[kodreaming]

A friend of mine is looking for a simple home audio system.
I am thinking about an IPod dock that he can use his iphone to play Pandora.
 
Any suggestion ?

 

[melie]

Is it important that it has the doc functionality? Because all iPod docs I've ever heart were pretty crappy in sound quality + alomst always overpriced. The only really good sounding ones are probably the Audioengine A5 but those cost +325$.
If he doesn't need the recharge function of the doc I would go for a pair of M-Audio AV40 speakers. You can find them for 150$ on Amazon and they sound absolutely awesome for their price.

 

[kodreaming]

But, is ipod powerful enough to drive a set of speakers ?

 

[HeatFan12]

Ipod's line-out is awesome...Very versatile...

 
 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 

 

[melie]

 
Quote:

But, is ipod powerful enough to drive a set of speakers ?

Yes. The Audioengine A5 and M-Audio AV40 are powered speakers. This means they have an internal amplifier. And require power to run of cource..

 

[kodreaming]

Thanks a lot, one more question, for M-Audio AV40, how exactly do I connect a ipod to the speaker directly ?
Do I need an amp ?

 

[melie]

Just with a mini to RCA cable. Mini goes into the iPod out and the RCA goes into the AV40.
http://www.metropartsmarket.com/catalogs/audio/radio/Acc_Cable.gif
I think you'll get one with the AV40 but I'm not sure. Those cables only cost like 1$ though and you can find them everywhere.
 
And, no, you don't need an amp. Like I said, they're active speakers which means they have an internal amp.

 

[kodreaming]

I see.  I actually have that cable. 
 
But,how is the ipod connected in the first picture ?

 

[JohnnyBlaze554]

Hey I was just wondering as far as a LOD connection is concerned is it pretty much the same as a preamp out? Also going into somthing like the FiiO e7 from my ipad I can use the camera connection kit to hook up the ipad via a usb cable, this dosn't work with my iphone or ipod though.  is there a signifigant quality difference going from LOD or the USB in that instance?
 
Thanks,
 
Bryan

 

[melie]

Quote:

I see.  I actually have that cable. 
 
But,how is the ipod connected in the first picture ?

Like I said, this isn't a dockingstation. So your iPod won't charge. If this is a problem you can always get the Pure i-20 as docking + the AV40. The nice thing about the Pure i-20 is that you can use it to connect your iPod to anything you want so it's upgrade proof. Plus it has awesome sound quality.
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/audio-visual/av-accessories/pure-digital-i-20-921473/review
 
I don't like 'real' docking stations all that much. They are always overcosted and you'll need to get a really expensive one if you want any decent  soundquality. If you really need the docking you should go for the Audioengine A5.