Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin Loudspeaker Dock System for iPod and MP3 Players (Silver/Black)

At an Apple store I compared the Zeppelin with Polk I-sonic 2, thinking I would buy the Zeppelin. A surprising disadvantage for the Zeppelin is that the sound quality (base, richness, "effect," etc.) can NOT be controlled on the device itself; it can only be controlled if the device you are attaching has software with the ability to change "equalizer" (EQ) settings.

Initially the demo iPod sounded notably inferior on the Zeppelin compared to the Polk I-sonic 2 (next to it, playing same song). After a long time wasted trying to get the answer from the Apple staff, we were finally able to get the settings fixed via demo iPod so sound was no longer thin.

While my Zen Vision M player does have internal EQ software, I did not have the right connectors with me to try it with the Zeppelin to see if the settings got the results that I would want. Since the Zeppelin seems overly focused on attaching to an iPod, if you plan to use an MP3 player with EQ settings, I would suggest testing it out to see if the results translate well for you.

In comparison, the Polk I-sonic has EQ settings built into the Polk unit. So anyone who values the choice of using a music player that does not feature its own EQ software (smaller MP3 players, CD players--maybe even the tiny iPods as I don't know how much software they have) should be aware of this disadvantage of the Zeppelin compared to other systems like the Polk I-sonic 2.

Since this discovery stopped my from buying the Zeppelin, I wanted to share this with others as it might save some customers disappointment or unnecessary frustration.

Thanks to the new iPhone 2.x Firmware, my previous systems, the Apple iHiFi and the Griffin amplifi do not work anymore. Not only is the cellular cross transmission bad also the charging has been disabled. Looking for a new system, I was able to test the B&W Zeppelin in the store and it did not only works perfect with teh iPhone, but it does not have the cellular signal issue (I have found out that B&W did not cut corners and used shielded wiring) and it still charges the iPhone. It's sound is crips and clear. If the iPhone EQ is used the "added bass" setting makes it sound to over the top. I can only highly recommend this system.

I just got my B&W speakers for a few days. First, from the design wise, this is without the best ipod compatible speaker you can find. The texture and quality is fully expressed once you open the box. The speaker was a lot heavier than I expected, indicating the amount of material used in this speaker. Leaving it on the shelf was just plan beautiful.
From sound quality wise, after three days of continuous playing, the speaker still needs warming up, but the sound quality has already surpassed most of the mid-small size speakers in the market. For jazz music or clear voice audio, this speaker delivers at its best. But if you're a rock fan, you might want to look for something like the Bose speakers, which has a thicker base. But I never was a big of a base fan, so...
If you're looking for ipod speaker that looks incredible and sounds great, this one is without doubt your top choice.

Superb sound for the size. Fills the room very well. The iPod dock is slightly mis-aligned on our unit.

This piece of kit is no more and no less than a superbly designed complement to Apple's superbly designed iPod.

Got mine this morning. Experienced the same unpacking delight as one enjoys with Apple products as a piece of wonderful industrial design is extracted from equally lovely and efficient packaging.

Set-up is similarly Apple-esque, i.e none required - just works right out of the box (of course you do have to plug it into a power socket!).

The sound is beyond belief wonderful, smooth, full, and clear at all volumes.

Technical note: I import all my music into iTunes using Apple Lossless Encoding. This occupies half the space of CD encoding (AIFF), so rather more than compressing codecs, but it is worth it. I have read that the iPod's DAC is truly excellent. Thus using a lossless encoding that is played back through a quality sound system such as the Zeppelin is going to give the listener a wonderful experience.

Worth every penny of its not so low price. A bargain, therefore.