[recstar24]

Thanks for all the feedback!

I hate to sound like some pretentious audiophile or something (no offense to those who are actually pretentious audiophiles

), but do you think there would be a noticeable sound difference between hooking up an ipod with the new sik din to an sr-71, versus hooking up an ipod to an sr-71 through an earcandy mini to mini or xin cable? My headphones are sr-80's, i'm not sure if the extra hundreds would be worth the sound difference for the earcandy's, I'd appreciate any feedback. THanks!

 

[rogerlee]

Well, just think about it. Does it make sense to spend 100 dollars on an interconnect to use with your 80 dollar headphones?

Especially with a portable (crap) source, and given the fact that the interconnects are short, I don't think it would make a huge difference.

 

[recstar24]

thanks rogerlee for honest feedback, I'm kind of leaning in that direction, I'd probably be stretching it with Cardas's mini to mini cable.

However, I am getting a sony d25 soon, so maybe that earcandy mini to mini might be worth it, what do you all think?

 

[yyoo]

I'd second Roger's recommendation, but not for the same reason he stated. You're going to have to use something like the SiK din ANYWAY to get a line out from your iPod. It doesn't make much sense to add extra cabling on top of that since the point of high-quality cabling is to not get in the way of the pure signal.

I use a Zu Pivot mini-to-RCA with my iPod and Gilmore Lite amp, but that's because there isn't a SiK product that has RCA outs to hook up to the Gilmore Lite. I used to use a Monster cable mini-to-RCA, and the one-ft. Zu Pivot that replaced it made a remarkable difference in sound quality. That may be as much a testament to the crappiness of the Monster cable as anything else, but I mention it because 12 inches of cable CAN make a noticeable difference with respect to the sound from a DAP.

 

[bigshot]

Nothing wrong with my pocket dock with line out. Super clean sounding. If someone got one that hisses, why not just return it for one that works properly instead of buying a completely different product that does the exact same thing?

By the way, the Pocket Dock comes with nice cables... no need for fancier ones.

See ya
Steve

 

[Anarchris]

"If someone got one that hisses, why not just return it for one that works properly instead of buying a completely different product that does the exact same thing?"

The problem does not lie within the specific Pocketdock. There is an internal Ipod problem with MANY 4th generation Ipods affected. Instead of rolling the dice on the Pocketdock (which costs more anyways) buy the Sik Din that does not have any known problems with any Ipod models. I would have saved a decent amount of money if I bought the Sik Din first.

 

[bigshot]

I keep close tabs on iPod issues, and I haven't seen anything about compatibility problems with the dock port on the 4g iPods. Where was this reported? I plugged my Pocket Dock, Super Mini Moy and headphones into a friend's 4g iPod and there was no problem at all. Plugging into a dock port isn't a complicated thing. If it works on 3g, why not on 4g? Is this a problem peculiar to the photo model? I can see how that might have a different layout to the port.

Edit... I just checked the website for the Pocket Dock with Line Out and it says it's compatible with all 4g iPods with the click wheel, as well as the iPod Photo. If it doesn't work with yours, you can send it back and get your money back. Personally, I much prefer having a small connector, rather than having the cables attached to it.

On a related note... This month's Macworld mentioned that the reports of problems with noise in the headphone out of the iPod was due to improper shielding of the end of the mini jack on some headphones. A little doughnut of electrical tape that prevents contact between the back of the jack and the metal on the back of the iPod is all that's needed to correct it.

See ya
Steve

 

[Taphil]

That electrical tape trick does not work in all (if not most) cases.

 

[Phil Ramsay]

It may not matter to you but, if you're interested in additional external power for your iPod, you can use a SiK Din and make a

external battery pack w/firewire connection

You should be able to click forward and back in the photos to see the insides, and a DIY right angle male/male adapter.

BTW, you can run an iPod a LONG time off the grid with a battery pack like this in your portable travel bag.

 

[scottder]

Anyone seen official word on the new Sik Din?

 

[mavis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigshot Nothing wrong with my pocket dock with line out. Super clean sounding. If someone got one that hisses, why not just return it for one that works properly instead of buying a completely different product that does the exact same thing?

Took your advice and contacted SendStation to get my PocketDock replaced. I received the replacement today (Sean Preyer at SendStation was quick to respond to my inquiry, and sent the new PocketDock out within 24 hours, I guess - very fast!) ... I expected it to sound as bad as the first one, but was shocked when I hooked it up to my SuperMacro and heard PERFECT sound - no distortion or hiss or noise, whatsoever!

Thanks for the advice, I hadn't thought of exchanging it because I figured they ALL had problems - but it turns out I was wrong! The new one works just as well as the Sik Din, but without the annoying dongle. I'd recommend anyone else who has had problems to contact SendStation Support and have them send out a replacement!!

 

[kin0kin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anarchris "If someone got one that hisses, why not just return it for one that works properly instead of buying a completely different product that does the exact same thing?" The problem does not lie within the specific Pocketdock. There is an internal Ipod problem with MANY 4th generation Ipods affected. Instead of rolling the dice on the Pocketdock (which costs more anyways) buy the Sik Din that does not have any known problems with any Ipod models. I would have saved a decent amount of money if I bought the Sik Din first.

exactly, the first few batches of 4g ipods have had this problem. it's not the cause of the pocket dock, in fact, even the headphone out has the problem. i've heard that the problem only appears when you are playing back in lossless format.

 

[milamber]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kin0kin ...i've heard that the problem only appears when you are playing back in lossless format.

AFAIK it wasn't because of the lossless format. People who used the lossless format recognised the problem more readily because of the larger file size the lossless format. The larger size caused the drive to spin up more frequently which caused the problem to be more apparent.

theres an article on ipodlounge here

 

[kin0kin]

i see. it was quite some time when i read about it, and back then most people spotted the problem only when they playback lossless formatted songs. anyhow, the 20gb 4g that i tried didnt have the problem but i ended up returning it and got myself a mini instead

 

[mavis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kin0kin exactly, the first few batches of 4g ipods have had this problem.

Wrong, both of my 4G iPods have had this problem with the PocketDock, and both of them were purchased within the last two months at a major retailer in Tokyo (who most likely moves enough product to be constantly receiving new units - the two ipods I got weren't sitting on a shelf since the 4G's launch, in other words) ...

Quote:

Originally Posted by kin0kin it's not the cause of the pocket dock, in fact, even the headphone out has the problem.

That's not true either. I returned the first 4G iPod because the HDD noise WAS audible through the headphone out (only with the super-sensitive E5c's) but the iPod I have now sounds just fine through the headphone out. It also sounds just fine using a Sik Din for line out. It sounded like CRAP through the first PocketDock I had, and now the replacement PocketDock works fine. The problem simply did not exist, unless I was using that first PocketDock. If the new PocketDock and the Sik Din sound JUST FINE, obviously it WAS a problem with the first PocketDock - it was obviously defective.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kin0kin i've heard that the problem only appears when you are playing back in lossless format.

Actually, that's entirely incorrect too.

The problem occurs any time the HDD spins. Since lossless files are much larger than lossy (MP3, etc) files, the HDD has to spin much more often to fill the RAM buffer - so, you'll notice the noise more often. That said, the HDD is obviously going to spin at some point to access your music, no matter what kind of encoding you're using. When it spins, you'll hear it through a defective PocketDock in the form of hiss, high pitched whining, static, etc. This does not happen with a properly functioning PocketDock.