Low-Fi ?

South3rn

Active Member
Hi guys. Have a bit of a challenge.

Bought a Coachmen Travel Trailer, more or less permanently installed in a NE PA campground. In the Pocono mountains.
It is a single wide with no slide outs......so space is at a premium.
No FM reception to speak of.
I have every intention of spending 3 or 4 months up there next summer (escaping the worst of the Florida heat).


I have a fairly good sized iTunes collection.

I think it would be difficult to install, and space prohibitive, to have a stereo amp, separate dock, and separate speakers..........
My thought is to buy a all-in-one iPod......whatever they call them.....dock? with speakers included.
An example would be the Bose Sound Dock.
The best one retails for about $500.


Now, I don't have a problem springing for the 500 bucks, but......
Once I get to that level, I would like to know that i am buying the best available at that price........
BestBuy only stocks a couple and their listening environment sucks.

Any experience with these devices?
 
Bose is the single worst sound investment u can make. Anything will sound better than Bose. Don't believe the advertising hype.
 
Bose is the single worst sound investment u can make. Anything will sound better than Bose. Don't believe the advertising hype.
That's only true if you're looking at things from a no-holds-barred "Hi Fi" approach, and the original poster isn't asking that. Bose is actually quite experienced at their niche, which is unobtrusive lifestyle gear that doesn't sound as bad as you'd think it would given its size. The Wave Radio is not a bad sounding device for what it is. And that's the key...."For what it is". There may be better small-scale docking devices but a Wave Radio with an iPod dock attached isn't bad. I've heard worse.

That said, Teac makes some really nice "micro" units. They'll need separate smaller speakers, though, and the whole setup might be over budget.

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-X4fo05PtvJI/brands/TEAC/
 
That's only true if you're looking at things from a no-holds-barred "Hi Fi" approach, and the original poster isn't asking that. Bose is actually quite experienced at their niche, which is unobtrusive lifestyle gear that doesn't sound as bad as you'd think it would given its size. The Wave Radio is not a bad sounding device for what it is. And that's the key...."For what it is". There may be better small-scale docking devices but a Wave Radio with an iPod dock attached isn't bad. I've heard worse.

If I were looking for something small and functional that sounded decent I'd certainly look at Bose products.
 
If it were me, iPod dock/cradle > small t-amp > small speakers like NHT Superzeros or the DIY Overnight Sensations. That's if it were me though.

I would try the Bose sounddock first over any of the copycat dock products with the exception of the wireless Sonus speaker system. The Sounddock and the largest Sonus are both rather big. No reason why they couldn't effortlessly fill a singlewide with sound. I'd be interested in tested one but only upon fully understanding the store's return policy. For example, Best Buy sells both of them and you can usually return for a cash refund within 30 days if not satisfied with the sound (did that a year ago with some headphones).
 
I'd have to attest to that B&w zeppelin. It is a little pricy but I felt it sounded pretty good for what it is. I got to " demo" one while I was "chrome" plating it for a client.
 
Now that, the audioengine, is possibly a real game changer..........and two of those next to each other.....terrible thing to do to stereo speakers...but.........they would fit.

seems that just a universal dock (taking audio out of the headphone jack on an iPod is not satisfactory IMO) addition and.........I'm home!
Hmmmnnnn and if I could find a universal dock with an FM tuner.........that was small..........hmmmmnnnn Don't know if anybody even makes something like that......and I am running out of room.......


Right now, I am getting ready to test a small Samsung DA-E570 and a larger Altec Lansing IMT810. These are both about $200 each.
The Samsung looks like a nice little box and even has Bluetooth.....so I could stream iTunes via my iPad (Which will be my only pooter at the trailer)....
The Altec has a tuner........should have more bass.....but is it good bass?........


I am a believer in Bose, as are several people here.
No, not as audiophile gear.....but, like Apple, as solid niche products that just work.
And, like Apple, they always seem a bit expensive for what they are.........
 
Bose is the single worst sound investment u can make. Anything will sound better than Bose. Don't believe the advertising hype.

The Bose Sound Dock actually sounds pretty good for what it is. A friend of mine brought his to my house last night, and it definitely gets the job done. Just dont ask it to do too much, or things start to sound muffled and distorted. Playing at or a little above conversation volume, its a nice piece. My friends cousin gave it to him, as he only needed it for a one time thing for a birthday party. On that end, I havent listened to other iPod docks, so I cant give a sound opinion if its worth the cash or not.
 
The nice thing about the Audioengine speakers is that you aren't tied to (IMHO) Apple's inferior product. There are other MP3 players out there that sound much better than the iPod.

-D
 
The nice thing about the Audioengine speakers is that you aren't tied to (IMHO) Apple's inferior product. There are other MP3 players out there that sound much better than the iPod.

-D

You arent with the Bose Sound Dock either. It has a 3.5mm input on the back. On that note, I love Audio Engine speakers, and think they may serve the OP better on this front, because he can crank the tunes if he so chooses. Like I said in my post above, the Bose product sounds good, as long as you dont push it too hard.
 
Audioengine has the 30-day risk free audition whether you buy direct from them or an authorized dealer. Not sure about the speakers but my Audioengine dac has a three year warranty. Three! When the standard is usually about a year or so. Company support? Dunno, haven't needed any yet but I still have two years and nine months to find out. Definitely a company worth looking into.
 
I bought the previous version of the A5 four or five years ago, and they had a 3-year warranty I did not need to use. They now live at a friend's house. Somebody dropped the one with the amp quite hard recently, and a short time later one channel began making the noise of a failing transistor. I contacted them and they offer a flat, covers-ANYTHING repair fee of $80 for them once out of warranty, which includes the return shipping (you have to pay to ship to them, plus $80). Not too shabby.
 
Eh, just to throw a little fuel on the fire - I believe these little Equator Audio D5's are a tad smaller than the Audioengines - which I understand sound very good, but they might be hard pressed to top these. One of those Pure i-20 iPod docks will work with iPad or iPod and has a little line of sight remote which should work dandy in a trailer. The Equators have a 60-day money back trial - Rather than send mine back, I bought a second pair.

http://www.equatoraudio.com/D5_Studio_Monitors_with_DSP_300_Pair_p/d5.htm

Another idea would be a regular car radio/cd player/iPod dock connected to your 12 volt side. I just bought one for my Jeep and it sounds pretty good - has a USB input as as well as an 1/8" stereo and can control an iDevice from it's front panel. Cost me about 75 bucks. Came with a remote which seems worthless in a Jeep but might be just the thing in your house on wheels!

P1020161.jpg
 
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Eh, just to throw a little fuel on the fire - I believe these little Equator Audio D5's are a tad smaller than the Audioengines - which I understand sound very good, but they might be hard pressed to top these. One of those Pure i-20 iPod docks will work with iPad or iPod and has a little line of sight remote which should work dandy in a trailer. The Equators have a 60-day money back trial - Rather than send mine back, I bought a second pair.

Thanks, you just found my next PC speaker purchase :yes:
 
Geeze...a whole new world. How do you set level with those equators?


Here is where I will be roughing it next summer.
on the inside pix. the little table to the left will be where whateveritis will be located with a 26" TV above it...mounted,I think,to the cabinets.
As you can see, my "living room" is only conducive to "living small"..........lol.

OTOH, I am thinking that I may want to be able to move whateveritis out on the deck sometimes....
 

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