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| Athena iVoice iPod Dock |
What is the world's most powerful iPod dock? Is it the Athena iVoice? Well, not likely, but I decided to test one of these iVoice docks on the oldschoolstereo test bench. I have one of these units with a bad speaker, so I decided to pull it apart and test the amplifier using my resistor load.
The Athena iVoice is an amazingly good sounding iPod dock. I've been VERY impressed with these docks since I first purchased one on closeout a few years ago. The unit also has a 1/8" input so you can also use it with other portable music devices, computers, cell phones, etc...any device with a 1/8" output. Trust me, you won't believe the sound coming out of dual 3.5" speakers! The bass is very punchy, mids extremely transparent and even the highs will surprise you. Another useful feature of the Athena iVoice is the built-in power supply. No external power brick needed with this dock! (just a light-weight 6 foot power cable) Probably the only real downside is the lack of an internal battery for portable usage. The dock also includes a USB port for iTunes syncing and a RCA video output for passing signals from an iPod Photo or iPod Video 5G (not sure about 5.5G or iPod "Classic"?). My iPhone 4 fits on the dock, but will not charge and gives me a "not compatible" warning. That said, it will pass audio from the iPhone.
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| Athena iVoice with Metal Speaker Grill Removed |
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| Athena iVoice Rear Connections |
Here are the iVoice specs from Athena:
| Design: | Direct Radiating iPod Dock Sound System |
| Features: |
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| Frequency Response: | 65 Hz — 17 kHz |
| System Power: | 25 Watts RMS / Channel |
| Input: | 3.5mm Audio Input - Can be Used with Any Portable Audio Device (with an Audio Output) or Computer |
| Output: | Composite Video Output - Allows an iPod Photo / Video to Output Video Content to an External Display Device |
| Dimensions — Standard: (Height x Depth x Width) | 5" x 15-½" x 6-½" |
| Dimensions — Metric: (Height x Depth x Width) | 140cm x 393cm x 170cm |
| Weight: | 4.7 lbs / 2.1 kgs |
| Finishes: | Polished High Gloss Black |
Well, enough talk about the sound and specs of the iVoice, what about the output power? Athena says 25 watts RMS per channel, which honestly, is a LOT of power for 3.5" speakers. My test involved sacrificing one of my iVoice docks, so see the internals below:
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| Athena iVoice Internal Components |
As you can tell by the pictures, the 3.5" speakers appear to have neodymium magnets and a dual-cone design for enhanced highs. A quick measurement of each speaker show a load of approx. 6.8 ohms. Since my resistor loads are setup for 8, 4 and 2 ohm configurations, these are the loads I decided to use for my testing. I honestly wasn't sure the tiny "BASH" Class D amp could handle the 2 ohm tests, but decided to do it anyway...why not?
So, did Athena accurately rate the internal amplifier? Well, I guess it depends on the testing parameters they used. For my 1000 Hz tone resistive load test, the amp seems to be somewhat overrated. See the video for the detailed test results, but the approximate measured RMS wattage was 10, 20 & 32 (at 8, 4 and 2 ohms, respectively).
Although the Athena iVoice may not be the world's most powerful iPod dock, it is the most powerful iPod dock measured on the oldschoolstereo test bench! (as of August 2011)
Watch the demo in 1080p HD or embedded below:
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1 comments:
I have used lot of products that fits perfectly to the sound as well as my iPod, all had some issues with them but this was a piece that fits perfectly to my expectation.
iPod Dock
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