Its not very often that I get excited about a iPod-Dock/Ghetto-blaster but when I was told that there was going to be a replacement to the already successful Sony G-Tank I just knew this was going to be good!
And what Sony has put together is on a complete new level compared to the G-Tank, the Sony RDHGTK33IP was everything I expected it to be and even more!
The first thing that I did when the Sony RDHGTK33IP arrived was try out the iPhone/iPod dock, the iPod-Dock has a support arm that lowers on-top of your iPod/iPhone to stop it shaking and falling out of the dock. This feature is brilliant and I wish more iPod-Dock’s featured this as even at high volumes my iPhone wasn’t going anywhere!
The sound quality of the RDHGTK33IP is just beautiful out of the box and as the hours went by and the speaker wore-in it just got better! All up I spent a good twenty hours listening to music using the various Pre-Set EQ’s but it stayed on either the Rock or Hip-Hop settings most of the time, with the eight Pre-Set EQ’s (ROCK/REGUETON/TECHNO/HIP-HOP/JAZZ/POP/SERTANEJO/FLAT) and a Bass-Boost I am sure there is a setting to suit all!
At low volumes it had a nice crisp sound to it and even at higher levels it didn’t distort, it could even comfortably fill my whole house with music when turned up in my lounge which I think is very impressive for a iPod-Dock!
The design of the RDHGTK33IP is very robust and tough looking but also very appealing to the eyes at the same time, with the ability to be laid down like a normal Ghetto-blaster or to be stood up on end makes it very versatile to where it could be placed or stored. I found it didn’t look out of place laying down on a work bench, standing in a corner of a room or even standing next to my TV cabinet.
The display on the unit makes it easy to use and was very direct to what it did while not being harsh on the eyes in any light. The Multi-coloured LED Speaker illumination is a very nice feature and has a lot more colours than the previous G-Tank model, my favourite setting for the LED’s is the Flash mode where it flashes white LED’s in time with the bass which my 9 month old daughter was mesmerised with and kept clapping and point at it!
Features:
AMPLIFIER
- Power Output (RMS) 420W
- Function iPod, Tuner (AM FM), USB, RCA Audio In
- Type D-CLASS Amplifier
- Audio Line IN/OUT (Analogue) 1
- Bass Boost Function
- Equalizer Function ROCK/REGUETON/TECHNO/HIP HOP/JAZZ/POP/SERTANEJO/FLAT
- Timer (Sleep/Play/Rec) Yes / Yes / –
- iPod Dock Yes
- USB Port Yes
- Dock for iPod/iPhone Yes/Yes
TUNER
- Station Preset (FM/AM) FM 20 / AM 10
SPEAKER
- System 2 way
- Tweeter Unit 6.6cm x 2
- Woofer Unit 20cmx2 (Black Paper Cone)
WEIGHT & DIMENSIONS
- Power Consumption (in Operation) 75W
- Main Unit Size (W x H x D) 76.85 x 32.3 x 38.5 mm
- Main Unit Weight 14.4 kg
Overall this has to be one of my favourite items Sony has made (That isn’t car stereo related) in a very long time! With the ability to play iPod/iPhone, USB, Radio and having a RCA input gives it versatility to be used in so many ways!
Its has a clock on it so you can set a timer for it to turn itself off or even to come on in the morning so you wake-up with your favourite Radio Station which I didn’t even expect the RDHGTK33IP to have, this might not seem like a big feature but I think its a feature a lot of iPod-Docks are missing.
I still can’t believe how loud this unit can go too! I demo’d it to many people last Saturday and everyone of them seemed very surprised with the volume it produced, this combined with its very affordable price and being packed with a massive amount of features makes for a very monumental iPod-Dock/Ghetto-blaster!
When compared to other iPod-Docks on the market the Sony RDHGTK33IP stands above all others in my opinion, being Louder, having more features and even looking better than its competition at a more affordable price in most cases too!
I want one!