8/10
Open rating explainerInformationWIREDGets very loud. IP65 rated. Comes with excellent rubberized corners that resist damage. Forty-hour battery life.TIREDLarge and heavy. Overkill for small yards. Not easily transportable over distance without a car or cargo bike. USB-C charging; no charger included.Soundboks is a company that puts performance above aesthetics. The earliest models I tested were essentially big PA speakers with car batteries inside them. They were unwieldy hunks of sound, but they did the job they were meant to do—play music insanely loudly in outdoor or off-grid indoor spaces. Still, they weren’t something I’d typically recommend for your average backyard barbecue.
With its new Soundboks Mix, the Danish audio brand moves from targeting ravers and lifties to a set of normal folks who just want a durable, loud, outdoor Bluetooth speaker that is car-camping portable. The Mix has massive battery life, is strong enough to last all year outside (as long as you cover it most of the time), and charges via USB-C. It’s a surprisingly sophisticated and musical speaker, and things like replaceable batteries and the ability to pair multiple together make it a practical solution for folks who like to hold onto things a while. A bouncy-cornered design and solid handles also make it a great option for people who tend to be physically rougher on gear.
The Mix doesn’t quite compare with the more distinctly PA-like models we feature in our Karaoke Gear Guide—largely in a good way when it comes to audio quality—but it also functions well outside the traditional Soundboks raver rabbit hole, and that actually makes this mono speaker one of my favorite large outdoor models of the moment.
A Better Boks
Photograph: Parker HallThe hard-sided rectangle I've become familiar with from Soundboks hasn’t changed too much, but it has been upgraded with nice rubber balls on all eight corners, allowing the speaker to take some hilariously massive impacts without slamming into the ground very hard (see attached videos). It also means that you get better isolation (and grip) from uneven or weird surfaces below the speaker itself, for improved overall sound.
In addition to the rubber balls, there's a nice physical interface on the side for adjusting volume and pairing multiple Mix speakers together if you have multiple on hand (I was only sent the single mono speaker). Setup involves installing the Soundboks app, pairing to the speaker via Bluetooth on your phone, and picking whatever you want to play. It’s all quick and painless, especially for my first-time pairing with a Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra.
Video: Parker HallOtherwise, it’s all very pro audio. Everything reminds me very much of the Peavey PA system I have in my music rehearsal space. The top of the speaker features a built-in carrying handle and a place for a strap (an accessory you have to buy aftermarket, or you can fasten it with any strap you have that fits through the hole). There are also top-hat mounts for the speakers to slide onto traditional PA pole stands, if you wanted to use them in that way at a party or event.
The grill is replaceable, as is the massive internal battery, which means that these things are pretty much indestructible as long as the amp and speakers themselves still work—the battery is the weak point of most portable speakers in 2026.
I bounced it around my yard, dropped it off my patio, and generally beat the crap out of it during my two-week testing period, and the thing just needed a little wipe down and a charge when it ran out of juice. The claimed 40 hours of battery at reasonable volume is accurate, but you'll get about eight hours at max volume (which is very good for the category). If you need to bring some walk-out music to your kid's all-day Little League tournament, this a great way to go.
Big Sound
Photograph: Parker HallSoundboks calls this speaker midsize, but at 21.4 pounds and the size of a medium-size cooler, I’d still call it a large speaker. That said, the size doesn't make it any less portable than competitors from JBL and others; you still need a car or cargo ebike to take one of these with you, so what's a couple inches here or there? The fact that this is a rectangle actually makes it easier to strap down than many others, especially with the holes for the strap and the built-in handle to tie down through.
The brand claims an astonishing 121 decibels from the Mix. That is very, very loud for a Bluetooth speaker. For reference, the maximum that’s safe for human ears over eight hours is 85 decibels, and most competitors cap out just over 100 decibels. Only the Turtlebox Grande ($730) claims higher volume (126 dB), not that you'll ever max these out for anything other than an actual rave. This thing was loud enough to light up my entire 1-acre front yard with sound while I was mulching my spring plants at about half volume. A cute quirk is that it literally does go to 11 instead of 10 on the illuminated volume knob, a fun Spinal Tap nod.
The brief moments I had the speaker up at full volume were what I’d call harrowing. I was able to measure up to 111 decibels from about a meter away in my home studio (while wearing earplugs). This thing is more than loud enough for any house party you could be hosting, unless your home is the size of Disneyland.
As for the overall sound signature of this speaker? Very good! With a 10-inch woofer and 1.2-inch dome tweeter, you get drivers that are way larger than most Bluetooth speakers offer, and it shows in the sound profile, especially outside. The outdoors can eat weak drivers and only favor the low end, which is why I enjoyed the full-bodied sound that this speaker offers. Classics like Elton John's Captain Fantastic had the right shimmer, but they also had the same punchy kick drum and bright bass tone that I've always enjoyed.
Photograph: Parker HallObviously, most people aren't going to be using this speaker for classic rock anthems: It performed very well playing Ms Banks' recent album South Ldn Lover Girl, where the deep sampled drums and synthy pops on “POV” feel snappy and richer than most other nonstandard speaker designs can muster.
The Mix also does well with dance music like The Crystal Method's “Busy Child,” offering a glimpse of how the mono speaker can handle slow builds and hugely wide frequency spectrums in the synths. Everything was distinct and energetic, with more than enough oomph for most dance parties (though I'd recommend two for a better stereo experience).
Charging is the only nonstandard thing for a model this big: It uses USB-C. Though it can be charged at up to 65 watts via a fast charger, that charger isn't included, which is annoying. At this price, I feel like the strap and a charging cable/brick should come standard. To Soundboks' credit, most people have a USB-C charger lying around, and embracing that standard means you're less likely to get stuck without a way to charge at all.
Photograph: Parker HallAnyone looking for an outdoor sound system who doesn’t want custom-installed speakers and their associated amps and cables would be wise to look this way if they want to host pool parties: Two of these would set you back a cool $1,600, and you’d have a very capable stereo setup anywhere you can bring them and a cell phone.
If I owned this and wasn’t simply testing it, I’d probably put up a PA speaker top-hat mount on my deck overhang, so I could just plop this thing on it when I wasn’t traveling. As something to bring to larger parties, events like small weddings or farmers markets, this could be a well-designed companion. Especially considering how durable it is (and the fact that the brand backs it with a five-year warranty), there really isn't anywhere it can't go that your hands and a car trunk can't take it.
$799 at Soundboks
