CES 2014

Most companies can ruggedize a speaker, give it some mild water-resistance and slap on a “water-resistant” sticker, and call it an outdoor product. BRAVEN has taken a much more serious approach in the new BRV-X and BRAVEN 855s.

Shown above, the BRV-X is a wireless speaker with TrueWireless pairing to create a stereo pair, IPX5 waterproof rating and NFC pairing too. However, the real difference between the BRV-X and most other speakers is that there’s an indoor/outdoor switch that creates difference EQ playback characteristics for indoor or outdoor situations. The indoor setting has lots of bass for a rich, warm sound. The outdoor setting has less bass and more highs to carry the clarity of the sound further. You can hear the vocals and not just the bass from across the pool. It has two 1.5’ speakers and the cabinet is just big enough for a passive bass radiator. You can pair two speakers together for true left/right stereo playback. It will retail for $230. It comes with unique mounting brackets and a tie-down strap so you can easily strap it to an ATV, bike or on top of a cooler. The last feature that impressed me was the Power Bank technology. It can play wirelessly for up to 12 hours with a built-in 5200 mAh battery that can charge up your phone or MP3 player on the go.

The other new player is the BRAVEN 855s. It’s rated IPX3 weatherproof, so not quite as rugged as the BRV-X. However, the sound from this device is very impressive. It has 20 watts of power for the two full-range drivers and dual passive radiators. Like the BRV-X, it has Power Bank features with up to 20 hours of playback and the ability to charge other devices via USB. You can wirelessly daisy-chain it to another 855s for true stereo imaging - setting it up in this format is amazingly intuitive. It will retail for $300 for a single unit. It has speakerphone capabilities to let you take calls and Skype.

Both of these units continue BRAVEN’s history of solid, rugged devices with surprisingly clear sound - a perfect pairing for audio enthusiasts who like to roam.