Fresh 'n Rebel Rockbox Brick (Fabriq Edition): uncontrolled power

Ergonomics

Despite a conventional shape, the Rockbox Brick, Fresh 'n Rebel displays a worked, discreet and elegant design reminiscent of that of certain Scandinavian models with a minimalist look. A soft-touch plastic part is completed by a large rigid grid covered with braided fabric. Given its small size, the small leather loop acts more as a decorative element than a fixing point for hanging the speaker. We also note the presence of two non-slip pads which ensure good stability.

Overall, this portable enclosure benefits from a totally satisfactory quality of manufacture and finish. No assembly mark is visible and the enclosure can withstand a few drops. Note, however, that this enclosure is not validated for a resistance standard and therefore cannot face water or dust; a carrying case would not have been too much.

Despite its apparent simplicity, the Rockbox Brick is nonetheless complete in terms of connections and controls. There are indeed on the upper part of the buttons dedicated to the management of music playback, volume and navigation. It is therefore not compulsory to search for or learn key combinations, which makes it easier to use. In addition to the usual micro-USB ports for recharging the speaker and the 3.5 mm mini-jack input, the rear of the speaker also has a start-up switch, a button for Bluetooth pairing. (4.0), a USB-A port for charging mobile devices and, above all, a headphone output! It lacks only a microSD port to complete the loop, as on Creative Roar.

The speaker is supplied with a small micro-USB / USB charging cable and a 3.5 mm mini-jack cable.

The Rockbox Brick offers quick and fairly intuitive handling. The commands respond well and the Bluetooth pairing is done in a few seconds, despite the absence of an NFC chip. However, the speaker does not always automatically recognize the last wirelessly connected device; sometimes we had to press the pairing button. The sound and light aids are not legion: there is only an audible alert - a bit aggressive for that matter - for confirmation of the pairing and a flashing of the control buttons when the procedure is launched.

The speaker has a few small bonuses that facilitate its use, such as a battery level indicator, supplemented by an audible signal when the autonomy becomes low, or even the lighting of the keys. Nice point if you prefer discretion, the LEDs only light up for a few seconds when a button is used.

For mobile music listening and recharging of mobile devices, the Rockbox Brick has a 4000 mAh battery which promises 20 hours of autonomy. 8 pm that we were able to validate in practice, but only if the listening level is below 50% and the speaker is connected in mini-jack to its audio source. In Bluetooth, the autonomy drops between 7 and 8 hours depending on the listening volume (between 30 and 50% of the volume) and between 4 and 5 hours with a device charging on the USB port.

The loudspeaker has a standby function which is activated after 30 minutes of inactivity in order to save the battery.

---

Audio

Given its size, the Rockbox Brick struggles to offer a rendering that is both sufficiently powerful and truly pleasant for listening to music.

In fact, the higher the volume, the more aggressive the listening becomes due to the mids / high mids being put forward too much. To make matters worse, the bass panics and saturates when you go above 60% of the maximum volume. We therefore confine ourselves to relatively low listening levels for close listening, the speaker placed on a desk or table, for example, 2 or 3 meters from the listening point. In this kind of configuration, the sound is sharp and lively, with a big emphasis on voices, guitars or percussion attacks. This remains pleasant on very warm mixes, but much less if they are already naturally loaded in this area. We also see a lot of the metallic side of the cymbals and the whistles often appear. The pronounced directivity of the enclosure towards the front also obliges us to direct it well towards our position; not to mention the stereophony, almost non-existent on this model.

The headphone output doesn't do wonders either. It lacks power and struggles to transcribe the lowest frequencies. In addition, the separation of the channels is not very clear and the dynamics lack depth. We will therefore confine ourselves to low-power helmets and very occasional use. Fortunately, the distortion is relatively low (0.05%), even at full volume.

Finally, the latency of wireless communication is perfectly acceptable for watching a film or video without suffering a significant lag between sound and image.

---

Conclusion

Despite a beautiful manufacturing and a good experience of use, this Rockbox Brick disappoints us on the essential criterion that is the sound. You must limit yourself to a volume that is too low to benefit from an acceptable sound rendering. Other portable speakers of the same size do much better.

---