The Tribit XSound Go is a decent portable speaker that costs less than $40 — but you can get better value for money elsewhere

Tribit has made some of the best cheap portable speakers in recent years, and I bet it was hoping for a homerun with the XSound Go. Sadly, it falls just short of greatness — but it’s not all bad. The XSound Go sports a humble, inconspicuous design and boasts up to 24 hours of battery life. Treble is vibrant, while vocals sound loud and clear, making the speaker good for acoustic tracks.

But the non-existent bass is a chink in the XSound Go’s armor. There’s no companion app or custom EQ to salvage it either, and the speaker isn’t dustproof. Oh, and it's prone to scratches and fingerprints. Even though it costs just $39, I think it’s worth spending a little extra on a more competent speaker, like the JBL Go 5.

For the complete breakdown, read my full Tribit XSound Go review.

Tribit XSound Go review: Specs

Tribit XSound Go review: Price & availability

The Tribit XSound Go first came out in August 2017, and since then, Tribit has released upgraded versions with internal hardware improvements. The 2026 version features Bluetooth 5.3 and USB-C connectivity. The price has remained the same, and the latest version costs just $39 / £39 at Amazon. We’ve also seen it drop to as low as $24 / £31 in the past.

This makes the XSound Go one of the cheapest Bluetooth speakers we’ve tested. It’s priced similarly to the Tribit StormBox Mini+ ($39) and the Tozo PE1 ($36). It’s also cheaper than the 8BitDo Retro Cube 2 ($49), the JBL Go 5 ($54), and the Sodapop ($68). There's also the pricier version of this speaker, the Tribit XSound Plus ($69).

Pound for pound, I’d recommend the JBL Go 5 above all else — yes, including the XSound Go. Let me tell you why.

Tribit XSound Go review: Design

The Tribit XSound Go sports a simple, humble, generic pill-shaped design. The speaker is available in black, blue and beige colors. I tested the black model and it looks… fine. It fits right into most spaces, and doesn’t look out of place on a coffee table. Branding is minimal, with ‘Tribit’ written across the front metal grille in off-white on the black version. If you want a more eye-catching speaker, the 8BitDo Retro Cube 2 takes the cake.

The outer shell features a matte, rubberized coating that gives the XSound Go a soft-touch, grippy feel. Frustratingly, though, this coating is prone to picking up fingerprints, marks and smudges. After unboxing the XSound Go and playing around with it a bit, I noticed my fingerprints were all over it. I put the speaker in my backpack to take it home, and the speaker looked scuffed. Quite annoying. I’d recommend picking up the JBL Go 5 instead if cosmetic wear-and-tear bothers you.

Aesthetics aside, the XSound Go is a highly portable speaker, measuring 6.7 x 2.3 x 2.2 inches and weighing 13.44oz. I’ve had no trouble carrying it in my day bag, and if you’re wearing a winter coat, you should be able to slip it into your pocket, too. The XSound Go is certainly more pocket-friendly than the bulbous Tribit StormBox Mini+.

Weatherproofing

The XSound Go is IPX7-rated which means it’s waterproof and can be submerged in 1m of water for up to 30 minutes. This means that you can use it poolside without any worries. That’s decent waterproofing but the XSound Go isn’t dustproof, so I’d advise against using it on dusty hikes or in the desert.

This is the same waterproofing as the Tribit StormBox Mini+ and the Tribit StormBox 2 ($67). If you want a dustproof speaker that can even withstand tumbles and falls, I’d recommend spending more on the IP68-rated JBL Go 5 or the IP67-rated EarFun UBoom L ($79).

Controls

Controls on the XSound Go are extremely straightforward. The physical buttons are located on the top, and are self-explanatory. You can use these to play/pause music, initiate Bluetooth pairing, swap between input sources, and of course, power the speaker on and off. I found them responsive in my testing, and all my commands were registered instantaneously.

Connectivity

As I mentioned earlier, the XSound Go utilizes Bluetooth 5.3 with support for the SBC codec. There’s no AAC, like on the Tribit StormBox Mini+, or LC3 like on the JBL Go 5. LC3 is a more advanced codec that streams high-quality sound at lower bitrates, making the JBL Go 5 the better choice. You get multipoint connectivity, at the very least, which enables you to connect up to two devices to the XSound Go at the same time.

If you buy two XSound Gos, you can pair them together to create stereo sound. It works exactly as it does on the Tribit StormBox Mini+ and Tribit XSound Plus. If you buy directly from Tribit, you can get two speakers for $71 / £71, saving you $9 / £9.

There’s also a 3.5mm port located around the back and protected by a rubber flap, and this can be used for wired playback.

Tribit XSound Go review: Sound quality

The Tribit XSound Go is fitted with two 40mm drivers and a passive radiator, and it’s got a total power output of 16W. That’s enough for listening in a small room, or at an intimate picnic or dinner party. Treble and mids are the XSound Go’s strong suits, and as I’ll discuss below, bass is severely lacking. To test the speaker, I listened to my favorite testing songs on Qobuz, the best music streaming service for audiophiles.

Good things first. ‘Open Arms’ by Little Simz ft. DEELA proved to be a great track to test the XSound Go’s ability to handle treble. The Afro-tech infused track features fast-moving percussion layers, and the XSound Go handled the sharp snares and claps extremely well. Each element sounded clean, and didn’t muddle together into a hiss. The aggressive hi-hats that maintain the track’s fast-paced energy didn’t sound too harsh, and they didn’t pierce through the rest of the soundstage either. The treble didn’t sound fatiguing at all.

I then listened to ‘Ice In My OJ’ by Hayley Williams, and was impressed with the speaker’s wide dynamic range. Hayley’s vocals sat front and center. Instead of becoming a messy blur with the frantic backing instrumentation, they sounded adequately separated. Her “I’m in a band” screams in the chorus didn’t sound harsh or painfully sibilant either.

Now let’s talk about the area the XSound Go really struggles in — and that’s bass. The speaker has a frequency response range of 80Hz to 20KHz, so it isn’t surprising that it fails to produce deep, rumbling sub-bass. But I felt like the easier bass was non-existent, too, which is disappointing. The distorted alternative R&B electronic bassline in ‘Baby Driver’ by 070 Shake lacked the low-end impact and oomph that drives the song. Through the JBL Go 5, for instance, the bassline sounds powerful and meaty, but I could barely hear or feel it through the XSound Go.

Similarly, the propulsive and consistent bassline in ‘One Inch Punch’ by Yin Yin sounded like it was pushed into the background. It sounded muddy, suppressed and like it was bleeding into the lower-mids, rather than tight and controlled. The otherwise crisp, rhythmic definition was lost, and this made the track lose its agility and groove. It’s surprising that the XSound Go struggles so much, when its sibling, the Tribit StormBox Mini+, doesn’t.

If you want a speaker that doesn’t sacrifice any aspect of the soundstage, I really can’t recommend the JBL Go 5 enough. It breezes past the XSound Go with its overall refined sound.

Listen along to my testing playlist on Qobuz, our favorite music streaming service for audiophiles.

Tribit XSound Go review: App

Though the Tribit app exists on iOS and Android, the XSound Go isn’t compatible with it. This means that you don’t get access to a custom equalizer or EQ presets. If you want a budget-friendly Bluetooth speaker with custom EQ, I’d recommend the Tribit StormBox Mini+, the JBL Go 5 or the Tribit StormBox Micro 3 ($64).

Tribit XSound Go review: Battery life

Tribit says the XSound Go can last up to 24 hours on a single charge and while playing on a “moderate” volume. This is the same as the pricier XSound Plus. Under typical use, the XSound Go should last you between 18 and 20 hours, according to the brand. To test the XSound Go’s battery life, I played music at 50% volume and after about 20 hours, I was prompted to charge it.

The XSound Go, then, trumps its competition when it comes to sheer mileage. In our testing, the JBL Go 5 lasted nine hours; the Tribit StormBox Mini+ died after 13 hours; and the Tozo PE1 netted 15 hours of playback time. The 8BitDo Retro Cube 2 outperforms the XSound Go with its 30-hour battery life, but you’d be sacrificing waterproofing if you went with the 8BitDo.

Tribit XSound Go review: Verdict

The Tribit XSound Go isn’t the worst speaker I’ve tested… but it’s also not the best. Don’t get me wrong: the speaker gets a few things right. The inconspicuous design helps it fit into most spaces, and it packs up to 24 hours of playtime. It doesn’t make treble sound fatiguing, and vocal-heavy tracks are a piece of cake for the XSound Go.

But the XSound Go sacrifices the bass. Lows feel non-existent or like they’ve been pushed into the background. Annoyingly, there’s no custom equalizer (as there’s no companion app) to fix it. The speaker isn’t dustproof either, when many of its competitors are, and it’s a fingerprint magnet.

If you want a better, fuller sound, I’d recommend its sibling, the Tribit StormBox Mini+. If you can swing a few extra dollars, the JBL Go 5 is a no-brainer as it’s better in nearly every aspect.