redcoates7
04-07-2006, 10:12 PM
So like a bunch of us on this site, I was really excited about the prospect of building an affordable system around the excellent little Sonic Impact T-amp, but too lazy to really get around to it. Eventually the cheap input and output hardware, the lack of an included power supply and the little "click on then volume" knob got to me and the T-amp found its way back into the box.
A couple of weeks ago though, I was re-acquainted with the idea by a beautiful, well though out product from a Danish company called Scandyna. Formerly famous for their work with B&W for the really neat "Blue Room" loudspeakers, Scandyna has continued to build some beautiful products including a very design-oriented integrated amplifier and "the dock" the subject of this review.
Packed into a round base approximately 5" in diameter is the 15W/channel T-amplifier we know and love with a twist...it also has a built in dock for charging and listening to any variation of iPod, and a front panel IR sensor for controlling the whole shebang via the included credit-card sized remote control. Power is supplied by a cool white computer style power supply (no wall warts here) which automatically adjusts for use anywhere in the world (50/60 Hz, 100-240 V) North American and European style power cords are included, but the power supply has a standard 2 pin detachable power cord for use with the correct plug in your country.
Speaker connections are made via a set of chunky metal binding posts tucked into a recess on the back of the base and they will accept either bare wire, single banana plugs, pins, or even spade lugs. A line level output (controlled by the remote volume control) and a DC power connection round out the rear connections. Up front, there's a cool blue LED to tell you "the dock" is on, and an IR sensor. Very sleek.
To allow you to plug in whatever iPod you've got, "the dock" includes SEVEN different inserts to accomodate anything from the iPod nano to the big 60 Gig Video. iPod shuffle does not appear to be supported.
Overall, this piece is everything my DIY Sonic Impact franken-box could never be...sleek, seamless operationally, and really wonderful sounding. The sound was nearly as good as the source files and my NHT Super Zeros could deliver when used as a stand alone amplifier system, (15 watts isn't going to floor you in a big room, or with large speakers, but in the bedroom or kitchen with a set of bookshelf speakers "the dock" was a winner.) and more robust than the iPod's aenemic built-in audio output when used as a source in my big system via the built-in line level outputs.
The included IR remote is very basic, and only has eight buttons: Mute, Power, Volume Up, Volume Down, Skip Forward, Skip Back, Play/Pause, and Repeat. A nice touch though is that the iPod's front panel controls are still fully operational while the unit is docked, making it easy to access playlists and get at more advanced features than the stripped down remote allows.
After playing with this piece a while and listening to the files on my own iPod mini on it, I was impressed enough to buy it on the spot. It's a great value for anyone looking for a very simple iPod-only hifi system to be used with a real speaker system, or an elegant dock/IR control unit to let their iPod run free with their existing hifi. Price is approximately $350 CAD. Pictures, details and dealer information is all online at
http://www.scandyna-speakers.com/
No affiliation to the company, just a happy owner.
A couple of weeks ago though, I was re-acquainted with the idea by a beautiful, well though out product from a Danish company called Scandyna. Formerly famous for their work with B&W for the really neat "Blue Room" loudspeakers, Scandyna has continued to build some beautiful products including a very design-oriented integrated amplifier and "the dock" the subject of this review.
Packed into a round base approximately 5" in diameter is the 15W/channel T-amplifier we know and love with a twist...it also has a built in dock for charging and listening to any variation of iPod, and a front panel IR sensor for controlling the whole shebang via the included credit-card sized remote control. Power is supplied by a cool white computer style power supply (no wall warts here) which automatically adjusts for use anywhere in the world (50/60 Hz, 100-240 V) North American and European style power cords are included, but the power supply has a standard 2 pin detachable power cord for use with the correct plug in your country.
Speaker connections are made via a set of chunky metal binding posts tucked into a recess on the back of the base and they will accept either bare wire, single banana plugs, pins, or even spade lugs. A line level output (controlled by the remote volume control) and a DC power connection round out the rear connections. Up front, there's a cool blue LED to tell you "the dock" is on, and an IR sensor. Very sleek.
To allow you to plug in whatever iPod you've got, "the dock" includes SEVEN different inserts to accomodate anything from the iPod nano to the big 60 Gig Video. iPod shuffle does not appear to be supported.
Overall, this piece is everything my DIY Sonic Impact franken-box could never be...sleek, seamless operationally, and really wonderful sounding. The sound was nearly as good as the source files and my NHT Super Zeros could deliver when used as a stand alone amplifier system, (15 watts isn't going to floor you in a big room, or with large speakers, but in the bedroom or kitchen with a set of bookshelf speakers "the dock" was a winner.) and more robust than the iPod's aenemic built-in audio output when used as a source in my big system via the built-in line level outputs.
The included IR remote is very basic, and only has eight buttons: Mute, Power, Volume Up, Volume Down, Skip Forward, Skip Back, Play/Pause, and Repeat. A nice touch though is that the iPod's front panel controls are still fully operational while the unit is docked, making it easy to access playlists and get at more advanced features than the stripped down remote allows.
After playing with this piece a while and listening to the files on my own iPod mini on it, I was impressed enough to buy it on the spot. It's a great value for anyone looking for a very simple iPod-only hifi system to be used with a real speaker system, or an elegant dock/IR control unit to let their iPod run free with their existing hifi. Price is approximately $350 CAD. Pictures, details and dealer information is all online at
http://www.scandyna-speakers.com/
No affiliation to the company, just a happy owner.