Soundcore Boom 2 Plus Outdoor Speaker Review

Soundcore Boom 2 Plus - Floatable and Waterproof?

Soundcore, the sound company born from power juggernaut Anker, has been releasing new products on the regular these days, from different styles of sports earbuds and noise-canceling headphones to Bluetooth party speakers. Their products push the limits of design quality to value ratio, and their latest release, the Boom 2 Plus, falls right in line with this mantra. Building upon the foundation of the Boom 2 ($129) and the Motion Boom Plus ($179), both of which are rugged IPX7, boombox-style Bluetooth speakers, Soundcore has taken the best features from these two speakers and made a BIG step up from its predecessors. Mo’ Pow’ah Baby! That is undoubtedly showcased here for this newly released product. Let’s jump into the review.

What’s in the Box: Soundcore Boom 2 Plus

The unboxing experience of the Soundcore Boom 2 Plus is a treat. The unit comes packaged in a colorful carton that highlights the product's features, setting the stage for what's to come. Inside, the unit is protected by 2 thick, high-quality cell foam pieces, ensuring the product's safety during transit. A .5M USB C-to-USB C cable and a nice quality nylon woven shoulder strap are neatly nested in the cell foam, ready for use. 

The products are wrapped in moisture-resistant plastic bags, a thoughtful touch to protect the products in transit. They have taken extra steps to ensure you get a solid product from the warehouse to the door. When you grab the large handle and pull the unit from the package, you will immediately notice the speaker's weight. Tipping the scale at 8.38 lbs, it outweighs the Motion Boom Plus by just over 3 lbs. Beefier drivers and a built-in 10W fast-charging power bank probably have something to do with the extra weight. Anker does not supply a USB charger with the Boom 2 Plus; it must be purchased separately. However, you may use any standard smartphone charger to charge the unit, making it convenient to use.

Soundcore Boom 2 Plus First Impressions

Once taken out of the protective wrappers, the Boom 2 Plus has a nice feel. The carrying handle is very comfortable, and the build materials seem high quality. A metal grill with the Soundcore logo is on the front of the speaker, and a large “Soundcore” spelled-out logo is on the back plastic casing. The power and function buttons seem very well sealed and have a nice tactile feel. On the bottom rear of the speaker is a large silicone plug that covers the charging port for the speaker and external devices, as well as the 3.5mm Aux port. This plug, a crucial part of the speaker's water resistance feature, will have to be in place for the water protection of the speaker. Failure to put this in before dropping into a body of water could mean trouble. It does seem to seal very well when pushed all the way in, so you should feel secure about using this unit in various wet environments (it is IPX7-rated, after all).

Once the power button is pressed, you are greeted with a flashing light show and a little power-up/boot-up jingle. The speaker will emit the Soundcore signature jingle when the device seeks a Bluetooth source. Having interacted with several other Soundcore products, the Soundcore app was installed previously on my Galaxy S23 Ultra phone. It would have been nice if there had been a QR code sticker on the speaker to link users to the Soundcore app should a buyer not have interacted with a Soundcore product previously. Once the app is open, it is simple enough to “Add a New Device”.  After the Boom 2 Plus has been added to the app, you can tailor your “Light and “Sound” settings. Overall, getting the speaker unpacked and set up in 2-3 minutes was a painless process.

Soundcore Boom 2 Plus Functionality

Most people are buying this product for a single purpose: to play their favorite tunes at high volume in an open airspace. The Boom 2 Plus does this effortlessly. Soundcore advertises 140W of peak power output (with the BassUP 2.0 Technology engaged). This pushes the internal amplifier to output more power to produce more volume. Natively (without the BassUP 2.0 feature engaged), the system maxes around 100W.  I would feel confident to say to get good bass performance in an outdoor space that, the BassUP™ 2.0 feature should be engaged. If the speaker is played indoors and is up against a wall or corner loaded, it would be wise to turn the BassUP 2.0 feature off as the sound can get quite “boomy”. The passive radiators work very well in helping reinforce low frequencies, so if you love bass, this is a great unit. Test tracks were played from multiple sources on our Samsung Galaxy 23 Ultra test phone via Bluetooth (speaker has Bluetooth v5.3), and there were no issues swapping between apps such as Spotify, Tidal, SiriusXM, and YouTube Music. The typical Bluetooth lag isn’t very bad, either. This unit was not made for hi-fi type listening, but the sound quality is quite good for a boom box type speaker, especially at higher volumes. There is a fully adjustable 9-band EQ in the Soundcore app with 4 EQ presets provided. We found it best to tailor the EQ presets for inside and outside listening situations.

Yes it Can Float!

As advertised, the speaker can get VERY WET! Testing around the pool over Memorial Day weekend, we used this speaker exclusively for our pool party, and we sat the speaker on the edge of the pool so we could hear the tunes and see the lights while swimming late into the evening. The speaker got heavily splashed from several unexpected “Cannonball” jumps and kept pumping out music. Soundcore advertises that this speaker can float; Audioholics put this claim to the test in our saltwater pool and found that the unit can, in fact, float and will continue to play tunes if briefly submerged for a quick second when being thrown in the water.

Editorial Note: If the speaker does get placed into the water, shake as much water out of it as possible and let it drip dry either on a towel or some water-resistant surface, as water will continue to come out of the unit until it is empty. The unit continued to work very well after all the submersion and water playtime testing, even after drying out. 

The light show on the end of the speakers inside the passive radiators was quite entertaining for young and old alike. The lights can flash to the beat of the music and be controlled by the Soundcore app so that you can set the vibe for any occasion. You can also opt to turn the lights off via the app to conserve battery life, as the lights affect how long the battery lasts. Soundcore says with lights off and 50% volume you can get 20 hours of playtime on a single charge. With our testing, playing tunes loudly with the light show going non-stop, we got around half that time (10 hours or so).

Another useful feature of the speaker is that the power pack from the Boom 2 Plus can be used to charge your cell phone if your music source starts running short of power. It acts as a fast charger and can quickly recharge a phone in about an hour.

Other interesting features of the speaker that we didn’t get to test this time were PartyCast 2.0 and TWS Connectivity. PartyCast 2.0 allows for synchronizing over 100 Soundcore speakers to create “The Ultimate Party Experience” with seamless room-to-room filling sound. TWS Connectivity allows 2 Soundcore speakers to be paired in full stereo with separated channels from each device. Audioholics would love to partner with Soundcore to test these features with upcoming products.

Soundcore Boom 2 Plus Final Thoughts

If you're looking for a party speaker with booming volume, impressive bass, excellent battery life, and the versatility to charge other devices, the Boom 2 Plus is a solid buy at its $249 MSRP (on sale for $199). It's perfect for pool, beach, or boat parties, offering hours of entertainment whether you're soaking up the sun or partying into the night. It's ready to be the star of your summer adventures! Other options for speakers with similar environmental robustness are the Sony XG300 ($349 on sale currently at $199), JBL Partybox Encore ($249), JBL Boombox 3 ($349). The JBL Boombox 3 ($456) is a 3-way design for a bit more separation and costs a bit more. However, the Soundcore Boom 2 Plus is going to have a bit more battery life and a better IPX7 rating. Any of these options will be excellent for getting tunes going near water and dirt without the worry of damaging the speaker. My family and I have thoroughly enjoyed the Soundcore Boom 2 Plus for our outdoor activities and in the end, that's what it's all about.

Unless otherwise indicated, this is a preview article for the featured product. A formal review may or may not follow in the future.