The JBL PartyBox 300 is a large, tall speaker with eye-catching circular RGB lights. You can place it either horizontally or vertically, as its tweeters adjust to create a stereo image based on its positioning. This speaker has a long 18.3-hour battery life and can get very loud. It's lacking a lot of low-bass, but it has a Bass Boost feature. Also, the microphone and guitar ports make it suitable for musicians.
Our Verdict
The JBL PartyBox 300 is decent for music. It has a balanced mid-range and should reproduce vocals and lead instruments clearly. However, it's lacking low-bass, and its recessed treble can make audio sound a bit dull. There's no EQ to help you customize its sound, though there's a Bass Boost feature.
- Gets very loud.
- Lacks low-bass.
The JBL PartyBox 300 is acceptable for videos and movies. Its balanced mid-range can reproduce voices clearly, but it lacks low-bass, so you don't feel the deep rumble in action-packed scenes. It can get very loud, but unfortunately, there's a bit of latency when watching videos on an Android or iOS device. Some apps compensate for latency, so your real-world experience may vary.
- Gets very loud.
- Lacks low-bass.
The JBL PartyBox 300 is satisfactory for podcasts. Its balanced mid-range can reproduce voices clearly and accurately, and it can get very loud. You can easily stream podcasts from your phone or tablet to the bar wirelessly over a Bluetooth connection, and it supports multi-device pairing. Unfortunately, it's quite large and isn't very portable.
- Gets very loud.
- Bluetooth-compatible.
- Not very portable.
- Not compatible with Wi-Fi.
The JBL PartyBox 300 doesn't have voice assistant support.
The JBL PartyBox 300 is decent for outdoor use. It can get very loud, and its 18.3-hour battery life is suitable for long days outside without a recharge. While it's well-built, it isn't rated for dust, water, or impact resistance, so you should be careful about where you use it. Also, its large and heavy design can be difficult to bring on-the-go.
- Gets very loud.
- 18.3-hour battery life.
- Not dust, water, or impact resistant.
- Not very portable.
Changelog
- Updated Nov 20, 2023: Added market comparison with the JBL PartyBox 1000 in the Dynamics box.
- Updated Sep 08, 2023: Added market comparison with the Bose S1 Pro+ in the Portability box.
- Updated Dec 20, 2022: Changed Track Next/Previous to Yes (Physical).
- Updated Dec 08, 2022: Added a market comparison with the Sony SRS-XP500 in the Frequency Response Accuracy box.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
This speaker is available in 'Black'. JBL also produces similar-looking party speakers, including the JBL PartyBox 100, the JBL PartyBox 200, and the JBL PartyBox 1000, but these may not have the same performance.
If you come across another variant, let us know in the discussions so we can update our review.
Popular Speaker Comparisons
The JBL PartyBox 300 is a large speaker with an eye-catching design thanks to the circular RGB lights. It has a similar design to the JBL PartyBox 100, but it's a bit bigger and its sound profile isn't as well-balanced. It can get very loud, and it comes with microphone and guitar ports that make it suitable for musicians.
The JBL PartyBox 300 is better for music than the Bose S1 Pro System. The JBL has a better soundstage performance, and it can get louder. Also, it has longer battery life. However, the Bose is a smaller, less heavy speaker, so it's much more portable.
The Sony GTK-XB90 is a slightly better speaker than the JBL PartyBox 300, though they have different strengths. The Sony is more customizable than the JBL, thanks to the graphic EQ and presets available on its companion apps. It also has a more natural-sounding soundstage and can be paired to three devices at once, so you can easily switch between your audio sources. That said, the JBL has a better-balanced sound profile and can get louder than the Sony with less compression at max volume.
You may prefer either the JBL PartyBox 300 or the Sony SRS-XP700 depending on your listening habits. The JBL can get louder with significantly less compression present at max volume, resulting in cleaner audio at louder volumes. It also has a more neutral sound profile than that of the Sony out-of-the-box. That said, the Sony can produce a more extended low-bass, and you can tweak its sound to your liking thanks to the graphic EQ and presets featured in its companion app. It's also rated IPX4 for water resistance, so it's certified to be protected from small splashes of water.
The JBL PartyBox 1000 is a more premium speaker than the JBL PartyBox 300. While each have similar designs, only the 1000 comes with a DJ pad. It's a larger speaker, too, getting louder and reproducing a more extended low-bass. However, it's not quite as portable as the 300 since it's wired-only.
Test Results
The JBL PartyBox 300 is a big, tall speaker made mostly of plastic, with a metal grille on the front to help protect the speakers. It has a very imposing design, and it'll be noticed thanks to the circular RGB lights. This speaker can be placed either horizontally or vertically, as its tweeters adjust to stereo in both positions.
This speaker has sub-par portability. It's very tall and heavy, which may be inconvenient if you plan to move the speaker frequently or use it in multiple locations. On the upside, it has a handle to make it easier to carry, and it doesn't require a wired power source to work. If you want a more portable speaker for parties, check out the Bose S1 Pro System or the Bose S1 Pro+.
This speaker has an acceptable build quality. It's mostly made of plastic with a metal grille on the front side, and these materials make the speaker feel solid, durable, and well-built. However, this speaker isn't water-resistant, so you need to be careful if you plan to use it outdoors or near water. If this is a priority, consider the JBL Boombox 2, which has an IPX7 rating for water resistance, although we don't currently test for this.
This speaker has middling controls. The buttons can be a little hard to press, but overall, the click is good. On the right, there are buttons for power, Bluetooth pairing, and RGB lighting. There are volume control and play/pause buttons on the left and the Bass Boost control. The lights above the power button indicate battery life. You can connect an external microphone and guitar to the mic and guitar inputs on the speaker's rear, and you can control their volumes using their dedicated volume knobs. If you want to add echo effects to your microphone, you can do so by pressing the speaker's Bass Boost and + buttons to switch between its two echo levels and turn the echo off. Unfortunately, unlike the JBL PartyBox 310, this speaker doesn't have a companion app you can use to access extra DJ effects.
The JBL PartyBox 300 has fair frequency response accuracy. It has a balanced sound profile, so voices and lead instruments are reproduced with clarity and accuracy. There's a touch of rumble in the bass range, but it doesn't bring as much thump as with other party speakers like the JBL PartyBox 310 or the Sony SRS-XP500, which is especially noticeable in bass-heavy genres like EDM and hip-hop. Aside from its Bass Boost feature, there aren't a lot of customization features, either. If you're looking for a party speaker with a graphic EQ and presets, check out the Sony SRS-XP700 and Sony GTK-XB72.
The JBL PartyBox 300 has a mediocre soundstage performance. It has a narrow and directional soundstage, which may not sound very natural or wide. If you're looking for a party speaker with a wider-sounding soundstage, check out the Sony GTK-XB90.
The JBL PartyBox 300 has an outstanding dynamics performance. This speaker can get very loud, making it ideal to use in large rooms or crowded environments like parties. You can check out the JBL PartyBox 1000 if you want a speaker that gets even louder.
The JBL PartyBox 300 has an impressive battery performance. It can last for just over 18 hours off a single charge in our testing conditions, which is great. You can even monitor the battery life using the lights above the power button. Unfortunately, this speaker can take a while to recharge.
This speaker doesn't support any voice assistant integration.
Unlike the JBL PartyBox 110 and JBL PartyBox 310, this speaker isn't compatible with the JBL Partybox app. If you want a speaker with an app that offers a graphic EQ for sound customization, check out the Ultimate Ears HYPERBOOM.
This speaker has several wired input options. There's an Aux input (1/8" TRS jack), so you can connect your smartphone directly to the speaker. The USB Type-A port means you can listen to music on a USB drive, and it also lets you use the speaker as a power bank to recharge your other devices. There's also a Stereo 2RCA input and output and two 1/4" TS jacks for connecting your microphone or your guitar.
The JBL PartyBox 300 has good Bluetooth connectivity. You can pair the speaker with up to two devices, which is ideal if you want to be able to switch between devices quickly. Unfortunately, it may not be ideal for watching videos, as there's a bit of latency. However, some apps seem to compensate for lag, so your experience may vary.