Another Bluetooth speaker that reaches out to set a name for itself and rattle the competition, RIVA’s Turbo X promises to oust the other brands by providing a richer dynamic range and enough volume to fill an entire party. Made to cover any scenario from relaxed music listening, loud environments to movie enrichment.
The speaker is about the size of a table stand alarm clock with the ability to plug directly into the wall or go wireless with its internal battery that will power the speaker for up to 26 hours. Inside there are 7 drivers that are capable of delivering a room filling surround experience, all powered by an internal ADX 3-way amplifier that delivers 45 watts of power.
There are multiple modes of sound to choose from, beginning with the “normal listening mode” which is used for typical easy listening. This is the mode you would find yourself using most of the time. If normal isn’t enough and you need it to fill a larger footprint, you will want to enable “Turbo Mode” by pressing the “T” button on the top. Once pressed, it lets off a sound effect of an engine revving up showing Turbo has been enabled. This mode cranks up the juice volume by 9 dB, allowing you to take it up to 100 dB of total volume–similar to the “loud” or “extra loud” button you used to find on boom boxes back in the day. Turbo does drain the battery by a significant amount, giving you around 6 or more hours of listening at max volume.
If you’re planning to use the speaker for your favorite movie, video game or sport, there is an “S” button on the top that when pressed will enable “Trillium Surround Mode”. This mode is designed to dynamically enhance movies, video games and more with its multi-dimensional surround.
Being able to crank the speaker up to 100 dB without distortion is a big claim, as that would defeat most of the mobile speakers we have sat down with in the past (including those from Logitech/UE, Klipsch, Bose and more). Like something out of the movie/mockumentary Spinal Tap, the volume control on the app allows you to take it to “11” (versus the normal 0-10 volume setting).
Speaking of the app, available for iOS and Android devices, you can download RIVA’s “Ground Control” app that allows you to adjust all of the settings on the speaker remotely. Nothing special, but allows you to toggle between the three moves, adjust volume and so forth.
On the back there is multi-colored LED of a battery that changes between three colors (green, orange and red) to represent the current battery life. There is also a USB port for charging the device you are using for playback.
Last but not least, just like any other Bluetooth speaker, it does function as a speakerphone promising crystal clear communication with noise cancellation.
We haven’t had the opportunity yet to sit down with one of these and put it up against any of the other brands, but if we do, we will make sure to dig deeper and show you what we find.
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