In an increasingly crowded market, manufacturers will do anything to give their iPod speaker system a unique selling point. In the i-Steroid 2's case, it's a vacuum tube amplifier built into the sub-woofer.
If the idea of an analogue amp in a system designed to play compressed digital music sounds barmy, you may be surprised to learn that the sound was noticeably less sterile than the audio produced by most iPod and computer speakers.
The i-Steroid comes in either black or white. The black version was, bizarrely, modelled on the least attractive iPod ever made - the U2 Special Edition. The black wooden casing of the speakers and sub-woofer was supplemented by red detailing on the speaker cones. There's even a mock red clickwheel on the sub, which doesn't rotate but has buttons at the top, bottom, left and right. Having the controls on the sub-woofer/amplifier is inconvenient, given that it sits on the floor. However, the i-Steroid does come with an infrared remote control.
It also includes an iPod dock with adaptors and cables for most iPods. There's also a remote control for the dock, so you can control your iPod from across the room.
It is simple to set up and the 50W RMS amp produces a rich and warm sound, contrasting greatly with every other system we've tested. There's plenty of bass, and it's not overpowering. The treble frequencies are good, but not as crisp as some systems.
We were impressed by the i-Steroid. There's no doubt that aesthetically it leaves much to be desired, but the quality of the sound it produces is excellent. And if £160 is more than you're comfortable paying, there's a 28W RMS version available for £130.
Author: Kenny Hemphill
Sonic Gear i-Steroid 2