Soul SM1CHR Magnum Wireless Bluetooth Ultra High-Definition Speaker System

I love this thing. Out of all of the bluetooth speakers I've sampled (eight, and counting), this little Soul is my favorite. Whether I'm in a hotel room, in the office, or out on the patio sipping a cold one, this guy is there, cranking out my iTunes with rich sound. Friends ask, "is that music coming from THAT little thing?" Wink, nod, sip. Don't know how they do it, and a I don't care. The highs cut through, the mids are lush, and the lows push bass beyond reason considering the footprint of this tiny brick house. As if function isn't enough, the form should be noted. This thing looks rad. Yeah, I said rad. I'm bringing that word back. Some of the other bluetooth speakers in this class are frankly hideous looking. The rest are just kind of...vanilla. This one is beautiful. It's the perfect height and diameter. It's so convenient to tuck away and carry with me, to the yard, across the country, and all points in between. And the charcoal finish is just dead sexy. My one tiny complaint is that most of the controls are on the bottom, which is covered with a rubber mat that picks up dust, dirt, crumbs and stuff from all the indoor/outdoor surfaces I put it on, so it's not something I want to see let alone touch. But, boo hoo, I'll suck it up. This speaker gets my vote for best all-around bluetooth speaker of 2013.

I have to give this unit 5 stars. All the reviewers who gave low scores to this unit...and then say "It doesn't compare to my Jawbone...or to my Bose...or to my this or to my that". People, compare it to other speakers within its price range.....more importantly compare it to other speakers in and around $20, and I guarantee this is the best option you will find. Its a well built product capable of filling a small space with sound. And since I don't always need a giant speaker, this is the perfect solution. The sound is clear, and boy can this thing wail. For a tiny speaker its loud. Add to that the speakerphone function...and this, in conjunction with the Ipad, has become my Skype setup of choice. Folks, if you are looking for a small, portable speaker to take with you to the beach, use while your BBQ'ing, or hanging out with some friends and just need a little background music, this is the device for you....and it won't break the wallet. A little tip, low bass is a bit of a limitation with this unit. No surprise there, its a single tiny speaker. If you place the speaker back in its box (with the cover off), and remove the accessories box...this little guy produces quite a bit of bass. The box acts as a bass amplifier. Not sure if the box was intentionally designed for this...but it helps to amplify the bass a bit.

I own one of these Soul bluetooth speakers as well as the Cambridge Soundworks Oontz Curve. Both are Bluetooth speakers with similar size and weight. Both have sturdy and good-looking metal shells. The Soul costs $20 and the Oontz costs $30 (both on Amazon right now). Both are very easy to pair with my Android smartphone. Both have similar volume levels, which is OK as a speakerphone or for background music, though neither will fill a living room with sound. Controls on both devices are similar; you really have to pick up the speaker to see and use most of the controls (forward/back, volume up/down, pause/play). The Oontz does have a well marked speakerphone button on the top, while the Soul puts that on the bottom with the other controls. I'm not an audiophile, but the Oontz has noticeably clearer sound to me at all volume levels. In summary, to me the Oontz is a better product in every way except for the 50% higher price, so you can make your own value judgement.

I purchased two of these. They are nicely constructed and paired easily to three different devices. Being a Soul product, I expected a minimal level of sound quality fully understanding that they were only $20 each. Unfortunately they sounded unbelievably bad. The sound that came from the iPad itself was not only better sounding - which in itself is hard to believe knowing how the internal speakers on mobile devices are, but even a bit louder... The little JBL micro I also have, is light years better. I called Soul and they said they must be both defective or not real Soul product. If they are counterfeit, they really did a nice job on the physical product and the packaging, but failed miserably on the sound quality. I also tried the line-in just in case it was a bluetooth issue, but the sound was equally as bad. They are both going back. Even at $20 they are ripoff considering their very poor sound quality.

Before I get to the actual review, a few important points: 1) DO NOT buy this product if you are picturing yourself using this to get a house party going. This speaker's dimensions are approximately 2.7 inches (diameter) x 2 inches (height) and it weighs in at about half a pound (I believe Amazon gives the dimensions of the product packaging - luckily I was aware of its true dimensions based on some other websites I looked to for more info before purchasing). I think it should go without saying that based on physics alone, it is very unreasonable to expect thumping, wall-shaking bass from a product like this. If you are looking for an audiophile-quality product with a rich, full soundstage, this speaker is not for you. Certainly, to the credit of some of the product's harshest critics, the "Ultra High Definition Speaker System" description can be somewhat misleading, but I make every attempt to not to take it too personally in this review (it's definitely no worse than food products marketed as having "Natural flavors" or "No MSG added"). I will say that the speaker did surpass some of my expectations in terms of sound quality and loudness; however, this came from a baseline understanding that the main benefits of this speaker are portability and convenience. 2) As other reviewers have mentioned, the volume/change track/phone controls are along the bottom of the speaker. While it's not quite intuitive, the manual is very clear about long pressing and short pressing to control the volume and track changes, respectively. 3) Lastly, and maybe most importantly, I have based my review not on the suggested retail price of $45+, but rather the $20 price here on Amazon. This product is what I would consider to be a part of the ultra portable bluetooth speaker category. Products like the Bose Soundlink Mini, JBL Flip/Charge, MINI JAMBOX, and others like them are not only priced 5-10x higher, they are also much larger. If you are, however, willing to move up to the $50+ range, I believe there are some great middle ground, albeit less portable options that provide great bang for your buck with better sound (though they are still not in the same ultra portable class of the SOUL SM1CHR). One of these great options is the Sharkk Bluetooth 4.0 Boombox NFC Speaker System. Now onto the nitty gritty. I will begin by saying that I did not start without some biases. As somewhat of an audiophile and a general skeptic of celebrity-endorsed/marketing-heavy products like Bose and Monster, I was a bit hesitant to pull the trigger on what I consider be a product line along the same vein (if you didn't know, SOUL is endorsed by hip-hop artist Ludacris). That said, this little speaker appealed to me more than other comparable ultra portable speakers because of its very clean lines, sleek design and sturdy construction. I was never a fan of the plastic UFO, accordion look of some of the other ultra portable bluetooth speakers on the market. Furthermore, at around $20 and with very guarded expectations, I decided it was more than reasonably worth the risk. What's in the box: -Speaker -USB charging cable -3.5 mm audio cable -Draw-string carrying pouch -Instruction manual Features: -Default volume - When turned off and back on, the volume on the speaker is reset to its default (around 50% of max volume). I found this to be a bit annoying, as I would prefer to be able to just turn the speaker on, pair my device, and simply adjust the volume from the device itself. The volume on this speaker, like many others on the market, is not fully integrated with your device - that is, you must raise the volume on both the speaker and device to achieve maximum volume. -Interface - As mentioned earlier, the controls are along the bottom. While possible, I do not believe you are meant to be able to control the speaker by pressing down on the top of the speaker while it sits on a flat surface, as there are no markings or indicators there. If you need to access the controls via the speaker itself, you'll have to pick it up. -Bluetooth 3.0 - While not the latest version, it works seamlessly and pairs quickly with all of my devices at considerable distances - tested up to 20 feet with no problems. In one instance, however, I did encounter some flickering sound even when within a few feet of the speaker. Disconnecting and pairing my device again rectified this issue and I never encountered it again. -Battery life - The 6-hour bluetooth battery rating is fair. Your miles may vary depending on your volume levels. Using the speaker at about 75% of maximum volume on average, I managed just about the full 6 hours. I have not tested the 12-hour battery rating when using the 3.5 mm auxiliary cable. -Hands-free calls - I found that calls are very clear and callers are unaware that I am speaking to them via a speaker from a few feet away. This was a pleasant surprise as I have found that several options at this price point either do not have this feature or are not all that effective. -Blue light indicator - When turned on, a ring of blue light appears along the top of the speaker. Before pairing, this blue light blinks. When paired, the light is constant and cannot be turned off. This may be annoying to some, but I thought it was elegantly done and the light is not blinding by any means, even in a darker setting. Sound: Given the size of the product, as mentioned earlier, my expectations were tempered to say the least. Overall, as can be expected from a product of this size, the sound is a bit top heavy, verging on somewhat tinny when nearing maximum volumes. Again, I want to emphasize that this is no different from and at least as good as other products I have heard at this price point and size. The highs are most prominent, mids are clear, and the bass is limited but still pretty admirable. In listening to everything from classical to hip-hop, the speaker performed well, though bassheads will certainly be left wanting more. In using a frequency generator app, I was able to hear bass starting at about 30 Hz (though almost inaudible). Practically speaking, you won't really be able to hear bass in your music until at least the mid to high 30 Hz frequencies with this speaker. Even still, the bass that was present was a pleasant surprise. You can make the limited bass the speaker does output sound more pronounced by placing it against a wall or, even better, a corner where two walls converge. When placed in the corner of our kitchen counter-top, the sound seems much more balanced and full as the bass is able to reflect off of the walls. Even my wife, who doesn't care much for electronics at all, found the little speaker's large sound to be surprisingly good when paired with her phone/iPad. Furthermore, in terms of sheer output, for personal use (around 5 feet away), I found that the speaker at 75+% volume was almost obnoxiously loud in a smaller room with reflective surfaces. Counter to one reviewer's statements, in my opinion, there is simply no way that a device is louder on its own than that device paired with this speaker. I suspect that this reviewer and perhaps others were not fully aware of my first point mentioned under "Features". Conclusion: While you can certainly get much better quality sound by several other means (e.g. home theater, headphones, larger portable speakers), some situations simply call for the convenience and portability that small speakers like this can provide. Whether you're traveling, in the kitchen cooking or outside grilling with a few friends and just want some light background music, this is a very elegant solution that is more than capable of getting the job done. The overall sound quality may leave something to be desired (though I would argue that it's unreasonable to have such high expectations for a speaker of this size), especially for audiophiles on a budget, but the speaker can get surprisingly loud and the battery will last you for a good part of the day. Again, if you are willing to sacrifice a bit more on portability and price, there are certainly other options out there for you. The product itself is robust and very sleek with its clean lines and unique design with controls hidden away along the bottom. TL;DR: Given reasonable baseline expectations for an ultra portable bluetooth speaker, this speaker performs admirably. While the sound is at least as good as or comparable to most of its direct competition, ultimately the product's attractively minimalist, sturdy design is really what separates it from the rest of the field.

I LOVE THIS THING!!! It's about the size of a HALF of a 12 oz. beer can and it has a very FULL and ROBUST sound to it. It's not made to play like a 100-watt speaker, rather more for ambient music in the background. Hooks up through BLUETOOTH or 3.5 mm cable to your iPhone or other mp3 devices and puts out a very sweet, very full sound without being so loud it would drown out your conversation and it's small enough that you could ALMOST put it in your pocket. It's LITERALLY the size of HALF a beer can but it weighs about as much as two FULL ones. VERY WELL CONSTRUCTED!! I would actually go so far as to compare it to BOSE!!! Plus the fact, that I got it for $20 instead of the usual $49.99 (which is still a sweet price for this puppy). PERFECT CHRISTMAS GIFT FOR GUYS OR GALS!!!

I paid $20 for this on sale. If it were full price, I probably wouldn't have been interested. But for $20, this is almost too good to be true. Other reviewers complain about the controls, but you never really need to touch the thing unless you are turning it on and off; 1. Turn unit on. It automatically pairs with or is available to your Bluetooth enabled device. 2. Turn up volume on the speaker to almost full. 3. Once paired via Bluetooth, all volume control and song navigation can be accomplished from your phone or ipod... The speaker is about the size of a half can of soda (or beer). Very nice, clean design. Seems well built. I haven't had it for long, so not sure about durability, but it appears sturdy. I use it in the garage, paired with my iPhone 4S. It says 30 foot range via Bluetooth, but I have walked out to the mailbox (75 + feet away!), with my phone in pocket, and it stays connected and clear. No, there is not enough available volume or bass for a dance party or the like, but for listening to music by yourself or with a few friends on the patio, its perfect. Just loud enough to enjoy musical nuances, but not drown out conversation. Pick it up and take it with you in the silky little pouch provided, and the party is mobile.

Small form factor, as you can see from the pics. Paired quickly and the blue light clearly shows that it's connected and powered on. I have to say that the loudness and sound quality is barely better than my tinny cell phone speaker. It would be hard to hear in the shower or at the BBQ in the yard. There is absolutely no bass but that's to be expected from something so small. As others have already written, the design of the speaker isn't so logical. The controls for power, song skip and volume are all on the bottom. And you really can't tell if you're going to skip forward or boost volume until you actually do it, because they're all the same buttons. The rubber bottom of my speaker got a bit dirty and then it was hard to even find the controls! You have to really press down to move the power button, maybe even resorting to using your fingernail... All in all I would not recommend this speaker to anyone and am actually looking around for a bigger and better one.