Genius Mobile Theater MT-20 Bluetooth Speaker Review

By Meng Vang

Manufacturer: KYE Systems Corp.
Product Name: Mobile Theater MT-20
Model Number: 31731073100
UPC: 091163253990
Price As Tested: $119.99 (Amazon)

Full Disclosure: The product sample used in this article has been provided by KYE Systems Corp.

Built to serve as a wireless bluetooth speaker with theater-like surround sound, the Genius Mobile Theater MT-20 makes a great wireless speaker that offers portability and surround sound on the go. The MT-20 comes with a sturdy built-in handle, a 3.5 mm AUX port, and a micro-SD card slot for playing music straight off a card. It also has a built-in seven watt subwoofer to enhance sound quality with music and videos. The MT-20 is available in two colors; silver and black. KYE Systems sent Benchmark Reviews their Mobile Theater MT-20 in black for this review.

The Genius Mobile Theater MT-20 is currently available online for $119.99 (Amazon). It comes in a large box with a picture of the product with its features and specifications listed around it.

Inside the box, we can see the MT-20 is nicely packaged between two large foam pads. This prevents any physical damage to the product during shipment.

In terms of accessories, we find a multi-language quick guide, a 3.5mm line in cable, and an AC adapter to charge the device.

At 350.4 x 122.7 x 107 mm (13.8 x 4.83 x 4.21 inches), the MT-20 is larger than the typical bluetooth wireless speaker and weighs 1494 grams on my scale. It includes two 2.75 inch left/right satellite speakers and one 3 inch subwoofer for added bass. The MT-20 does have a handle for portability, which can fold in and out. There is a glossy trim that separates the front grill from the matte finished body, giving the speaker a nice modern appearance.

Now that we have seen a quick overview of the MT-20, let’s go into more details on what this product has to offer.

At the top, we see a variety of buttons along with the top handle. The handle makes it easier to carry the MT-20 around to different locations.

The bottom of the unit is very simple with a matte black finish and two large rubber feet towards both ends.

A closer look to the side of the speaker reveals the glossy trim that separates the front grill from the matte black finish.

The opposite side looks identical to the other side with no additional buttons or features.

In the next section, we will take a closer look at the Mobile Theater MT-20.

The front grill looks very simple with just the company logo towards the center. Under direct light, we can clearly see where the two speakers and subwoofer are located.

Like the front, the rear is also very simple aside from a few ports for connectivity.

Taking a closer look at these ports, we can see the 3.5mm AUX-in jack, the AC adapter power plug, a reset button, and a micro-SD card slot.

At the top, we see a variety of buttons. These buttons include volume control, play/pause, movie mode, music mode, bluetooth pairing, and a power button.

Now that we have seen what the MT-20 has to offer, let’s jump into the testing section to see how it performs.

The MT-20 connected to my phone without a problem. Turning it on for the first time, it automatically entered pairing mode. My phone soon picked up the bluetooth signal and connected to it in just a few seconds. The MT-20 would also automatically pair itself back to my phone the next time it turned on without having to reconnect manually.

Because the Mobile Theater MT-20 came with a 3.5 mm line-in cable, it could connect to a computer, a mobile phone, or any device that has a 3.5 mm output jack. This means the speaker could still stream audio from a device, like a TV, that does not have bluetooth capability. The built-in micro-SD slot was useful to play music off a micro-SD card. You could also cycle between micro-SD, line-in, or bluetooth by pressing the bluetooth button.

Sound Quality

The MT-20 provided decent sound quality with its two three inch satellite speakers and the seven watt subwoofer. Low to medium volume levels sounded good overall, but there were noticeable cracking and rattling in the higher volume range especially while in movie mode. In music mode, the rattling only happened occasionally with a higher volume. I did expect a crisper sound experience as the sound quality was okay overall, but it sounded somewhat flat. The built-in subwoofer did add some punch, which surprisingly shook my desk even at a lower volume level.

In movie mode, the subwoofer really kicked in to enhance the overall surround sound experience. The only problem about that was the noticeable cracking and rattling noises caused by the drivers at higher volume levels. At this price category, I was expecting only pure sound without any sort of rattling noises. Perhaps later in the future, I may add a layer of Dynamat on the interior of the speaker just for laughs, although opening the MT-20 would void the one year limited hardware warranty.

Battery Life

In terms of battery life, I was also able to get about 10 hours of run time playing several movies, music, and computer games. The longest I got it to last was a little more than 15 hours with the volume turned down very low. The MT-20 was able to last a few days without recharging when using it on and off several times a day. Because the 3000 mAh battery lasted much longer than most of the competing bluetooth speakers, I was hoping to see a USB port to charge portable devices, like a smartphone. Not a major concern, but just a nice extra feature to have.

One weird problem I did encounter was the amount of time it took to charge the speaker. The website stated it would take approximately four hours to fully recharge the MT-20. Once fully charged, the charging indicator LED would change from red to blue. Well, I had the MT-20 plugged in the wall for 48 hours straight and the charging indicator was still red. It did not affect the run time of the speaker, so perhaps the battery was full but there was some kind of flaw with the charging system; at least only on my unit, hopefully.

Let’s go into my final thoughts and end this review with my conclusion in the next section.

Although I was expecting better sound quality from the MT-20, it does provide a good listening experience for music and videos. The included micro-SD card slot makes listening to music easier without having to use another device as the source. The movie mode preset enhances the low tone sounds to bring out more bass and simulate a surround sound environment. However, there is a noticeable amount of cracking and rattling using the movie mode preset especially at higher volume levels. I am thankful to see a built-in handle because it makes it easy to carry the MT-20 around. With that said, anyone who is constantly on the go should consider the MT-20 as their next portable wireless speaker.

Although I expect better performance out from the sound quality, I have no complaints on the appearance of the MT-20. The matte black exterior prevents finger prints from showing, and the front grill covering the drivers is very simple with a glossy trim around the edges. This makes the Mobile Theater MT-20 a very elegant looking bluetooth speaker. If black is too generic for your taste, this speaker does come in a silver variant as well.

Despite its heavier weight at approximately 1500 grams, the plastic exterior is rock solid as the entire unit feels very well put together. There are no noticeable screws anywhere on the body, and there are no loose pieces when shaking the speaker around. The noticeable amount of cracking/rattling is the only thing that disappoints me after knowing how well the exterior is built.

That is my biggest concern, the noticeable cracking/rattling sounds in movie mode at higher volume levels. To me, this is not the most functional since the MT-20 is advertised to provide a stunning cinema surround sound experience. But at low to medium volume levels, the cracking sounds are nonexistent, and overall sound quality is pretty good. For a bluetooth speaker in this price category, I expect nothing else but pure sound coming from the speakers.

As of January 2018, the Genius Mobile Theater MT-20 bluetooth speaker currently sells online for $119.99 (Amazon). I personally would have liked to see it a few bucks cheaper as this is going into SoundLink territory. I do have to say the build quality on the MT-20, at least on the exterior side, is rock solid throughout. It looks and feels great with its matte finish and modern design, but the sound quality is okay at best. I hope to see an improved version of this model hopefully in the near future. If you are always on the go and are looking for a bluetooth speaker that provides an overall good listening experience with plenty of features, the MT-20 may be right up your alley.
+ Long battery life
+ Built-in subwoofer
+ Excellent build quality
+ Music and Movie Mode presets
– Sound quality is okay at best
– Noticeable cracking/rattling at higher volume levels

• Performance: 8.00
• Appearance: 9.00
• Construction: 9.25
• Functionality: 8.25
• Value: 7.50