Turtlebox vs EcoXgear Defender

The Turtlebox Gen 3 Closes The Gap On The Defender, But The Defender Is Still A Better Buy For Most

The Turtlebox and Defender by ecoXgear are two speakers that pride themselves in being durable, loud, yet compact Bluetooth speakers for customers who spend a lot of time outdoors and want more than 100dB of volume at their disposal. These speakers are similar to the Soundboks Go and push the boundaries of what’s possible in a portable Bluetooth speaker. We’ve spent a lot of time testing these two speakers side by side to give you the most accurate comparison possible. Let’s dive in!

The Turtlebox Gen 3 is now out, but not much has changed since the Gen 2. The only difference is an upgrade to its Bluetooth, which brings with it improved multispeaker pairing. This article has been updated to reflect the new differences between the EcoXGear Defender and the Turtlebox Gen 3.

Key Takeaways:

• The Turtlebox Gen 3’s extreme durability makes it a safer choice for extreme use.
• If you’re looking for vibrancy, the Defender’s LED lights add some flair.
• I prefer how the Defender sounds, especially since its sound can be adjusted, unlike the Turtlebox.
• Both speakers are incredibly loud for their size.

Winner

ecoXgear Defender

The Defender is a more versatile speaker than the Turtlebox. It has plenty of features, including EQ presets and lighting effects. It’s also $150 cheaper than the Turtlebox, offering excellent value.

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Design, Build, & Durability

The Turtlebox Gen 3 and ecoXgear Defender share similar designs. The Turtlebox was released before the Defender, and it is clear that the Defender was designed with inspiration from the Turtlebox. Despite these core similarities, the two speakers are also distinctly different in their features and performance.

Durability

Winner: Turtlebox Gen 3

Both speakers are primarily made of durable plastics. However, the Turtlebox has the advantage of having tie-down loops made from metal, whereas the Defender uses its plastic handles to provide tie-down support.

The plastic itself is of higher quality on the Turtlebox, and while the Defender’s materials are still relatively robust, it is more prone to scratching than the Turtlebox, especially on rough surfaces like brick and gravel. In our testing, we found that when lifting the Defender by one handle, the lower opposite end would sometimes scrape briefly on whatever surface it was placed on resulting in small scratches along those surfaces. The Defender would benefit from a small rubber protection area on each of these sides to prevent this.

The grilles are relatively similar on both speakers and are fairly wide, meaning one should be careful when carrying them through brush where sticks may pierce through. There is a trade-off in the grille design of outdoor speakers like this, too small and you make it harder to clean out dust and dirt from within the enclosure.

Overall, the Turtlebox feels like a more durable speaker with higher-quality plastics.

Portability

Winner: Tied

Both speakers are remarkably portable for their power; they both weigh in at around 10 lbs and have built-in handles for easy carrying. The Turtlebox’s lunchbox-style design with a single handle at the top makes it slightly easier to grab, but the Defender has two handles on either side, which makes it slightly easier to carry for those who find 10 lbs too heavy, as it distributes the weight between both arms.

Weather Resistance

Winner: Tied

The Defender and Turtlebox both have an IP67 rating, which is just about as comprehensive as one can get. They’re both made for outdoor use, and an IP67 rating protects them from rain, splashes, sprays, and submergence in water of up to 1 meter for 30 minutes or less. Neither are made to be placed in water, though, and submergence should be avoided where possible.

They also both have dust protection. The Turtlebox protects its ports with a latch on the top rear of the speaker, while the Defender has a ring on the back that can be locked and unlocked by turning it.

Features

Winner: ecoXgear Defender

The Turtlebox Gen 3 keeps its features minimal, instead focusing on its robust durability. Aside from multi-speaker pairing, there aren’t any additional features offered. In contrast, the ecoXgear Defender is packed with features, some more noteworthy than others. It, too, offers multispeaker pairing, but also has built-in lights and an on-speaker EQ toggle that lets you jump between three distinct sound profiles. There are also novel features like a built-in flashlight and bottle opener.

Controls, Connectivity & App Support

The Turtlebox Gen 3 and Defender have similar controls and connectivity, and while the Defender comes with a companion app, there is limited control over the speaker when using it. Keep reading as we further break down the differences in these areas.

Inputs & Outputs

Winner: Tied

The ecoXgear Defender has adopted most of the same wired connections as the Turtlebox, with auxiliary input (3.5mm), USB-C output, and a microphone input. The Turtlebox uses a 3.5mm mic input, though, while the Defender sports a 6.25mm mic connection.

Controls

Winner: ecoXgear Defender

When it comes to on-speaker controls, the Defender has a more comprehensive control panel than the Turtlebox. The Turtlebox still covers the most vital controls, such as track skipping and volume, but ecoXgear has gone all-out with 9 on-speaker buttons, including an EQ toggle, perhaps the most powerful addition.

The buttons feel as though they’re both made from the same durable rubber, and both speakers have backlighting on the buttons. The Defender’s backlighting turns off automatically until you press a button, though, and it then comes on for a few seconds. The Turtlebox backlighting is constant, making it easier to find the buttons in the dark.

Compared to the previous Turtlebox Gen 2, the new generation includes two new buttons for multispeaker pairing.

Here’s how the two speakers stack up:

Bluetooth

Winner: Turtlebox Gen 3

The Turtlebox is an older release and comes with Bluetooth 5.4, while the Defender has Bluetooth 5.1. In our testing, we found that the Turtlebox tended to give more reliable connectivity. However, the move from Bluetooth 5.0 on the Gen 2 to 5.4 on the Gen 3 doesn’t bring with it any additional codec support. In contrast to the Turtlebox, the Defender is relatively limited in range, especially without a direct line of sight.

App Support

Winner: EcoXgear Defender

The Turtlebox Gen 3 doesn’t have a companion app, whereas the ecoXgear Defender is supported by the SoundExtreme app available on Apple and Android. Still, the SoundExtreme app is limited in its features, solely facilitating the ability to change the lighting effects. You won’t be able to toggle between EQ presets or set a custom EQ with it, nor perform multispeaker pairing, which can only be done on the speaker itself.

Multispeaker Pairing

Multispeaker pairing on the Turtlebox got a lot better with the new 3rd generation release. The speaker can now be paired in stereo and general group pairing, which Turtlebox calls their “Party Mode”. In Party Mode, the Turtlebox can be paired with an infinite number of other Turtlebox Gen 3s, Grande’s or Rangers (some of Turtlebox’s other models).

The Defender supports general group pairing, limited to 100 connections, but it doesn’t support true wireless stereo.

Audio Performance

Audio performance is where these two speakers separate themselves from each other. The Turtlebox is restricted to its standard tuning, while the Defender has three EQ presets: standard/default, indoors, and outdoors. The Turtlebox and Defender are advertised to reach 120 and 121dB, respectively, so we had to put them in a head-to-head measurement comparison and see who came out on top.

Frequency Response

Winner: ecoXgear Defender

The Turtlebox and Defender are both good-sounding speakers. The Turtlebox has a punchy bass with sufficient low bass too, the vocals are slightly upturned so that they can remain intelligible in outdoor conditions and not get lost in the wind (quite literally).

The Defender, on the other hand, has three separate EQ presets that help shape the sound profile and make it more versatile. The default EQ is very bass-heavy and is relatively close to the tuning on the Turtlebox, albeit with less punch in the upper bass and more deep lows.

The outdoor EQ preset puts more focus on the vocals, allowing it to retain a bit more clarity in the outdoors, where one may otherwise get a very bassy presentation. Comparatively, the Turtlebox is closest to the outdoor setting on the Defender. The indoor EQ preset on the Defender adds more mids than the default signature, though in our measurements, the outdoor setting seemed to perform the best in terms of clarity.

Here are the raw frequency response charts showing how these two speakers stack up in their frequency response. You’ll notice that the Defender (depending on the EQ setting) has a little less midrange and treble. The outdoor setting, as mentioned, is the closest to the Turtlebox.

How To Read A Frequency Response Chart

Unfortunately, there is no prompt from the ecoXgear Defender to let you know which EQ mode you’re on, so you have to judge by ear. A voice prompt letting you know which mode is active would have been a great addition. Still, the Defender holds the advantage in this area.

Overall, these speakers have a similar sound with a strong bass and slightly elevated upper midrange, but the Turtlebox has slightly more clarity in the vocal range, while the Defender has a deeper bass. One cannot ignore the benefit that the Defender offers, with several presets that allow you to adapt the speaker to different scenarios.

Soundstage & Dynamics

Winner: Turtlebox Gen 3

The Turtlebox and Defender share the same general driver design with a 6×9 woofer and centered tweeter. This style has both benefits and drawbacks, the primary drawback being the relatively narrow sound dispersion. When the volume is pushed up, it doesn’t matter where you are relative to the speaker – you’re going to hear each one with decent clarity. However, there is a noticeable drop in definition the further away from the front of the speaker you move. They both sound best faced directly towards the listener.

The Turtlebox Gen 3 has rubber stabilizers on the back of the speaker that allow it to be used with the driver facing upwards, which can help to disperse sound in a wider area. This is a feature that the Defender lacks.

Dynamics are impressive on both speakers, reaching incredible volume levels without much degradation in sound.

Volume

Winner: Tied

These speakers are loud. Both companies claim they can reach 120dB+ at maximum volume. We tested this claim, putting both speakers in front of a UMIK-2 measuring microphone at a distance of 1 meter. Here are the results we found:

So why the massive discrepancy between advertised volume and recorded volume? I suspect, like Soundboks does, that both these manufacturers perform a line-level test for their marketing materials. In this test, electrical current is measured before it even reaches the driver. It’s an effective way for manufacturers to make the speaker look super loud on paper, but it isn’t useful to the user, who isn’t going to get that 120dB output.

This is why I prefer a classic 1-meter pink-noise test, as it is the closest to what you’re going to hear.

Still, 102dB is close to the volume levels produced by large party speakers like the JBL PartyBox 320, making them both well-suited to parties and somewhat large gatherings of people. You will rarely use these speakers at full volume, as 60 to 80% is enough to fill a medium-sized to large room.

Editor’s Note: When looking at these measurements, I started to wonder if both speakers use the same DSP, but ecoXgear claims that the Defender has a proprietary DSP.

Multi-Speaker Pairing

Winner: Tied

Both speakers have multispeaker pairing, but how they connect is quite different. The Turtlebox supports a TWS (True Wireless Stereo) pairing, which lets you pair two Turtlebox Gen 3’s together for dedicated left and right channel sound. In contrast, the Defender can connect up to 100 speakers for a broader sound coverage but doesn’t support a TWS connection, meaning all connected speakers will be mono.

Battery Performance

Winner: Turtlebox Gen 3

The Turtlebox Gen 3 and ecoXgear Defender are both rated to last for up to 25 hours at lower volume levels. At around 50-60% you can expect a playtime of 10 to 13 hours from the Turtlebox and around 9 to 11 hours with the Defender, in part owed to the more efficient design of the Turtlebox (85W output vs 100W). The Turtlebox also has the advantage of being a faster charging speaker, using a 3A charger compared to the Defender’s 1A charger. Charging is generally around an hour or two quicker on the Turtlebox.

Both speakers have a battery indicator on the top of the speakers that displays the remaining battery life, broken up into 20% intervals.

Because the Defender has additional features that can affect the battery life, such as lighting effects and EQ differences, we tested it on its standard EQ with lights off.

Overall, both speakers are suitable for camping trips where you may be without a charger for extended periods. The playtime falls short of competitors like the Soundboks Go, but it is still relatively impressive for its compact size.

Price & Value

Here’s the real talking point between these two speakers. The Turtlebox Gen 3 retails for around $450, while the ecoXgear Defender retails for $250, a marked difference that cannot be ignored. At its higher price point, the Turtlebox still has value, as its more durable build is likely to ensure more longevity. But given how close these two speakers are in performance, and with the Defender in many areas surpassing the Turtlebox, it has better value for most consumers.

Conclusion

Overall, I’d recommend the Defender; it’s a much more versatile speaker, and the custom EQ is a huge benefit that elevates it above the Turtlebox. The lighting effects add to its versatility and enable its use for parties and other elements of daily use.

On the other hand, we’d recommend the Turtlebox to those looking for a portable Bluetooth speaker that doesn’t compromise on durability; its materials are more scratch-resistant and can handle a bit more abuse than the Defender. Its faster charging time is also a big selling point.

The Defender piggybacks off much of what makes the Turtlebox such a good speaker, and the similarities are hard to ignore. But from a performance and feature standpoint, ecoXgear has done a great job with the Defender.

There’s no wrong choice in the battle between these two speakers, for features and audio versatility go for the Defender, for durability and reliability – go for the Turtlebox.

Winner

ecoXgear Defender

The Defender is a more versatile speaker than the Turtlebox. It has plenty of features, including EQ presets and lighting effects. It’s also $150 cheaper than the Turtlebox, offering excellent value.

Check Price

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