LG launched the XBOOM 360 RP4 in Brazil at the end of 2021, its 360 audio speaker promises to engage your party with its design, lighting and sound quality. You can see that it’s already big and heavy but still portable. But is that really all? Is it more of a garden lantern or for music lovers? Stay here with us to find out!
design and lighting
The experience that differentiates with the product starts with the appearance of the product. More than this conical tower 50 centimeters high and 25 in diameter It will definitely go unnoticed in your home decor. But I’ll say one thing right away: Don’t think you can take it too close to the pool or outside where it can rain without being very careful, because it’s not water resistant.
The model we tested is covered in a purple fabric with a very high-quality finish, but there are also beige and dark green options available. A bit of a random marketing gimmick: LG’s names for the colors are Malbec, Moscatel, and Verdejo, respectively. Let’s see if the wine enthusiasts on duty are online? Comment who got the reference.
Coming back to the speaker, it’s not super light at just over 5kg, but it has an aluminum handle on the top for easy carrying. The top also has buttons for quick control of lighting, volume, Bluetooth connectivity, on/off, play/pause and battery indicator and other connections.
360 RGB lighting also makes a difference here, as it allows the control of more than 12 million colors, up to three tones, at the same time. The light is emitted by an inverted cone located just above the woofer. On the physical button, it’s possible to switch between three preset lighting modes, but using the LG XBOOM app you can browse through other combinations the company has prepared for different moments, including party mode that accompanies the beats of the music.
Coming to the bottom of the box, we have the cover that hides the USB type A and P2 connectors for those who do not want to be at the mercy of the stability of the Bluetooth and even want to charge the mobile phone. via USB. Here you can also find the option to force reset the product, as well as the Twin button, which allows you to simultaneously connect more of the brand’s speakers to give even more power to your party.
sound quality
Now let’s talk about what really matters when it comes to the sound box? I will say it impressed me in terms of sound during the tests. It’s 120 W of power, so even in a fully open place you could hear the music relatively clearly, with some loss of quality, of course, from a considerable distance – sorry neighbors of the place who complained, I swear it was work. For “normal” use within a house or apartment, I recommend not trying to test the volume, otherwise you will have to sell the box to pay for the apartment. Go again for me.
Here, the sound radiates 360 degrees throughout the room and does not need the speaker specifically in a corner to direct the speaker to where the crowd is concentrating to hear it properly. The technology here is LG’s own patent, which uses the reflector structure to achieve this differentiated omnidirectional effect that promises to radiate in all directions.
What happens here is that it has several drivers placed in different directions to complete the full rotation, unlike the “common” omnidirectional sound we’ve seen in other speakers. On some models this can create a blind spot between the audio outputs, but you can’t really say they’re worse because the overall operation will speak more about the quality and range of the sound. More output, even as this could have a greater impact for those who listen to the beat.
But here’s a very prominent woofer that reflects the sound inside this inverted pyramid in the image below and spreads waves all over the place. Made of fiberglass, this 5.25-inch woofer manages to offer full-bodied bass and interesting flexibility for those who want to enjoy the beats from the outside of the product. The bass also gains more body, thanks to the bass section in the bass channel. The titanium tweeter sits on top and does a good job with clear heights.
In summary, it offers decent performance for a Bluetooth and portable speaker – two enemies of sound quality. The sound is well balanced and there are no big losses. When the sound is rolled in a louder party and outdoors, the WOW effect is not as present as it is indoors.
Battery, connection and application
The power connector on the socket is a bit more hidden at the bottom of the box, but those who want to use the built-in 3,900 mAh battery should not worry, as it achieved a playtime of just over 9:40 during our tests – very close to the manufacturer-promised 10 hours with 50% volume and no lighting.
However, it’s important to note that if you’re in an open location, this time can be significantly reduced to 6 hours or a little more with the sound and lighting on the joystick loose. So, during a long good mess it is important to have an outlet nearby, as it takes 5 hours to leave the box in the outlet to give it a full charge.
Anyone who wants to connect via cable can use P2 connection or external USB sticks and HDs/SSDs with .MP3 and .WMA files to avoid loss of wireless connection. Even because during our tests it lost connection with the cell phone several times, even if there were no great distances between the devices.
As I said at the beginning, anyone who wants to explore some features can use the LG XBOOM app available for Android and iOS. The app lets you turn off or on the outdoor mode that gives that tham to the sound in open environments, fiddle with the lighting more and play with the sound equalization a bit, but only in predefined modes.
Something great here is DJ Mods. can you make a scratch [imita: fica fica fréu] some effects like classical horn in the middle of the music [imita: pé pé péuuuu], like a sampler. Here you can make a good joke. But it only has an effect with a USB connected cell phone, see. But if you’re expecting a smarter function like voice command via Alexa or Google Assistant, you can take the horse out of the rain. Here the focus is on 360 sound and the style of the box as a decoration piece.
Solution
We’re talking about a Bluetooth speaker that launched for R$2,899 but can be found in some colors on LG’s own online store for R$2,499 and retail for a little less. Still less than 5,000 BRL+ JBL Partybox? Yes, but the features are also different. In the competition model we have two more drivers, water resistance, microphone input, here 120 vs 800 watts of power… in short, different suggestions.
Here it works outside, but the sound is not that impressive, even more so if there is a lot of noise around. But it is undeniable that the 360 sound is very good and serves easily as a decorative piece. .
Source: Tec Mundo
