JBL could soon launch Sonos-like multi-room speakers as Harman acquires Roon

The ‘AirPlay for audiophiles’ platform is now Harman’s

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

Sorry Sonos, but I’m pretty sure JBL speakers are about to get an audiophile-grade software update – and maybe even a new swathe of Sonos-like, multi-room audio products piggybacking on your home’s wi-fi network.

Think of JBL speakers and you probably thing of compact, rugged, barrel-like Bluetooth options ready to toss in your road-trip bag and thus add music to your campfire cooking. Yes, they’re some of thebest Bluetooth speakerson the market (see theJBL Flip 6andJBL Charge 5at third and sixth spot respectively) but what the vast majority of JBL speakers are not, is Roon ready. That is because these Bluetooth-only speaker boxes cannot jump on your home’s wi-fi network in the way some of thebest wireless speakerscan – the way that theSonos Era 100(top spot) orSonos Roam(fifth) can, for example.

But I think that is all about to change. Why? Because today, (as reported byBusiness Wire) JBL’s parent company, Harman, announced the acquisition of Roon, an audiophile-friendly, multi-device, multi-room, wireless music management and streaming platform.

Roon has oft been called “AirPlay for audiophiles” (mostly by Roon itself) because any Roon Ready device (ie. a speaker with the software baked in) can receive streams of up to 32-bit/768kHz PCM and DSD512, where AirPlay streaming maxes out at ‘CD quality’ 16bit/44.1kHz.

And why would Harman buy Roon if it didn’t plan on implementing it in one of its biggest brands? Other hi-fi names under Harman’s umbrella include AKG, Harman Kardon and Mark Levinson, so at the very least I predict ‘Roon Tested’ labels on new wi-fi enabled JBL kit very soon.

Opinion: a JBL wi-fi portable speaker to rival the Sonos Roam? Yes please

For anyone who’s invested the $150 annual Roon membership fee (which is around £118 or AU$226), don’t worry: it seems nothing will change for Roon subscribers. Harman’s press release promises, “Roon will operate as a standalone Harman business with its existing team”.

Acommunity forum postwritten by Roon Labs Founder Enno Vandermeer also confirms, “Inbroad strokes, Roon will continue exactly as it is”, with no change to existing device support and membership all set to “remain valid and will continue without interruption”.

Get the best Black Friday deals direct to your inbox, plus news, reviews, and more.

Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable Black Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content.

What I’m most interested in is the possibility of a JBL portable speaker capable of more than JBL’s divisive PartyBoost daisy-chaining Bluetooth software. Why divisive? Because while progress is of course to be encouraged, PartyBoost arrived relatively recently, as an upgrade on JBL’s older Connect+ tech for beefing up the audio by sharing it to multiple JBL speakers – and Connect+ and PartyBoost weren’t compatible. So, if you’d spent years building a collection of JBL Bluetooth speakers, they all suddenly felt old hat because they couldn’t play nice with the new ones. The splendidJBL Charge 4, for example, cannot be connected to the JBL Charge 5 Bluetooth only speaker, because the former is Connect+ enabled, while the latter has PartyBoost baked in.

And it’s not as if Harman can’t make excellent wi-fi enabled speakers ripe for a multi-room wireless audio ecosystem – just see theJBL Authentics 200, 300 and 500, launched atIFA 2023and theMay 2023-issue wi-fi and Dolby Atmos enabled JBL Charge 5 and Boombox 3 iterationsfor starters. Might similar JBL speakers soon be listed as Roon Ready and Roon Tested in theJBL section of Roon’s website? I would certainly hope so – andSonosmight want to take note.

Could we also soon be saying, “I’ll play it on the JBL system at home”? Highly likely, given Harman’s most recent buy.

You might also like

Becky became Audio Editor at TechRadar in 2024, but joined the team in 2022 as Senior Staff Writer, focusing on all things hi-fi. Before this, she spent three years at What Hi-Fi? testing and reviewing everything from wallet-friendly wireless earbuds to huge high-end sound systems. Prior to gaining her MA in Journalism in 2018, Becky freelanced as an arts critic alongside a 22-year career as a professional dancer and aerialist – any love of dance starts with a love of music. Becky has previously contributed to Stuff, FourFourTwo and The Stage. When not writing, she can still be found throwing shapes in a dance studio, these days with varying degrees of success.

What will Spotify Wrapped 2024 look like? Here are my 3 predictions for this year’s music roundup

Spotify Wrapped 2024 – our release date predictions plus what to expect

I’ve been covering Apple Watch deals for years – This is the one model most people should buy on Black Friday