Audio is one of the segments in which Sony has innovated the most, offering practical solutions to enjoy the best sound on the go. In the 80 and 90 were the Walkmanin the 2000s Discman and, two decades later, what is imposed are the portable bluetooth speakers.
The Sony SRS XB23 It is, apart from being unpronounceable –seriously, Sony, give the names a spin– a mid-range Bluetooth speaker for those who are not satisfied with the sound of single-driver speakers and are looking for something with more body, but without give up portability for a speaker that you can comfortably carry in a backpack.
The official price of the Sony SRS XB23 is 120 euros. However, they can already be found for up to 78.99 euros on Amazon. If you are looking for a Bluetooth speaker to liven up summer beach and pool days, pay attention to what we have to tell you about the Sony SRS XB23.
Sony SRS-XB23 | |
---|---|
Dimensions and weight | 218x76mm | 580 grams |
Microphone | integrated microphone |
Speakers | 2x 61 X-Balanced Type Woofer | 2x passive radiators |
Dust and water resistance | IP67 |
connections | Bluetooth 5.0 | 3.5mm audio input | USB type C charging |
Autonomy | up to 12 hours |
Price | 120 euros (78.99 on Amazon) |
Analysis of the Sony SRS-XB23 by sections:
Compact and durable with priority on portability
It is more than evident that one of Sony’s priorities when designing this speaker was to provide it with an off-road design that would allow it to easily withstand the harshness of outdoor use.
The Sony SRS-XB23 has a tubular design based on solid and good quality materials. The speaker’s chassis is made of a high-strength polycarbonate that protects the internal components from the small impacts of daily use.
Although everything seems arranged so that the Sony SRS-XB23 is placed in an upright position, as evidenced by the openings that allow sound to escape from the lower passive radiator, the Sony speaker can also be placed horizontally.
In any case, we would have liked to find some small foot or rubber insert at the ends to prevent it from rolling when placed horizontally on a flat surface.
The central part of the loudspeaker is protected by a very resistant acoustic fabric that allows it to comply with the IP67 certification against dust and immersion at 1 meter depth for 30 minutes even in salt water.
The entire central body is occupied by a pair of full-range speakers that project the sound towards the front, while the control buttons and the anchor for a very useful lanyard that has allowed us to hang the speaker from the backpack, on a tree or place it in a higher position.
The buttons are protected by a silicone coating allowing you to turn on the speaker, pair it with other devices, adjust the volume or change the battery consumption profile directly from the speaker.
In addition, some status LEDs are included for each of the functions that provide additional information on their use. Just below we find the silicone cover that protects the USB C charging port and the reset button.
Nails on dimensions 218 x 76mm and a weight of 580 gramswe can say that we are facing a speaker that is located right at that complicated point of balance between dimensions and weight that are compact enough to consider carrying it in a backpack, without giving up good sound power.
Sony has sent us an Olive Green unit for this analysis, but the Japanese brand has opted for a range of colors to personalize this speaker a little more, which is also available in Coral Red, Light Blue, Brown Gray and Black.
Music Center as control panel for connectivity and settings
The buttons integrated into the body of the Sony SRS-XB23 allow it to be used normally on a day-to-day basis without having to depend on the smartphone other than to configure very precise options.
As with the brand’s headphones, the control and Sony SRS-XB23 sound settings are carried out via Bluetooth from an application installed on the smartphone.
As we saw in the analysis of the impressive Sony XG300, the control of the brand’s speakers goes through the music center app, available for both Android and iPhone and iPad, from which your speakers are controlled. Perhaps it would be a good idea to unify both applications to control all Sony audio devices from a single application.
The application is simple to use, although somewhat austere in options. It allows to quickly synchronize the speakers with the smartphone. As the name suggests, the app not only focuses on speaker settings, but also serves as a music HUB from which to send local music to the speaker, or launch the streaming music content apps installed on the mobile.
From the section Setting of the app you access the sound settings and configuration of sony srs-xb23 battery. In the Sound section we have found the necessary settings to customize the intensity of the bass or apply the sound profiles with a single touch. ClearAudio+ that Sony has preset to get the best sound on this device, or unleash your bass by turning on the Extra Bass function.
Music Center also allows you to adjust the speaker’s battery-saving behavior by setting the stamina mode battery saver, or setting Bluetooth auto-off functions or automatically turning off the speaker when 15 minutes pass without use.
The Sony SRS-XB23 allows sync up with other speakers to create stereo sound systems more complex, and it does so by grouping different loudspeakers in two ways:
- Stereo Pairwith which two Sony SRS-XB23 are connected and each one will be responsible for reproducing a separate sound channel.
- PartyConnectwith which they can be grouped with up to 100 compatible speakers to increase their combined power and distribute sound throughout the room and even in other rooms.
The Sony SRS-XB23 includes a microphone that allows you to use the speaker to answer calls hands-free, being able to pick up and end the call from the buttons on the speaker.
The sound of the incoming call is good, although the microphone transmits a voice with a metallic tinge and applies an ambient noise cancellation filter that slightly cracks the voice in noisy environments.
Does not have integrated voice assistantnor does it allow the voice activation of the assistant of the mobile to which it is connected, being one step behind some of its main rivals that do incorporate this function.
Extra Bass with good punch outdoors, but annoying indoors
And we come to the most important section of this analysis. How does the Sony SRS-XB23 sound?
First, we have tested the Sony SRS-XB23 audio without filters or sound profiles added, so that you can appreciate the performance of the pair of speakers with tX-Balanced technology that Sony has mounted inside.
This technology is based on an offset design of the speaker membrane with which, in theory, the distortion generated in the cone is reduced, providing a cleaner sound. The sound in this context is quite balanced and with a volume below 60% the entire midrange of frequencies is represented clearly making the vocals shine.
At this point we must make special mention of the support for the LDAC codec and DSEE technology that allow transmitting and recovering frequencies lost by audio compression.
Turning the volume up beyond 80% introduces some distortion, and it can be seen that it suffers at the extremes both with somewhat flat bass, and with some high notes that do not finish convincing.
When activating the Extra Bass system with the ClearAudio+ profile, the balance of the Sony SRS-XB23 turns towards the bass, burying some treble that was already touched, but holds the type quite well in general.
This low-pass filter adds body to the sound, which looks great when it’s working outdoorsbut it does generate some unwanted distortion indoors driven by passive radiators that create a muddier atmosphere that blurs the highs and dulls the mids.
Is a lucky to have an equalizer in the appallowing the user to boost the bass and treble just enough to improve the overall audio quality by giving the sound more character, but without overshadowing the mid tones.
As for autonomy, Sony promises up to 12 hours of uninterrupted music with a single charge. As usual, this is accompanied by some nuances. This autonomy is obtained at a low volume and operating in Stamina mode, which deactivates the Extra Bass filter and the ClearAudio+ profile.
In real use, with an average volume between 40% and 60% and with the necessary adjustments to obtain adequate audio quality, we have obtained a average between 5 and 6 hours.
With these times of use, the Sony SRS-XB23 is located in the lower area of the autonomy table, well below the 8 hours that the Bose SoundLink Flex left us that we analyzed a few months ago.
When it’s time to retrieve the load, the Sony SRS-XB23 does not provide very precise information on its charge levelmoving through sections in which both remain for a time at a percentage of charge to, the next minute, jump to 20% more.
In this imprecise context, and with several tests to corroborate the results, we dare to indicate that it reaches the 50% of its charge in about 40 minuteswhile to complete 100% of its capacity we have had to wait 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Perfect for excursions and outdoor activities due to its power and resistance
After using the Sony SRS-XB23 for a couple of months on various outings in the woods and using it as speaker to listen to music while cooking or in moments of relaxation on the terrace, it is time to draw some conclusions.
I’d be lying if I said this is the best portable bluetooth speaker i have triedbut it is that, almost without realizing it, the brands have been doing an excellent job in the range of Portable Bluetooth speakers under $100.
We have a Huawei that with its Huawei SoundJoy Developed together with Devialet, it offers similar audio features, with much greater autonomy. Something similar happens with the Bose Sound Link Flex or the JBL Flip 5.
To Sony The Sony SRS-XB23 has lacked the ambition and drive it showed in the Sony XG300 review.with a product that provides differential aspects with respect to its rivals and is not satisfied with being updated with minor changes that dilute it in an ever-increasing offer of candidates.
Having a lower autonomy than that of its rivals and a fairly spartan app in options does not help either, but Sony has made up for it with good quality sound and with body outdoors, accompanied by a off-road design.
Unexpectedly because it is a Sony product, the price can be one of the best arguments of sale of the Sony SRS-XB23. Although its official price is 120 euros, this Sony Bluetooth speaker can be found on Amazon for about 78.99 euros, which leaves you with a more interesting price than its rivals.