JBL Flip 6 Review: The Same But Better!

An Improvement to the Award-Winning Predecessor

When it comes to getting a portable speaker, JBL is a name that will always be there for you to consider. This manufacturer has to offer some of the best Bluetooth speakers

JBL has just launched a new version of its popular portable Bluetooth speaker, which wrought havoc in the audio industry, the JBL Flip Speaker 5.

The new successor is upgraded to provide us with better sound quality without compromising on the built part either.

Yes, it is even more rugged now.

Will it follow in the footsteps of its brother?

No, the JBL Flip 6 is here to make history and exceed even the Flip 5, something we have seen before from JBL. I mean, in a way, JBL is a synonym for Bluetooth speakers.

Let’s Dive Into its Design

Dive? Did I just say, dive?

Ohh boy, the JBL Flip 6 sure loves to dive. You may dunk it in the pool or even take it to the beach because it has an IP67 rating. It is dust and sand resistant in addition to being waterproof.

Oh, and the front logo has been redesigned, so everyone at the beach will know you have the new edition.

It’s as tough as it gets. It includes rubberized corners and a rubber stopper on the bottom to keep the JBL Flip 6 from falling or sliding on the surface.

The entire speaker is encased in a grille, which is something we’re used to seeing on JBL speakers.

It’s roughly the same size as the JBL Flip 5, but somewhat larger to accommodate the new inputs (more on the new drivers later).

It just weighs 2.71 pounds and includes a daisy-chain braided strap with a slider on the rear to secure it on your wrist or mount it on anything.  Without a doubt, this makes the JBL Flip 6 an excellent travel companion.

JBL is always generous with color options, and there are plenty to select from right now, it includes Forest Green, Midnight Black, Ocean Blue, Fiesta Red, Teal, Grey Stone, and more.

Connectivity and features

At the top of the speaker, you will be greeted by the play/pause, volume up, volume down, and PartyBoost buttons. While in the back, there’s a power on/off button, a Bluetooth button that stands for pairing, and a nice USB-C charging port.

The PartyBoost feature is something we have seen before. It helps the JBL Flip 6 create a stereo pair or just augment the sound of the JBL product portfolio. But note that the other speakers should also have the PartyBoost feature in order to pair. With this feature, you will blast the whole house with the JBL sound signature, and you should note that fewer Bluetooth speakers carry these kinds of features.

And one big change that I liked the most regarding the connectivity is that now it uses Bluetooth 5.1, unlike its brother Flip 5, which used Bluetooth 4.2. It means that now the JBL Flip 6 is more stable and gives you the freedom to stay way away from the phone.

Much like the rest of the JBL devices, it has access to the JBL Portable app that is downloadable both from the Apple Store and the Android Play Store. Once you pair the speaker, you will be presented with features that allow you to control the equalizer, toggle on/off tone feedback, check the battery life, and adjust the PartyBoost. Nothing groundbreaking there, but it is quite user-friendly and fun to use, so yeah make sure you check out the JBL Portable App.

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The Same Signature Sound of JBL, but Better! Performance

Inside is what matters, right?

The JBL Flip 6  Bluetooth speaker has gone through a big change, a change no other speaker from JBL has gone through. Inside the JBL Flip 6 is an unusually shaped woofer that is separated from the tweeter. The woofer can push out a nice amount of 20W while the tweeter gets 10W.

Because of those two components and the dual passive radiators, the bass, mids, and highs sound more professional than in any other Flip lineup I’ve seen (or heard, for that matter can’t see the music, duh).

While we are at the bass, mids, and highs, I’ll let you guys know they sure do sound phenomenal.

The mids and highs are balanced enough, making it easy for you to tell what instrument is playing, and even guess the vocalist on the first try. Bass showed up nicely in every genre, yes even in jazz. It was smooth and warm, punchy in the electronic genres such as trance, dubstep, and deep house.

And all this was without the EQ turned on. Imagine what you can get if you adjust the EQ in the JBL app!

Overall, the sound is great. I can go as far as recommending the JBL Flip 6 to anyone, and sleep like a lamb because I won’t receive any hate in return.

Another Improvement to Battery-Life

The portable speaker, JBL Flip 6 also went through an upgrade in the battery life aspect as well, but remember guys, like always, the battery life heavily depends on the volume level.

JBL promises us a nice number of 12 hours on a single charge.

Even though when I had the chance to test it myself, I couldn’t make it through 12 hours in one session, I got pretty close to it, so I won’t flag JBL for false marketing.

To recharge the battery, you do it through the USB-C ports and it takes around 2 hours to fully charge.

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Wrap Up, Conclusions

You probably saw that I was hard-pressed to find cons for this Bluetooth speaker. In a few words, it is simply amazing. It doesn’t discard anything that made the Flip 5 a success. Actually, it is even better, giving the competition a worse blow than its predecessors did.

Insane sound, great portability, and ruggedness on top of all that, at an affordable price. JBL Flip 6 is definitely something that should be on your wish list.

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Further Reading on JBL

If you liked what you read so far, you can continue reading further regarding JBL products.

For example, I have a blog where I reviewed the JBL Essential, one where I compare JBL Go 3 and Clip 4. or if you are a fan of clip series only there’s Clip 3 vs Clip 4. 

Perhaps, you are interested in the outcome between Xtreme 2 Vs Boombox 2.

There’s also an article that helps you with resetting your JBL device, in case you feel confused.

This is it for today, enjoy.