LG Xboom 360 XO3 Speaker - The Ultimate Party Speaker!
/Hey Guys, it’s Troy from WhatGear reviews here. And this is the new LG XBOOM 360 XO3 speaker. LG has been nice enough to sponsor this video, but all thoughts surrounding this 360 sound device are my own. The new LG XBOOM speaker sits right around the middle of the current LG XBOOM range. The smallest, most affordable speaker starts at 49.99, and the top-end XBOOM speaker is 499. The XO3 at launch costs 299 here in the UK. This is the charcoal grey version.
Now, Life is good when it is good when music is around. And the great thing about the XBOOM 360 XO3 is that you can take your sound around with you, And LG has even included a fabric strap, and behind this waterproof seal is a metal buckle to fit it. And you probably guessed it, but this speaker is IP54 water and dust resistance rating…and you know, some people feel the rain, while others just get wet. But no matter which type of person you are, the X03 should be alright.
What makes the design & use case for the Xboom XO3 interesting. That, yes, It’s portable, and no wires are required for up to 24HRs of continuous playback. It does, But more important is that it doesn’t need to be front and centre and angles towards you like a traditional wireless speaker would need to be. Thanks to LG’s patented 360 sound technology. Which consists of an interesting speaker configuration and this patented reflector structure…
LG says this assists the sound in dispersing evenly in every direction.
When it comes to drivers, there are three. A large 25w downward-firing woofer & an upward 25watt glass fibre mid speaker and a one-inch silk dome tweeter is placed at the very top for those hi frequencies. And LG haven has given the XBOOM XO3 a little more boom by making room for two sizeable passive verticle racetrack woofers. Which are placed across from each other. And this, in theory, helps to cancel out unwanted vibrations that could cause distortion.
Regarding size and weight, it’s about as tall a 2-litre bottle of water but quite a bit wider at its base…and it weighs 3.6 kg. So its centre of gravity is good & again, this should help reduce vibration. I think you’ll agree this is not a typical portable speaker design.
Now look, here see. A little bit of light music can change the vibe in any situation you find yourself in. So whether you want to lighten the mood or turn the party up. The X03 can light up the night with its built-in circular LED light array around the 360 sound reflector.
There are 3 mood categories with preset light patterns to choose from, including a candlelight effect and a party strobe effect, and you can get creative and use the custom colour selector for a personalised look.
Regarding user controls, capacitive buttons are located around the top of the speaker, including volume up and down and play pause. A button to switch light patterns & Bluetooth pairing button. There’s also a little battery indicator light to let you know when it’s time to recharge. LG do provide a charging cable & the USB c port is located behind a water-resistant rubber cover…, and you’ll notice here. Yeh, that’s an analogue audio jack for those classic playback devices or DACs.
And, of course, if you’re chilling and want to control that room-filling sound from a distance, you’ve got the LG Xboom app. Which gives you all the basic functionality plus the option to play with the EQ and even dial in your own 6-band custom EQ. And if you buy two Xboom X03’s you use dual mode to make them a stereo pair for better soundstage and separation or even connect several Xbooms in multi-mode if you are having a house party or something like that.
So let’s get to arguably the most important part of any speaker review. It’s the sound quality. So you know I’ve been doing tech reviews for a while, before YT I worked in Harrods Technology department & rightfully won a place in the Harrods book of legends… but the point I’m trying to make is I’m pretty well versed when it comes audio tech at all price ranges. And my opinion of the sound quality here is standalone. It’s pretty incredible. It will be hard to talk about the sound stage and stereo separation as, technically, the X03 is a 1.1-channel speaker. But what it lacks in audio channels and stereo output, it makes up for in its omnidirectional ability.
If the sound signature is in its default mode, I will describe it as natural. It’s not too overpowered in the bassy low-end frequencies, and the hi ends don’t Pearce your ears. It’s not meant to be a reference speaker, so you will notice straight out of the box it’s got a lively sound signature & emphasis, to me, seems to be in the vocal range. Female & Male vocals sound really clear and accurate to me.
I tested the X03 with all the usual genres, and the vocals stayed clear throughout my test regardless of genre. One thing I did notice and really appreciate with the sound quality is the X03’s ability to cater for bass-heavy tracks if that is what your style… as standard, the bass is respectable for the price range. However, the bass levels significantly with you switching to sound boost mode…so if you are into hip hop, EDM, or pop, I’d recommend sound boost 24/7, but for everything else, the standard EQ is ideal. And the great thing about the X03 is that even when at max volume, it holds its own with no noticeable distortion or rattling. So yeh, your getting good sound for pounds…or dollars, euros, rupees.
But you know something? It’s always hard to make speaker reviews. Because I have to paint a picture of what the speaker sounds like in your mind. And if you want to visualise what this speaker does, how it sounds & how the sound waves might look when placed at the centre of a space. It would resemble a circular ripple in water caused by a droplet hitting the surface… LG has clearly thought about this because if you look at the shape of the Xoom X03 speaker, it kind of resembles a water droplet. Even the patented reflector resembles water gathering to a point where a droplet would form…and eventually drop…
And it's really this radial design & that circular audio output of Xboom X03 speaker that in a lot of people's eyes, and the ears and minds that can make this the centre of attention…when combined with good vibrations.
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