March 11, 2008

Bose Sound Dock Review

This is a review of the original Bose Sound Dock. Bose now also offers a new model, the soundock portable. If you’re looking for big sound for iPod to fill a large room or backyard with your favorite music, the Bose Sound Dock is one of the best solutions on the market. Bose offers high end speaker systems and was one of the first manufactures to offer a system of this caliber for the iPod. There are several competitors now; however, the Bose Sound Dock is still the best product available.

Unlike the Bose Sound Dock Portable, the AC version isn’t the type of speaker system you’ll chuck in your suitcase for a vacation. The Sound Dock is nearly a foot long and weighs almost five pounds. That may be portable for some; however, the original Sound Dock is best suited for the bedroom or kitchen than your luggage toted across Europe. When it comes to speakers and quality sound reproduction bigger most certainly is better…and this holds true for the Bose Sound Dock.

Bose’s Sound Dock is compatible with any iPod that includes a dock connector; however, with the older models you might get a message saying there could be compatibility issues if you plug in your iPhone. The Sound Dock works find with the iPhone, aside from the annoying message about enabling airplane mode. The original Sound Dock includes two adaptor modules for the dock. These doc adaptors were omitted from the soundock portable; however, you can always get them from the Apple store if you need one. The purpose of the adaptor module is to ensure your iPod has a good fit in the dock and does not tip over, fall and shatter into a million pieces. The original Sound Dock includes an infrared remote control that operates volume, track playback and power.

The original Sound Dock does not run on batteries but includes a large AC power supply. This allows the unit to charge your iPod while it’s plugged in the dock. The only controls present on the unit are volume but many users find these controls unresponsive. The speakers in both models of Sound Dock are magnetically shielded so you don’t have to worry about damage to computer CRTs or televisions.

If you’re a die-hard audiophile or home theater guru the Sound Dock won’t give you goose bumps; however, for what it is, the sound quality is excellent. The unit has fairly small drivers but still manages excellent sound balance and separation. This allows good 3d imaging depending on the environment you’re using it with. Bose speaker systems have what they call “Active EQ” which is a DSP compression witch according to Bose balances the output to produce clarity and natural tone. This allows the Sound Dock to produce full sound across the highs and lows without distortion. Again if you’re a die-hard audiophile you might not be impressed with the sound; however, for normal human beings the output is excellent.

Bose Soundock Sound Quality

The original Sound Dock retails for $300; however you can find vendors online offering it for $269 or less, including free shipping. There are also very good deals to be found on eBay if you’re looking for a first generation and don’t mind a used model.

Bose SoundDock with Remote
US $199.95
End Date: Wednesday Aug-20-2008 7:19:15 PDT

Bose Sounddock Power Adapter AC Power Supply
US $52.00 (24 Bids)
End Date: Wednesday Aug-20-2008 7:34:23 PDT

BOSE SOUNDDOCK IPOD SPEAKER BLACK SOUND DOCK ~NEW~
US $259.95 (0 Bid)
End Date: Wednesday Aug-20-2008 9:23:03 PDT

BOSE iPod SoundDock Digital Music System Black
US $152.50 (14 Bids)
End Date: Wednesday Aug-20-2008 13:55:55 PDT

BOSE SOUND DOCK - DIGITAL MUSIC SYSTEM- BLACK!!
US $199.99 (0 Bid)
End Date: Wednesday Aug-20-2008 15:36:47 PDT

March 10, 2008

Bose Soundock Portable

Most gadget lovers agree that the first Bose Sound Dock is and has been the best speaker system available for your iPod. The only downside that I could find with the sound dock is that it wasn’t portable because you had to carry around the power cord/supply. No more…the Bose soundock portable is just as powerful as the original version; however, it’s completely portable and of course it’s a Bose. The unit retails for $399; however, you can pick it for less and get free shipping from sites like Amazon.com. (See slideshow on the left side of your screen)

The sound dock portable comes in two colors just like the AC-only version…you have a choice of white or black to compliment your iPod. The unit measures 12 inches by 6.7 inches by 5.1 inches and weighs just over five pounds. It looks very similar to the AC version; however, the dock at the bottom front of the unit rotates into the body for transport and storage.

The Bose soundock portable has a simplistic design without controls other than the volume controls found the right side of the unit. The infrared remote has eight rubberized buttons making it pleasant to the touch and easy to use. The included remote control operates volume, playback, playlists, and power. The only downside of the remote is that you cannot brows menus or individual tracks. The remote works well from nearly every angle despite the limitations of infrared.

There are connectors on the back of the unit for analog audio input and the power adaptor. There are no outputs for music or video and the unit does not have USB. The soundock portable is powered by a rechargeable lithium-ion battery can be removed and replaced by the user. The lack of user replaceable batteries is one of the biggest faults of the iPod; thankfully Bose has not made Apple’s mistake in this case. The rechargeable battery provides an average of three hours of playback at the loudest volume and eight hours at normal volumes. This is good considering the unit has remarkable bass response which tends to deplete the battery quickly.

The volume buttons on the side of the unit tend to be unresponsive; however, the remote does not have this shortcoming. Just like the AC version of the Bose soundock, the iPod’s batteries charge when docked. The portable soundock charges even when the unit isn’t plugged into AC power, although the soundock’s batteries will drain much faster. The portable soundock is very easy to carry around…the unit has a handle on the back which also functions as the wave guide (as Bose calls it) or Bass port. There is an LED light just behind the speaker grille that lights when you use the remote control and the light flashes when the battery needs to be charged. The unit’s batter charge can be checked by pressing down the remote’s power off button. If you let the battery drain completely and don’t charge the unit for 14 days you can only turn the unit on again by plugging it into AC power.

An LED behind the speaker grille lights up when you press a button on the remote or on the speaker, and it flashes red when the battery needs recharging. You can also check power level by holding down the remote’s Off button. Note that if you leave the speaker unplugged and unused for 14 days, you can only turn it on again by plugging it in. There are no dock inserts included…if you didn’t save the one that came with your iPod you’ll have to get one from the Apple store. The unit comes with a universal power plug and a cable winder that make it good to travel with; however, the plug takes up a lot of space.

Bose Soundock Portable Sound Quality

The unit’s presets aren’t so great…if it had base and treble controls built in it would be much better than forcing users to adjust these settings with the remote. The high end treble can sound a little tinny; however the bass sounds very good. Overall the sound quality is very good as you would expect from a higher-end Bose product. You might be surprised by the bass as the unit is surprisingly powerful with tons of punchy definition. With a retail price of $399 the unit is more expensive than competing products; however, savvy web shoppers can find it for much less and get free shipping out of the deal without paying sales tax. The only thing that’s missing from a “portable” soundock is a carrying case…why Bose saw fit to leave it out is beyond me.

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