[NewForce]

Like to share with all my current best IEM, Stereo Bluetooth headset, Portable Stereo Bluetooth Speaker, and Flip cover case for hang-out moments. All of them has been tested and working very well with my Galaxy Note II N7105 LTE. Their selection are out of many choosen and tested stereo bluetooth headset and speaker, IEM and case gadgets. Below are the my crowned victory combination.
 
1. Samsung HS-3000 Stereo Bluetooth used with TDK BA200 IEM.
2. Leadsound i6BT Stereo Bluetooth Speakers.
3. White flip cover soft leather case (soft PVC?) with dual mode stand.
 
I must says, the above combination are absolutely my All-Time Best gadgets for hangout moments, and does not burned a big hole on you pocket.

 
In self silent mode, The music from HS3000 + BA200 are absolutely fantastic with sweet details, proper bass sound and very good sound staging. The SQ from HS3000 to BA200 sounded so original when compare plugging BA200 directly into my Galaxy Note 2 LTE. All genres of music play absolutely marvellous. Be it Four Play, Earl Klugh, Marcus Miller, Eric Bibb, Stanley Clarke, Peter White, Chuck Mangione, Miles Davis, The Crusaders, Al Di Meola, Billie Hollidays, Diana Krall, Rebecca Pidgeon, Karen Knowles, Laura Fygi, Sara K, David Craig, Bee Gees, The Police, Eric Clapton, Jay-Z, Pitbull, David Guetta, Maroon5, Nicki Minaj, Carly Rae Jepsen, Taylor Swift, Lana Del Rey, P!nk, Super Junior, TVXQ, BigBang, SHINee, Girls Generation, f(X), PSY, Se7en, BoA, and right up to Rock Heaven of Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, The Beatles, Scorpions, Queen, U2, ACDC, Bon Jovi, KISS, Guns N'Roses, Aerosmith, Metallica and so on. God.. there's too many to be mention of my collections. And please don't shoot me if I did not mention your favorites, they are and should be just my favorites as well.

 
On the other hand let's talk about just Samsung HS3000 Stereo Bluetooth performance alone.
 
It came with Bluetooth 3.0 (without HS) connectivity which promises better power management between idling/suspend and data transfer mode thus has longer and more stability connection than the older Bluetooth 1.0/1.1, 20/2.1. During my usage over the last 4 weeks, it proven to be the best and the most stable connection. Once connected to my cellphone, it stayed connected for the next 2~3days after many calls, music streaming until it finally power off due to battery run-out. My experiences with my old Moto S705, i.Tech MC803, SE MW600 was not so good as all of them suffered many dis-connection from the cellphone in 1 day. This is excellent result to me.  I have never experienced such a long timing connection between my devices and any bluetooth headset in the past 12 years of using bluetooth headset.
 
On the design side, the pearl white/pink colors HS3000 I'm having look gorgeous with it clean layout.
 
On the buttons control and layout side,
The front facial, the big square button on front facial for call/end call function was perfectly size and well located for fast response to calls. Not only that, it also work marvellously with single press activating the last call, where long press call up the great Samsung S Voice on my Galaxy Note 2 LTE.
 
To the left sides, there are 4 buttons for Power, Volume up/down and Sound Alive mode. I am particularly liking the sliding type on/off power button. It provide the most straight forward on/off condition that does not require to long press-and-hold waiting time, and maybe still wondering "did i press correctly and was the bluetooth headset already on or not?" Further impression with the sweetly sounded Voice Prompt Assistant "Ms. Samsung" making the various activities announcement clearly and gently also make me feel good about this HS3000. However, for the volume up/down and sound alive mode buttons usage experience does not hold the same good satisfaction, when compare to call and power buttons. The 3 of them are so close together making them not too ideal for frequent operation and need sometime to get use with. This probably due to compact size of HS3000, the Sound Alive mode button are located close to the volume up button, making it easily pressed by mistake.
 
To the right side, there are 3 buttons for Play (center), Back track/Rewind (left) and Next track/Fast forward (right). Those 3 buttons work wonderfully controlling my Galaxy Note 2 default Music Player for all the intended functions.
 
To the back, the big clipper for clipping HS3000 unit provding very firm grip onto any clothing one are wearing. It was a better clipper compare to SE MW600 flimsy clipper that easily dropped off from any clothing that MW600 clipped onto. Moto S705 also having similar good clip power, only it was more bulkier and much heavier than the compact and lightness of the Samsung HS3000 by comparison. Well that's about all I'm gonna say for Samsung HS3000. Next...
 
 
In open mode, blasting the i6BT stereo speaker when walking or a Starbuck, Subway, BigM is amazing experience, it make me feel so alive listening to my music, movie, MV and live concerts video's. The SQ of this very portable SBTspeaker sound clear, details and yet with powerful low mid bass. Especially truth when hold it in your hand, the powerful bass will keep thumping on your palm and make me feel so alive and feel like keep playing through it and enjoying all the smiling faces or some of the strange look from surrounding people (igonored them if the way they look at you does not please you).

 

 

 

 

 

[NewForce]

12/22 - Added more comments about Samsung HS3000 Stereo Bluetooth headset on connection, design and buttons usage experience.

 

[NewForce]

01/07 update :
 
Just re-ripped some of old CD into FLAC files (used compression level 4). All of them sounded marvellously. All the CD's below I basically play from 1st track till the last track. But just in case, I've highlighted some of the tracks that someone might enjoy more.
 
1. Harry Belanfonte - Live! (Returns to Carnegie Hall).
Track to listen - All or, A Hole in Bucket, Jump Down Spin Around, The Click Song, One More Dance, The Ox Drivers, Didn't It Rain, Old King Cole, La Bamba.
 
2. The Weavers - Reunion at Carnegie Hall 1963 (Gold Disc Audiophile version). Track to listen,
Track to listen - All or, Guantanamera, Poor Liza, Wimoweh, If I Had A Hammer, Come Away Melinda, Study War No More, Round The world.
 
3. Willie & Lobo - Fandango Nights
Track to listen - All or, Andale, Fandango Nights, Sweet Meandering, Om Khalsoum, Plight Of The Whale, A Dozen Camels, Black Fire.
 
4. Bob James & Earl Klugh - Cool
Track to listen - All.
 
5. Fourplay - Between the Sheets
Track to listen - All.
 
6. The Eagles - The Best of Eagles
Track to listen - All.
 
7. Faye Wong - The Best fo Faye Wong
Track to listen - All.
 

 

 

[NewForce]

I have been very keen to find a much louder volume bluetooth speaker to replace my compact Leadsound i6BT for different occasion usage. I have audited below bluetooth speakers.
 
Bose SoundLink II,
Creative D200
Jabra Solemate
Jawbone Big Jambox, Mobile Jambox
Logitech UE Boombox, Mobile Boombox
Sony BTX300 and BTX500
Samsung DA-F60
SuperTooth Disco2
TDK V513, A33 and A73
 
 
Listening to all of them with multiple tracks like Sara K Miles Away, Dido Blackbird, Justin Bieber As Long You Love Me / I would, Acoustic Alchemy The Alchemist and Uakti Trilobita and some others. All of them was mp3 format that ripped from CD with 320kbps stereo setting.
 
Comparing all the bluetooth speaker in my audited list, Samsung DA-F60 stand out in being the most clarity high, articulate bass and sweet mid. It is by far the most musical bluetooth speaker I've ever audited. Whatever tracks I've throw into it, they just sounded so marvellously good. The design of it was also very chic, on par with the very fashionable and solid quality UE Boombox.
 
Follow-by closely 2nd/3rd/4th placing from TDK A73, V513 and A33. All 3 of them sounded very involving, musical and with good high clarity.
 
Creative very involving sound D200 earned it a strong 5th place after those good sounding TDK.
 
Bose SoundLink II came in 6th place. Although it clarity was good, but it is not as good and involving as those from TDK,
 
Jawbone Big Jambox by far the least good looking bluetooth speaker but I am still ranked it 7th for it better sound.
 
Logitech UE Boombox although is more for bass head, but overall it was more involving sound and it design score better than Sony BTX300/500, so I ranked it 9th.
 
I've ranked Sony BTX500/300 a 9th and 10th placing. Both of them lacks of some high clarity, some of notes from Sara K and Uakti Trilobita tracks barely heard. And from design point of view, their front facial look ok, not so for the bloated back, it somehow diasgree with the chic looking front.
 
Lastly, over here I have to said sorry to UE Mobile Boombox, Jawbone Mobile Jambox and SuperTooth Disco2. All 3 of them was below my expectation for better sound quality bluetooth speaker when comparing to my existing Leadsound i6BT.

 

[epithetless]

NewForce, I've appreciated reading your Bluetooth speaker comparisons, especially because you have such a variety in your list -- and because there is so little mention of this type of product around these parts. In true Head-Fi fashion, I am quickly accruing more of these little guys than I really need...which, of course, hasn't at all diminished my interest in shopping for them.

(I currently have the Soundmatters FoxL v2 Platinum, JBL Charge, Soundfreaq Sound Kick, and G-Project G-BOOM in my collection -- each filling its own niche in my daily activities).
 
Other sets I've had my eye on:
 
- TDK A33 - It gets consistently glowing marks in terms of sound quality for a speaker of its size (slightly smaller than my Sound Kick), and at $150 USD, the price is right. Drawbacks are the weight and battery life/technology (only 6 hours on a built-in NiMH battery).
- Cambridge Audio Minx Go - A brand-new entrance onto the scene, again about the size of my Sound Kick, priced at $150, and receiving good reviews for audio quality. This one sports an 18-hour lithium-ion battery. I'd love to read a comparison between it and the TDK A33, but I haven't seen it pitted against anything thus far.
- Samsung DA-F60 - Seems to be emerging as a leader for sound quality in speakers of this type, though its cost ($250) makes it much less likely for me to consider buying one.
- Bose Soundlink Mini - Not yet released, this one has captured my interest only obliquely. I'm curious to find out how well it actually performs (relative to the hype Bose has been building up for it via live demos) in its smaller form-factor. What I'm not too keen about are the (mandatory?) charging cradle, middling (7-hour) battery life, and $200 price tag.
 
NewForce, I hope you don't mind me adding to your thread. I'd love to see some other folks chime in with their portable speaker experiences/interests, too...

 

[NewForce]

epithetless, no, no problem at all for you to add your experiences here. I will be delighted if others to join in the fun we are having too.
 
Like you, I have the interest on Bluetooth Speakers as they are starting to get more and more attention from audio fans for it portability, mobility and their ability to enhance the audio quality and volume that has been left out from tiny cellphone speaker.
 
It's pretty awesome for me to know you're actually having many different bluetooth speakers llike Soundmatters FoxL v2 Platinum, JBL Charge, Soundfreaq Sound Kick and G-Project G-Boom.
It must be great and real joy to have the ability to compare their sound around. Did you having them in different houses and rooms?
 
Yes, TDK A33 really caught my attention (before Samsung DA-F60 came along). To me for such a small box to delivered those sound quality really amazed me. Well given A33 sound quality, it was easy for me to forgive to low playback time drawback. It's all about sound quality that I really aimed for. The A73 was then more astonishing given it was almost at the same price like Bose SL2.
 
In Singapore, Samsung DA-F60 is priced at US$250,
Bose SL2 at US$394 (or US$276 if you know the way..) Jawbone Big Jambox at US$355.
 
So it's pretty obvious & wise to get the more excellently sounded Samsung DA-F60.
The best thing was, DA-F60 come with 12 hrs playback time, aptX guaranteed for better and cleaner sound. Lastly it come with better NFC hit rate (yes better than Sony hit or missed BTX300/500) for quick BT connection and music playback direct transfer onto DA-F60. Believed me, I have trying this features alone for more than an hour to see how realible was the NFC connection on the 3 of them.

 

[swanhnster7]

Newforce, I wonder if you are still reading this? I am interested in buying the Samsung DA-F60 and wondering your long term view? Has anything new and better come up recently that you like? Thanks!

 

[NewForce]

swanhnster, Sorry for my late reply as I'm no longer active in Head-Fi forum. I've switched my interest back to my long favorite, photography. Btw, there would not be any long term review about Samsung DA-F60 from me. The reason was, I've no longer needed a portable bluetooth speaker.
 
Anyway after DA-F60, I've since audited a few bluetooth speaker in recent months. One the really caught my heart and soul was Creative Sound Blaster Roar.
 
It has the best sound for portable bluetooth speaker that priced SG$150 to around SG$500. This include Jawbone Big Jambox, UE Boombox, JBL TDK A33, Creative Airwave HD and Sony SRS-BTX300/500. In fact, in bass compartment has more weight/punch, so it was even better than Samsung DA-F60 in this area. If you looking for more on hi-freq level and details, then Samsung DA-F60 and Bose Music Link II probably has a tab more, but not too much.
 
All in all, if anyone would put up challenge on me to give me a budget of SG$600 to buy just only 1 portable bluetooth speaker, I will try my very best to convinced him to allow me to buy 3 Creative Sound Blaster Roar instead. This is how good I can rate it.