When I’m not traveling to explore or see faraway places, I’m camping with friends, or tailgating with family, and we’re grilling out, having a beer, and busting witticisms on each other. There’s just something pure and so thoroughly enjoyable to be outside in the summer sun, surrounded by family and friends, and when the weather rolls into autumn and the greatest game on earth begins its season, I’d choose nowhere else in the world than to be watching the game with my favorite people. For me, it’s the people that make the experience. We’re social creatures and we thrive or die by the positives and negatives of our relationships and social experience. We need it, as much if not more than we need time spent in Nature.
When I’m camping in the woods, I like to focus on the peaceful connection that I often feel, which means I try to bring as little equipment as possible and remain as quiet as I can, as to not scare away the wildlife. There’s something truly special about watching the birds and the animals in their natural habitat. But when I’m with my favorite people, the noise level rises and so does the length of the camping list. Instead of basic backpacker camping, we pull out all the stops. We have a grill, large tents, a huge fire going, tables and chairs, and other creature comforts only found in glamping (glamorous camping) ads. But we have a good time.
Often, when we’re all together, we’re loud; we talk loud and we play loud. When I know we’re all getting together, I plan specially for the experience. I always bring extra gear that would otherwise be ridiculous if I were backpacking, yet it helps to make the experience. One of my favorite gadgets is the Xtreme speaker by JBL. Basically, it’s the modern boombox, loaded with better sound and loads of other features, which I’ll get into here shortly. The Xtreme is a bit big for backpackers, but it’s perfect for us too spoiled to backpack every time we camp. But if you are backpacking, JBL has you covered with their small, but very powerful Clip 2 speaker.
It seems to me that JBL by Harman Kardon set out to bring back what was once a great culturally significant gadget. Boomboxes were THE item to own if you lived in the city, because for a while, not long after vinyl records loss their market share to cassettes and before CDs, boomboxes and small cassette walkmans were all you had. There was no music in the cloud, or streaming, or MP3 players, so music lovers had to make do with what they had, and what they had were boomboxes, essentially a thin box of now-outdated electronics that would play your music loud via radio or cassette. Now, JBL has brought back the idea of mounting a speaker upon ones shoulder, allowing them to roam about town with their favorite tunes blaring loudly. Though, now-a-days, you’re liable to draw some interest from the authorities if you’re being too loud. Fair warning. ;-)
Often, when we’re all together, we’re loud; we talk loud and we play loud. When I know we’re all getting together, I plan specially for the experience. I always bring extra gear that would otherwise be ridiculous if I were backpacking, yet it helps to make the experience. One of my favorite gadgets is the Xtreme speaker by JBL. Basically, it’s the modern boombox, loaded with better sound and loads of other features, which I’ll get into here shortly. The Xtreme is a bit big for backpackers, but it’s perfect for us too spoiled to backpack every time we camp. But if you are backpacking, JBL has you covered with their small, but very powerful Clip 2 speaker.
It seems to me that JBL by Harman Kardon set out to bring back what was once a great culturally significant gadget. Boomboxes were THE item to own if you lived in the city, because for a while, not long after vinyl records loss their market share to cassettes and before CDs, boomboxes and small cassette walkmans were all you had. There was no music in the cloud, or streaming, or MP3 players, so music lovers had to make do with what they had, and what they had were boomboxes, essentially a thin box of now-outdated electronics that would play your music loud via radio or cassette. Now, JBL has brought back the idea of mounting a speaker upon ones shoulder, allowing them to roam about town with their favorite tunes blaring loudly. Though, now-a-days, you’re liable to draw some interest from the authorities if you’re being too loud. Fair warning. ;-)
I’ll tell you now, I love this product from JBL, because not only is it sleek and modern, and loaded with awesome features that back in the 90s no one would have even dreamt possible, but it’s powerful. The Xtreme is a portable bluetooth speaker that boasts the ability to take a light rain or a splash or two, which makes gives it the ability to be taken to swimming pools or the beach, or simply camping in the forest. The Xtreme easily connects to bluetooth from my phone and has a decent range in signal too, so you don’t have to keep the speaker attached by your side if you’d prefer. With a massive battery of 10,000mAH, the Xtreme is ready and able of providing an entire party with a good time. It charges via USB and is listed to last about 15 hours of playtime, which is perfect for one or two night camping trips, tailgating, and parties. I wouldn’t say it’s sufficient enough for a 100-200+ person rager, but it’s powerful enough to provide a good size get together with a nice powerful sound. The Clip 2 is similar in its abilities, but its much smaller, and boasts the ability of being waterproof. So, if you’re a backpacker, you can simply clip this bad boy to your pack and have music as you tramp through the woods.
All in all, after testing JBL’s Xtreme Bluetooth speaker, I came away very impressed. As I said, it’s sleek and modern, and easy to use. You can even carry it with a shoulder strap that clips on each end of the speaker. I found the sound quality to be exceptional, with a powerful oozing bass that compliments most genres of music very nicely. I feel like the Xtreme is perfect for most small to medium get togethers! The Clip 2 speaker is another intriguing product by JBL, because it’s small, easily bluetooth connectable, but also has a nice sound coming from it. It’s by no means as powerful or capable of being as loud as the Xtreme, but it’s perfect for backpackers and school children, among countless others. I found myself listening to my favorite 60s-70s rock outside as I tended the garden the other night. How wonderful!
If you would like to find out more about JBL, click here.
Article written by Brandon Scott / Eye & Pen – Photos © JBL / Harman.
All in all, after testing JBL’s Xtreme Bluetooth speaker, I came away very impressed. As I said, it’s sleek and modern, and easy to use. You can even carry it with a shoulder strap that clips on each end of the speaker. I found the sound quality to be exceptional, with a powerful oozing bass that compliments most genres of music very nicely. I feel like the Xtreme is perfect for most small to medium get togethers! The Clip 2 speaker is another intriguing product by JBL, because it’s small, easily bluetooth connectable, but also has a nice sound coming from it. It’s by no means as powerful or capable of being as loud as the Xtreme, but it’s perfect for backpackers and school children, among countless others. I found myself listening to my favorite 60s-70s rock outside as I tended the garden the other night. How wonderful!
If you would like to find out more about JBL, click here.
Article written by Brandon Scott / Eye & Pen – Photos © JBL / Harman.
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