gamblin_man's Full Review: Kicker IK500 Powered iPod Speaker System
The other day a package came to my door. I had been expecting it. It was from SCC Grossman, a public relations firm, and I knew it contained an amplifier for my Apple Photo 30GB iPod. Upon opening the package I determined it was the iKicker from Stillwater Designs, the company out of Stillwater, Oklahoma that has made its name in upscale car stereo systems. I expected it to be big and rugged. I wasn’t disappointed.
Upon opening the box I was confronted with something that most reminded me of the ghetto boxes we saw growing out of teens' shoulders before the advent of the iPod. Its 9 pound weight holds it solidly on its four rubber feet as it spreads across 19 inches. It needs 8.5 inches of depth to acommodate it. It is also 8.5 inches high. It comes in flat black with its two 5 inch speakers visible through the black mesh grill. Its ¾ inch tweeters are also clearly seen. The square 6 inch passive subwoofer hides on the back under the slot for carrying it and above the connectors for the 22 volt power brick, an auxiliary input jack and stereo output jacks. The other end of the power brick mates to a cord that needs anywhere from 110 to 240 volts at 50 or 60 Hertz to operate. The plug is not polarized.
At the bottom center of the iKicker is a small shelf that will accommodate one of seven different adaptors to allow almost any iPod to work with it. After getting better light and a magnifying glass for my old eyes I found the one for the Photo 20/30 GB and installed it easily. Once the adaptor is in place the iPod is easily directed to the plug that mates it to the iKicker. Near the top is a nice size LCD panel and below that a knob.
I installed the iPod and plugged in the iKicker. A push of the knob and a surrounding blue light told me it was on. The LCD screen showed the volume was set to 10, out of a range of 0 to 40. The setting always returns to this number when turned off and back on, a minor annoyance maybe. Subsequent short pushes of the knob allowed setting of the treble boost, bass boost and selecting something hooked to the auxiliary input. Twisting the knob increased or decreased the volume or the boost (-10 to +10). Another slightly longer push turned the iKicker off. I quickly found that the iKicker charges the iPod when either on or off.
Here is a brief set of specs from the user manual:
Model: iK500
Speaker Design 2 - Way
Woofer Size, in (mm) 5 (127)
Tweeter Size, in (mm) 3/4 (20)
Tweeter Design Silk Dome
Passive Radiator Size, in (mm) 6 X 6 (152 X 152)
RMS Power, Watts @ 1% Total Harmonic Distortion 2 X 20
Effective Frequency Range, Hz 50 - 20k
Power Supply, Volts (Ampere) 22 (2.7)
Height, in (mm) 8.5 (216)
Width, in (mm) 19.2 (488)
Depth, in (mm) 8.4 (214)
Weight, lb (kg) 9.2 (4.2)
Next I played with the small remote that is powered by a button battery, included. Not only will the remote turn the iKicker on or off, mute it, and adjust the sound level, it will also fully control the functions of the iPod. You cannot control the tone with the remote, a little missed feature. I selected a song from the few thousand residing on my iPod, a folk song by the Smith Sisters, and let it roar. With 20 watts of power driving each channel it will roar. Bringing the volume level up to near maximum will overdrive the speakers. There is no dearth of sound pressure. I began to try other types of music. I found I liked the crisp sound and instrument separation of instrumentals better than those songs with vocals. With instrumentals the instruments could easily be distinguished. With vocals, however, that same frequency separation made it a little tinny, even after adjusting the treble and bass for best sound for the song.
I put an old Patsy Cline song on that was recorded live at the Grand Ol’ Opry. I was almost immediately reminded of when my Dad used to listen to the Opry on his Stromberg-Carlson radio with its huge 12 inch electromagnetic speaker. I switched the iPod to my Bose SoundDock and could immediately hear a clear difference. The sound was smoother and the frequencies more blended. Okay, it was time to do some comparisons.
The value of the remote goes to iKicker as the Bose remote only can skip tracks on the iPod, not fully control it. Comparison of looks is a matter of choice I guess. The Bose is sleeker and smaller, the iKicker more massive and in-your-face. You can drive the iKicker to higher volume levels than the Bose, but you get richer sound at low listening levels from the Bose. Even the totality of the sound is different and one or the other may better suit different tastes. I like the iKicker better for classical and the Bose better for vocal pieces. My honey likes the Bose better for both, but says the iKicker would be just fine if we didn’t have the Bose as an alternate. I like the ability to adjust the tone on the iKicker and really like the ability to fully control the iPod with the remote.
With a suggested list price of $299.00 the iKicker matches the price of the Bose although it looks like street prices may make the iKicker a little less expensive. Stereo separation is equally good on both. Looks are a matter of individual taste. Although I lean to the sleeker, smaller Bose, others like the styling of the iKicker best. I believe that overall the Bose still sounds better than the iKicker and generally prefer it for the type of music I mostly listen to. My recommendation is to try both and pick the one that suits you best. If the slightly lower price of the iKicker attracts you, I don’t believe you will be disappointed. It does carry a one year warranty through your local authorized dealer or sent directly to Stillwater Designs, freight prepaid. Unlike the Bose, however, there is no 30 day return privilege so be sure you want it before you take it home.
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I received this iKicker from Stillwater Designs without charge in return for an honest review. That review is above.
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