Home • DJ Gear • Mackie Thump Go Speaker: The Perfect All-Rounder?

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Released in August of 2021, the Mackie Thump Go speaker has set itself apart as a top-tier piece of equipment.

While roughly around the same size as a standard studio monitor, the Mackie Thump Go is capable of putting out incredible PA-level sound while also having professional input and output options.

While there are certainly some great PA speakers out there on the market, the Mackie Thump Go has made a point of pushing itself to the upper echelon of options while also focusing on mobility and ease of use.

Simply put, whether you’re a DJ in the studio, performing at your local club, or just want to play music in high quality right at home, this is certainly a speaker worth considering.

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Jumping into this review, the first thing you’ll probably notice about the Mackie Thump Go is that, despite it being a legit PA speaker, it’s got the size and weight of a studio monitor.

If you weren’t careful, it’d be easy to just assume this was just another studio monitor.

That’s because the PA speaker has a lightweight build and super portable size that makes it super easy to whisk away with you no matter where you’re going.

It has a weight of around 17.6lbs (7.98kg) while it has an 11.2-inch (284.4mm) width, an 18-inch (457.2mm) height, and a 9.1-inch (231.1mm) depth. The speaker has a neat metal grille along its face while also sporting a classic “wedge” shape which allows it to be placed either standing vertically or horizontally, as well as be mounted on a tripod.

Of course, while it has the appearance of a studio monitor, it still retains much of its PA faculties.

In this case, while lightweight, the Mackie Thump Go is still quite rugged and durable, carrying a hard plastic molded case that can take a pretty serious drop without cracking or suffering any internal damage.

Physically, the Mackie Thump Go carries the trademark “Mackie” accent, complete with its green-colored handle and small green LED strip at its bottom.

This strip tells when the speaker is on while pulsing lightly whenever it’s charging. One interesting note is that Mackie has included a button you can use to turn that green LED light on or off.

This is cool since you can perform in places without a potential color clash.

For example, if you were performing with a largely orange or blue color scheme, having a pulsing green light coming from your speaker may be a bit distracting and immersion-breaking.

It’s things like this that make Mackie so much more ahead of the curve compared to everyone else.

On its back, the speaker carries a standard lead IED power socket as well as an on/off rocker switch. It also includes controls on its back.

The speaker has three different volume knobs as well as two XLR/TRS input combo sockets and a 1/8-inch minijack input.

The speaker also has an XLR mono output as well as several speaker control button features, all of which have some interesting and impressive functions.

Taking a deeper look at what the speaker has to offer, the Mackie Thump Go prides itself on being pretty well fortified with different features.

For one, it has multiple audio modes you can sort through. It also comes with Bluetooth to connect with your phone or tablet as well as an in-built mixer which you can use to operate two sounds simultaneously.

The speaker also comes with an available Thump Connect2 app which makes it great to operate at home or in largely “for fun” settings.

Starting with one of the standout features is the speaker’s “Audio Mode” feature. This is a collection of several different preset modes you can switch the speaker to, all of which have their EQ settings to create a different feel.

These include the modes, “Music”, “Outdoor”, and “Sub”.

Music is probably the most useful of the three features and is noted for offering a pretty full and rounded sound while making it especially pleasing to listen to at just about any volume.

What makes “Music” such a great option is that it’s the most universal.

Yes, you can use it in the studio when creating music, but you can also use it at more lax house parties or when you want to unwind. You can also play with these settings for semi-intense parties, though, if things are too crazy, you’ll want to look into either Outdoor or Sub.

Outdoor is another audio setting mode. This one is made more for the outdoor environment and isn’t quite as versatile.

Essentially, you’ll want to use this whenever you are either outside or in a very large indoor space, as the EQ frequencies are produced in a way that allows them to compensate for the general loss that comes from playing in an open space.

I don’t like playing outside, so this isn’t my favorite. However, I do know that outdoor weddings and birthdays can get a kick out of this feature on the lower settings.

Meanwhile, if you’re doing whole concerts outside, you’ll want to use this feature, as anything less is going to have just about no one even hearing you.

Sub is the final mode offered and it does exactly what you were hoping it would do. When plugging into a subwoofer (sub), you’ll be able to access its sound to the fullest capability.

It’s not a super complex mode but it is a super useful one. Pretty much, you can use this whenever you plan to whip out a sub and want to punch up the bass as much as possible.

I love a strong bass, so this is pretty much my second favorite sound option with the speaker.

Outside of these three, there are a few other options, though they largely deal with mic support and band-based performances.

Honestly, while it’s great that they’re there unless you also plan to perform in a rock band (complete with mic inputs), you’ll probably find yourself sticking to the listed three options above.

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While it isn’t necessarily groundbreaking for a speaker set to have Bluetooth connectivity, it’s also not quite common enough to automatically expect everyone to have it.

Here, the Mackie Thump Go speaker does have Bluetooth as a feature and I will say that everything runs fairly well when hooking it up and using it.

The feature is open to your Android or iOS phone or tablet and is a great option to defer to if there’s an issue with your DJ controller or CDJ.

It does have a slight latency issue, so you’ll want to ideally only use this in casual settings or as a way to briefly stall for time before getting everything else back in order.

In addition to the standard Bluetooth function that is available pretty much immediately, the speaker can also be used with the Thump Connect2 App that’s available on the Android/iOS store.

Again, while it’s going to have a slight latency issue, it’s a great go-to for fun parties at home or for more casual use.

The app allows you to control just about all of the different aspects of the speaker.

This ranges from the obvious things like volume control and song selection to the more in-depth options like the speaker’s EQ levels per channel, what audio mode it’s in, as well as feedback suppression for input microphones.

It’s a super fun app to play with and gives you a ton of control while also having a fairly large radius of connectivity.

With the Bluetooth alone, I found myself needing to be in the same room for it to connect. With the app, however, I noticed that I could control things in an entirely different part of the house.

I’m not sure if this is just me or not, but it was certainly impressive.

The Mackie Thump Go speaker comes with a built-in mixer and EQ setting. When it comes to the EQ setting, you’ll note that we’ve gone over some of that in this review.

While it’s great with the audio mode options, I will say that tweaking the EQ yourself for the optimal sound is still probably your best bet.

I love a good bass, though I also enjoy my treble not being too high, things that you can completely do either yourself or with the app.

On top of that, you can also use the mixer to play with the respective channel settings. You’ll probably not notice this unless you’re running at least two speakers.

However, if you are, it’s something cool to have the music coming out of both channels while one is playing on a certain EQ sound level while the other is on something else entirely.

The Mackie Thump Go speaker is an awesome inclusion that just about every DJ should reasonably consider getting. It does just about everything you’d want in a small PA speaker that can also double as a pseudo studio monitor.

It’s incredibly compact while also impressively rugged. It can play music to fill up a moderate-sized space relatively easily while still producing very high-quality sound without any real clipping. You also have several awesome audio modes as well as access to the Thump Connect2 App.

Of course, there are a few setbacks as well. The biggest challenge I can tell you about is the sound latency when using a Bluetooth device. It’s nothing insane, but it’s also not something you want to deal with if you don’t have to.

There’s also the speaker’s battery life when disconnected from the charge. I don’t ever see myself not having it directly being charged, though I do imagine that others may keep it charging when in use.

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All in all, when it comes down to Mackie’s Thump Go speakers, they are awesome, well-rounded, the speaker that is great for just about any person, whether you’re a DJ or not.

Yes, DJs can get a ton of use out of these guys, but so too can people who love to party or those that have a band.

Without a doubt, I cannot think of any person who would not like this speaker or what it offers. If you are considering it, I’d strongly implore you to decide to get them.

There are a lot of speakers out there but the Thump Go speaker should certainly be at the top of anyone’s list of speakers they should check out. 100%

Dexter has worked in the music business since the early 1990s. He has been a keen tech writer for many years and is still regularly involved in promoting prominent electronic music events in Ibiza and the UK.

Dexter also specializes in managing and growing digital marketing platforms for leading international DJs, event brands, and venues.

He relocated to Croatia from Ibiza six years ago but has continued his industry involvement whilst living on the electronic music party Island of Pag.

Alongside music, Dexter is a cat nut and a through-and-through family man!

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