JBL Live Beam 3 in a quick test: a mountain of features and proven values

The Live Beam 3 is one of three in-ear models JBL presented at CES 2024 in Las Vegas. Even then, I noticed the spec sheet: looks like the Haman subsidiary is trying to hit as many keywords as possible. LDAC, multipoint, active noise cancellation (ANC), a total battery life of twelve hours on the earphones and three additional charging cycles in the case. It goes down to nine or ten hours with noise suppression activated. The manufacturer also supplies a total of four pairs of earphone attachments, a USB-C to USB-A cable and a quick start guide.

The strengths

During my test, the small buds lived up to their long battery life promise. In addition, ten minutes of charging time is enough for four more hours of music playback. The charging case is relatively chunky and wide. It also weighs 78 grammes including the buds – not exactly a lightweight.

The display is a cool feature. Initially, I dismissed it as an unnecessary gimmick. Who needs a display on a charging case? As it turns out, JBL has packed the case with features. In addition to a time and battery display, you can also view notifications from your phone, control music playback or your equaliser as well as change the strength of transparency mode or noise suppression, for example. The 1.45-inch display almost replaces a smartwatch as a result – except for health functions, of course. It’s also pleasant to use and works without complaint.

The charging case is also a great replacement for the app – still, it’s worth taking a look. This is another of JBL’s strengths. First, your fit is estimated. You put the Beam in your ears and the app tells you whether you should use larger or smaller attachments to get the best possible music quality. Despite its many functions, the app is clearly laid out and easy to use.

In addition to all the control options (ANC, SmartTalk, setting individual touch gestures, etc.), there are two features I particularly like: a customisable ten-band equaliser, or six presets. I think the settings for phone calls are really cool – a well-known weak point of many True Wireless headphones.

One is Voice Aware, allowing you to determine how well you can hear your own voice when you make a call. The second is Private Call Mode. Here you can one bud out of your ear and hold it directly in front of your mouth as a microphone. This will help the other person understand you much better. It’s particularly useful in noisy environments, especially since voice isolation on the Beam 3 isn’t exactly the best.

The weaknesses

The Live Beam 3 comes in a classic «Lollipop» design, i.e. with stems. I like this, since the weight is better distributed than with button-shaped buds. As a result, they hold on well in my ears.

However, there’s also a hidden weakness here: the controls. As usual with these earphones, you can control music playback by touching the stems. They’re very sensitive on the Live Beam 3. During my test, simply adjusting the buds was often recognised as an input, which led to unwanted music pauses.

I also wasn’t convinced by transparency mode. On the one hand, the microphones that transport sound to your ear cause a clearly perceptible inherent noise. In addition, human voices are always slightly distorted.

Private call mode is worthwhile when making calls, as the voice isolation isn’t optimal and you won’t be understood as well by the other person. The very short stems may also contribute to this – the microphones are further from the mouth, of course. My voice is also accompanied by a crackling sound.

Sound

Before I get into the sound, know this: the ten-band equaliser in the app gives you a lot of freedom when it comes to customisation. You can amplify or attenuate many characteristics of JBL’s signature sound. For my test, I leave the sound on standard.

I’ll say this in advance: the Live Beam 3 sounds lively and powerful, has a good amount of detail and a full-bodied approach. However, it could do with a little more contrast and breadth of sound. My test track here is «Hoch» by Tim Bendzko.

Compared to previous JBL models, the sound has improved and become more detailed and versatile across the entire spectrum. Nevertheless, they’re still party earbuds. Other devices sound more natural. You can hear this well in classical music, such as the violin or piano in Schumann’s piano concerto.

Mind you, this doesn’t mean the JBLs are bad. The sound is rocking and fun. Although it’s bass-heavy, it’s more balanced than with the predecessors. I also don’t experience the familiar booming when there’s too much bass. You can also tweak the equaliser if it’s too strong for you.

What else you need to know

JBL advertises active noise cancellation on the Beam 3. It does a decent job, especially when it comes to blocking out traffic noise. Where the ANC has trouble is with high-frequency sounds. However, this isn’t uncommon for in-ears in this price range. You can still adjust the strength of the ANC, but even at the highest level, noise still slips through from time to time.

Adaptive ANC is also available. If you activate this mode, noise suppression automatically adapts to your environment. I don’t like this mode. Even with expensive high-end in-ears, I can tell when it kicks in. This bothers me when listening to music – even more than when I have no ANC activated at all. JBL does a decent job overall, especially considering the price range. However, if perfect ANC is important to you, look elsewhere.