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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

Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 vs JBL Charge 5

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3
JBL Charge 5

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Oct 24, 2024 02:14 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Oct 31, 2024 02:51 PM

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Amazon.com
Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 Picture
JBL Charge 5 Picture
  1. Recommended in 1 article:
  2. JBL

Variants

  • MEGABOOM 3 (Blue)
  • MEGABOOM 3 (Dusk)
  • MEGABOOM 3 (Jungle Grey)
  • MEGABOOM 3 (Moon)
  • MEGABOOM 3 (Night Black)
  • MEGABOOM 3 (Purple)
  • MEGABOOM 3 (Sunset Red)
  • JBL Charge 5 (Black)
  • JBL Charge 5 (Blue)
  • JBL Charge 5 (Camo)
  • JBL Charge 5 (Gray)
  • JBL Charge 5 (Green)
  • JBL Charge 5 (Pink)
  • JBL Charge 5 (Red)
  • JBL Charge 5 (Teal)
  • JBL Charge 5 (White)

Our Verdict

Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3

JBL Charge 5

The Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 is a better speaker than the JBL Charge 5. The Ultimate Ears can play stereo content without downmixing it to mono and has an outstanding soundstage, thanks to its 360-degree design. However, the JBL has a more neutral sound profile out of the box. You can connect it to two devices at once, which can come in handy when you need to switch between two audio sources quickly.

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Blue
JBL Charge 5
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Black
JBL Charge 5
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Jungle Grey
MEGABOOM 3
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Camo
JBL Charge 5
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Gray
JBL Charge 5
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Night Black
MEGABOOM 3
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Green
JBL Charge 5
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Purple
MEGABOOM 3
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Pink
JBL Charge 5
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Sunset Red
MEGABOOM 3
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Red
JBL Charge 5
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Teal
JBL Charge 5
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White
JBL Charge 5
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Main Differences for

Threshold 

0.10

Music 

7.0
6.5

Soundstage 
 

9.1
5.8

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

6.3
6.7

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Style Photo  

Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 Style Photo
JBL Charge 5 Style Photo

RGB Lights  

No
No

Show text

Portability 
 

9.1
9.1

Dimensions Photo  

Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 Dimensions Photo
JBL Charge 5 Dimensions Photo

Volume 
 

104 in³ (1,710 cm³)
121 in³ (1,982 cm³)

Weight 
 

2.0 lbs (0.9 kg)
2.0 lbs (0.9 kg)

Power Source 
 

Battery & USB
Battery & USB

One-Hand Carry 
 

Yes
Yes

Show text

Build Quality 
 

9.0
8.3

Build Quality Photo  

Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 Build Quality Photo
JBL Charge 5 Build Quality Photo

Material Quality 
 

Great
Great

Water Resistance 
 

Submersible (IPx7)
Submersible (IPx7)

Dust Resistance 
 

Dust-Proof (IP6x)
Dust-Proof (IP6x)

Impact Resistance 
 

Yes (IK rating unspecified)
Unspecified

Floats In Water 
 

Yes
Unspecified

Show text

Controls 
 

5.8
6.6

Controls Photo  

Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 Controls Photo
JBL Charge 5 Controls Photo

Controls Photo 2  

Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 Controls Photo 2
JBL Charge 5 Controls Photo 2

Ease Of Use 
 

Good
Great

Feedback 
 

Good
Good

Music Play/Pause 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Call Answer/End 
 

No
No

Volume Up/Down 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Track Next/Previous 
 

No
Forward Only (Physical)

Microphone On/Off 
 

No
No

Additional Controls 
 

Yes
Yes

Show text

In The Box 
 

In The Box Photo  

Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 In The Box Photo
JBL Charge 5 In The Box Photo

Show text

Sound

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

6.3
6.7

Frequency Response Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Slope 
 

-1.13
0.29

Std. Err. 
 

4.07 dB
3.90 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

72.3 Hz
58.2 Hz

High-Frequency Extension 
 

18.2 kHz
18.5 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 
 

9.1
5.8

Directivity Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Directivity Index 
 

1.74 dB
4.27 dB

Stereo 
 

Yes
No (mono)

Show text

Dynamics 
 

6.8
6.5

Dynamic Range Compression  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

SPL @ Max Volume 
 

89.9 dB SPL
88.9 dB SPL

DRC @ Max Volume 
 

2.91 dB
3.16 dB

Show text

Active Features

Battery 
 

9.0
8.7

Battery Life 
 

17.7 hrs
14.5 hrs

Charge Time 
 

2.5 hrs
3.8 hrs

Power Saving 
 

Yes
Yes

Charging Port 
 

Micro-USB
USB-C

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 Microphone

Ambient Noise Performance 
 

No Microphone
No Microphone

Show text

App 
 

7.9
7.9

App Picture  

Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 App Picture
JBL Charge 5 App Picture

App Name 
 

Ultimate Ears
JBL Portable

iOS 
 

Yes
Yes

Android 
 

Yes
Yes

EQ 
 

Graphic + Presets
Graphic

Stereo Pair Mode 
 

Yes
Yes

Party Mode 
 

Yes
Yes

Multi-Room 
 

No
No

Show text

Connectivity

Wired 
 

Aux Input 
 

No
No

USB Audio 
 

No
No

Other Ports 
 

No
Yes

Show text

Bluetooth 
 

7.6
8.5

Bluetooth 
 

Yes
Yes

Bluetooth Version 
 

Unspecified
5.1

Bluetooth iOS Latency 
 

181 ms
125 ms

Bluetooth Android Latency 
 

71 ms
102 ms

Bluetooth Range 
 

282.2 ft (86.0 m)
328.1 ft (100.0 m)

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

No
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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Blue
JBL Charge 5
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Black
JBL Charge 5
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Jungle Grey
MEGABOOM 3
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Camo
JBL Charge 5
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Gray
JBL Charge 5
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Night Black
MEGABOOM 3
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Green
JBL Charge 5
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Purple
MEGABOOM 3
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Pink
JBL Charge 5
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Sunset Red
MEGABOOM 3
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Red
JBL Charge 5
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Teal
JBL Charge 5
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White
JBL Charge 5
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Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3

JBL Charge 5

Comments

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Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 3 vs JBL Charge 5: Main Discussion

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