LATEST ADDITIONS

By now, you’ve probably heard all the hype surrounding “True Wireless” headphones. If you’re not familiar with the term, you’re likely familiar with the category’s poster child: the Apple AirPods. You know, the cordless in-ear headphones that some have described as looking akin to “soggy cigarettes sticking out of your ear.” Weird looking or not, the category is booming: at CES 2017, dozens of companies were scrambling to tout their own version of the format. From Monster to Motorola, more True Wireless are on the way. So… are they worth a look?

Performance
Features
Build Quality
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Powerful bass for a compact sub
Performs extremely well with music and movies
Minus
Lacks last half-octave of deep bass you can get from larger subs

THE VERDICT
If you’re limited on space but have adequate funding, this is the strongest-performing compact sub I’ve auditioned.

It’s another American business success story. A couple of kids, Jim Birch and Lucio Proni, begin building home loudspeakers during summer break in 1975. More than 40 years later, Jim and Lucio are still going strong, having seen JL Audio become one of the most respected consumer electronics brands in the world, branching out from the home to mobile and marine applications. I’ve experienced their products at some custom shops and have read glowing reviews of their subwoofers over the years. My favorite review was by my colleague Darryl Wilkinson, who said the company’s Fathom f212 sub could play a 20-hertz test tone loud enough to liquefy his bowels! High praise, indeed.