It’s difficult to know exactly what to expect from relatively low-cost Bluetooth speakers like the $99.99 Victrola Music Edition 1. On the positive side, it has a fully waterproof and dustproof design, making it fit for use outdoors. On the audio front, however, its passive radiator causes the enclosure to vibrate and audibly buzz at high volumes. That’s somewhat of a deal breaker, as you are likely to use an outdoor speaker at its loudest possible setting. For the price, both the boombox-inspired Anker Soundcore Motion Boom ($89.99) and the still-compact JBL Flip 6 ($129.95) offer similarly strong build quality and produce much cleaner sound.

Ready for Rough Conditions

The Victrola Music Edition 1 measures 5.4 by 3.3 by 1.8 inches (HWD) and weighs about 1.1 pounds. It's available in either black or gray and a cool repeating pattern that incorporates the Victrola logo covers the front and back grilles. An additional aluminum grille with mesh-like perforations protects the front-facing driver, while the back panel’s grille shields the passive radiator. A rubber-like material along the bottom gives the speaker a bit of traction.

Its mono driver delivers a frequency range of 80Hz to 20KHz. As for connectivity, the speaker is compatible with Bluetooth 5.0 and works with the AAC and SBC codecs.

There’s an array of controls along the right side, including plus and minus volume buttons, a multifunction button (that handles playback and track navigation depending on how many times you press it), a Bluetooth pairing button, and a power button. On that same side, you also get a status LED, an uncovered USB-C port, and a lanyard loop. The box includes a USB-C charging cable and a black lanyard.

The IP67 rating is a standout spec—the first digit (6) means the speaker is dust-tight, and the second digit (7) means you can submerge it at depths of up to a meter for 30 minutes without issue. Bluetooth signals won’t work underwater, but the point is that you shouldn't worry about poolside splashes or heavy downpours. Rinsing off residual dust and dirt shouldn't be an issue, either. The JBL Flip 6 matches the Victrola here, while the Anker Soundcore Motion Boom has a less impressive IPX7 rating.

Victrola estimates that the speaker's 2,500mAh battery can last roughly 12 hours per charge, but your results will vary depending on your volume levels. 

We wish that the device had a speakerphone like several other competitors in this price range (including the aforementioned Anker model). There’s also no companion app. We don't necessarily expect the latter, but it means that you don't get access to EQ controls and can't install firmware updates easily.

Can't Handle the Lows

On tracks with intense sub-bass content, like The Knife’s “Silent Shout,” the speaker doesn't deliver any of the sub-bass elements. The deep thumps that start around the 15-second mark come across just as thin taps here. More concerning, however, is that the opening electronic drum notes prove to be a bit too much for the driver and resonator to handle. At very moderate volumes (around 50%), the audio sounds clean, with just a hint of low-frequency presence. Once you move up to about 75%, the enclosure starts to vibrate with every drum hit. At top volumes, the track sounds like a distorted mess at times, though the digital signal processing (DSP) manages to save some parts. Simply put, if your music library is full of deep-bass tracks, this is not the speaker for you.

Bill Callahan’s “Drover,” a track with far less deep bass in the mix, better reveals the sound signature. The drums on this track can be overly thunderous on bass-forward systems, but they sound relatively tame here. The bright acoustic strums and Callahan’s baritone vocals (which benefit from a crisp high-mid edge) dominate the mix. At moderate volumes, this track sounds clear, but again, the low and low-mid frequencies can vibrate the enclosure at higher levels.

The speaker simply can't reproduce the sub-bass that appears at the 34-second mark of Kendrick Lamar’s “Loyalty.” That’s not really surprising, but once again, some elements of the punchy mix cause the same resonance issues. At least the vocal performances get plenty of detail.

Even the Twin Peaks theme song—not a track that typically challenges woofers—causes the unit to occasionally rumble at high volumes.

To verify our experience, we tested two different units. The second model seemed to suffer from this issue a little bit less than the first, but the occasional buzzing and rattling was still audible. No matter what surface we placed the speaker on (we even tried holding it in our hands), we couldn't get rid of the effect—it’s clearly an internal issue. Notably, its larger, pricier sibling, the Music Edition 2 ($199.99), doesn't suffer from this problem.

Stylish Looks, Shaky Sound

The Victrola Music Edition 1 looks cool and we like its durable build quality, but the poor audio performance takes center stage here. We simply can’t recommend a speaker that starts to vibrate (and thus distort) when certain low and low-mid frequencies appear in the mix. You can do a lot better in the sub-$100 price range if you keep your expectations for low-end power in check. We already mentioned the Anker Soundcore Motion Boom and JBL Flip 6 as viable outdoor-ready alternatives with better audio performance. For even less money, the tiny (but waterproof) Anker Soundcore Mini 3 ($39.99) also fares better in the audio department.