Roland's new Bluetooth speaker is designed for performers and instruments as much as music listening — and is a pretty amazing price for something so well-connected

Roland Cube Street Mini on a dark grey background
(Image credit: Roland)

  • 10W battery powered speaker with wide dispersion
  • Two channels, lots of instrument ports, built-in effects and Bluetooth
  • $199 / £169 (about AU$339)

Music industry legend Roland has announced a brand-new model in its Cube Street range of portable speakers, and it delivers a very impressive specification for a very reasonable price.

Although the Cube range is made for musicians, you don't need to be a musician to be familiar with it: it's the go-to choice for buskers, pop-up venues and – in my city, at least – fire and brimstone street preachers.

The new Cube Street Mini should delight all of those potential buyers – and because it's also a Bluetooth speaker, it's ideal for listening to tunes when you get back home.

Roland CUBE Street Mini | Everything You Need to Know - YouTube Roland CUBE Street Mini | Everything You Need to Know - YouTube
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Roland Cube Street Mini: key features and pricing

Roland is the parent company of guitar effects great Boss, and some of that FX expertise is evident in the Cube Street Mini's built-in reverb, delay and chorus effects. Power output is 10W and the speakers are a 5-inch woofer and two 0.5-inch tweeters.

It's a dual-channel system so you can connect a mic and an instrument at the same time, and the 2.1 speaker system promises wide sound dispersion. The main channel is designed for a guitar, mic or stereo instrument, and the second is a mic channel with an XLR/TRS input.

You can also stream via Bluetooth 5.2, and there's a stereo mini output jack for headphones or connecting to a recording device to capture the performance. The Street Mini has an integrated tip-back stand and a carrying handle, as well as an optional carrying case.

This kind of style is really popular right now – the excellent LG Stage 301 was designed for performers, while the upcoming Fender Audio Elie speakers (which impressed my colleague Matt Bolton after an early listen at CES) is also packed with instrument connection options.

One of the key reasons for the Cube's popularity is that battery power means buskers and other performers don't need to find a power socket to perform. And the battery life here is a solid seven hours, recharging via USB-C.

The Cube Street Mini delivers impressive volume from a very portable case: excluding its carry strap it's 274mm wide, 110mm deep and 192mm high and weighs 2.2kg / 4.85lbs.

The Cube Street Mini has a street price of $199 / £169 (about AU$339).

JBL Flip 7
The best Bluetooth speakers for all budgets

➡️ Read our full guide to the best Bluetooth speakers
1. Best overall:
JBL Flip 7
2. Best cheap:
JBL Clip 5
3. Best high-end option:
Bang & Olufsen A1 3rd Gen
4. Best party speaker:
Tribit Stormbox Blast 2

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Carrie Marshall

Contributor

Writer, broadcaster, musician and kitchen gadget obsessive Carrie Marshall has been writing about tech since 1998, contributing sage advice and odd opinions to all kinds of magazines and websites as well as writing more than twenty books. Her latest, a love letter to music titled Small Town Joy, is on sale now. She is the singer in spectacularly obscure Glaswegian rock band Unquiet Mind.

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