Hi guys, long time lurker, first time poster. Thx for all the info over the years!
So I bought my fiancé a Zune 16 for valentines day and she was interested in a docking solution that would let her listen in the bedroom and the backyard by the pool. As an original 30 owner I cringed knowing that the only "zune compatible" dock that I was going to be satisfied with was $200+ So we took a trip to fry's electronics this weekend and after we looked at the kicker system we strolled by the ipod docks and ran across the Digicom IP-238. At our store it was priced at $99 and it looks to be cheaper on Amazon. The unit is not a "zune compatible" type dock with a charger and proper slot built in, it is a playback device under $100 which is what we wanted.
The unit has a couple of properties that tip its hat that it might sound better than similar products. First of all it was somewhat heavier than the other models, the cabinet feels to be constructed of MDF and not plastic. Also the majority of the weight is towards the plate amp on the back, which can be telling of a higher quality amplifier. Secondly the finish is a piano black lacquer type, ha-ha. Seriously though working around this stuff has taught me that weight is often an indicator of quality in audio products and manufacturers that put this kind of finish on their products are trying to position them towards the higher end.
The unit is a single ported enclosure with what look like a single 4" driver in the center and a 3" driver on either size. The front has only 2 buttons that function as volume up and down that are backlit with blue LEDs. These buttons also flash when the unit is powered on to indicate Bluetooth discovery mode. On the opposite side from the blue buttons there is a green LED that indicates power status. The rear of the unit has a power switch, 3.5mm audio in (cable included) and that is it, very simple.
So we plugged it in and fired it up and all I can say is that I'm impressed! Listened to some Matisyahu, Nelly, and The Beatles and this little unit performed quite well. The volume which can be adjusted through the zune or on the unit itself was more than sufficient to hear throughout our house. The bass is boomy and not going to shake the walls but it is present down to a certain level and doesn't distort at higher listening volumes. The small speakers do a good job at reproducing vocals and most instruments in the mid range. The high end there is quite a bit of roll off probably due to the fact that there is no dedicated tweeter. Overall I would describe the sound as being much better than most products in this size and price range, its not going to appeal to discerning audiophiles but then no one should expect it to. I would feel comfortable recommending it to anyone looking for a <$100 audio dock.
Also two other things to note are that this unit is labeled as a Bluetooth playback device which I tried to confirm but could not get my phone to work with it (Helio Ocean), it says on the box and in manual A2DP devices are supported. Honestly I only tried twice and spent no time troubleshooting as I don’t use my phone for audio playback nor do I care to. Secondly I did notice that out of the four of these on the shelf at least 2 of them were returns, not that that means anything but I generally notice this kind of thing at Fry's. So that’s all I've got let me know if I can answer any questions.
DigiCom IP-238 review
