JBL CLUB 700BT Wireless Headphones Review

The JBL CLUB 700BT are well-designed and premium-looking on-ears. They're all black and have a somewhat retro-look thanks to the exposed wire on each ear cup. Overall, these headphones look much more premium and high-end than the JBL Live 400BT Wireless.

These headphones are decently comfortable. Since these are on-ear headphones, they may get slightly uncomfortable after long periods. Luckily, they don't clamp as hard as some other options, like the JBL Live 400BT Wireless or the Beats Solo Pro Wireless. Unfortunately, due to their well-padded ear cups, they tend to get hot very quickly.

The controls of the JBL CLUB 700BT are decent. They have a lot of physical, clicky buttons along the side of each ear cup, including a large button on the 'JBL' logo on the left side. The buttons give a good selection of controls, including a 'bass boost' feature, but unfortunately, they aren't the easiest to use as the buttons are close together and it can be difficult to know which button you're pressing. The headphones also don't give any voice feedback prompts, making it tougher to know which button you've pressed.

The JBL CLUB 700BT have mediocre portability, though they aren't as bulky as most over-ear headphones. Unfortunately, the ear cups don't swivel to lay flat, but the headphones can be folded up in two different ways to make them smaller.

The JBL CLUB 700BT come with a sub-par soft carrying pouch. While it won't protect the headphones from drops or bumps, it's covered in a rubbery material that feels waterproof enough to protect them from light rain or splashes.

The build quality of the JBL CLUB 700BT is good. They're primarily made of good quality and dense plastic. The hinges and yokes are all metal and feel well-built and premium. While their physical buttons feel like they'd be waterproof, these headphones don't seem to have any IP rating for dust or water resistance. Overall they feel well-built, but their exposed wire is likely their weakest point.

The JBL CLUB 700BT are decently stable on-ears. They should stay on fine if you need to quickly jog to catch a bus, but may not be the best for more intense workouts or exercises.

• JBL CLUB 700BT headphones
• 1/8" TRRS audio cable with an in-line mic
• USB-C charging cable
• Carrying pouch
• Manuals

The sound profile of the JBL CLUB 700BT is quite well-balanced and accurate. They have a bit of extra bass that gives them extra thump and kick, without being too overpowering. Overall, they're well-suited for a wide range of genres and content.

The frequency response consistency is mediocre. As is somewhat expected from on-ear headphones, they're quite sensitive to fit and seal, and people with long hair or glasses will likely experience their bass very differently. You may also have to adjust them slightly on your ears to get the same sound reproduction every time you wear them.

The bass accuracy of these headphones is okay. While the entire range is quite over-emphasized, it's still fairly even and flat. Overall, these headphones give a fair amount of extra thump and kick, though unfortunately, their bass delivery varies noticeably across users, and is sensitive to the quality of the fit, seal, and whether you wear glasses. The response here represents the average bass response, and your experience may vary.

The mid accuracy of these headphones is excellent. Almost the entire range is accurate and flat. While low-mid is slightly over-emphasized, it shouldn't be too noticeable and your music shouldn't sound muddy or cluttered.

The treble accuracy of these headphones is good. Low-treble, which is responsible for the detail of almost all instruments, is almost entirely perfectly balanced and flat. Unfortunately, some mid-treble frequencies may sound dull and listless, while others sound slightly harsh and piercing. High-treble is the most uneven, though it's at high enough frequencies that it shouldn't be noticeable to most people. Like with most on-ear headphones, their treble delivery is sensitive to fit and seal, and you may need to adjust them to get the same treble reproduction every time. The response here represents the average treble response, and your experience may vary.

The peaks and dips performance of these headphones is great. Almost the entire frequency range is even and well-balanced. However, the big dip in mid-treble, followed by the large peak, may make some frequencies sound especially sharp and piercing.

The imaging of these headphones is good. The GD graph shows the group delay is below the audibility threshold, resulting in tight and accurate bass and treble ranges. The L/R drivers of our unit are also decently well-matched, helping with fairly accurate placement and localization of objects (voice, instruments, footsteps) in the stereo image. Note that these results are only valid for our unit and yours may perform differently.

The passive soundstage of the JBL CLUB 700BT is bad. The on-ear design doesn't interact much with the pinna, therefore these headphones don't have a speaker-like soundstage. Their closed-back design also doesn't sound as open as open-back headphones. Overall, their soundstage sounds fairly small and unnatural, on top of being inside your head rather than in front.

The JBL CLUB 700BT don't have any virtual soundstage features.

The weighted harmonic distortion of these headphones is great. The entire range is within good limits, even at higher volumes, resulting in clear and pure audio reproduction.

These are the settings used when testing. Therefore, our results are only valid when these headphones are used with these settings.

The noise isolation of the JBL CLUB 700BT is bad. They don't block any low-frequency noise, like the low engine rumble of bus or plane engines. While they block a bit of background chatter, they don't block nearly as much as most other on-ears or over-ears. On the bright side, they do a good job of blocking out high frequencies sounds like fans or A/C units. If you're looking for on-ear headphones with an ANC to help cut down more noise around you, take a look at the JBL Live 460NC Wireless.

The leakage performance of the JBL CLUB 700BT is great. Even at higher volumes, the leakage is well below the noise floor of most offices.

The JBL CLUB 700BT have an integrated microphone in the headphones themselves, as well as an in-line mic if you use them wired.

The recording quality of the integrated microphone is mediocre. While on phone calls, your voice sounds thin, muffled, and distorted. Note that we only tested the integrated microphone, and the in-line mic on the wire may perform differently.

Update 10/27/2021: These headphones have been updated to test bench 1.5. In this update, we made changes to the way we test noise handling. We now use a subjective evaluation of our audio clips. This new method has resulted in different results than what we had reported in our previous test bench. As a result, the scoring of this box has changed, and we have updated our results.

The noise handling of the integrated microphone is disappointing. While the person you're speaking to should be able to hear you in quiet environments, your voice gets easily drowned out in even moderately loud situations like a busy street. Note that we only tested the integrated microphone, and the in-line mic on the wire may perform differently.

The battery performance of the JBL CLUB 700BT is excellent. The nearly 55-hour battery life is remarkable and is among the highest we've ever tested. They also fully charge in 1.5 hours, which is great, and they feature an auto-off timer to help conserve even more battery life. Unfortunately, they don't provide audio while charging, but they can be used passively with a wire should your battery die on you.

The JBL CLUB 700BT are compatible with the good JBL Headphones app. Unfortunately, the app doesn't give you many customization options, and only gives you an EQ, presets, and the ability to turn your auto-off timer on/off. On the bright side, the EQ is fully parametric, allowing you to finetune the way they sound.

The JBL CLUB 700BT are Bluetooth 5.0 headphones that can be paired to two devices simultaneously, which is convenient. Their line of sight range is excellent, though this is very dependant on your surroundings, and real-world usage will vary. Unfortunately, we recorded high latency on all devices, though again, apps and devices tend to compensate for this differently, so your mileage may vary with real-world usage.

These headphones only support Bluetooth for a wireless connection.

The JBL CLUB 700BT can be used wired with any 1/8" TRRS cable. The included cable features an in-line mic, so you can continue to take phone calls even when using them wired, which is great.

Thanks to the in-line mic on their wire, the JBL CLUB 700BT are fully compatible with Xbox One by plugging them into the controller.

These headphones don't have a base or dock.