Anker Soundcore Boom Plus 2 Review

Anker’s $249.99 Soundcore Boom 2 Plus Bluetooth speaker is a bigger, more powerful version of the excellent Soundcore Boom 2 ($129.99). Its drivers accentuate bass and get quite loud, while built-in LED lights make for an entertaining party companion. Highly adjustable EQ and a waterproof build help cement it as a go-to solution for outdoor music playback. Accordingly, the Boom 2 Plus earns our Editors’ Choice award.

Design: Mostly Plastic, But Plenty Rugged

The Soundcore Boom 2 Plus measures 9.0 by 17.4 by 5.9 inches (HWD) and weighs a relatively hefty 8.4 pounds, though a built-in handle and a removable, adjustable strap make it easier to carry around. It’s significantly larger than the standard Soundcore Boom 2, which comes in at 7.3 by 11.7 by 4.0 inches and 3.7 pounds.

The speaker’s hard plastic enclosure looks somewhat cheap, though the grilles at either end aim to draw your attention instead. They contain passive radiators that move considerably with the bass and an impressive array of LEDs that can cycle through various colors and patterns. If you want a speaker with more of a classic design, consider the more compact, retro-inspired Marshall Middleton (4.3 by 9.1 by 3.8 inches, 4.0 pounds) at $299.99.

(Credit: Tim Gideon)

Dual 4.5-inch woofers take up most of the space behind the front-facing grille, while 1-inch tweeters are at either end. As for power, the speaker delivers 100W in normal operation or 140W in BassUp mode. Individually, the woofers range from 35W to 50W each, while the tweeters switch between 15W and 20W. The Marshall Middleton tops out at 60W, for comparison, while the Boom 2 offers 80W.

The speaker is compatible with Bluetooth 5.3, uses the AAC and SBC Bluetooth codecs, supports Google Fast Pair, and offers multipoint pairing with up to two devices.

The control panel is on top of the enclosure below the handle. From left to right, buttons include power, Bluetooth, volume down, play/pause (tap twice to go to the next track or three times to go to the previous one), volume up, LED (which cycles through various lighting patterns or turns the lights off if you hold it down), PartyCast (for syncing music playback and lighting effects across multiple Soundcore speakers), and Bass Up. BassUp is on by default, and you should leave it active; otherwise, the audio quality suffers.

The back houses a covered panel with a USB-C charging port and a 3.5mm aux input. Anker includes a cable for the former, though not the latter. You can use the USB-C port to charge external devices.

An IPX7 rating means you can submerge the speaker in water at depths of up to a meter for 30 minutes. Neither heavy rain nor poolside splashes should cause an issue, and you can freely rinse it off under a faucet. It even floats. It lacks any official dust resistance, unlike the IP67-rated Marshall Middleton.

(Credit: Tim Gideon)

Anker estimates that the Soundcore Boom 2 Plus can last roughly 20 hours per charge with BassUp off, LEDs inactive, and the volume at 50%. If you change any of those parameters, expect a reduction in battery life. The speaker fully charges in three hours.

This model doesn’t offer a speakerphone, something you get with the standard Soundcore Boom 2.

App Experience

I tested the latest version of the Anker Soundcore app in beta mode, which is why the speaker image appears blurry in the screenshots below. Even in the prerelease state, the user experience is intuitive, and the various controls work smoothly.

The app has two main tabs: Audio and Light. Tap Audio to access a volume slider and a play/pause button. Below that, you can toggle the aforementioned BassUp feature and launch the Equalizer section. In the latter, you can choose between Preset and Custom options.

The first choice presents four presets: Balanced, Soundcore Signature (the default), Treble Boost, and Voice. Switch to Custom to see an adjustable EQ with nine bands between 80Hz to 13kHz. Alternatively, you can drag the bands wherever you wish across a range of 48Hz to 20.1kHz in the full-band mode. I appreciate the flexibility of the advanced mode, though the default set of bands is easier to manipulate and more than sufficient for a portable speaker.

(Credit: Anker/PCMag)

Select the Light tab to enable several LED presets such as Bounce, Cyclone, Energy, Flame, Flash, Lightning, Rainbow, and Scan. When you select a preset, a color wheel appears over its tile. Tap that to access a larger color wheel from which you can select various hues for the light pattern. You can also adjust the brightness level or turn the lights off completely. Anker keeps this section of the app simple and intuitive.

In the Settings menu, you can disable audio prompts, adjust the auto power-off behavior, update the firmware, and access the product manual.

LEDs: Bright and Customizable

I enjoy the speaker’s LED effects. The presets are exciting and generally move in step with the beat of playing music. The Cyclone option is easily the most interesting of the group; two swirling color groups seem to chase each other inside the LED panels.

The app gives you a lot of flexibility to customize the preset colors, so it’s easy to create intriguing combinations. For instance, I selected a ghostly set of pastels for the Flame preset to transform it into something that didn’t resemble fire but rather something spooky. Of course, when you tire of the effects or want to preserve the battery life, you can easily shut the lights off. Overall, I find the light presets just as compelling as those for the $499.99 Sony ULT Field 7.

(Credit: Tim Gideon)

Audio: Plenty of Power

I can attest that the in-app EQ allows you to alter the sound signature significantly. But for my evaluations below, I reverted the speaker to its default settings, with the Soundcore Signature profile and BassUp feature active. The speaker loses most of its power and bass response with BassUp off.

On tracks with intense sub-bass content, like The Knife’s “Silent Shout,” the speaker delivers powerful low-frequency response. The bass is robust at moderate volumes, while the drivers deliver some serious thump at top playback levels. Especially loud bass tones can overwhelm the radiators and create a slightly buzzing sound. This isn’t distortion, just the radiators vibrating a little too intensely. This happens only on some tracks at especially high volumes.

(Credit: Tim Gideon)

The Soundcore Boom 2 Plus can’t quite reproduce the sub-bass at the 34-second mark of Kendrick Lamar’s “Loyalty.” Nonetheless, it slightly boosts some of the higher sub-bass notes. The drum loop benefits from some additional body, while the vocals come across with excellent high-frequency clarity.

The drums on Bill Callahan’s “Drover,” a track with far less deep bass, get some extra bass depth without sounding overly thunderous. Callahan’s baritone vocals get a rich low-mid delivery, so they could use slightly more high-mid presence. When the speaker aligns perfectly with your ears, the delivery sounds almost crisp enough, but that’s not typically how you will hear the audio since the tweeters don’t sit at an upward angle. You can use the in-app EQ to add some extra brightness.

On orchestral tracks, like the opening scene from John Adams’ The Gospel According to the Other Mary, the Soundcore Boom 2 Plus sometimes accentuates certain lower-frequency notes too much. The higher-register brass, strings, and vocals retain their natural brightness, however, and remain present in the mix. The good news is that you can turn to the EQ to smooth out the lows.

Verdict: A Portable Party Powerhouse

For $249.99, the Anker Soundcore Boom 2 Plus delivers deep lows at high volumes and supports comprehensive EQ tweaks via a slick companion app. Its mostly plastic design doesn’t exude quality, but the highly customizable built-in LEDs and reliable controls more than make up for that. Overall, the Soundcore Boom 2 Plus earns our Editors’ Choice award for outdoor-ready Bluetooth speakers thanks to its many, many features and sheer power. If you want even more low-end oomph and a slightly more rugged build, we also recommend the substantially more expensive Sony ULT Field 7, another Editors’ Choice winner.