Review: JBL Authentics 500 is the Google Home Max sequel I’ve been waiting for

Ben Schoon | May 25 2024 - 8:30 am PT

Smart speakers aren’t as exciting as they once were, but every once in a while there’s a notable release. Over the past couple of months, I’ve been using the JBL Authentics 500, a high-end smart speaker that, to me, is just the Google Home Max replacement I’ve been waiting for.

JBL launched its new Authentics series in 2023 as a set of premium smart speakers that, as their standout trick, can use Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa at the same time. And indeed, that’s a handy trick as our Max Weinbach explained in his review of the Authentics 300.

While that’s useful, JBL Authentics 500 stood out more to me on its audio chops because, quite literally, it’s poised to blow you away.

Authentics 500 can pump out a whopping 270W of audio. For comparison, the JBL Flip 6, a mid-range Bluetooth speaker, puts out just 30W, and that’s already pretty loud. In my home, I never needed to put the 500 above 50% volume, as even that was deafening when nearby, and could easily fill the whole home. To an extent, I actually wish JBL would let you “cap” the output to better match your setup. I’d love to limit the speaker to 50% capacity so that I have more flexibility in adjusting the audio. On one occasion, I accidentally set the speaker to max volume while controlling it through Spotify, and it was a lot to deal with – sorry doggos!

But volume aside, the quality is the main point to focus on here.

JBL Authentics 500 can pull in audio from a variety of different sources, and we’ll get more to that in a bit, but the audio quality is truly stunning. If you pull from a quality source, the audio is extremely crisp and clear, in a way that really no other speaker I’ve used has been. The closest comparison I have is the Google Home Max, my previous living room speaker, and it’s a considerable difference in the Authentics’ favor. Considering the Home Max was once a bar for quality on a smart speaker, that’s saying quite a lot. I’m no audiophile, so I won’t dive into the specifics of the sound. The folks over at RTings.com have a breakdown into the nitty gritty of the sound quality.

Perhaps my favorite touch was that you can control the two main aspects of the EQ – bass and treble – from dials on the speaker’s top. There’s a full EQ in the JBL One app too.

As mentioned, though, the quality varies depending on where you’re pulling it from. JBL Authentics 500 can be used as a typical Bluetooth speaker of course, as well as featuring 3.5mm input. But it also connects to Wi-Fi, and that allows for more flexibility. Through the JBL One app used for setup you can pair the speaker to Tidal for super high-quality input, as well as to Spotify to use it with Connect. All of these work great. High-quality services like Tidal are your best bet for overall quality, but I found that Spotify Connect also delivered excellent sound.

The only “weak link” was Google Assistant.

As a voice assistant, the speaker worked great with Google integration. It has strong mics that can easily pick up my voice and handle smart home commands and more. But when I ask it to play music or try to use it in a speaker group in the Google Home app, I’ve noticed the audio quality is pretty poor. My testing for this was handled via Spotify, and I consistently noticed that, even at pretty low volume, there was often some noticeable compression to the audio. I don’t think this comes down to the connection, though. I think that the negative aspects of the stream are just much more noticeable on such a high-quality speaker. Similarly, Google Home Max always sounded better with a “direct” means of connection rather than casting.

While a bit frustrating at times, this certainly didn’t outweigh the good things about the experience.

The hardware choices at play on Authentics 500 has been a delight to live with. The design alone just looks stunning, but it’s also been pretty practical. The dials for EQ are handy of course, but the volume knob and physical pause/play button is even better, especially compared to the Home Max’s clumsy touch controls. The dedicated Bluetooth button also makes connecting Bluetooth – which is probably the easiest means of getting a quality connection – much more convenient compared to a ton of other smart speakers.

But do keep in mind that it’s big. I knew the Authentics 500 would be big before I took it out of the box, but it’s so much bigger than I actually expected. It’s about twice the size of Google Home Max, and the benefit of that is the loud output mentioned earlier and the booming bass. There’s a 6.5-inch subwoofer at the bottom that you can really feel in some songs, and the feet on the speaker do a great job separating that bass from whatever platform they’re on. My Authentics 500 sits on a shelf in my living room and, even with the volume and bass high, there’s no shaking for the shelf or any of its contents.

The JBL One app is also a big perk of using the speaker. It’s quick and easy to use. Opening it up you’re quickly presented with easy controls for the EQ, the currently playing music, and other settings. It’s very straightforward and I really liked that, even if I did leave the EQ alone, and mostly used the Google Home app (which mostly only controls volume) instead.

The big question, though. Is JBL Authentics 500 worth its $700 price tag?

Admittedly, that’s a really tough one. The quality is there, and this is a drastically better speaker compared to the Google Home Max that, in my view, it replaces. But you’d also probably get most of that out of the Authentics 300 too. In a demo where I heard both, I’d say the 300 has all of the best qualities of the 500, just in a smaller (and technically more flexible) package. Authentics 500 is the “all out” speaker. It’s the one you buy to get the absolute most out of the experience.

Given that “all out” is the product’s aim, I think it fits the bill nicely. As an all-in-one, simple-to-use speaker, it’s one of the best you can get today.

It’s also on sale for $599 right now, and has been for a while.

Where to buy JBL Authentics 500