What’s the story?
The second generation of the
Revolve brings with it some
subtle yet welcome refinements.
You get an extra hour of battery
life, up to 13 hours, and a boost
in dust/waterproofing to a full
IP55 rating.
Bose has taken an ‘if it ain’t
broke’ approach to the design,
and that’s no bad thing (well,
except for the lack of a USB-C
port – it’s still microUSB). This
is a lovely-looking speaker: a
cylinder with a sturdy aluminium
body and silicone control panel
on the top. All the controls you’d
expect are up there, including
a multi-function button that
beckons your phone’s voice
assistant with a long press.
The grille runs seamlessly
around the speaker, which helpsthe Revolve’s 360° sound to do
its thing: no matter where you’re
standing you’ll get the same
audio experience.
You can pair two of these
speakers for stereo playback
through the Bose app if you
wish, but there are no EQ
controls to tweak the sound.Is it any good?
Cor, the out-of-the-box sound
doesn’t need much tweaking.
It’s a big, bold voice that has no
trouble filling a decent-sized
room. The 360° sound works
just as it should too, so you get
a solid performance in all corners
of the room.
There’s a pretty neutral sound
profile, swerving the popular
bass-heavy presentation of
some speakers at this pricepoint for something that’s more
balanced. But that’s not to say
there isn’t any bass power on
tap when it’s needed – this is
an authoritative performer that
drives tracks forward with punch
and excitement.
The all-round sound ensures
space in the presentation, so
songs never sound congested,
and there’s a good amount of
detail and dynamism too. You
lose a little focus and insight
through the midrange, but the
airiness it brings to the party
makes up for that.Price £180 / stuff.tv/Revolve2Key specs O 1x down driver, 2x
bass radiators O Bluetooth 4.1,
microUSB, 3.5mm O Up to 13hrs
O IP55 O 152x82x82mm, 660gFinisterre
Ridge Backpack
Ripstop polyester is the
material of choice for
parachutes, but Finisterre
has found a purpose for
surplus offcuts: its rugged
Ridge Backpack is crafted
entirely from recycled
ripstop. It won’t be much
use if you jump from a
plane, but loops, clips and
pockets organise your
gear while an undivided
main compartment
offers plenty of space
for a speaker.
£65 / finisterre.com
Bose SoundLink Revolve II
NOW POP IT IN THISSTUFF SAYS At 80% volume the Bose hits a real a sonic sweet spot +++++
Love and deflection
To get big noise from a
small enclosure, Bose
has employed an
omnidirectional
acoustic deflector
to push sounds
around 360°.Cradle to the rave
The optional charging
cradle will set you
back another £25, but
it makes for a nice
home base for your
speaker before taking
it into the wilderness.BEST FOR
360°
SOUND