I bought the Bose SoundDock

Today I bought the Bose SoundDock, and now the bedroom has much less wire clutter. Photos below.

Before: A mesh of wires. Apart from that, my old Bose companion computer speakers have served me well. They will be re-deployed to the PowerMac.

The new Bose SoundDock, with the necessary cables, all in pretty iPod-white. I chose the 3-pin Singapore/UK cable. Bose provided two more power cables which may prove handy to those of you who move around a lot (two-pin rounded, and another which I think works in the US).

The SoundDock comes with several different ‘inserts’ depending on which model of iPod you have. These inserts are swappable.

Voila! That wasn’t too difficult. The completed SoundDock, with a neat and flat remote control. All you have is one wire coming out from the back – just like an Apple flat screen display.
The SoundDock packs a powerful punch (I don’t like puny tweeters). In fact I feel its EQ leans towards the bass side. Play something groovy, place your palms against the speaker and you can feel the wind. It’s like one big subwoofer in there. I set my iPod to ‘Flat’ EQ, just to lessen the load.
Of course the SoundDock has its detractors, though I have heard it is generally the best in its class if you can part with the cash. Then again, if you’re a true audiophile, what on earth are you doing with ripped music and a one-piece speaker?
Let me talk about other stuff they might not mention in commercial reviews. Hmm … When you carry the SoundDock, you don’t feel like you’re carrying a cheap wad of plastic. This thing has substance.
That much said, I was slightly nervous on feeling that the tray which holds the iPod was a bit loose. However this may actually be the norm.
Other points to note: The remote control lets you skip tracks only within that playlist or category. You cannot jump menus using the remote control.
Volume settings on my 3G iPod did not affect the output of the SoundDock – you must control its volume either by pressing the minus and plus buttons on the device itself, or on its remote control.
Another thing to note is placement. I originally left my old Bose Companion speakers on the lowest rung of the shelf, which was OK because those speakers were designed to tilt upwards. However, the Bose SoundDock points forwards and the sound didn’t resonate as well in that position. So I moved it up a rung and it sounds much better now.
All in all, I’m satisfied with my latest acquisition – it was something I was planning to get for a while, and I bought it at 10% discount to boot. However, having a new Bose plaything means I might want to rip some of my music at a higher quality.
Want more info? This other SoundDock owner has more interesting pics.
In other news, I was disappointed at Belkin’s exchange policy. When purchasing the Belkin cassette adaptor I remembered the cover distinctly saying, ‘Lifetime Warranty’. Since I was at the Apple Centre today to pick up the SoundDock, I decided to bring the adaptor along to complain about it being spat out constantly (about 1 in a 100 times you’re lucky if it works, in my car).
I learnt that I couldn’t get my money back. I could exchange the product with another of its kind (but reading all the nasty reviews on CNet might mean that the new adaptor might also not work on my system). However, the adaptor has to be returned, WITH its original packaging.
Of course it has been a few months and a house move, and I’m not even sure if the original packaging is still around. “What about the receipt? I asked.” The salesman shook his head. That wasn’t enough.
“What the…” I was thinking. So if the product worked and after a few weeks you threw the packaging away, and then problems occured, there was no solution for you? Even if you bought a genuine product, with the proof of purchase? I mean, what gives?
The only, extremely small consolation is that it worked more consistently in someone else’s car (great, all I need to do is change cars … or a stereo system). However, my system is able to play normal cassette tapes with no problem. It’s not like I’m using some unknown brand either.