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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

JBL Boombox 3 vs Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

JBL Boombox 3
Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Apr 14, 2025 08:03 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Apr 14, 2025 08:02 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
JBL Boombox 3 Picture
Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9 Picture
Bluetooth
Yes
Wi-Fi
No
Speakerphone
No
Voice Assistant
No
Battery Powered
Yes
Bluetooth
Yes
Wi-Fi
No
Speakerphone
No
Voice Assistant
No
Battery Powered
Yes
  1. Recommended in 7 articles:
  2. Bluetooth
  3. Portable
  4. Outdoor
  5. JBL
  6. Brands
  7. Waterproof Bluetooth
  8. Bluetooth For Sound

Variants

  • BoomBox 3 (Black)
  • BoomBox 3 (Squad)
  • Onyx Studio 9 (Black)

Review

See JBL Boombox 3 Review
See Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9 Review
10 
4 

Our Verdict

JBL Boombox 3

Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9

The JBL Boombox 3 and the Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9 are meant for different purposes. The JBL is a sturdy, water-resistant boombox that can accompany you on long park hangs or BBQs in your garden, while the Harman/Kardon is a sleek speaker meant to live indoors. Both produce a balanced sound that suits a variety of audio types, and both come with companion apps so you can customize their sound profile. The choice really comes down to your use case here.

0 

Check Price

Black
BoomBox 3
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
Onyx Studio 9
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Squad
BoomBox 3
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
Onyx Studio 9
SEE PRICE
Walmart.com
 
Black
Onyx Studio 9
SEARCH
B&H
 
Black
Onyx Studio 9
SEARCH
BestBuy.com

Main Differences for
Music

Threshold 

0.10

Music 

7.5
7.3

Dynamics 
 

8.1
6.2

Soundstage 
 

7.2
7.8

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Style Photo  

JBL Boombox 3 Style Photo
Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9 Style Photo

RGB Lights  

No
No
Show Text 

Portability 
 

8.1
9.0

Dimensions Photo  

JBL Boombox 3 Dimensions Photo
Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9 Dimensions Photo

Volume 
 

1,465 in³ (24,000 cm³)
565 in³ (9,251 cm³)

Weight 
 

15.1 lbs (6.9 kg)
7.5 lbs (3.4 kg)

Power Source 
 

AC & Battery
AC & Battery

One-Hand Carry 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Build Quality 
 

8.5
6.7

Build Quality Photo  

JBL Boombox 3 Build Quality Photo
Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9 Build Quality Photo

Material Quality 
 

Great
Great

Water Resistance 
 

Submersible (IPx7)
Unspecified

Dust Resistance 
 

Dust-Proof (IP6x)
Unspecified

Impact Resistance 
 

Unspecified
Unspecified

Floats In Water 
 

Yes
Unspecified
Show Text 

Controls 
 

6.6
7.8

Controls Photo  

JBL Boombox 3 Controls Photo
Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9 Controls Photo

Controls Photo 2  

JBL Boombox 3 Controls Photo 2
Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9 Controls Photo 2

Ease Of Use 
 

Great
Good

Feedback 
 

Good
Good

Music Play/Pause 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Call Answer/End 
 

No
Yes (Physical)

Volume Up/Down 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Track Next/Previous 
 

Forward Only (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Microphone On/Off 
 

No
No

Additional Controls 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

In The Box 
 

In The Box Photo  

JBL Boombox 3 In The Box Photo
Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9 In The Box Photo
Show Text 
Sound

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

7.5
7.5

Frequency Response Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Slope 
 

0.48
-0.33

Std. Err. 
 

2.64 dB
2.83 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

46.2 Hz
44.9 Hz

High-Frequency Extension 
 

19.3 kHz
19.9 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 
 

7.2
7.8

Directivity Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Directivity Index 
 

5.32 dB
4.01 dB

Stereo 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Dynamics 
 

8.1
6.2

Dynamic Range Compression  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

SPL @ Max Volume 
 

91.9 dB SPL
88.1 dB SPL

DRC @ Max Volume 
 

0.66 dB
3.58 dB
Show Text 
Active Features

Battery 
 

8.9
6.1

Battery Life 
 

29.7 hrs
6.1 hrs

Charge Time 
 

4.6 hrs
2.7 hrs

Power Saving 
 

Yes
Yes

Charging Port 
 

AC
AC

Battery Powered 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Voice Assistant 
 

0.0
0.0

Alexa 
 

No
No

Google Assistant 
 

No
No

Speakerphone 
 

No
No

Siri 
 

No
No

Voice Assistant 
 

No
No

Voice Activation 
 

No
No

Microphone Mute 
 

No Microphone
No

Far-Field Performance 
 

No Microphone
No Assistant

Ambient Noise Performance 
 

No Microphone
No Assistant
Show Text 

App 
 

7.9
9.6

App Picture  

JBL Boombox 3 App Picture
Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9 App Picture

App Name 
 

JBL Portable
Harman Kardon One

iOS 
 

Yes
Yes

Android 
 

Yes
Yes

EQ 
 

Graphic
Graphic + Presets

Stereo Pair Mode 
 

Yes
Yes

Party Mode 
 

Yes
Yes

Multi-Room 
 

No
Yes
Show Text 
Connectivity

Wired 
 

Aux Input 
 

Yes
Yes

USB Audio 
 

No
No

Other Ports 
 

Yes
No
Show Text 

Bluetooth 
 

8.2
9.0

Bluetooth 
 

Yes
Yes

Bluetooth Version 
 

5.3
5.3

Bluetooth iOS Latency 
 

143 ms
24 ms

Bluetooth Android Latency 
 

141 ms
124 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
Show Text 

Check Price

Black
BoomBox 3
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
Onyx Studio 9
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Squad
BoomBox 3
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
Onyx Studio 9
SEE PRICE
Walmart.com
 
Black
Onyx Studio 9
SEARCH
B&H
 
Black
Onyx Studio 9
SEARCH
BestBuy.com
Back to Top

JBL Boombox 3

Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9

Comments

  1. Comparison
 • Posted 1 month ago

JBL Boombox 3 vs Harman/Kardon Onyx Studio 9: Main Discussion

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