Tribit is a comparatively small firm that’s identified for making audio merchandise. Earbuds, headphones, transportable audio system, you title it.
Their latest addition to the lineup is the Tribit StormBox Micro, a compact Bluetooth speaker that touts waterproofing and a rugged design. At only $50 MSRP, they’re promising quite a bit from not a ton of money.
However is it value it? Let’s discover out.
Sturdy design
The Tribit StormBox Micro tries to take care of a low-profile however nonetheless rugged design that you simply don’t have to fret about tearing up. The underside half has a rubberized end to stop slipping and sliding whereas including grip, however the prime makes use of a mesh fabric that’s typical for water-proof audio system and devices.
Choosing it up exhibits that the speaker is surprisingly dense. It’s not essentially heavy, but it surely does really feel like Tribit’s received quite a bit crammed into this speaker, for higher or worse. It’s nonetheless gentle and sufficiently small to slot in a pocket or bag with out inflicting concern, although.
Alongside the highest of the speaker sits the perform button, plus a quantity up and down button. The ability and Bluetooth button are on the entrance aspect of the speaker, and alongside the underside you’ll see a removable grip so you possibly can connect the speaker to one thing else for higher listening angles.
Lastly, there’s a USB-C port on the appropriate aspect. Very glad this factor isn’t nonetheless utilizing a microUSB charging port regardless of its value.
Booming sound
Choosing this up ought to most likely trace at it sounding higher than common. Usually these dense audio system get their weight from higher elements, whereas a featherweight speaker often sounds horrible as a result of it’s received no punch or dynamics.
The Tribit StormBox Micro holds up, too. For its measurement, it sounds large. There’s a ton of low finish punch with bass strains nonetheless sustaining their readability, and the remainder of the sound profile rounding out a really outlined however full tone.
The excessive finish stays crisp with out stepping into brittle or harsh territory, and the midrange fills out the speaker with out getting in the way in which.
Whether or not you’re utilizing this for music, films, or podcasts, the speaker hardly ever struggles. There’s tons of punch, vocals and dialog is available in clear, and it’s sufficiently small to place anyplace irrespective of the place you’re.
Placing a pair of those in stereo would seemingly repair the one downside I’ve with the speaker, which is its comparatively small soundstage. In a big setting or exterior, simply sitting this down to fireplace upwards could make the speaker sound small, even for its measurement. Getting it excessive up and hooked up to one thing, and even standing it up on a desk to fireplace right into a room as a substitute of upwards helps a bit, however I think about a second speaker would totally remedy the issue and would most likely provide you with probably the greatest sub-$100 setups round.
The little issues
One thing that always will get neglected with audio system (particularly low cost audio system) is the extent of polish of the gadgets or firmware. Typically while you’re speaking about one thing beneath $50, it doesn’t matter. I’d say it doesn’t matter with the StormBox Micro, both, however that didn’t cease Tribit from really doing an excellent job.
Take into consideration what number of audio system or headphones you’ve used that use that very same generic sampled beep to let you already know when it’s turned on or linked to a tool. Or how concerning the annoying voice strains to inform you that your machine is linked when a single tone could be wonderful? That’s the place Tribit nailed this.
As a substitute of the identical beep you’ve heard one million occasions or an unnecessarily lengthy voice line, they’re utilizing some very nice chimes and tones to warn you to all the things. Couple this with using USB-C on this value vary, plus some very small, eco-friendly packaging, and the entire bundle simply looks like a whole lot of care when into the machine that typically you don’t even see from audio system twice as costly.
Price it?
Except you’re keen to spend a large chunk of cash on an Echo Studio or Sonos Move speaker, it’s exhausting to suggest anything over the StormBox Micro anyplace near this value vary. Simply utilizing it for a pair songs makes it instantly obvious why it’s such a favourite throughout the web.
Whereas the MSRP is $50, it does are inclined to dip beneath that sometimes, making it an absolute steal. The battery life is stable (round 8 hours) and it helps newer standards like USB-C and Bluetooth 5.0, and it’s completely waterproof so you possibly can toss it in your seashore bag and never have to fret about it.
The one criticism I actually have is coping with its smaller soundstage, however that’s one thing that even costly audio system can battle with. Tribit knocked this one out of the park.
Plus you will get it in a actually smooth trying orange end. For those who want a brand new speaker, otherwise you’re making an attempt to do some vacation purchasing early, purchase this one and don’t look again.
Tribit StormBox Micro Speaker | $49 | Amazon
