JBL announces the Tour One M2 and Tour Pro 2 along with four new soundbars

JBL may not be exhibiting at IFA this year, but the popular audio brand has unveiled a whole host of new products ahead of the event in Berlin this week.

New JBL soundbars, headphones and eco-friendly models of two of its most portable Bluetooth speakers were revealed on the Harman Explore 2022 livestream on Tuesday 30 August. The headline announcements were that of its new flagship over-ear headphones – the JBL Tour One M2 – and Tour Pro 2 true wireless earbuds.

We got a sneak peek at both ahead of the event and were pretty impressed by what we saw. The Tour One M2 are very comfortable and lightweight at just 268g, but manage to cram in plenty of features and battery life of up to 50 hours of playback with ANC turned off.

There’s Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity, multipoint pairing and a full suite of customisable touch controls, while “True Adaptive” ANC is on board to take care of your noise-cancelling requirements. There’s also a new feature that automatically pauses your music and activates Ambient Aware mode when your voice is picked up, similar to Sony’s Speak-to-Chat function.

The Tour One M2’s 40mm drivers are Hi-res audio certified, and JBL has incorporated a Spatial Sound mode to enhance immersion, along with an updated version of its Personi-Fi technology, which uses a test to work out the limitations of your hearing and adjust audio accordingly. EQ presets and the option to manually tweak EQs are available within the JBL Headphones app, along with numerous other ways to customise your experience.

No official release date has been set for the M2, but they’re expected to arrive on shelves in black and champagne colourways in January with an RRP of £279.

The Tour Pro 2 seek to offer similar experience in a much more compact package and are JBL’s answer to options such as the AirPods Pro and Sony WF-1000XM4. Like their over-ear stablemates, they use True Adaptive noise-cancelling technology to adjust sound attenuation on the fly and also support Hi-res audio streaming. The drivers inside the buds have been increased in size since the original Tour Pro and now measure 10mm as opposed to 6.8mm, which should prove beneficial to their sound quality.

But their unique selling point is a charging case that features a built-in LED touchscreen allowing you to adjust various settings normally only accessible via the JBL Headphones app. The 1.45in screen lets you manage your music, read messages and notifications and more, and is the first of its kind that we’ve come across. Features that you don’t use can be removed from the screen, providing a welcome level of customisation in addition to the practical benefits such a case offers.

Movie and Audio modes are included to ensure an optimal experience when watching video content or in congested Bluetooth environments and the case, which offers 30 hours of battery life in addition to the ten hours in the buds, can be charged wirelessly.

The Tour Pro 2 will be released alongside the Tour One M2 and will set you back £220.

Also revealed at the Harman event were four new Dolby Atmos soundbars: the JBL Bar 300, JBL Bar 500, JBL Bar 800 and JBL Bar 1000. The first two options will go on sale in September, with the two more expensive models available from October.

The flagship Bar 1000 is a 7.1.4-channel system packing 880W of power, four upfiring drivers, MultiBeam technology, a 10in wireless subwoofer and detachable wireless surround speakers. It will cost £1,000, and its EQ will be fully customisable via the JBL One app.

As you move down the range, the number of channels incorporated and power output decreases along with the price. The Bar 800 is a 5.1.2-channel system that loses two upfiring drivers and Harman’s MultiBeam technology to hit a price point of £800, while the £500 Bar 500 makes do without the wireless rear speakers and upfiring drivers entirely. The cheapest new model, the Bar 300, is a 5.0 all-in-one 260W soundbar with an RRP of £350.

Finally, eco-friendly versions of the JBL Go 3 and JBL Clip 4 have been confirmed and will go on sale in December in three colourways: Forest Green, Ocean Blue and Cloud White.

The upgraded JBL Go 3 improves on one of our favourite Bluetooth speakers with a housing built from 90% post-consumer recycled plastic and a grille that uses 100% recycled fabric. It retains its IP67 waterproof rating, which makes it a superb choice for just about any outdoor activity, and its £35 RRP remains unchanged, too.

The Clip 4 Eco is similarly environmentally friendly and has the same IP67 rating but twice the battery life of its stablemate, along with an integrated carabiner to attach to your bag or belt. It’s also slightly more expensive at £50.