The Voca is a rechargeable Bluetooth speaker designed and engineered in the UK by Pure, housed in an anodised brushed aluminium shell the Voca is stylish but understated, producing a full and rich sound wherever you take it.
The aforementioned aluminium shell of the Voca is the first thing that strikes you when unboxing; it’s almost gunmetal appearance is nicely contrasted by the black honeycombed front, where all that talent lies. An array of rubberised soft touch buttons that yield into a satisfying click are on top of the device and the design echoes the overall styling of the speaker presenting a rather pleasing symmetry.
The Bluetooth functionality couldn’t be easier to use simply press the icon and connect, the range is also excellent, I was approximately 11m away before connectivity got choppy. A 3.5mm connection can also be used for devices not Bluetooth enabled and the wired connection, unsurprisingly, delivers excellent quality. Built in volume adjust and mute is handy when away from the music playing device and allows you to get more volume, without distortion, from the Voca than from speakers that rely solely on your phone/tablet/etc. It also has the ability to behave as a loudspeaker for your phone calls and has a built in microphone so you needn’t worry when a call interrupts whatever you might be doing.
The Voca by Pure will take a charge quickly and will hold onto it for up to 10 hours, quite impressive given the quality and volume it is capable of delivering. It does so using two 1.5” speakers with dual passive radiators. Using these the Voca covers highs, mids and lows producing a very complete full bodied sound you might expect to hear from devices 5x the size. Consequently the Voca possesses powerful Room-Fill even in large rooms and when the walls fall away it has enough in the tank to create an outdoor atmosphere ideal for small gatherings.
In all honesty it took about 2 seconds of a mediocre track to appreciate the quality and richness the Voca has to offer compared to other small speakers or your built-ins; after further listening you find it is set up in such a way that it extends the quality of performance over any musical genre. Treble, I’m a fan, but it is often lost in small speakers attempting to avoid sounding cheap and tinny but the Voca has such rich punchy bass for its class that it can afford to reach highs and utilise treble while retaining a balanced sound.
Whichever music playing device you choose to use, set the volume to maximum forget it and make further adjustments from the speaker, this gives the Voca the best amplification and clarity to work with. I found the speaker to be heavier than expected but I’m not sad about it, the weight provides a sturdiness that helps it handle the bass and overall volume. The build quality is great so you won’t hear a rattle from it. A small and satisfying detail is the very squishy rubber feet it sits on that basically make it impossible to slam on a surface and prevent it rattling the ice in your cool drink as you enjoy the sun and chilly British breeze.
The Voca costs around £60 and it justifies the price tag by producing excellent sound, having a quality finish and features such as taking calls. Larger mobile devices will get the best out of it but whatever you use it won’t let you down. It is well proportioned and easily portable whether you want to use it while you’re in the house or if you’re enjoying the outdoors. The full rich sound will compliment whatever music you favour, so when you’re hanging out with friends this summer, enjoying a chilled cider in the sun why not bring the Voca along. Because your friends might hate the music you like but they won’t hate the way the Voca plays it.
