Customer Reviews

JBL On Stage Micro Portable Speaker Dock for iPod (Black)

5 star:		(67)
4 star:		(42)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(16)

 

 

[UPDATE: Suddenly the value appears to be with black and/or silver JBL Micros. In answer to a question, yes, the Micro comes with a small, compact power adapter. One caution: most iPod dock-speakers can be quite "fussy" about which iPod models they choose to charge and play or simply play and not charge. Check on the return policy of the product, especially if it's not coming directly from Amazon, and be sure to test it frequently and thoroughly for the first couple of weeks. It's not entirely clear what distinguishes the newer Micro II from this 2008 model, but I would assume that the newer model has been minimally tweaked to cover some newer players. Also, although Amazon's prices are among the most reasonable anywhere, some bargains can occasionally be found in warranteed refurb models through the JBL store (located on that "other" big site). Finally, in answer to the purists who find any discussion of speakers used to play MP3 files without merit, there are many degrees of compression in MP3 files, with 128 kbps by no means the "norm." Moreover, even at 128 kbps the differences in the quality of sound is often as dramatic as night and day among some of these little overachievers.]

Presently this JBL On Stage Micro is going for 60% below the price of any other color, making it a no-brainer pick-up among docking speakers normally selling on Amazon for $100 or slightly more. JBL is a stylish, quality brand manufactured by Harmon International--durable, dependable, crisp-sounding. Despite the sharply divided reviews, the sound quality of virtually all speakers in the $80-$150 range is the same, with minor variations subject to differences in taste. I've found popular rechargeable units such as those made by Altec and Logitech to be unstable--sometimes changing iPod models will throw them off completely, requiring a reset with no guarantee of a fix. The JBL Micro, on the other hand, can be depended upon to deliver with either its AC connection or AA non-recharging alkalines.

Best disregard low-end merchandise--iLuv, GPX, Colby, J-Win and, unless you're looking for a clock radio, iHome. The sound is best described as "plastic-like," clearly inferior to a monaural speaker such as that of a Tivoli, Sangean, or Boston Acoustics radio. If you want a substantially improved system, one that goes beyond merely "covering" the entire frequency range to "reproducing" the sounds of the actual instruments, think more in the $200-300 range and look for a Klipsch iGroove, Athena iVoice, or Bose Sound Dock (the drawback--they're not for portable, battery use).

[In response to some misleading reviews: the JBL Micro has proven one of the more durable systems in its price range, and it comes with exceptionally smart packaging (form-fitting, padded storage bag with places for the adapter, remote and cord), guaranteed to make a great impression even before it's been used. Finally, it indeed DOES have a volume control--the left button for softer; the right for louder. Bass is admittedly weaker than some models in this range, but treble is superior and power is ample. If you hear cabinet "rattling," back off on the volume of your source; if you get a loud "hum," simply do an off-on reset. And hang on to the tiny remote (or learn how to live without it). Harmon's answer to my question about a replacement is usually, "It's out of stock."

My wife got one for her iPod. The JBL interfaces perfectly with the iPod and right out of the box the sound was better than expected. Lots of presence for such tiny speakers. Here's a trick we found out: Don't place the JBL directly on a hard surface, such as a desk top. You get too much reflection of the treble, and weak bass. Just place it on something that's a little sound absorbent: upside down mousepad, placemat, etc. Just not too soft like a towel, it should have a fairly flat surface because the unit does rely on some reflectivity from the base. Anyway, it clears up the bass and softens the treble noticeably. Placed in that manner, this thing produces sound quality well beyond what's expected from such a small, inexpensive unit. A lot of great audio names have been bought out and now produce junk (Altec-Lansing, Fisher, etc) so it's great to see JBL is still designing superior products.

I have to admit that I was not expecting much when I ordered this. I wanted something that was portable , small and that would work well especially with audio books. Boy! Was I ever pleasantly surprised! This is a mighty mini sound system. It's eminently portable - I can keep in my bag for work or travel. An added nicety is a good ,soft, padded bag for that holds the system, my IPod (in a case) and small earplugs (not my Bose set!). I think it is a great value for the money and I happy to find a product that was better (rather than worse!) than expected.

I was slightly hesitant to buy this for my new iPod Touch after hearing some complaints. I didn't want to spend a lot of money but wanted the JBL quality that I love. I have a JBL Home Theater system that I can't get enough of so my expectations were high (plus I'm a picky person). I bought this primarily thinking I would use it in my home gym room. I like to blast my workout music and I've yet to find a pair of headphones I like to use for working out with my iPod. So a speaker system was the way to go. The requirements were that it had to: A. Sound good when the volume is way up; and B. Be able to blast over the noise of me running on a very loud treadmill. It worked great on both counts! I love the remote feature...I keep the remote on my treadmill and can use it to skip songs that I don't want to hear, etc. The bag that it comes with is great for hauling it around and protecting it. I would not hesitate to buy this if you have any doubts on it's quality or performance capabilities (particularly pertaining to it's use in conjunction with an iPod Touch).

This speaker has surprisingly good sound (for its size) for most songs. However for some songs, there is an annoying bass resonance that heavily distorts the sound.

For most Rock songs, it will be fine, but don't expect this to be good for classical, piano, or any other music that uses more of the spectrum. It will also sound bad for Rock songs that feature a bass guitar playing near the top of its range.

I like that JBL included the remote and a carrying case. It works great as an iPod dock. It sounds much better than my laptop's built in speakers.

I purchased this product without first doing enough research and am unfortunately returning it. When my current generation iTouch is docked there is garbled sound coming from the speakers due to interference from the charging mechanism.

After researching this I found out that IT HAS BEEN A KNOWN PROBLEM FOR A YEAR+.

Don't waste your time if you own an iTouch. Proceed with caution if you own something else.

I purchased this after doing some research on clock radios with iPod docks and decided that I would get more use out of the On Stage Micro because of the portability factor. Why not a 5-star rating? The sound isn't a full as I'd like it to be, but don't let that deter you! I've fiddled with the iPod EQ settings and it does indeed adjust the tonal quality, but let's face it - this is meant to be a background music unit, not something you'd want to use to crank out the tunes at a party. Doesn't JBL stand for "Just Big and Loud"? Whoops, nope - it's James B. Lansing, right? Sound is SO subjective - people hear and perceive sound differently, so let's leave it at that.

This unit can also run on batteries which is a great feature, however the battery cover is loose - I knew that going into the purchase from reading other reviews.

The remote, albeit small, is VERY handy and has good range - you don't have to be right on top of the unit to make adjustments.

I store my unit in a small Case Logic bag that was meant for a handful of CDs to protect it and keep the AC cord and the battery cover from getting separated. It would have been nice if they included a fitted protective case - I would have paid more probably.

Bottom line, if you just want to listen to your iPod as background and have flexibility - this is the unit. Enjoy!

This device does not come with a power cord - a fact that's absent from the product description. While running on AAAs is nice - having to spend another $10 on a power cord was an unpleasant surprise.

PROS:
-I was a little worried when buying a new iPod Touch 2G since firewire charging was disabled with this new generation as I had heard numerous other docks had lost their charging functionality-- thus I was quite surprised when I saw the charging icon when I docked my new touch! Since the iPod touch charges, I would assume the new 4G Nano will charge as well.
-Wonderful sound in such a small package. Comparing it to Logitech's mm50/Pure-fi portable system, the sound volume is not nearly as loud, but I actually think the Onstage Micro has sharper mids and highs (although it is lacking in bass). There is distortion at higher volumes but I never find a need to turn it up that high as the dock does reach a pretty high volume.
-The design is well suited for stereo separation while taking up minimal space. With a small footprint, I bring the speakers everywhere I go. I use the aux-in frequently to connect my laptop-- the speakers make portable movie watching a much better experience if you find your laptop speakers lacking.
-For an IR device, the included remote works very well. My dock is on a desk and it's really convenient to be able to switch to another song from my bed when my iPod is on shuffle. I've been able to control my iPod from roughly 20 feet so the range is pretty far in my opinion.

CONS:
-There is a small amount of buzz with the iPod touch not present when the speaker is running off batteries. I have found out that when the iPod touch is charging, the speakers will buzz depending on the quality of your power line. At my home, there is a tiny amount of buzz, but when I brought the dock to my friend's house, there is no buzz at all. YMMV as to whether or not you will notice it and whether its enough to bug you, but I will say that my new 2G iPod touch has noticeably less interference when charging than my old 1G iPod touch.
-Requires 4AAA batteries and cannot charge rechargeable batteries. I haven't used up the batteries I first placed, so I don't know if the claimed 24 hours of battery life is true-- doesn't really matter for me since I keep my dock plugged in most of the time, but for those who use
it frequently on travel, it may be a nuisance to carry around the power brick (which isn't much larger than a pack of gum).
-I'm not sure if the USB out actually works for synchronization. I mainly bought the dock for use as a charger and a portable speaker. I tried once to connect it to a computer, but it didn't see anything connected to the USB port. Different iPods, however, will probably behave differently.

All in all, the JBL Onstage Micro is a wonderful choice for anyone looking for a potent portable system that charges the newer iPods. I'm very satisfied with this dock and bring it everywhere I go. At $99, it may be a bit pricey. I would wait till the price drops to around $50, or if you're lucky like me, you can find it on clearance somewhere for around $25-- even cheaper than Apple's own iPod charger.

The On Stage Micro is great for it's price point! I bought this before going on a month-long business trip to Europe. To date it has exceeded all expectations, both as speakers for my iPod and as external speakers for my laptop.

Pros: 1) This unit puts out very good sound for its size. It had no problem filling my hotel room. 2) It's size (6" dia x 1.5") travels very well. It is the perfect size to use as a base to make your iPod a travel alarm clock.
3) You can have both the iPod playing and have a laptop hooked to its mini-plug input at the same time and get sound from both. The remote works well, even with my iPod touch (Gen 2).

Cons: 1) Needs an EQ tweak. It's a bit heavy on the bass which can make the sounds muddy at times. 2) The speakers will begin to distort well before max volume is reached. I personally don't think louder is better if the speakers begin to sound poorly.