Sony SRS-XB33 - Review 2022

Sony recently updated its SRS series of portable Bluetooth speakers, and the SRS-XB33, at $149.99, is the mid-priced option. While not exactly tiny, the Sony SRS-XB33 is all the same quite pocket-size for the amount of sound information technology can produce—there's plenty of bass depth here for the size and price. Thankfully the lows are balanced by sculpted highs, but this is not a speaker for those seeking authentic audio performance. That said, in-app EQ allows for some sound signature tweaking, and born LED lights add a fun factor, making the SRS-XB33 a solid outdoor-friendly option for the price.

Design

Measuring 3.8 by 9.vii by 4.2 (HWD) and bachelor in black, blue, reddish, or taupe, the SRS-XB33 isn't quite cylindrical—it's ellipsoidal like its less expensive sibling, the Sony SRS-XB23 ($99.99). But different that speaker, its front end face up and top panel are both flat, while the back is rounded. On either stop, the Sony SRS-XB33 has a band of LED lights that continually modify colors and flash to the beat (they tin can be controlled or disabled in the app).

Behind the cloth grille, dual full-range drivers, aided by passive bass radiators on both ends of the speaker, deliver a frequency range of 20Hz to 20kHz. The drivers are also lit up by LEDs and resemble glowing eyes from behind the grille. Safe anxiety on the bottom console keep the 2.iv-pound speaker stable on flat surfaces.

A safe strip on the height panel houses the controls, with buttons for power, Bluetooth, play/interruption (which also answers/ends phone calls), minus/plus for volume, and Live, which adds an unnecessary spatial effect to the audio. This expanse is also an NFC pairing zone and houses status LEDs for pairing mode, battery life, and whether Stamina manner is activated, which is a low-power fashion that preserves battery life by essentially eliminating bass response. It's not swell for listening to music only it tin can be helpful when trying to salve battery life and using the speaker for calls or podcasts.

A snap-shut cover protects a console that houses a USB-C port for the charging cablevision and a USB-A port for charging other devices with the speaker's battery. There are as well buttons hither for Party and Stereo Pair modes—both features for linking up with other SRS speakers. Y'all can besides turn on battery-saving mode with the Stamina button.

The SRS-XB33'southward IP67 rating is excellent for a portable speaker. The 6 indicates a dust-resistant exterior and the 7 ways it can withstand splashes, heavy rain, and tin be submerged up to a meter for up to 30 minutes. It tin therefore also exist rinsed off under a faucet, so long as the snap-shut cover for the USB-C charging cable connexion is fully closed. Sony also claims the speaker is also saltwater resistant, then you can bring it to the beach without worry.

The Sony Music Center app for Android and iOS opens upwards diverse features and control settings. Among the most immediately useful settings—the ability to control the LED calorie-free bear witness—there are over a dozen settings to choose from, with names similar Chill or Rave, too as Calm settings that slowly fade between like colors. Of form, you tin can also completely disable the lights. The aforementioned Stamina setting can also be accessed here, and at that place are diverse EQ presets as well as user-adaptable EQ bands (and a host of sound effects we can recommend leaving off). For the EQ and LED controls lone, the Music Center app is worth downloading.

The SRS-XB33 is compatible with Bluetooth v.0 and supports AAC and SBC Bluetooth codecs, only non AptX.

Sony estimates battery life to exist roughly 24 hours, just your results will vary with your volume levels.

Performance

On tracks with intense sub-bass content, similar The Pocketknife's "Silent Shout," the SRS-XB33 delivers notable low-frequency thump for a speaker this size. At moderate volumes, it really seems to be pumping out some deep lows, while at higher volumes, the bass depth gets thinned out somewhat by the DSP (digital signal processing), but not to an farthermost extent. At maxed-out volume levels, there'due south no distortion, and still a very healthy sense of bass depth.

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Beak Callahan'south "Drover," a rails with far less deep bass in the mix, gives us a meliorate sense of the SRS-XB33's full general sound signature. The drums on this track tin can sound overly thunderous on larger, bass-forward systems, only here, they discover a nice balance between robust, full bass depth and not overdoing it. Callahan's baritone vocals are delivered with plenty of added low-mid richness—thankfully, there's a solid high-mid and loftier-frequency presence to keep things clear and defined. The audio-visual strums and higher-range percussive hits are delivered with plenty of high-frequency presence, likewise. Generally speaking, this is a sculpted, scooped sound signature, with lots of rich bass depth and crisp high-frequency profile, but the midrange takes a bit of a vacation. This tin be remedied to a caste with the app'south EQ.

On Jay-Z and Kanye West'due south "No Church in the Wild," the boot drum loop receives enough loftier-mid presence for its attack to retain its punchiness in the mix, while the sub-bass synth hits that punctuate the vanquish are delivered with a solid amount of bass depth, but nothing budgeted what you'd hear on a larger system with subwoofer capabilities. The drum loop does get a little beefed up in the bass department, however, and the vocals are delivered with solid clarity and not much added sibilance.

Orchestral tracks, like the opening scene from John Adams' The Gospel According to the Other Mary, become more bass presence than purists volition want to hear, but it doesn't throw the unabridged balance of the mix out of whack. The lower-register instrumentation sounds richer and more powerful, but the highs are nonetheless the focus of the mix, bright and articulate. Once more, this is a scooped sound signature—boosting the mids and cutting the bass slightly in the EQ goes a long way to restoring accurateness. As is, the SRS-XB33 delivers a bass-forward, crisp sound that will still appeal to many listeners without whatever EQ tweaks.

The mic offers solid intelligibility. Using the Vocalization Memos app on an iPhone 8, nosotros could conspicuously understand every word nosotros recorded. There'south still some typical Bluetooth baloney in the mix, but the mic point is strong and callers on the other end should be able to hear you without issue.

Conclusions

For $150, the Sony SRS-XB33 represents an excellent value, with solid bass depth from a waterproof, adequately meaty frame. That the app has user-adjustable EQ merely sweetens the deal. Between this model and the $100 SRS-XB23, which nosotros besides like, we more strongly suggest this ane—the increase in price is non insignificant, but what you get in return (more than powerful sound and bass depth) will be worth it to some. We also really like the $180 JBL Accuse four, which tin now exist regularly establish for less than the Sony model. And if you're willing to spend more, Sony's SRS-XB43 is the best of the bunch, with the same rugged build and LED lights, just more than robust audio performance.

Source: https://sea.pcmag.com/speakers/37720/sony-srs-xb33

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