How to link JBL speakers? How to connect two JBL speakers? How to sync JBL speakers? This guide will answer all your questions regarding connecting JBL speakers. You can pair JBL speakers together to achieve a wireless stereo or surround sound system and boost the output. Those unaware of this feature are in for a treat, as it’s pretty simple to connect two JBL speakers or more for a better listening experience. You can play the same music on multiple speakers without any quality loss.
JBL also offers the JBL Portable (formerly known as JBL Connect) app for Android and iOS devices, allowing easy controls for individual speakers and giving users the option to link multiple speakers to amplify sound. It even lets you adjust the EQ across all the connected speakers simultaneously.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through the process of pairing JBL speakers together using the Connect+ and PartyBoost feature.
Pair JBL Speakers Together with Connect Plus
The Connect+ functionality found on older JBL speaker models allows users to link up to 100 speakers at once. It’s a wireless protocol, saving you from a mess of cables and letting you listen to your favourite music at improved volume and directionality.
If you got two or more JBL speakers that support the Connect+ feature, here’s how you can pair them together:
- First, ensure that the JBL speakers you wish to pair over Connect+ are powered ON.
- Next, press the Bluetooth button on one of the JBL speakers to activate pairing mode, after which you can use the following instructions to pair to your source device:
On Android, go to Settings > Connected devices, tap the “Pair new device” option, and choose your JBL speaker model from the list.
On iOS, visit the Bluetooth menu from the Settings app, turn on Bluetooth, and then select your JBL speaker from the scan results.
On Windows, find the Bluetooth icon in the taskbar and right-click it, select “Add a Bluetooth device,” and pick your JBL speaker.
On macOS, go to Apple menu > System Preferences, head over to the Bluetooth menu, choose your JBL speaker from the devices list, and click the Connect button.
- Once you’ve successfully paired the speaker to your source device, start playing a song from your preferred app. It should play only from the connected speaker.
- Now press the Connect button on the connected JBL speaker. It looks like a flipped hourglass with a + symbol at the top.
- Finally, press the Connect button on your other JBL speaker. You should hear an audio cue, followed by the music you’re playing from your source device.
- If you own more than two JBL speakers, repeat the above step to pair your other JBL speakers to the primary one.
That’s how your pair JBL speakers together with Connect Plus. Alternatively, you can install the JBL Portable app on your Android/iOS device to use the feature.
Pair JBL Speakers Together with PartyBoost
PartyBoost is JBL’s newest multi-speaker pairing technology that lets users connect up to a hundred JBL speakers together. It’s the same as Connect+ with better wireless reception and sound quality. Those who own two or more PartyBoost-enabled JBL speakers can perform the steps below to pair them together.
- The first thing you need to do is power ON all the JBL speakers you want to connect. Make sure none of them gets auto-connected to your source device(s).
- Next, take one of the speakers and activate pairing mode by pressing the Bluetooth button.
- Pair the speaker to your phone, tablet, or computer from its respective Bluetooth settings menu. Check out Step 2 in the previous section if you don’t know how to do that.
- Once you connect your JBL speaker to a source device, start playing a song from whatever app you use. Make sure the music is coming out from the connected speaker.
- Now press the PartyBoost button on the connected JBL speaker. It sort of looks like an infinity (∞) symbol.
- After that, press the PartyBoost button on your secondary JBL speaker. It should play an audio cue and then start playing the same track as your primary speaker.
- Repeat the above step if you want to pair more PartyBoost-enabled JBL speakers together.
For PartyBoost, there are a few things worth noting. If you want to create a stereo pair with two PartyBoost-enabled speakers, you must use identical models. For instance, you can enable Stereo Mode only when pairing two JBL Charge 5s together. Stereo Mode doesn’t work if you connect more than two JBL speakers.
Also, you can’t sync the older Connect or Connect+ speakers with JBL’s newer PartyBoost ones as the wireless protocols aren’t cross-compatible with each other. Blame JBL’s anti-consumer practices for that.
Pair JBL Speakers Together: F.A.Q.
1. Which JBL speakers support Connect Plus and PartyBoost?
The list of all JBL Bluetooth speakers supporting the Connect+ feature goes as follows:
- Charge 4
- Flip 4
- Xtreme 2
- Pulse 3
- Boombox
- Charge 3 (Requires Firmware Update via JBL Portable app)
The Pulse 4 and Flip 5 are currently the only two models with the PartyBoost feature.
2. Can you update JBL Connect models to Connect+ or JBL Connect+ models to PartyBoost?
No, JBL doesn’t provide firmware updates for older JBL Connect models (e.g., Pulse 2, Clip 2, Flip 3) to get the Connect+ feature over a firmware update, with the only exception being the Charge 3. The same goes for the Connect+ models, which don’t work with the current PartyBoost-enabled models.
3. How to delink a JBL speaker from a Connect+ / PartyBoost group?
All you have to do is press the Connect or PartyBoost button once to delink a JBL speaker from the rest of a Connect+ or PartyBoost group or press the Power button to turn it off. But make sure not to delink the primary speaker you paired first to your source device, else all the other speakers will stop playing music.
Related – JBL Charge Essential vs Charge 4: What is the Difference?
Final Words
Now that you know how to Connect JBL speakers together, it should be an easy job the next time you plan a house party or a trivia night. Whether you find this guide helpful or not, let us know in the comments.
