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  1. Table of Contents
  2. Top
  3. Main Differences
  4. Design
    1. Pictures
    2. Style
    3. Portability
    4. Build Quality
    5. Controls
    6. In The Box
  5. Sound
    1. Frequency Response Accuracy
    2. Raw Frequency Response
    3. Soundstage
    4. Dynamics
  6. Active Features
    1. Battery
    2. Voice Assistant
    3. App
  7. Connectivity
    1. Wired
    2. Bluetooth
    3. Wi-Fi
  8. Comments

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 vs Bose SoundLink Max

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3
Bose SoundLink Max

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Apr 14, 2025 08:15 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated May 01, 2025 03:54 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 Picture
Bose SoundLink Max Picture
Bluetooth
Yes
Wi-Fi
No
Speakerphone
Yes
Voice Assistant
No
Battery Powered
Yes
Bluetooth
Yes
Wi-Fi
No
Speakerphone
No
Voice Assistant
No
Battery Powered
Yes
  1. Recommended in 2 articles:
  2. Bose
  3. Brands

Variants

  • Go + Play 3 (Black)
  • SoundLink Max (Black)
  • SoundLink Max (Blue Dusk)

Review

See Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 Review
See Bose SoundLink Max Review
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Our Verdict

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3

Bose SoundLink Max

The Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 and the Bose SoundLink Max are portable Bluetooth speakers with different strengths. The Harman/Kardon gets a touch louder and reproduces sound more accurately, but unlike the Bose, it doesn't come with a companion app to tweak the sound to your preferences. The Bose is better built and rated IP67, so it'll withstand a rain shower or windy day in your garden. The Bose's 15-hour battery life is also much longer than the Harman/Kardon's seven hours. 

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Black
Go + Play 3
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Black
SoundLink Max
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Black
Go + Play 3
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Blue Dusk
SoundLink Max
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Black
Go + Play 3
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Black
Go + Play 3
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Black
Go + Play 3
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Main Differences for
Music

Threshold 

0.10

Music 

7.5
7.4

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

7.7
7.2

EQ 
 

No
Graphic + Presets

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Style Photo  

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 Style Photo
Bose SoundLink Max Style Photo

RGB Lights  

No
No
Show Text 

Portability 
 

8.5
8.9

Dimensions Photo  

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 Dimensions Photo
Bose SoundLink Max Dimensions Photo

Volume 
 

1,136 in³ (18,616 cm³)
222 in³ (3,644 cm³)

Weight 
 

10.8 lbs (4.9 kg)
4.9 lbs (2.2 kg)

Power Source 
 

AC & Battery
Battery & USB

One-Hand Carry 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Build Quality 
 

6.7
8.7

Build Quality Photo  

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 Build Quality Photo
Bose SoundLink Max Build Quality Photo

Material Quality 
 

Great
Good

Water Resistance 
 

Unspecified
Submersible (IPx7)

Dust Resistance 
 

Unspecified
Dust-Proof (IP6x)

Impact Resistance 
 

Unspecified
Yes (IK rating unspecified)

Floats In Water 
 

Unspecified
Yes
Show Text 

Controls 
 

7.5
7.8

Controls Photo  

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 Controls Photo
Bose SoundLink Max Controls Photo

Controls Photo 2  

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 Controls Photo 2
Bose SoundLink Max Controls Photo 2

Ease Of Use 
 

Good
Good

Feedback 
 

Okay
Good

Music Play/Pause 
 

Yes (Tactile)
Yes (Physical)

Call Answer/End 
 

Yes (Tactile)
Yes (Physical)

Volume Up/Down 
 

Yes (Tactile)
Yes (Physical)

Track Next/Previous 
 

Yes (Tactile)
Yes (Physical)

Microphone On/Off 
 

No
No

Additional Controls 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

In The Box 
 

In The Box Photo  

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 In The Box Photo
Bose SoundLink Max In The Box Photo
Show Text 
Sound

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

7.7
7.2

Frequency Response Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Slope 
 

0.18
-0.21

Std. Err. 
 

2.15 dB
2.65 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

45.6 Hz
52.6 Hz

High-Frequency Extension 
 

19.9 kHz
18.8 kHz
Show Text 

Raw Frequency Response 
 

Raw Frequency Response Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Binaural Recording @ 1m 
 

Binaural Recording @ 2m 
 

Soundstage 
 

7.8
7.8

Directivity Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Directivity Index 
 

4.10 dB
4.23 dB

Stereo 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Dynamics 
 

7.5
7.6

Dynamic Range Compression  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

SPL @ Max Volume 
 

96.1 dB SPL
95.7 dB SPL

DRC @ Max Volume 
 

2.81 dB
2.55 dB
Show Text 
Active Features

Battery 
 

6.7
8.8

Battery Life 
 

7.0 hrs
15.5 hrs

Charge Time 
 

1.8 hrs
3.7 hrs

Power Saving 
 

Yes
Yes

Charging Port 
 

AC
USB-C

Battery Powered 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Voice Assistant 
 

0.0
0.0

Alexa 
 

No
No

Google Assistant 
 

No
No

Speakerphone 
 

Yes
No

Siri 
 

No
No

Voice Assistant 
 

No
No

Voice Activation 
 

No
No

Microphone Mute 
 

No
No

Far-Field Performance 
 

No Assistant
No Microphone

Ambient Noise Performance 
 

No Assistant
No Microphone
Show Text 

App 
 

0.0
7.9

App Picture  

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 App Picture
Bose SoundLink Max App Picture

App Name 
 

No App
Bose Music

iOS 
 

No
Yes

Android 
 

No
Yes

EQ 
 

No
Graphic + Presets

Stereo Pair Mode 
 

No
Yes

Party Mode 
 

No
Yes

Multi-Room 
 

No
No
Show Text 
Connectivity

Wired 
 

Aux Input 
 

Yes
Yes

USB Audio 
 

No
No

Other Ports 
 

No
No
Show Text 

Bluetooth 
 

8.4
8.6

Bluetooth 
 

Yes
Yes

Bluetooth Version 
 

5.2
5.4

Bluetooth iOS Latency 
 

47 ms
106 ms

Bluetooth Android Latency 
 

259 ms
84 ms

Bluetooth Range 
 

334.6 ft (102.0 m)
334.6 ft (102.0 m)

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

2 Devices
2 Devices
Show Text 

Wi-Fi 
 

0.0
0.0

Wi-Fi Version 
 

No Wi-Fi
No Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi Frequency Band 
 

No Wi-Fi
No Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi 
 

No
No

Apple AirPlay 
 

No
No

AirPlay Latency 
 

N/A
N/A

Google Chromecast 
 

No
No

Chromecast Latency 
 

N/A
N/A

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Black
Go + Play 3
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Black
SoundLink Max
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Black
Go + Play 3
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Blue Dusk
SoundLink Max
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Black
Go + Play 3
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Black
Go + Play 3
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Black
Go + Play 3
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Back to Top

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3

Bose SoundLink Max

Comments

  1. Comparison
 • Posted 5 months ago

Harman/Kardon Go + Play 3 vs Bose SoundLink Max: Main Discussion

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