Fatman Carbon or B & W Zeppelin

[admin_exported]

Hi, I have been reading about the various options available for a iPod dock and speaker system, and have shortlisted the B&W and Fatman iTube carbon edition. I have not had the opportunity to hear either of them, but loved the sound of the iTube Fatman (chrome one). Just found it a little bit underpowered for me. Any advice from someone who has heard both would be really appreciated. I read that the Fatman carbon edition is more powerful than the regular version. Does it have enough power to rock a room? Any suggestions / comments on speakers? Are ther speakers that come in the package good? or any other suggestions on it? I was considering the Monitor Audio Bronze Series BR2. Most of my music is Classic Rock, incl Pink Floyd, Supertramp, Eric Clapton, Genesis, Peter Gabriel, Dire Straits, Police, etc. The B&W Zeppelin looks great, but again, any first hand reviews would be much appreciated. Really confused!!! Please help!!! Thanks Aun

 

[Clare Newsome]

Hi Aun,

Firstly the Fatman - the standard iTube Fatman (the Valve Dock) that you loved the sound of is our Award-winning iPod system. It actually has MORE power than the Carbon version - which is why the latter gained a four- rather than five-star rating: we think the original version is better value for money. Add some decent speakers - the BR2s would be an excellent choice; think also the Mordaunt-Short Avant 902is for a more party-animal sound - and you'd definintely have no problem with a room-filling sound.

Re the Zeppelin - we're currently testing it for our February issue (on sale January 10th - about the same time the B&W system hits the shops in the UK). Early impressions, as we said in our December-issue preview, are very favourable, and part of our testing will be putting it up against the Fatman (of course) to see how the two (quite different) systems compare.

 

[Anonymous]

Thank you for your very prompt reply Clare.

The standard iTube Fatman Valve Dock did sound great, (although a touch underpowered). I will certainly check out the Mordaunt-Short Avant 902is.

I will wait for your February issue before taking any decision. I live in Dubai, and since I am not in the UK, I doubt that I will have a chance to hear both systems first hand. Hopefully your magazine will be in in the newsstands here in Dubai not too much later than the UK. Depending on your review, I will proceed and place my order on what I expect to be the 'best iPod' dock / speaker system. If you have any other system that you would rate better, please let me know.

Once again Clare, thank you for your reply. Your advice was most useful, and saved me from making a mistake by ordering the iTube Carbon.

Regards,

Aun

 

[Anonymous]

Clare .. researcing the same. Looking on the Fat- man web site it would appear that the Carbon is 25w x 2 and the Fatamn Valve is 13 W x 2 .... is this not right?

I am not technical but on this i had assumed the carbon was more powerful! Am i wrong?

Thanks

Tom Bell

 

[Clare Newsome]

This quote from Fatman's PR:

"I have established there has been some misinformation from the Fatman design team. Basically, the Carbon Edition actually has a slightly lower output than the iTube Original - I understand this is as a result of housing all the components in a single box, and also down to using a different (apparently slightly quieter) transformer."

 

[Anonymous]

If you're getting both speakers and amp, the active speakers route such as dynaudio MC15 might be better value. There's also a smaller, cheaper version. You could later upgrade by getting a usb dac like the Beresford or Russ Andrews Dac. And even go home cinema by buying more active speakers, woohooo!

 

[Anonymous]

There is an alternative to the Fatman, the £250 Dared MP5, which is made by the same chinese manufacturers. I believe the differences are that it takes usb input, and has a headphone output, so it will double up as a pc headphone amp.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Aun,

Did you finally decide on the iTube Valve Dock, iTube Carbon, or the B&W Zeppelin? There is a possibility to test the iTube Valve Dock and the B&W Zeppelin at the Mall of Emirates - EON store (2nd floor Center Court) in Dubai. I'm also based in Dubai and am seriously considering to get the iTube Valve Dock. However, the prices here are almost double what you can get in US/UK.

Would be great if you have an idea where I can get the system for a more reasonable price...

Regards,
Juey