Bose SoundDock III with Lightning Support Shipping Later This Month for $250

Bose sound quality

While I have never owned any Bose products myself, I have listened to several friends and family members. Wave radios, those all in one home theater systems, even 901s. They all sound very gimmicky to me and not pleasing at all to my ears. I also sat through a demo at a Chicago Bose store (to get out of the frigid weather for a few minutes) and the system didn't even sound good there. I can't believe that people buy into their marketing scams. While I have a decent system, even low end mass marketed speaker sound much better than any Bose product I've ever listened to.

Blog Warfare

Companies that make great products don't need to hire product bashers to go out and bash the competition. That is because their products bash the competition "straight up".

It is the companies that feel threatened by more successful ones who actually hire online "attack dogs" who get paid to wreak hate and down vote companies like Apple, Bose, and others.

If you can't beat em, slander them.

A friend of mine worked for a large local tech company as a "cyber hit man". His job was to attack, bash, slander, and try and sway public opinion against any company that was perceived as a "threat". He got paid based on "output" with article responses paying the most and thumbs up/down paying very little (but he could do a LOT of those in a sitting). This type of corporate warfare is vicious, cut-throat, and very prevalent.

He told me that defending his companies products was not considered important as consumers naturally tend to defend the products they buy/like "for free". He was told that marketing department did studies that proved that being offensive is MUCH more effective than being defensive from both a cost and impact POV.

Anyway, if you see someone on the offensive writing post after post, keep this in mind.

Dock Speaker

gotluck said:

So I see all this Bose hate...

Can anyone recommend a dock/speakers set?
I'm looking for one for my dad who is still using the 30pin connector. Something nice.

Airplay is probably a no go, it needs to be VERY simple. An aux input would be nice.

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I think the big Beats by Dre Beatbox dock actually sounds amazing good, can play loud, and is fairly cheap. The build quality is a bit dodgy though from what I've read.

The B&W Zeppelin sounds better than any of the Bose docks, but it's spendy.

Bose does make one dock that I'm impressed with, their SoundLink Bluetooth Mobile dock. Sounds good for its size, has a built in rechargeable battery, looks great and seems well-made. I think the rest of their docks are hopelessly overpriced and the sound quality is mediocre at best. I have an old Cambridge Soundworks clock radio that sounds better than all but the most expensive Bose docks.

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SeattleMoose said:

Anyway, if you see someone on the offensive writing post after post, keep this in mind.

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Nobody has ever had to pay me to bash Bose - I've always thought their stuff was severely overpriced junk. I'll gladly bash it for free!

The 901's were their big early claim to fame, and even when they debuted they were an enormous joke. Lotsa hype and marketing, very little sound for the money. Compare them to a similarly-priced pair of Magnepan's speakers, for example, if you want to compare them to something equally novel. The Maggies just demolish them. It's tragic.

Likewise, their giant Acoustic Wave music system didn't sound any better than my old Cambridge Soundworks clock radio, even though it was three times the price and four times the size. (The Bose could play a little louder though, provided the hollow plastic sound didn't drive you nuts...)

One thing I will credit Bose with - bringing subwoofers into the mainstream. But this was pure cost cutting on their part, seeking out the cheapest way to manufacture a speaker system that could sucker in the rubes. You get a little bass from the sub, some thin highs from the cubes, and not a lot of inbetween. Popular with the wives because they're so tiny, but they still sound like crap.

These look good .. I'd buy one for sure, if i didn't only use my iPad for music. The connivence of a remte control..

DakotaGuy said:

They are very intuitive to use and there are only a few settings. I mean they even tell you if you have it hooked up right or not. Yes sound matters, but user experience does as well.

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This sounds like the iOS design philosophy in a nutshell.

JAT said:

Well, if we are going to accuse each other of not reading, I'll point once again to my original post that said they appear to decode the on-disc codecs and then output their own version of surround. Which you've ignored all day. See, that means I understand that they "support" them. I'm asking what they DO with the audio. And the regulatory portion of the manual really doesn't say anything at all.

They were super-proud for years about how they refused to run Dolby. Now they do everything they can to avoid mentioning it

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I guess I don't understand what you are trying to say. Nothing is "DONE" with the audio. If it's a DD 5.1 feed then that is what is played. If it is a Dolby TrueHD feed then that is what is played. If it is a DTS feed then that is what is played.. Same with uncompressed PCM 5.1.

If I am playing a BD or DVD with either a DD track or a DTS and I switch back and forth I can hear the normal difference between the two mixes.

The only thing that Bose does not use is any sort of Dolby ProLogic. Back in the day they did not license Dolby tech and came up with their own VideoStage 5. It is still used for 2 channel material and works well.

unr1 said:

Can somebody explain me what the point of this product is?
The bluetooth speaker systems are superior to this.. no plugging in, the iPhone itself is the remote.

Why is this even on the market these days?

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You do realize the sound quality over Bluetooth compared to an actual wired connection is significantly worse, right?

So, to answer your question and the other 12 people who upvoted you:

1. First and foremost, sound quality
2. The ability to charge your device

Joe-Diver said:

When the Bose Bashers come in and talk about how sucky this product is, in order for their post to have any validity whatsoever:

1. Where did you buy this product?
2. How long have you been using it?
3. Besides your ears, did you use any fidelity measuring devices to compare with other products?
4. What other products did you directly compare it to? (side by side)
5. How much time each day do you use this product?

Without this information, or any direct experience really....any opinion on the product is worth less than the average Internet Opinion....which is generally worthless anyway.

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BOSE measures poorly (They never publish specs) and it's not a coincidence they specifically require their lifestyle systems to be a in a separate area.

Having said THAT... There is such a thing as informed people buying a BOSE product. It's just audio purists hate the idea of paying for a premium on a product that's technically inferior in it's accuracy. But that's not BOSE's calling card. It's ease of use and looking unobtrusive, and hey, it's got a nice clear 'sizzle' to the sound.

Audio purists are sometimes like atheists in a CNN comments section, they love to attack any post that says "sending thoughts and prayers to the victims of this tragedy." Their enthusiasm for their belief just gets the better of themselves.

But as Apple fans, I think we can appreciate zeal getting the better of ourselves.

For the record, I'm an atheist and an audio purist.

My opinions about Bose:

Their NC headphones are quite good - for cancelling noise. For audio quality, like the rest of Bose' products, are overpriced. Get BeyerDynamic, Grado, or Sennheiser instead.

Bose doesn't make crap. They make ok products. They just charge too much for them. Lots of Bose product owners like their products. They just don't realize they could have gotten something that sounds just as good for a lot less money.

Like your Wave™ radio? That's good. But a Tivoli radio sounds just as good, if not better. It also looks a lot nicer, and costs much less than a Wave™ radio.

Psychj0e said:

You pay attention, and answer the question I asked, not one you invented in your head. I asked for the name of a comparable/cheaper dock, not a summary of the thread.

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Ok, I see where you misunderstood. I meant you (anyone) have to pay close attention to each post, because every person is talking about a different product.

Sometimes what you think in your head doesn't translate well to typing. Sorry.

SeattleMoose said:

There is nothing like side by side comparison tests on the same source material when shopping for a stereo. When I was auditioning systems I had my iPod and several audio cable. After auditioning a half dozen systems in my target price range ($250) I chose the Bose SoundDock II. I have never looked back.

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People like Beats headphones too. It's all about taste and hearing ability.

P.S. All you Bose bashers are entitled to be....wrong.

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We're entitled to buy a better product for less money too, or a much better product for the same amount of money. Which we did.

DakotaGuy said:

I guess I don't understand what you are trying to say. Nothing is "DONE" with the audio.

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Good. Glad it works for you, and that they have at least partially joined the world.

kavika411 said:

I'm very interested in the boldes part. I readily admit I am uninformed on speakers and probably Bose's target audience. Anyway, as for the boldes part, I assume that's in reference to the Bose Lifestyle system (I think that's what it's called). So, what is the $300 equivalent? Very interested.

Or is it a secret?

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http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-HT-S3500-5-1-Channel-Theater-Receiver/dp/B0077V88V8

wharzhee said:

personally, if u can't afford them, dont whine abt it.

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Give me a break it's not about affordability, bose makes the most overpriced junks, it's a well known fact in the audio world. Goto any of the pro forums like avsforum and ask what people think about those $600 bose speakers, you will get laughed out of the website.

No problem charging high price for quality products, but bose is nothing more than a scam just like monster cables. The only good thing is their marketing and some of the travel headphones due to the portable design. But their speakers are a joke for the price.

They prey on ill informed consumers who are clueless about audio, and there are a lot of them especially the apple fans.

hayesk said:

Like your Wave™ radio? That's good. But a Tivoli radio sounds just as good, if not better. It also looks a lot nicer, and costs much less than a Wave™ radio.

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Just curious where the Tivoli radio is built? Is it a Made in the USA product like the Wave Radio/Music System or not? Not that it makes a big difference, but I thought maybe it was a USA product. It is getting hard to find them.

JAT said:

Ok, I see where you misunderstood. I meant you (anyone) have to pay close attention to each post, because every person is talking about a different product.

Sometimes what you think in your head doesn't translate well to typing. Sorry.

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Fair enough, easy enough misunderstanding.

DakotaGuy said:

Just curious where the Tivoli radio is built? Is it a Made in the USA product like the Wave Radio/Music System or not? Not that it makes a big difference, but I thought maybe it was a USA product. It is getting hard to find them.

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Could be in the states, I suppose. I have seen a few of them but never checked the back for the place of manufacturer. They are really nice radios, that are actually still ANALOG! It has that nice feel to the dials when you use them.