Customer Reviews

Logitech Pure-Fi Elite High-Performance Stereo System for iPod (Black)

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

The Pure Fi Elite is the Audiostation from last year with a few minor tweaks and a major quality control issue addressed, mainly the horrible button controls from the Audiostation that didn't work in the first few batches of that earlier product. The Audiostation units got a terrible rep (especially at Best Buy) and many retailers stopped carrying the product and / or steeply discounted it. The revised Elite is therefore hardly a great surprise, but be reassured that the button issue is now fixed.

The Elite's main strength is as an Ipod dock system, and it does a credible job here. The twin 4" woofers and 1" tweeters do a nice job of producing clear and well-differentiated sound, and the 80 watt power of the system means it will be able to get loud enough for most users. There is no distortion even at high volumes, but there is also virtually no stereo separation. The stereo expander DSP does very little, but doesn't hurt anything either. The stereo expander in Altec's IM600 is a lot more effective at increasing the soundfield.

Speaking of comparisons, the $130 Elite sounds roughly similar to the Griffin Amplifi ($100). The Griffin has better bass, while the Elite offers better treble detail. These tendencies are directly related to driver design, with the Amplifi's 2.75" drivers muddying treble a bit but with it's 5" woofer giving better bass extension that the Elite's 4 inch drivers. The Elite has a lot of extra features though and can get a bit louder. It also charges your Ipod even when turned off, a feature which the Griffin lacks. Both units have minimal stereo separation effect, and the Amplifi has no stereo DSP, while the Elite has one that barely works at all.

The Bose Sound Dock ($300 list) generally sounds a bit louder and stronger in mid-tones than the Elite. The bass sounds roughly comparable, and the Elite gets the edge in treble. The SoundDock has much better perceptible stereo separation and the remote also works more reliably and at longer distances, though the Elite has many more feature. The Elite also has a huge price difference, at least in "real world" prices.

The Elite has many unique features. The remote has access to both shuffle mode and up to 6 playlists. It does not offer full Ipod menu control, but unless you have the eyes of an eagle, you probably can't see the Ipod screen details from more than six feet away anyway. The Elite has a sleep timer, a video pass through for most Ipods, an auxiliary input jack, and adjustable bass and treble level. The remote is adequate with access to most features, and a pretty good range, though it needs to be aimed precisely.

What does the Elite lack? The radio sadly is a miserable effort, really an afterthought. The tuner is grade D quality and can barely tune in even strong FM stations and I could not get any AM at all. (This in NYC, admittedly a tough interference environment, but this hardly explains the incredibly bad tuning performance.) Even when you can tune in a station, the reception is usually not clear with annoying hiss and static bursts. A $20 clock radio can tune in more stations. My own Panasonic clock radio can indeed tune in far more stations more clearly, as can my stereo receiver, my Tivoli PAL, and my Sangean table radio. The Elite's tuner is truly incompetent in comparison. As far as dock radio combos, the Altec IM600s tuner is far far better, and the two units go for roughly the same price.

Because of the lame tuning capability, the RDS feature is rendered useless. To get RDS info, you need to have a strong clear FM signal, and the choppy tuning of the FM tuner on the Elite meant that I could get no RDS info at all from the stations in the area that broadcast that program info. Scratch one special feature!

Finally, the presence of a clock and the absence of an alarm indicates feature stripping by Logitech to make sure that you need to spend extra money to get their separate overpriced Ipod clock radio. Not sticking a basic alarm function in a >$100 system which already has a clock is just pure cynical "product differentiation" of the most annoying sort.

Anyway, if you want a decent performance Ipod dock, the good detailed and amply loud sound of the Elite recommends it. The terrible radio tuner will frustrate and disappoint those who want a multi-function unit, and the lack of stereo separation in the sound is an expected though unfortunate deficit. This is definitely a better bargain than the Bose SoundDock, but the Amplifi is a tough competitor, especially since the radio function on the Elite is so poorly implemented. The Griffin has a somewhat less loud sound though richer bass, and is also about 20% cheaper. The Amplifi sounds better with rock and electronic music. The Elite is more stylish and has a few more useful features on the remote like Shuffle and Playlist and also sounds better with classical and acoustic music.

One caution though: the list for the Elite is in theory $300, and paying anywhere near that level would quickly evaporate any of the Elite's advantages. Get the Elite for $150 and you'll be happy, but pay $200 or more and you will probably be paying more than the system is worth, especially with the Griffin consistently selling at or near the $120 price point.

THE GOOD:

This product works with any kind of iPod. Logitech includes a set of adapters that snap on to the docking port. My mini works in it beautifully (although you do have to remove any clip attachments or covers you have on your iPod first).

Set up is pretty much idiot proof and takes about 5 minutes.

Includes a "sleep" function so that you can set it to go off when you want. Sadly, there is no alarm feature.

Light enough to carry from room to room if you want to.

All iPod functions work either through the iPod controls or with the remote, which is really clear and easy to use.

AM and FM radio antennas are included. You'll need a fairly strong station signal for them to work. I live in the hills so I can't get most stations, but at least 3 stations I like I can get, which is more than I can say for my regular stereo unless I add an antenna.

Display is clear and easy to read. Adjustable for brightness in both "on" and "off" settings, for 12 or 24 hour clock, iPod backlighting level and language. Displays RDS station and song info where available on FM stations.

You can adjust the treble and bass (see "the bad" for discussion of sound quality) and can turn on Logitech's propietary "StereoXL" feature which greatly improves the sound when you get more than a few feet away from the unit.

Can be used with an A/C power source or connected to your computer port.

Has video pass-through feature so that you can display photos/video on your t.v. if your iPod has these capabilities (mine doesn't, so can't say how good that feature is).

THE BAD:

The sound is about what you'd expect for a "bookshelf"-type stereo system. Not horrible, especially considering that the input is an iPod, but all the adjusting in the world can't keep it from sounding muddy. it would have been nice if there had been a midtone setting in addition to bass and treble. In other words, this won't replace your regular stereo system, but if you buy songs by download and have no other way to play those, or can't afford a full stereo system, or just need something to take to parties, the office or rooms that aren't hooked up, this is pretty sweet.

THE UGLY:

The smell! Has a nasty chemical/plastic odor that will give a headache to those senstive. Hopefully, this is going to fade pretty quickly. Otherwise this is going to be my outdoor stereo.

CONCLUSION:

Overall, I quite like this unit. It won't replace my CD collection just yet, but it's a nice addition to my bedroom, which doesn't have room for a stereo system and isn't wired up to run off my main stereo. This is great for playing podcasts before bed and definitely good for parties. Anyone can take turns loading in an iPod. Overall, a pretty darn good product if you need the kind of flexibility a player like this can give you. But it certainly isn't a replacement for a full stereo system or even a good set of computer speakers and iTunes or internet radio.

Right out of the box, you realize there's nothing flimsy about the Pure-Fi Elite. The unit is heavy relative to size. It's a sleek, solid black. The display pictures show it without the speaker covers. You don't see the woofer and tweeter when you're looking at the actual unit. The front of the base is at a 30 degree angle, which makes it easy to see the controls and the display screen. The display is large enough to see comfortably with either white on black or black on white, depending on your angle.

The Pure-Fi Elite is a docking station with some nice features and a few gaps. When the iPOD is in the docking station the base charges the iPOD. To hear your music, use the iPOD's menu to select the songs you want to hear and press play. The Pure-Fi Elite will turn on the iPOD, switch to iPOD input, and start playing music. Navigation buttons on the base or the remote control will let you move through your playlist. You can also make six of your playlists into presets. There is a video pass through feature to connect a video output jack (not included) from the back of the base to a TV to display photos or video from the iPOD, too.

The base has a Universal Dock and comes with nine separate adapters, so you can use it with 4th and 5th generation iPODS. There is a chart that shows you which adapter fits your model. If you have a 1st, 2nd or 3rd generation iPOD you'll need to use the aux input connector on the back of the base. (1st and 2nd generation do not have a dock connector. 3rd generation are not supported by the Universal Dock.)

The remote control uses two AA batteries (included). The remote is slim and fits into a holder that can be snapped onto the back of the docking station. I found it much easier to program this from the remote than from the control panel on the front of the unit. You can set the time with either a 12 or 24 hour clock. There is a sleep timer, but no clock/radio or clock/iPOD wake up feature. Radio and iPOD navigation is easy with the remote. You can also adjust the bass, treble, or Stereo XL for your own sound preferences.

The base has AM/FM radio, which is easy to navigate and external radio antennas are included. There are six presets each for AM and FM. If your FM station utilizes RDS, you can see the station's call letters and slogan as well as the dial number. With the external antennas in place, one or two FM stations came in beautifully. Other local FM stations didn't come in very well at all, although they sound fine on other radios around the house. None of the AM stations came in very well. The radio isn't the main attraction of this unit, but since it's included it would be nice if it picked up the stations better.

I played the Pure-Fi Elite at full volume and it did fill the room without sound distortion. At full volume on the Pure-Fi Elite doesn't seem as loud as it does on other units I've owned, although it beats ear buds hands down.

The unit comes with a power cord, power supply, and wall cord. It's an awkward arrangement that I've come to accept on laptops, but I was surprised to find it on a small stereo unit. The power supply seems unnecessarily large and heavy - it's only slightly smaller than a brick. I unplug devices when they aren't in use; when I plugged the base back into the wall outlet a day later, I found it had lost the time and other presets.

The Pure-Fi Elite would have been perfect if the radio came in better, if it also functioned as a clock/radio, or if it didn't lose the time and presets when unplugged. I think it's a three and a half star unit, but since we don't have the half star option, I'd round it up rather than down. Overall, this is a solid piece of equipment. It's easy to set up, and music from the iPOD fills the room with good sound.

Off the bat - I am an audiophile - and this unit delivers superb sound.
Since I am such a stickler for good sound, I did a LOT of research and finally narrowed it down to the Bose-sounddock and the Pure-Fi.

I was toying with shelling 3x more for the Bose-sounddock - which I must admit sounds superb as well - a friend of mine owns one ... I am very happy that I went with Logitech.

I also own a pair of Logitech Z-2300 speakers - and love Logitech quality when it comes to sound.
Now the Pure-Fi will not shake your floor like the Z-2300 does, but it packs a lot of punch and I mean a LOT. ( I love bass and this unit reproduces bass very well). It is heavy for its size and in speaker world that is usually very good.
For those who want to know - the power adapter is 110-230V compliant - which is a big plus for me since I travel a bit. I could not find that information anywhere online!
Only con I can think of is that the adapter is a brick - and I mean it! its quite big but that is not a big deal for me.

Pure-Fi vs Bose Sounddock - no-brainer the Pure-Fi wins hands down.
Sound - same
Remote - better (Love the playlist memory functionality)
Design - same ( I prefer the Pure-Fi)
Value for Money - NO brainer there!

I'm now two weeks into a very positive experience with the Logitech Pure-Fi Elite High Performance Speaker System. If you're of the age that remembers vinyl LPs and table sized stereo systems (not table top systems, but table sized) like me, you'll be blown away with the Logitech Pure-Fi Elite High Performance Speaker System's capacity to fill the room with rich sound! Using your iPod as the music source, the Pure-Fi Elite almost... almost... renders the multi-disk CD player obsolete. Play lists and genre lists give you all the flexibility that you need. But then, that's nothing new to the iPod owner, right?

Where my enthusiasm comes from is the fact that my Pure-Fi Elite System frees me from the curse of the ear buds. I like being able to listen to my music without tuning out the world around me, a situation that my wife appreciates as well. I considered the little speakers that can be added to an iPod, however I had yet to listen to any that provided adequate sound quality. That's where this system excels! The tonal quality is excellent in every room we've tried it, even outdoors (albeit with limited volume, a pleasing aspect to any neighbors). Yes, it's light enough and portable enough to move from room to room as you please. No, it's not truly portable in that it does not work off of batteries, so if you're a hard core mobility person you'll still need your ear buds or boom box. Once curious design quirk in that regard is the fact that the Logitech Pure-Fi Elite High Performance Speaker System has the type of power adapter usually seen with laptop PCs. I'm not sure why, and I'm sure that Logitech had a very good reason for using that, but maybe they can fix that with a future version.

A perfect player of this sort would feature a remote control that can completely duplicate the iPod's menu capability. Unfortunately the Logitech Pure-Fi Elite High Performance Speaker System isn't perfect in that sense. It's good, but not ideal. Selecting a play list is best done through the iPod itself, although you can assign your play lists to preset buttons on the remote. That just requires a little bit of effort in the setup.

The remote does however take care of the most important functions though; power, volume shuffle etc. It also controls the AM/FM radio that is built in to the unit, which provides excellent sound reproduction although not on par with the iPod (surprise... surprise).

Setup is so easy that it barely qualifies as a setup as far as I'm concerned. And getting back to the unit's semi-portability aspect, one of the nicest design features is the considerate use of a little extra plastic to provide a holder for the remote control. I appreciate little things like that!

First and foremost though, the sound quality is excellent within it's power limits. For party background music this will do fine. If you want to power a dance floor, hire a DJ with some more powerful equipment. But if you want to fill the common areas of your home with whatever music you like (in my case an eclectic collection of rock, folk, pop and classical), I would suggest that you'll be well satisfied with the Logitech Pure-Fi Elite High Performance Speaker System

I purchased my unit in July, 2008. Have had it approx. 1 month now w/ no regrets. Research-wise, I did the things shoppers typically do. Went to the major electronic stores, plugged my nano into the available offerings (of which there were quite a few), and was generally very disappointed in the less than desireable sounds (absence of decent bass and barely adequate treble) emanating from the units priced between $80 - $150. The Bose system was significantly better, but at $300 it had better be. I wrote off those other systems costing over $300, thinking there MUST be something that provides greater value for my dollars.

I spent several hours on-line sifting thru reviews (those here at Amazon, and at other reputable audio review sites). One item kept popping up w/ very positive reviews, the Pure-Fi Elite.

During my research it appeared that the reason this unit doesn't appear on the major electronic stores' shelves, may have had something to do w/ it's predecessor's issues w/ faulty control buttons. Issues that seemed to have been resolved w/ this model.

While normally reluctant to buy an electronic device w/out having test driven it first, the overwhelmingly positive reviews given at multiple sites led me to take a chance and go for it.

My findings:
*The bass produced by the 4" woofers is FAR better than those $150 units that I test drove at the stores. I find the bass to be comparable to that of the $300 Bose. And I do like the fact that you can easily adjust the treble and bass to your liking.

*Despite an earlier review referring to a "bad smell" when first removed from the box, I failed to notice any repugnant smell. Nor did my son (whose sense of smell falls just short of that of a bloodhound run out of the room crying foul.)

*The power block is relatively large (just short of being the size of a brick), but it doesn't weigh anything near what a brick weighs. The block sits in the middle of two relatively long cords that lead to the power source and the unit itself -- which allowed me to hide same behind a small piece of bedroom furniture, so I never notice it.

Set-up was easy, the remote works very well. I like the fact that the unit is relatively heavy as compared to the other units I tried out (offtimes the additional weight can be attributed to heavier magnets that make up the woofers -- a good thing). It more than adequately fills my 20x20 bedroom w/ non-distorted sound.

In short, I am very pleased w/ this unit. Performance and reliability has been great, and on a price/value scale, this unit definitely surpasses the others. Now if I can just keep my boys from borrowing this unit from me I'll be alright.

Does everything it is advertised to do and does most of it quite well. FM reception (always a problem within my house) is no better or worse than other devices that depend upon a wire as an antenna. Fills the room with good (3+ out of 5) quality sound. Looks good. Easy, intuitive controls. Adequate remote. Excellent value -- 85% of the sound for 50% of the cost of "the best." Overall, 4 of 5. Would recommend to fellow non-audiophiles who do appreciate value and more than adequate performance
Logitech 980-000127 Pure-Fi Elite High Performance Speaker System.

I did a lot of research before I bought this speaker set, and cnet rated it the best so I got it. Totally worth it. Adjustable bass and treble, brightness, serves as an alarm clock with songs choosable from an iPod. I also used the ayx slot to hook up the speakers to my computer, which is cool as well. Remote works great, cool glow in the dark orange at night. All and all a superb system

STAY AWAY FROM LOGITECH PRODUCTS! (Sorry about caps. I am, in fact, trying to depict yelling.)

While the Pure-Fi Elite offers decent sound, dealing with Logitech customer service has been atrocious. We has some issues with our unit and here's the following timeline that suggests some institutional problems with Logitech support.

1/8: request warantee replacement due to power on/off problems.
1/10: asked to send proof-of-purchase via fax. logitech fax # busy for 24 hrs straight (we tried redial. we are not exaggerating).
1/12: scanned proof of purchase. told replacement would be sent with delivery confirmation email when unit is sent.
1/19: no news of new unit. called support and told unit is on backorder, so wait 2 weeks.
2/6: called support and told Pure-Fi Elite is END OF LIFE, hence no replacement available. Representative offers to send Audiostation (prev. generation with acknowledged interface problems) as replacement. We ask for refund instead.
So, after a month of dealing with Logitech's tech support and getting empty promises and no updates without prodding, we request a refund instead. Let's see when that ever gets back to us.

We bought the Logitech Pure-Fi Elite for use on our back deck. It had high ratings for sound quality and we are very satisfied with what we have heard. We listen to a wide range of music and listening outdoors we don't expect concert hall sound. Even at low volume levels we have had no complaints.

The Pure-Fi Elite works well with both my video iPod and my wife's older classic iPod. The Pure-Fi Elite also had other features we were looking for -- AM/FM radio and a clock.

If I had any issues it would be with the remote control which has somewhat limited range, perhaps 8 feet, and requires direct line of sight to the unit. While the remote has only basic features for controlling the iPods, these features are sufficient for our use.

This is not meant to be a portable unit and the weight of the base unit is an indication of its quality construction. But we do need to move it inside when we are not using it. The base unit itself is okay, but the A/C power adapter is very large, about 1/2 the size of a brick and every bit as heavy. The included power cords from the base unit to the adapater and from the adapter to the outlet are long.

Also, in order to pick up any AM reception for baseball games (Go Cubs Go), we have to use the included external 'hoop' antenna. Without it we can't pick up even strong local stations. With the antenna, the reception is fine, but it is one more thing to carry and the long antenna wire can get tangled with the power cords.

All in all, we are very satisfied with our purchase. Sound quality is the most important feature and we are completely satisfied there.