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This is a review of Monster SuperStar wireless speaker. http://www.monsterproducts.com/speakers/superstar/

It takes a lot of confidence to label your product "The world's smallest audiophile speaker". That's exactly how Monster refers to their latest wireless speaker. I do have to agree, it's among the smallest speakers I have tested, considering a unique flat rectangular footprint with rounded corners resembling a smartphone shape. I also have to agree that it has a very detailed clear sound, not typical for wireless speakers. Here is more about this little SuperStar!

Following their flashy tradition, you don't expect anything less from Monster product packaging where SuperStar doesn't disappoint with a high quality box, detailed graphics, plenty of description, and traditional magnetic flap cover revealing a gift box setting of the product inside of it. In addition to a speaker, a usb to micro usb cable and storage drawstring mesh pouch was included. There is no exaggeration, but the speaker is small!!! Weighting only 230g and 140mm x 75mm x 22mm it had a footprint smaller than my Note 2, and about double in thickness. It was small enough to fit in the palm of my hand, and soft rubbery texture felt very good to the touch which also should help to absorb a shock if dropped. Furthermore, the speaker has IPX-4 rating for water splash protection, so you will be safe around the pool or at the beach as long as you don't submerge it into the water. Also, the speaker itself was designed to work placed flat on the surface or in a sturdy upright position.

A closer examination of the speaker revealed some very unique design details. First of all, it has 2 top firing drivers placed in the corners under the perforated grill. In the center on the top and the bottom of the speaker you have a pair of cleverly designed passive bass radiators to enhance low frequency performance of SuperStar. One of the main problems with small speaker enclosures is not being able to fit enough of regular active drivers to cover a low frequency sound. Some speakers use bass ports to direct the sound outside through some clever filtering, while in here you get a pair of passive radiator cones pumping the air out. Don't expect an earth shattering bass you can feel, but you will be surprised to hear a decent bass punch with injection of sub-bass to make sound feel solid. With a lot of the smaller speakers, you typically get a thin high frequency sound or muddy bass distortion, but with SuperStar you get a well rounded detailed clear sound. As a matter of fact, I pumped it up to a max volume and experienced minimal distortion, only noticeable in low frequency range due to exaggerated pumping of radiator ports.

For sure, this speaker sounds VERY good for its size and has clarity surpassing a lot of other speakers I have tested before. Beside sound quality itself, you also get an impressive volume level where I compared it to another 12 Watt wireless speaker I recently tested and found SuperStar to be louder. Another big advantage is the use of Apt-X codec which helps transmit audio wirelessly without too much of bandwidth compression. It really felt like listening to a wired speaker. Speaking of that, there is 3.5mm Input port if you want to connect this speaker to your mp3 player or devices that don't support bluetooth. The port is located on the side and has a rubber flap to keep it's IPX-4 certification. On the other side of the speaker, there is micro USB port with a flap cover for battery charging and also for audio-over-usb connection. The battery should last about 5-6hr at moderate volume use, and micro-usb port also doubles in functionality to be connected to compatible devices where you can send audio through usb port.

Now, let's talk about the actual wireless performance. It wasn't very clear to me if it supports BT3.0 or 4.0, but regardless of that pair up with my smartphone was flawless, and it easily covered 30ft of operating distance. You have 4 dedicated sealed buttons on the top for power, volume up/down, and bluetooth, two led lights for power and bluetooth indication, and mic opening. Pushing Power turns the speaker on and pushing Bluetooth either puts it in a pair up mode for the first time or starts pair up if there was some issue with disconnect. Once paired up, it shows up connected to your phone and media audio, so it can be used to play audio from the phone as well as functioning as a speakerphone with a build-in mic. Volume adjustment is self explanatory. There is also one hidden control which is not obvious and you can only learn about it from manual. Bluetooth button actually functions as Play/Pause button where during a playback a short press will pause and resume playing the song.

Overall, I was a little skeptical when I approached this review thinking it's going to be another "small" speaker claiming to have "big" sound. But as soon as I paired it up and start playing music, I realized it wasn't just an empty promise. This speaker truly does sound great, it looks very cool, has unique design elements with passive bass radiators, hidden playback control (only play/pause, though I would have liked to see track skip next/prev as well), and audio over usb playback. The negative comment I have, which could be a matter of a personal preference, I don't like voice guidance announcing "power on", "paired up", "power off/goodbye". It provides a clear feedback of functionality, but I wish it could be disabled. Price tag is a bit steep, currently on sale for $129.95 where $99.99 would have been a more reasonable price in my opinion. At the same time, you are paying a premium for its unique features packed into a very small footprint. Personally, I was very impressed with this wireless speaker and would definitely recommend it if you want a loud detailed sound and a design to make you stand out from a crowd!

Here are the pictures.