Don’t be misled by the Brane X portable speaker’s modest appearance. While diminutive and stealthy in style, this seemingly mild-mannered Bluetooth and streaming speaker is a kick-ass techno wonder that transforms into a sonic superhero faster than you can say “Shazam.” Or more appropriately here, “Alexa.”
First shown at CES 2023, the Brane X features a driver the manufacturer says represents “the most significant innovation in audio driver in a century.” Dubbed the RAD (the acronym stands for Repel-Attract Driver), the Brane X’s driver delivers levels of sub-bass more typically associated with loudspeakers reinforced by a discrete subwoofer and megawatts of power.
The Brane X is a cute little 7.7-pound thing, humming on 200-plus watts of Class D amplification. It can rock out as royally loudly as a three-times-heavier, roll-about party speaker like the Sony SRS-XV800–minus the strobing light show. Far more importantly, the Brane X brings home those deep, chewy bass notes—digging all the way down to 20Hz—that drive so much of the drama in today’s chart-dominating hip-hop and pop productions and that get shortchanged by every other portable speaker in its size and weight class.
And the Brane X’s skills have been fine-tuned for critical listeners as well as party animals. If your dwelling is tight on space, this thing could satisfy as your only
