Top critical review
1.0 out of 5 starsUpdate: will not turn on, less than 2 months. Recommend Tribit Maxsound Plus!
Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2019
Update 4-23-19:
Forget about the OontZ Angle 3 Ultras. Well do not forget about them. When paired they are very good speakers and I prefer listening to stereo, and they are what I use when I need lower level volume but still want good stereo sound. Buy a pair for under $70, they are worth it.
However...
The Tribit Maxsound Plus BLOWS AWAY the Anker. The Tribit sounds more like a Bose Soundlink Mini II than any other speaker of its size, or even a bit larger.
The Anker DID sound as if it lost some of its low end punch that mad it seem like such a great bargain. Maybe listening to the Tribit ruined my ears and set the bar too high for the Anker.
Amazon Customer Service hooked me up and gave me a return authorization though the Anker speaker was out of its return window! I paid shipping but that is more than fair in my book.
Updated 4-5-19: Replaced "Great speaker, second only to the OontZ Angle 3." as second submitted review title .
It definitely lost some of its richness and bass during the short time it worked.
This has moved from high on the list to a distant "nth". It will not turn on after being gently used indoors for half the time I owned it. I switched to the OontZ Angle 3 Ultra (bought a pair). They play stereo together and singly, they are definitely better than the Anker.
I had hoped Anker returned to the days of old when their QC was top notch. No such luck. They went big time and then hired BA/MA types who will screw customers with shoddy/lesser product for the dollar +bonuses.
Hell, I have quit buying their power banks. Out of the 12 I originally purchased, only 4 are working reliably. They were rotated frequently so NONE of them have high cycle counts. I have owned them from 4 to 2 years.
The return window has passed but I will contact Anker and see if their Customer Service is still as fantastic as it used to be. Whoever was in charge of CS, they better have gotten a big promotion, big bonuses and stock option. No one could touch Anker's Customer Service back in the day.
Original Headline: Fantastic speaker. Anker scores again = our gain! Buy before price goes up.
Update, 3-26-19 on the Anker Soundcore 2.
Knocked off one star. Reason: tested this against the OontZ Angle 3 (OA3). I do not know if speakers have a break in period or what, but the OA3s sound "better" after using both for over a month now. If I could send the Anker back, I would. The return date passed on 3-5-19. This is a VERY good speaker, but it is not the best under $50 speaker, the OA3 takes that title. Plus the OA3 can be paired to another OA3 and play dual stereo or stereo mode!
The bass on the Anker seems to be getting weaker, OR, I my ears have gotten use to the bass from the OA3. I still HIGHLY recommend the Anker, but only if the OA3 is not available.
I tested both with:
1. No EQ
2. Low and high to maximum volume
3. With EQ using the jetAudio music player, 75% volume for both speakers, which is plenty loud for indoor listening.
4. Used bass settings of 50% and the OA3 seems less distorted at higher volumes!
5. At 85% and louder volume, the OA3 sounds louder and loses little of its full sound. The Anker gets washed out at the higher volumes.
AND, the OA3 seemed to produce fuller sounding music. Not as good on the highs if not using EQ. The Anker will sound clearer in the highs without EQ, but not drastically.
I used JBL for 3 years before getting sick and tired of replacing my Clips, Flips, and Charges due to broken charging ports, and dying batteries.
BOTTOM LINE: The Ankers are very good speakers and worth $39. However, for better volume and value buy, the OA3 should be looked at first. When paired with a second OA3 and playing in stereo, they rock!
CAVEAT: the OA3 have terrible latency time. They are unsuitable for use when playing as the sound source for any video you are watching. I have other higher end BT speakers I use for watching movies on my TV.
Anker Soundcore II review
For those people who are new to BT speakers or have been using a generic BT speaker, the SC2 speakers are going to be amazingly good to them. The newer-be will be correct on how good they are, but this will be interpreted by inexperienced people looking for a good description of the speaker. They will think that these are the end all be all for BT speakers.
While the SC2 is the BEST under $50 bar none, it will not outperform the JBL Charge on sound (comes very close IMO). No one should expect that. It is completely unrealistic. (Listening to Haircut 100 - Love Plus One, smooth sound.) The charge is a +$100 speaker, not fair.
(Mary Jane Girls - My House, now playing). This little speaker is in the Bose Soundlink Mini level. (Nu Shooz - I Can't Wait, is now playing)
(REM - Crush with Eyeliner, now playing) Pair this with a quality EQ (jetAudio) and forget it! This thing moves up a whole new level! I use Bonjovii DSP plug in and wow does it pump up this little speakers range. (REM - I Took Your Name, now playing). This thing can be turned up to max and will not distort UNLESS you have applied too much bass in your EQ. Even then not bad on distortion.
I bought the SC2 to replace my JBL BT speakers which have crappy batteries! JBL sound is GREAT but IMO they SABOTAGE their speakers by using shoddy charging ports and using batteries that wear out in less than a year. Love my JBL Clips but I need to keep them plugged in to use them (Bad Fish - Sublime, now playing). I liked my JBL Flip, weak on bass but very loud for the size. The shape of the Flip and lack of bass and crappy battery have made me abandon JBLs from this point forward. (A Message to You Rudy - The Specials, now playing).
There are several reviews that pretty much detail MOST everything you need to know about this speaker. I will list a few things I have not seen mentioned.
1. You can go to previous track. Pause = 1 quick press and release on PLAY button; 2 quick press and releases on PLAY button = go to next track; 3 quick press and releases on PLAY button = previous track.
2. If you want to use this for playing the sound from movie on your tablet or phone, there is a slight but noticeable lag. Not quite like a dubbed in English movie. You will ignore it after a while.
3. I used a splitter to use the SC2 with another BT speaker, the LG PK3. Not a good combo. The PK3 had zero lag, the SC2 was behind by almost half a second. This caused an echo effect.
4. The SC2 has very good bass output. The bass is felt as well as heard. Not chest thumping bass, but enough to enjoy your favorite tunes that rely on bass for their punch. I am listening to Tom Sawyer by Rush, and thank God for the lows/bass.
5. Speaker placement can help this speaker deliver even more. Believe it or not, suspending this in the air works the best. The PK3 has a strap hole which I attached a nylon string to and use this to hang it off a hook in midair!
6. The stereo sound definitely sounds like there are two speakers. It is difficult to tell where the speaker is if you are not looking right at it. I had 2 Aomais STEREO speakers playing earlier. I came back into the room and thought how good the Aomais sounded...oops. I had previously switched to the single SC2!
I am now listening to Never Let Me Down Again (aggro mix). Though the thump of the drums is no where near my HK Onyx Studio 2 speakers, it does sound like a thump where all of my other BT speakers of this size lose the thump and it sounds as if some is beating a tin can wit the lid and a piece of cloth on. As the drums sound, something on my desk, not the speaker, is vibrating. And I am playing this song at 70%.
You cannot go wrong with this speaker unless you have ridiculously high expectations.
