Tribit XSound Plus 2 review: Mighty Sound at a Budget Price

Bluetooth speakers are quite interesting these days. On the one hand, you can easily get a portable speaker with decent sound, even at an affordable price. On the other hand, premium brand speakers make many potential buyers hesitant due to their sky-high prices. But, there are still audio brands out there that follow the “under promise and overdeliver” principle. One of them is Tribit.

Established in 2017, Tribit is a well-known audio brand that is popular for its outdoor speakers. Tribit’s newly launched small and portable XSound Plus 2 Bluetooth speaker costs only $70 but its features impressed me a lot, such as high-quality sound, solid bass, long-lasting battery, IP67 water, and dust resistance.

Tribit sent me the Xsound Plus 2 for review, and I’ve been testing it rigorously for the last two weeks. With the ability to push 30W power, read on to find out if the Tribit XSound Plus 2 has what it takes to make an excellent outdoor speaker.

Pros

• Sturdy and portable design
• 30W of power
• Excellent sound quality
• Amazing 24-hour battery life
• App and physical controls
• IP67 water and dust resistance
• Affordable

Cons

• Default EQ settings lack details
• Only supports SBC Bluetooth

Unboxing

Design

The Tribit XSound Plus 2 has a small and compact elliptical shape design, making it very comfortable to hold in hand. The speaker weighs just 580 grams and measures 7.83 inches deep, 2.63 inches wide, and 2.75 inches high. The rubber-coated hard plastic build makes it super sturdy and can easily withstand normal drops. It comes in a sole Black color option and it looks pretty cool.

The XSound Plus 2’s compact design enables it to easily slip into your backpack without taking up extra space. The small, adjustable, thin nylon carrying strap allows you to carry the speaker on the go. Despite its 580-gram weight, the speaker doesn’t feel too heavy; I can swiftly lift it with just my two fingers.

The front speaker grille bears a striking resemblance to a honeycomb structure and is made from recycled plastic materials. A small “TRIBIT” logo is carved in the center of the speaker grille, beside the “XSound Plus 2” branding that stretches across it.

It has small rubber circle-shaped blocks at the base that offer a sturdy foundation even on slippery surfaces. The XSound Plus 2 is IP67-certified, meaning the speaker is waterproof, shockproof, and dustproof, making it perfect for outdoor gatherings, pool parties, and beach events.

Ports and Controls

The XSound Plus 2 doesn’t have an impressive array of ports. It only comes with a USB Type C for charging and a 3.5mm AUX input. The speaker also has a rubberized door over the USB C port and Aux input to protect it from dust and water splashes.

When it comes to controls, Tribit offers plenty of physical buttons on the speakers that let you control everything from volume adjustment to audio profile selection, EQ modes, Bluetooth pairing, and play/pause – without your smartphone. Tribit places all buttons conveniently on the top of the XSound Plus 2 speaker. Unlike most Bluetooth speakers, Tribit offers a single-press power button which is very convenient and easy to use rather than press and hold mechanism.

All these physical buttons are very responsive and offer a range of useful functions.

• Power Button – With just a simple press turns the speaker on or off.
• Bluetooth pair – A dedicated Bluetooth button initiated paired mode, allowing seamless connection between your devices
• Volume Rocker – Adjust volume levels
• Multifunction Button – Single tap to play/pause the music, Double tap to play the next track, and triple-tap to go back.
• EQ button – Switch between different sound modes including XBass Mode, Audiobook mode, and Normal mode.
• TWS Pairing button – Lets you pair two Tribit XSound Plus 2 speakers for immersive stereo sound.

Tribit App

The XSound Plus 2 speaker also comes with the Tribit companion app (Android, iOS), which gives you additional control and options over the sound. You also get a collection of preset EQ from XBass Off, XBass to Rock, Jazz, Audiobook, and MaxSound Traditional. The app also lets you create custom EQ profiles for a personalized sound experience.

The Tribit app offers dozens of customization options, from a 9-band equalizer to standard go-to presets, a countdown to shutdown, and a voice prompt. You can also play/pause/switch tracks and control volume levels directly from the app.

One of the most interesting features that I liked the most is the countdown to shutdown feature, which automatically powers off the speaker as per your programmed time. It also offers auto-shutdown that automatically shuts down the speaker after five minutes when there is no connection or operation performed.

The app also has a voice prompt feature that offers different types of beeps for various operations, such as power on/off beep, Bluetooth pairing beep, low battery beep, TWS pairing beep, and Maximum volume beep.

Overall, the Tribit app is well-designed, easy to navigate, and offers dozens of sound customizations that fine-tune the speaker’s performance, giving you an immersive sound experience at an affordable price point.

Sound and Performance

The Tribit XSound Plus 2 boasts a 30W neodymium full-range driver with advanced DSP, amplifiers, and an XBass patented algorithm that ensures a high-quality music experience. For my testing of the XSound Plus 2, I used my iQOO 12 smartphone to stream music from YT Music and Spotify, testing the speaker with a range of genres including rock, jazz, pop, classical, rap, R&B, and classic rock. Here’s how the results turned out:

The XSound Plus 2 delivers rich, well-balanced sound with superb bass, sweet highs, and decent mids and lows for my go-to tracks. If you love big, boomy bass, the speaker isn’t going to disappoint you here. With the Xtra Bass mode activated, it sounds big, full, and immersive, and most importantly the sound feels very loud in the 80% volume window. The speaker doesn’t distort the overall sound at higher volume levels.

While listening to “Be Free” by Vidya Vox, a favorite track of mine, with a volume over 70%, the speaker performed exceptionally well. The speaker efficiently managed all dialogues, vocals, beats, instruments, and bass, giving me an impressively pleasant sound quality experience.

During the testing, I used Tribit’s companion app for more fine-tuning. I created my custom EQ curve which made a world of difference. When I switched to my custom EQ curve, immediately I felt the difference between a default EQ and a customized one – the audio details, perfectly balanced mids, and soft bass which I was craving for. Listening to my go-to songs with new custom EQ was a real treat.

Amazing Battery life

Tribit XSound Plus 2 boasts a 24-hour playtime on a single charge at 60% volume with XBass off, thanks to its 2400mAh massive battery. Additionally, there’s a USB C port for charging, and it takes approximately three hours to reach full charge.

In my 12 days of rigorous testing, I didn’t even charge the speaker once. Naturally, the battery usage will depend on person-to-person. Speaking about my usage, I cranked up the speaker at a 70% volume window for around 35 – 40 minutes daily with different EQ profiles, and there was still ample battery remaining, which easily offers one or two days of battery life.

There is a battery level indicator on the speaker itself, but that doesn’t show the exact battery level. To check the exact battery status, you have to use the app. A small light above the power button showcases the battery life of the speaker; the white light indicates the speaker has above 30% battery, and the red light flashes when the battery life is below 20%.

All in all, the XSound Plus 2 has a crazy battery life which makes it ideal for outdoor parties.

Should you buy the Tribit XSound Plus 2?

You should buy this if…

• You want a speaker at an affordable price
• You want a speaker that offers excellent sound quality
• You are looking for a long-lasting Bluetooth speaker

You shouldn’t buy this if…

• You’re looking for a premium sound experience

Verdict

Tribit did a fantastic job with its entry-level Tribit XSound Plus 2 Bluetooth speaker. The XSound Plus is a great all-rounder that has 30W neodymium powerful sound drivers, a simple yet refreshing design, a sturdy IP67-certified body, 24-hour long-lasting battery life, and a companion app with dozens of customization options.

This $70 compact speaker amazed me with its outstanding quality and long-lasting battery which is very rare to find at this price point. However, make sure to use the Tribit app to fine-tune the speaker’s performance. I fear without the custom EQ or standard sound profiles the XSound Plus 2 can’t live up to its potential.

If you are looking for a small Bluetooth speaker that offers an immersive sound experience, a rugged body, amazing battery life, and plenty of EQ customization, the Tribit XSound Plus 2 is the best choice. Furthermore, at $70, the speaker sounds better than other Bluetooth speakers available at this price point.