A Dock for My Pod

July 6, 2008 11:12 AM

iPodFilter: Help me pick out a decent iPod dock from amongst all the substandard crap out there.

I've been looking for a decent quality iPod dock for my still-kicking 4G iPod (a.k.a. iPod photo). It's for a bedroom, so I don't need big sound, but it shouldn't sound like a kid's phonograph either. An FM receiver would be a nice bonus.

I've been looking at the XtremeMac Tango Studio X2 as well as this Sony bookshelf system. There are so many docks on the market, but most of them seem like crap. I'd appreciate any recommendations that help me separate the wheat from the chaff.

Thanks, hive mind.

posted by wintermute2_0 to shopping (7 comments total)

I bought a JBL iPod docking speaker after reading recommendations in this thread.

I love it. It has great sound. I bought it from our local big box wholesale club. When I was pulling it off the shelf and employee came over and said, "You're buying a really good product. It's great." I agree. I love it. I use it all of the time and the sound is excellent. I can't remember the exact price, but I know it was under 200 bucks. I mostly keep it in my bedroom (here's a pic on my dresser), but it's portable enough to bring into any place in the house where I want to listen.
posted by LoriFLA at 11:40 AM on July 6, 2008

I'll join the wagon. Here in Argentina all the available ones are the kind that for a few bucks will gladly sound like shit (and probably turn your iPod into a nice crispy black toast when they die some months down the road) or the ones that I would need to sell a kidney to afford (see for instance here). So you have a chance to make two posters happy now!
posted by Iosephus at 11:45 AM on July 6, 2008

Well - I'm fussy about how my equipment looks & behaves... I use original Apple docks, hooked to real stereos via audio connector cable.

I've tried third-party (no-name) docks (not complete units like you are looking for) and they invariably damage the batteries.

But... I have been looking for something similar in the bedrooms... mainly something like the old Bose Wave radio, with an iPod dock - but I hear the Bose SoundDock sucks, and I cannot see any clock functions.

So... for my purposes (bedroom/clock), I'd probably get:

- Philips BTM630/37

I guess a good rule of thumb would be speaker-box depth/size... That will give you richer sound (generally)...
posted by jkaczor at 11:53 AM on July 6, 2008

I absolutely love my Mom's Bose SoundDock. It's the old style one, not the portable. I use the Bose Wave Radio with a dock. The SoundDock sounds just as good.
posted by Dorri732 at 1:24 PM on July 6, 2008

I also enjoy my Bose SoundDock - the sound quality is perfect. No FM receiver, though.
posted by mewithoutyou at 6:25 PM on July 6, 2008

There are tons and tons of reviews at iLounge. Check out the Accessories reviews and download the Buyer's Guide for a "report card" of all of the stuff they've tested.
posted by roomwithaview at 6:48 PM on July 6, 2008

Strangely enough, I was at my local Buy'n'Large (Walmart) today and I happened to see the Sony you listed above.

It didn't sound half-bad, but the buttons felt "cheap" - and there was no "knob" for volume, just up/down buttons (placed on the top of the unit, which I guarantee will break within a year...).

It definately did not "feel" up to some of Sony's supposed quality (I hate love/hate relationship w/Sony, as well as Toshiba...)
posted by jkaczor at 7:43 PM on July 6, 2008