DGA Livespeakr iPod travel sound system [printer-friendly] • reghardware

Original URL: http://www.reghardware.com/2009/06/25/review_dga_livespeakr_ipod_travel_speakers/

DGA Livespeakr iPod travel sound system

Portable speakers for any orientation

25th June 2009 12:15 GMT

Review Travel speakers come in all shapes and sizes and, to be frank, the majority are pretty horrid, both from an audio and design perspective. However every so often something comes along that piques our interest here at Vulture Central. X-MI's Mini II [1] was one such device and the Livespeakr [sic] from US start-up Digital Group Audio is another.

DGA's Livespeakr portable iPod dock

Unlike X-MI's offering, the Livespeakr is aimed squarely at the iPhone and iPod user. The idea being that it provides a compact, light, self-powered speaker array that also holds your iPhone or iPod Touch in the right orientation for either watching videos or listening to music. Being fully iPhone compliant and shielded against radio interference, it also doubles up as a speakerphone. That's the theory, so how does it work in practice?

The fundamental design of the Livespeakr is nothing, if not unique. A plastic cradle into which you can slide or clip your iPod or iPhone attaches to a central unit by four slider pegs, while two speakers are attached to the central unit via retractable sponsons. Turn the mounting cradle 45 degrees to the left from vertical and the speakers extend by 25mm, meaning they sit flush to the sides – or ends, depending on how you look at things – of your iPod, whether it is in a portrait or landscape position.

The central unit itself is mounted on a 20mm tall extendable metal stand that cants the whole contraption back by about 45 degrees, making it ideal for watching videos on your desk. The stand is not only very sturdy but also comes with rubber contact patches for a secure grip, so you can control your iPhone or Pod with one digit without fear of it falling over.

Of course, that's just as well since the Livespeakr is devoid of controls – beyond an on/off switch and a miniUSB charging port – so all navigation has to be executed directly with your iPod or iPhone. If you prefer to use both hands, the cradle holds your iWhatever securely enough to allow you to pick the entire assembly without fear of everything coming adrift and heading towards the floor for a messy and expensive impact.

The adjustable stand folds up when travelling

With the speakers 'closed' and stand folded away the device measures 160x22x60mm and weighs around 100g so packing it shouldn't be an issue for even the lightest of travellers. Remove the cradle from the main unit and the audio cable that connects the player's 3.5mm headphones jack to the Livespeakr can be re-routed to either the left or right – or top or bottom – to allow for the connection of both iPhones and iPods, which have their audio jacks at different ends, without reams of loose cable festooning the device.

With all the twisting, clipping and un-clipping we did have some initial doubts about how long the plastic Livespeakr would last in day-to-day use but, despite some deliberately brutal treatment, nothing wobbled, bent, snapped or came adrift. However, trial and error did teach us that it was easier to detach the cradle before trying to prise our iPod Classic from its vice like grip – our iPhone and iPod Touch proved much easier to slot in and out.

Do the twist

According to DGA the two 35mm speakers have a combined power output of 15 watts. Be that as it may, they can certainly pump out a far amount of volume for something so small, especially if you turn it and your iPod all the way up to '11'.

As with all small travel speakers you have to moderate your sound quality expectations but, overall, the Livespeakr proved a pretty decent listen. Bass, while hardly what you would call thumping is nevertheless agreeably tight, punchy and well focused. Higher frequencies also came across without drama or distortion, even at higher volume levels.

Listening to the Four Tops we were impressed both by the clarity of Levi Stubb's vocals and the overall sense of balance and coherence the speakers gave to the Holland–Dozier–Holland production. Moving on to a period instrument performance of Mozart's Requiem and Nickelback's Dark Horse simply confirmed our initial opinion that the Livespeakr really is a rather fine sounding little box of tricks.

Where the Livespeakr really came into its own though, was when we watched a video on an iPod Touch. In this instance, the director's cut of Kingdom of Heaven. The sound was beautifully balanced with the dialogue never being overwhelmed by either the soundtrack or the general background noises of medieval mayhem and butchery. Performance was equally strong when playing back a recording of the BBC's dramatisation of The Lord of the Rings, everything sounding very crisp and articulate.

Landscape positioning – a boon for movie viewing

Since the Livespeakr draws its audio signal from your iPod/iPhone's headphone jack, you can still hook it up to your computer for synchronizing or to the mains for charging. The cradle cut outs allow easy access to the docks of the iPhone and iPod Touch we tested. Connecting a docking cable to an iPod Classic proved more problematic, but not impossible.

DGA reckons a fully charged Livespeakr will work for 16 hours. Ours gave up the ghost after 14 hours of solid use, which still struck us as reasonable. As well as a felt travel bag, the Livespeakr also comes bundled with a mains power/USB adapter.

Also available in white

Currently the Livespeakr is only available direct from the manufacturer in the USA for $85 (£53/€61) and the shipping costs will add a fair old bit to that. Luckily DGA tell us that the Livespeakr will soon be available from a UK distributor and that the target price will be around £50 – still not exactly cheap but, then, Apple products are not aimed at the penurious to begin with and we can see quite a few iPhone and iPod Touch owners thinking that the Livespeakr is worth the outlay.

Verdict

As a travel speaker for the iPhone or iPod the Livespeakr is certainly a clever and well thought out system. The sound quality is rather fine for a device of its type – especially when watching video – while the full shielding against radio frequency/GSM interference means your iPhone can be hooked up to it without resorting to flight mode. ®