Spike Lee’s seminal 1989 picture Do the Right Thing is one of the most iconic of its era. But one of the lasting images, if not the throughline of the film, is Bill Nunn’s Radio Raheem venturing through Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn with his ghettoblaster as Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power” provides the soundtrack for the neighborhood during one particular hot summer day. While Raheem is soft-spoken, the boombox is an extension of his voice and undergirds the attitude, spirit, and energy of the vivid portrait of this New York community.
As physical media makes its comeback, the boombox still struggles to catch up. Not quite as captivating from an audiophile perspective, these all-in-one machines are nevertheless just as nostalgia-inducing as a portable CD player or turntable.
Nevertheless, Bumpboxx has taken it upon itself to change all that, reimagining one of the most legendary boomboxes in history, the Sharp GF-777, but for a modern era.
The Machine That Started It All
The Sharp GF-777 didn’t just sit at the top of the boombox hierarchy; it practically wrote the rulebook. Launched in the early ’80s as Sharp’s flagship portable stereo, it was among the largest and most feature-dense units the company ever built, with dual cassette decks, a four-speaker front fascia, and a “Super Woofer” system that punched well above its weight class for a battery-powered unit. Today, working examples regularly trade for upwards of a thousand dollars on the secondary market. That’s the bar Bumpboxx set for itself.
A Decade in the Making
Founded in 2016, Bumpboxx entered the market with a clear perspective. Headphone culture had taken over, and the communal, physical act of playing music loud for a crowd had been largely abandoned by the industry. Their early lineup of modern Bluetooth-equipped boombox-style speakers made that philosophy tangible, but not much different than the current assortment of “party speakers” put out by big-name brands. After three years of R&D, the BB-777 is a different kind of ambition entirely.
Everything, Everywhere, All at Once
The BB-777 isn’t just a Bluetooth speaker with a cassette deck. It’s a full multi-source system that includes dual cassette decks with high-speed dubbing, a suction-load CD player (compatible with CD-R, CD-RW, and MP3 discs), and an AM/FM/Shortwave radio. In terms of exterior sources, the device handles USB audio playback across MP3, FLAC, WAV, WMA, and AAC, Bluetooth with TWS support for pairing two units wirelessly, and auxiliary input via RCA. In a unique twist, you can also record directly to USB from the cassette, CD, or radio. This is a feature that will mean a lot to anyone still sitting on a physical media collection they haven’t been able to digitize. Or if you just want to make a mixtape for your significant other.
The 270W peak output runs through a 3-way, 6-driver setup: two 6.25″ Super Woofers with independent channel gain, two 6.25″ coaxial drivers, and a pair of horn tweeters, all housed in an internally chambered enclosure with bass ports and a fan-cooled amplifier. There’s also a 4.5″ dot matrix LCD for navigation and dual telescoping antennas for radio reception, which is a nod to the original GF-777.
Purists will notice that this LCD admittedly takes the place of the original skewed VU meters from the original Sharp boombox. But also, this machine is handling a lot more than the ’80s models as well.
Built to Move
The rechargeable 97.6Wh Li-Ion battery is TSA-approved and rated for up to 15 hours of playback, with a 4-6 hour charge time. The pack is interchangeable for extended sessions, and the whole unit runs on 100-240V AC for worldwide compatibility. At 28lbs and 29.6″ x 15″, this thing isn’t pretending to be portable in any convenient sense, but that’s part of the charm.
Spec Sheet
Model: Bumpboxx BB-777
Power Output: 270W (peak)
Drivers: 2 × 6.25″ Super Woofers, 2 × 6.25″ Coaxial, 2 Horn Tweeters
Connectivity: Bluetooth (TWS), USB, AUX/RCA, Wired Mic (×2)
Playback Formats: MP3, WMA, WAV, FLAC, AAC; CD/CD-R/CD-RW; Dual Cassette; AM/FM/Shortwave Radio
Recording: USB recording from cassette, CD, or radio; High-speed cassette dubbing
Display: 4.5″ Dot Matrix LCD
Battery: 97.6Wh TSA-approved Li-Ion, up to 15 hrs playback; 4-6 hr charge
Power: 100-240V AC universal input
Dimensions: 29.6 × 6.5 × 15 in
Weight: 28 lbs
Pricing & Availability
Already reaching its goal, the Bumpboxx BB-777 is currently being crowdfunded on Kickstarter, with early backers able to lock in a Super Early Bird price, starting at $649 (down from $1,049 when it goes to retail).
Recap
Bumpboxx BB-777 Boombox
Bumpboxx reimagined the legendary Sharp GF-777 boombox for a modern era, with Bluetooth, USB, and aux capability. You still get a dual cassette deck and CD player as well.
