I am not a total audiophile, obsessed with gold cables and the sound supremacy of vinyl.
For me, there’s an obvious compromise: what you lose in audio quality is more than made up for by the fact that you can have a matchbox-sized device that carries your entire music library. But even a layman such as myself can appreciate the difference a high-quality valve amplifier can make.
So it’s great to see a traditional valve system that’s dedicated to the iPod. A few years ago, if you wanted a decent hi-fi system, you had to mess around with cables and inputs, not to mention the fact that most high-end hi-fi treated iPod connectivity as an afterthought. But the Fatman Carbon Trinity valve dock (£300, play.com) is tailored to the iPod in a brilliant mix of old and new.
The valves give it a wonderfully smooth, warm sound that I completely loved – so much so that I immediately went out and bought a subwoofer to go with it.
I’m into all kinds of music. Recently I’ve been listening to Stray Cats, Jojo Mayer, Led Zeppelin, The Cramps and Dave Brubeck. To give the Fatman a good workout, I listened to almost every conceivable genre – and it didn’t really come unstuck anywhere.
Occasionally, I wished it was a bit rougher round the edges – it’s a very civilised amp – and sometimes it could benefit from a bit more bite. But that’s not to say it lacks power. You can turn it up really loud and make the house shake, without much sound distortion.
The real beauty of the Fatman is simplicity. There’s no fiddling or faffing; just plug in the iPod and off you go. Nothing beats the fact that you can stick a party playlist in the dock and you’ve got nothing to worry about all night.
The real beauty of the Fatman Carbon Trinity valve dock is simplicity. Just plug in the iPod and off you go. You can stick a party playlist in the dock and you've got nothing to worry about all night
The real beauty of the Fatman Carbon Trinity valve dock is simplicity. Just plug in the iPod and off you go. You can stick a party playlist in the dock and you've got nothing to worry about all night
And you don’t even need to use the dock itself: I’ve got Apple’s Airplay set up at home, which means I can stream music through the house with little wireless substations, one of which I’ve plugged into the Fatman’s USB socket.
Airplay is absolutely marvellous when it works and profoundly frustrating when it doesn’t, which luckily is only once in a while.
Essentially, if like me your entire music collection has now been converted into digital form but you still want to squeeze top-quality sound out of it, one of these cool-looking docks is the ideal solution
For me, there’s an obvious compromise: what you lose in audio quality is more than made up for by the fact that you can have a matchbox-sized device that carries your entire music library. But even a layman such as myself can appreciate the difference a high-quality valve amplifier can make.
So it’s great to see a traditional valve system that’s dedicated to the iPod. A few years ago, if you wanted a decent hi-fi system, you had to mess around with cables and inputs, not to mention the fact that most high-end hi-fi treated iPod connectivity as an afterthought. But the Fatman Carbon Trinity valve dock (£300, play.com) is tailored to the iPod in a brilliant mix of old and new.
The valves give it a wonderfully smooth, warm sound that I completely loved – so much so that I immediately went out and bought a subwoofer to go with it.
I’m into all kinds of music. Recently I’ve been listening to Stray Cats, Jojo Mayer, Led Zeppelin, The Cramps and Dave Brubeck. To give the Fatman a good workout, I listened to almost every conceivable genre – and it didn’t really come unstuck anywhere.
Occasionally, I wished it was a bit rougher round the edges – it’s a very civilised amp – and sometimes it could benefit from a bit more bite. But that’s not to say it lacks power. You can turn it up really loud and make the house shake, without much sound distortion.
The real beauty of the Fatman is simplicity. There’s no fiddling or faffing; just plug in the iPod and off you go. Nothing beats the fact that you can stick a party playlist in the dock and you’ve got nothing to worry about all night.
The real beauty of the Fatman Carbon Trinity valve dock is simplicity. Just plug in the iPod and off you go. You can stick a party playlist in the dock and you've got nothing to worry about all night
The real beauty of the Fatman Carbon Trinity valve dock is simplicity. Just plug in the iPod and off you go. You can stick a party playlist in the dock and you've got nothing to worry about all night
And you don’t even need to use the dock itself: I’ve got Apple’s Airplay set up at home, which means I can stream music through the house with little wireless substations, one of which I’ve plugged into the Fatman’s USB socket.
Airplay is absolutely marvellous when it works and profoundly frustrating when it doesn’t, which luckily is only once in a while.
Essentially, if like me your entire music collection has now been converted into digital form but you still want to squeeze top-quality sound out of it, one of these cool-looking docks is the ideal solution
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