming from a larger speaker.
Neither speakers sounded good when pushed to their max volume. I pretty much say that of most speakers anyway. These are best played at low to mid volume, which is still more than loud enough for personal listening, or listening with a few mates.
Which should you buy?
Before today I would have said that if you’re looking for a lightweight cheap portable speaker, that sounded pretty good for its size, then the JBL Go 4 was a pretty good option.
But whist the soundcore Select 4 Go isn’t as bassy as the Go 4, it is louder, and it’s half the price as it only costs $25! So you could buy two for the same price as one JBL Go 4! This is an ideal stocking filler and is going to sell like hotcakes.
