Review on Turcom AcoustoShock 30W: Rugged Water 🔊 Resistant Bluetooth Speaker with Bluetooth 4.0 Technology (TS-903) by Crystal Gonzalez

First of all, this thing is HUGE! And I mean HUGE. It's twice the size of the Sony SRS-X55, which I also tested, and when I opened it for the first time I was very excited to see what kind of sound a speaker of this size could produce. Unfortunately, larger size doesn't directly mean larger volume. In fact, a pair of UE Mini Booms outperforms this speaker in terms of sheer power, which baffles me because this thing is at least the size of 6 Mini Booms (buyer tip, if you want high volume with a single slightly less bassy sound, buy a pair of Mini Booms, since you can turn them into a stereo pair using their phone app. Revain has refurbished Mini Booms for $50 each, and they're almost pocket-sized!). it's below - Design: Turcom looks pretty good in photos, but the outer raised black band isn't rubber (like most rugged Bluetooth speakers), it's plastic. This means that it is not protected from drops and sometimes even rattles on hard surfaces. The side carry handle was sticky on the model I received and took a few jolts to break in. It's relatively hefty, but I don't think it's overly large for its size, and aside from being huge and having capacitive rather than tactile/clicky buttons (which I'll get to later), the overall design is for the price decent. .Operation: cheap speaker = cheap bluetooth controller. The speaker has a separate volume control that doesn't remember where you set it the last time you turned it on, and while it has ridiculous capacitive buttons, you'll have to look at the display on the side to see when the volume is at maximum . Device control buttons don't have instant feedback, which can result in buttons being double-clicked when not needed. That's another thing I didn't like about Turcom. Capacitive buttons have no place on portable Bluetooth speakers. Sometimes a simple press of the top feels like a button press, and suddenly this thing skips tracks or goes silent or something. You want haptic feedback to let the user know that a press has been made and also to make it clear when the speaker is receiving input. Another thing is that the power button needs to be pressed for exactly one second to turn on the speaker. Longer or shorter presses do not trigger a reaction. Also, it makes a very annoying beep when plugging in and out, and the default volume when the speaker is turned on means the beeps are relatively loud. Sound: For a speaker from a relatively unknown Chinese company, this speaker is very audible. I won't go into specific songs, but he played all genres (except rap and a bit of electronica because he can't play bass) and most importantly, he didn't have the hard and sizzling highs that characterize those genres. Speaker. It plays relatively evenly up to high volumes, only the last few levels sound tight. The bass distorts quite hard when scrolling, which makes the user hope to turn it off. I think Turcom has a slightly boomy sound at low frequencies due to its size. Bass roll-off starts at 110Hz, output is fairly low at 65Hz and disappears at 50Hz. Again, it'll thump the table due to the lack of rubber feet I mentioned earlier. The mids and highs are fairly well rounded and the vocals sound natural and almost warm. The top end dies out a bit early, but I would have liked a crisp and tinny top. However, the Turcom should have a higher output level and significantly more bass for its size. Otherwise, the 18 volt, 2 amp charger charges the battery fairly quickly (not that you have to charge it very often), and the Bluetooth range was pretty good. I was able to get the speaker into the hallway on the floor above my phone and it wasn't until I brought it into the room that it started to drop out. Line-of-sight mode allows you to be far enough from the speaker that its sound is greatly reduced, largely eliminating the need for a longer connection. Overall the Turcom is a pleasure to listen to, but the size and other options available on the market only make this speaker an option where price, volume and waterproofing are paramount. At this size, the speaker is hardly portable and better suited to static locations. For me the design is too light to be used in certain static places like kitchens, living rooms or even bedrooms and too big to carry, so I found little use for this speaker. The Turcom is very similar to other 2 x 5-7W (not 30W!) Bluetooth speakers I've heard. It can be loud enough to be used in medium-sized rooms, but it can struggle outdoors and in large outdoor areas. It's fairly power efficient for its size, but with its huge battery (8000mAh) and low price, I can see it can keep up in this fast-paced market. The first image is a size comparison with the UE Mini Booms, the second shows the grip that can activate the buttons.