Kanto SYD5GRN Speaker System for iPod (Kelly Green)

• iPod Universal Dock: Charge your iPod while it's playing and control the SYD 5 from across the room with sleek remote control unit.
• Video output: If you have music videos on your iPod you can play them onto your big flat panel TV while you listen to the "uncommonly robust sound" on your SYD 5.
• Hand crafted wood cabinet: The SYD 5 design utilizes a acoustically designed wood cabinet, delivering a unique, rich finish with superior sound.
• Volume Control: One particular feature that everyone comments about is the additional manual volume control on the back. Sometimes the simplest things just work so why change them.
• Audio Specifications: Frequency Response: 45Hz-20KHz, S/N Ratio: >90dB (typical, A-weighted), 80 real watts power, Low Drivers: 2x20 watts RMS 8 ohms @1% THD+N, Full-range Drivers: 2x20 watts RMS 8 ohms @1% THD+N, Bass reflex port enhances bass response

My wife likes to listen to music in her studio, but didn't want something too obtrusive. Her studio can get noisy (glass lampwork) so she needed something with some power, but still able to faithfully reproduce sound quality, especially during quiet times. I bought her the Kanto Syd-5 for Christmas and she LOVES it. The cabinet is beautiful and if there's not an iPod docked on top, you don't notice it on the bookshelf it rests on. I read that the cabinet is made with the same finish they use for high-end pianos, and I believe it.

PROS: Super sound quality, plenty of bass, and plenty of power if you want to crank it up. I tried hooking it up to a 32" LCD TV via the S-video, and while it wasn't HD, it was pretty good. You could pair it with a flat screen and maybe a DVD player and have a pretty decent home theater. The remote is OK and lets you adjust treble/mid-range/bass.

CONS: Not many, but this is one heavy unit (25+ lbs). You won't want to move it around too much. We have the black finish, and while it's beautiful, fingerprints and dust are noticable.

As far as pricing, the Syd-5 was in the $4-500 range when it came out, but I got it for $250. I've heard the Bose Sounddock (both models), and the Syd-5 outperforms them easily for a (lot)less money. If you don't need portability and if looks and price/performance are important, then you can't do better than the Kanto Syd-5

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UPDATE: After owning and using this unit for over a month, I'm ready to bump my rating from 4 to 5 stars. The sound quality is more than enough to offset the shortcoming in the controls.

This isn't your usual iPod dock with tiny speakers! This baby can really put out the sound. As the product descrition states, "Maclife magazine announces the Kanto SYD 5 as a winner in its 'gear of the year' awards." And, this is the only iPod dock to earn such an award this year.

This unit gathered immediate attention as soon as I pulled it out of the box. My 17-yr old son was extremely interested, as you might imagine, and he even wondered where it would be living at our place, since his older brother took the iPod dock with him when he went away to college. My wife even took notice, and she seldom pays much attention to technology that shows up at our place.

We have had this unit for about a week now, and we are extremely impressed by its sound quality! It has two 3" full-range speakers and a 5.25" woofer. These speakers are housed in an attractive white housing and fabric-covered front panel that is held in place by magnets. The back panel has bass reflex ports. That front panel is easily removed to expose the speakers, and is easily replaced. The unit also has a wide variety of dock adapters for every type of iPod, from first generation Nanos through iTouch and iPhone units, and it charges them too.

The Kanto can fill an entire room with sound. As I mentioned above, it provides better sound than any iPod dock I've ever heard, and it even provides better sound than just about any portable stereo I've heard. Of course, this is not going to be able to go head to head with a full-blown component stereo, but it does, in fact serve as our main sound system. I think this would be a fantastic sound system for an apartment or other housing option where space is at a premium. It has a footprint larger than most iPod docks at 22" x 8". Still it will fit nicely in most shelves.

The rear panel provides multiple options for audio input including the following: a standard 4-pin S-video input, and an auxilliary input and 3.5 mm to RCA audio input for non-iPod MP3 player connection. The back also houses the power on-off toggle switch and volume knob.

I give the unit 5 stars for sound quality and 5 stars for overall design and appearance.

In my opinion the main weakness with this unit is the controls. Here is why I rate the controls at only about 3 stars. The only controls you can access without the remote are the one-off toggle switch and volume knob, which are both on the back of the unit. As such, these aren't especially convenient to manipulate. All other controls are manipulated via the small remote control unit that comes in the box. If you lose the remote or it gets broken, your ability to manipulate some of the controls for this unit will be lost.

The remote allows you to do the following:

change the volume (remote or by hand)

increase or decrease the bass (remote only)

increase or decrease the treble (remote only)

mute the sound (remote only)

change the input selection (remote only, as far as I can tell)

and manipulate an iPod that is seated on the dock (remote or by hand all functions)

iPod manipulation is complete via the remote. You can turn on the iPod's backlight so you can see the screen, rewind or go to the previous selection, fast forward ro go to the next selection, change the shuffle status, manipulate the iPod menus, and it even has an option that does the same thing as the iPod's wheel. But, the remote is the only way that these controls can be accessed (of course you can always use the wheel on the iPod directly).

Surprisingly there is no power on/off button on the remote a large oversight in my opinion. So, when you are done listening and you want to turn the unit off you have to go over to it and reach around to the back and turn it off.

All in all we are extremely pleased with this unit and it's seen lots of service at our place already. I think that it may find its best niche as a primary sound system for a small apartment, but it will be sure to find a place in any home.

Worried about the price tag? Yes, it is up there. At $300+ it is a pricy unit, but I think the price is worth it for the sound.

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I listened to many similar products. This and the Bose top the list. Sound quality is excellent for both. The Kanto edges out the Bose based on the additional connection options (such as hooking this up to your TV).

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The Kanto Syd5 speaker system for the ipod is an amazing sounding speaker system. Measuring 22" x 8" x 8" (approx) and weighing at least 20+ lbs., you will need to devote a chunk of shelf space for this product. I have used it with an ipod nano as well as a 30GB ipod video and an iphone. The ipods mounts on the top of the speaker system. Various plastic adapters come with the system that allow you to adjust the connector port to your specific ipod for a snug, secure fit.

The front of the system comes with a cloth speaker cover that attaches magnetically to prevent dust and debris from getting into the speakers. You can leave the cover off, if desired.

The overall external construction is plastic and leaves a few things to be desired.

Pluses:

-Dynamic range for treble and bass with an automatic reset to neutral using the remote

-Easy to set up (a few simple connections with cables)

-Attaches via an S-video cable to the TV to play videos on our HD TV; looks and sounds great

-Volume range is outstanding

-Built-in sub-woofer really pulverizes the ole' kidney stones

-Remote control feature allows you to access the menu on your ipod directly and scroll through your selections and sound and playback options

-Charges your ipod while it plays

Minuses:

-Heavy, heavy, heavy; big, big, big

-Shiny plastic case scratches very easily, even with the greatest of care.

-Since we use different ipods, we have not installed the various plastic adapters to hold each of the different ipods in place. It is oddly difficult to then connect the ipod onto the top of the speaker without them.

-The remote control is slightly thicker than a credit card and is very cheaply made. It also is very easy to misplace!

-Without the remote, you can do very little. This is probably my biggest complaint about the system. Currently, my husband has misplaced the remote somewhere and now the only thing we can do is adjust the volume through the volume control on the back. Without the remote, you are pretty much stuck with manually going up to the speaker and selecting songs. However, any control over the different output features (bass/treble, etc.) is now gone. All we can do is adjust volume, which is disappointing. I would have preferred more controls on the speakers itself.

Overall, this is one of the best speaker systems I have heard for the ipod. Minus the remote, which is cheaply made, easily misplaced and absolutely essential, the price you pay for the speakers is worth every penny. Be prepared to devote space for this item, as it is too heavy to move around easily once it is moved into place.

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First of all, I love this thing, but I need to start my review by making sure that you understand just how large this speaker system is: 22 x 8 x 7.2 inches ; 22 pounds. When I first ordered this, I was kind of fooled by the picture, it looks much smaller for some reason... and then a gigantic box arrived at my door. I'm sure I'm not the only one who thought that, because I showed my friend the product page and she said, "oh, that little speaker is what you got?" So maybe they need a picture of it on an entertainment center or something, so you can get a sense of the size. Anyway, it's quite large, but I love that about it now.

Although it's primary purpose appears to be for your IPod, and it comes with many different mounts, so that it can fit any kind of ipod under the sun, it became clear to me relatively quickly, that a speaker this fantastic would have to become the crowning glory of my living room. You can have three different things hooked up to the speakers at any given time, so I keep my TV, Ipod, and a jack for my computer always ready. And conveniently, the remote has a handy "input select" so that you can easy switch between those 3 options. About the Ipod... you can use any MP3 player, as long as it has a jack, which as far as I'm aware, they all do. The only caveat would be that you couldn't use the remote to control the mp3 player.

I'm no expert, but the sound on this speaker is awesome! It gets really loud, the bass, everything, just sounds great! My step father is an engineer with Bose, and he's very loyal to them, and a man of few words, but I asked his opinion of the speaker and he did say that it was a very good speaker ; ) So as far as an expert opinion, that's all that I can personally offer you. The only problem that I have with the speakers, is that I think the remote is kind of chintzy. I would think that for a product this expensive, that they could have put a little bit more effort into the remote, or at least somehow made the speakers compatible with a universal remote. It's the exact same kind of remote that comes with $50 (or less) electronics. Maybe even sell a better remote on their website?

Overall though, I highly recommend these speakers. The fact that they're compatible with an Ipod is probably the least impressive thing about them; at least to me. In my house, they're my all around, go to speakers, and I just can't get enough!