Review: Brane X vs. Soundboks Go vs Devialet Mania Portable Bluetooth Speakers

My search for the best portable Bluetooth speaker began this summer when I first heard the Brane X ($599) at T.H.E. Show SoCal. The company named Brane Audio, had launched their first product, the Brane X, and was demonstrating how it produced more bass than JBL Xtreme 4 ($379), Sonos Move 2 ($449), and UE Hyperboom ($399) despite being smaller. Brane’s secret is a proprietary down-firing 9-inch by 6-inch oval woofer that generates loads of low bass energy.

Had a startup really outsmarted industry heavyweights or was it all smoke and mirrors. I had to find out.

At the time I began my investigation, Brane X was priced at $599. Although it was certainly outclassing some popular Bluetooth speakers, it also cost more. So I went upmarket to look for competitors, which led me to the larger Soundboks Go at $699, and the smaller Devialet Mania for $799. At the time I started my review $100 separated each model, but today’s prices have changed. Brane officially dropped their price by $100, while Devialet raised theirs by $100.

• Brane X – Was $599, Now $499
• Soundboks Go – $699
• Devialet Mania – Was $799, Now $899

Methodology

Once all three models arrived, I began my testing in succession both indoors and outside. Outdoor testing spanned across my backyard to the nearby beaches of Southern California. Indoors each speaker took turns in our kitchen and my home office.

Size & Portability

Upon ordering these models I figured all were about the same size, but online photos can be deceiving. The Soundboks Go was much larger than I had expected, and truly pushes the limits of practical portability. It not only weighs 21 lbs, it’s also about triple the size of the other models. Given its weight class, it didn’t seem fair to keep it in the competition, but with each step-up in pricing we figured potential buyers would want to know what they can get.

The most expensive model arrived from upscale French audio brand Devialet, which is known for its uniquely designed Phantom in-home wireless speakers. The Devialet Mania is the company’s smallest and least expensive wireless speaker. It’s shaped and feels like a 5 pound bowling ball with dual firing woofers and four full-range drivers that enable a 360-degree soundfield. Interestingly, it was the most expensive of the bunch, but also the smallest.

Special Features

All three models come with a companion app for setup and EQ adjustments, and had no problem connecting via Bluetooth with or without the app. However, only the Brane and Devialet include Wi-Fi connectivity which is a nice convenience at home. Wi-Fi not only maintains speaker pairings, but also enables higher resolution audio and Amazon Alexa voice interactivity. After an initial setup syncs up with your Amazon account, both Brane and Devialet can function like an Amazon Echo. So you can just say, “Alexa, play Coldplay” to quickly get music playing.

The Soundboks standout features include the ability to daisy chain up to 5 speakers together using pro-grade Skaa wireless connectivity, and a detachable/swappable battery. Being the largest speaker also gave it the advantage of having the longest battery life of up to 40 hours. And even though Soundboks was Bluetooth only (no Wi-Fi), it was the only one of the group to re-pair automatically when previously connected devices were in range. So in terms of Bluetooth connectivity, it was the easiest to use of the bunch. Meanwhile, Skaa compatibility provides an interesting option we don’t think many will use because it requires a third-party transmitter (not included). Since none were provided, Skaa was not tested but we can see how it could be useful for DJs needing a multi-speaker setup.

Start Your Engines

Powering on each speaker wasn’t quite what I expected. Brane’s power button is on the back of the unit, and requires a rather forceful press. I initially thought it was broken, but later confirmed it functions as intended. Although I found the design somewhat odd, it may aid in water resistance to keep a tighter seal. And because it’s on the back of the unit, it’s unlikely to be accidentally pressed.

When the Brane first powers-on it gurgles for about 10 seconds like a coffee grinder, then a friendly female voice announces, “Battery 79%, bass high.” Somewhat surprising, yet also comforting. That reminds me, Brane is the only model of the group to relay setting changes via voice. So instead of a chime or light indicator (like other models), Brane announces what’s changed which is a quite cool.

Soundboks powers-on without issue, and was the fastest to power-up and connect to Bluetooth. Although it doesn’t have a dedicated power button, its volume knob doubles as power on/off. Press and hold down the volume knob for about 2 seconds to power the unit on or off.

Devialet Mania was the slowest to get going, but there’s wisdom in its tortoise-like start. Upon power-on, Devialet runs a calibration process to optimize acoustic performance in its environment. Although it takes a painfully slow 38 seconds to finish before music can start playing, the trade-off proved to be surprisingly beneficial. We were told by Romain Déjardin, Devialet CTO, that Mania recognizes room boundaries or lack thereof, and configures itself accordingly. That’s quite impressive and something I wasn’t expecting.

Controls

All models get a passing grade on control buttons, but there are a few differences and some things we wish were added. For volume changes, Soundboks opts for a volume knob, while Brane and Devialet use up/down buttons. Only Brane provides “bass” setting buttons on the unit which cycle from low, medium or high. The other models can adjust bass too, but only via their respective app. Soundboks and Brane apps work over Bluetooth, but Devialet’s app only works over Wi-Fi, which means you won’t be able to use Mania’s app on the go.

Devialet Mania was the only model with a play/pause button, which often comes in handy. None of the models had previous/next track skip buttons which we’ve seen on other Bluetooth speakers.

Both Devialet Mania and Brane X have a way to disable their built-in microphones. Mania uses on/off switch, while Brane uses a tap on/off button atop the unit.

Design

Each speaker took a different design approach to portable audio and all proved quite durable. Ultimately it comes down to personal taste whichever you prefer.

Soundboks uses a traditional front-facing, 2-way speaker design with a dedicated 1-inch tweeter and 10-inch woofer. The entire speaker is protected behind a fixed hard black plastic grille. It looks the most industrial, which is reasonable for outdoor setups but could look out of place in a home.

Devialet Mania takes a modern approach with a round-ish design wrapped in fabric flanked by dual 3.25-inch side-firing woofers. In addition, Devialet conceals multiple tweeters which allow Mania to produce a 360-degree sound field.

Brane uses an all-black oval shape with four speaker drivers that face forward, with a down-firing 6.5″ x 9″ bass driver.

In my opinion, Devialet Mania has the most eye catching appeal and drew the most attention among friends who saw each speaker for the first time. Onlookers said Brane looked cute, while Soundboks screams for attention, “I’m a big speaker!”.

The Face-off

The first of many face-offs began in my backyard. Before any app setup, I connected each via Bluetooth to my iPhone 15 Pro Max and starting playing from TIDAL using each speakers default setting. When Brane X began playing I was instantly reminded of its powerful bass lines I had heard previously at T.H.E. Show. When it was Devialet Mania’s turn, I was impressed by the punchy output from such a little speaker. Saving the biggest for last, I expected Soundboks Go to blow away its pint-sized competitors, but came away puzzled that it sounded a bit veiled. There was plenty of bass, but it overpowered mids and highs. Of course, I double checked all the settings, updated firmware, adjusted EQ, but couldn’t pinpoint anything wrong or dial in a fix. Maybe Soundboks needed some break-in?

My next round of tests occurred indoors in my home office, a converted small bedroom. Indoors the bass of every speaker was way too much for my taste. Fortunately each speaker comes with a companion app to adjust EQ. This is where I experimented with EQ to see if I could extract better sound to alter my initial impressions. While all three speakers benefited from a pull-back in bass, their overall sonic signatures remained the same. Brane and Devialet were the most similar sounding with extended deep bass and punchy mids. The differences were subtle indoors once bass was equalized. Devialet had a more relaxed presentation, while Brane X had a slightly more forward presentation. In other words, Brane was a little more energetic sounding, while Devialet more lush. Meanwhile, Soundboks still had me puzzled. Equalizing certainly helped, but it never sounded as clean and powerful as Mania, nor as punchy and room filling as Brane.

The biggest drawback to Soundboks Go is that its best sound quality is heard directly in front of it. That’s normal for most traditional speakers, but not ideal for a portable Bluetooth speaker that may get placed in a corner or sit on the ground. So off axis Soundboks Go really struggled to keep up with Devialet’s 360-degree sound and Brane’s 180-degree sound. A portable Bluetooth speaker needs to sound good from nearly any listening angle and Brane and Devialet excelled on that front.

Shake it off

With Devialet and Brane pulling ahead in the competition, an outing to Newport Beach set the stage for another face-off. Devialet and Brane are small enough to fit into a beach tote bag, and each are easy to travel with. On the other hand, we wouldn’t recommend Soundboks Go for excursions without a wagon for all your beach stuff. Yes, Soundboks has convenient carry handles, but who wants to lug around an extra 21 pounds?

Both Brane and Devialet proved to be ideal beach speakers, and were able to play loud enough to compete with crashing waves and children playing in the sand. I don’t think anyone would be disappointed with either one, but if you crave just a little extra low-end, there is no doubt Brane X is the “king of bass” among portable Bluetooth speakers. It produced enough bass to rattle a cup of water in plastic cup off a wooden beach table, and even rattle the table itself.

Devialet’s bass wasn’t far behind and surprisingly clean and powerful. It will have no problem rockin’ a beach party and its gyrating woofers were fun to look at. Although I’d give it a slight edge in overall clarity at home, Brane’s sheer bass power is going to impress everyone that hears it.

Listening Thoughts

Most critical listening took place in my home office, with each speaker positioned about 5 feet away on a table 30-inches tall. Default bass settings for each model were too intrusive for my small 11’x11′ room. So bass was dialed back using each speaker’s custom EQ option from their respective app.

I had suspected Soundboks Go would gain some ground it had lost in my outdoor tests. But no matter how I positioned it or tweaked the EQ, I couldn’t get it match the dynamics and energy of the other two models. During the opening to Coldplay’s Magic, Soundboks handles the bass delineation well, but lacks the bass weight of the other two models. On the plus side, Chris Martin’s voice comes across slightly smoother and more natural with Soundboks. However, on more upbeat tracks like Higher Power, Soundboks midrange takes a step backward, almost literally, as it sounds more distant. Switching over to Taylor Swift’s Cruel Summer, reveals more of the same. On Brane or Devialet, it’s a peppy and a fun listen, while that and other songs on Soundboks seem flatter, possibly more neutral, by comparison.

So Devialet and Brane remain toe-to-toe, with perhaps a slight edge to Devialet, depending on the track. I think that’s because Devialet Mania’s 360-degree design makes it sound a little more spacious overall — especially with something like
Yosi Horikawa’s, Bubbles.

Specifications Compared

The Bottom Line

Although I’ve been more critical of Soundboks Go, please note that it will outperform many other Bluetooth speakers if you don’t mind its size. However, for portability and performance, Devialet Mania and Brane X are neck-and-neck. I highly recommend either of them.

I could make the case that Devialet Mania is smaller, easier to travel with, and slightly more attractive while overachieving in sound quality especially indoors. Brane X brings extra bass, is only slightly larger, and earned a consensus among non-audiophile friends that it sounded even better (outside).

Now that the price gap has widened to $400, it’s difficult to justify the extra expense for Devialet Mania unless you really like how it looks. Ultimately, you can’t go wrong with either.

Where to buy:

One more thing…

Feeling fashionable and spendy? The FENDI x Devialet Mania will set you back $3,100 USD, if you can find one. They’re only available at FENDI retail stores.

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