Home > Consumer Reviews > Klipsch iGroove HG All-in-One iPod Shelf System

The most important aspect of any speaker system is the fidelity with which it reproduces one's music. As one would expect from a true Hi-Fi speaker manufacturer, the Klipsch iGroove HG does a very nice job of reproducing high quality sound in a relatively compact space. Everything from Strauss to the Crystal Method to Led Zeppelin has sounded near-flawless in my testing, with only mild distortion of bass at high volume levels. Realistically you can't expect a small speaker system to match the range of a large floor-standing speaker set, but compared to the competing Bose, Altec and JBL systems, the Klipsch does a better job of reproducing a wide range of music with crisp highs and rich lows.

The only gripe I have about this system is the remote. Aside from being a little flimsy, you cannot control the iPod's menu with it. You can jump forward and backward, pause and play and raise or lower the volume, as well as powering the unit on or off. Still it's not enough to warrant a switch to others systems IMO. You will not find a better compact iPod Speaker system, especially not one which is compatible with a wide range of iPods from newer and older generations. Highly recommended.

If there is one negative thing about the igroove, it's the fact that the volume resets to a default setting when the system is turned off. I like to play my music late at night and when first turning it on, it's set at a VERY high volume which can startle you if you're not prepared. Other than that, I see no other negatives with this system. I just replaced the stereo in my bedroom with this little wonder and the rack system is going into my gym. The igroove will not sound as good as a true stereo; however, it will replace any old boombox or the likes. Please don't expect this to sound like an entertainment center because it's far from it. These type of set-ups are designed for use in a small area like an office/bedroom, so please don't expect outstanding audiophile sound or you will be disappointed; however, for the size of the device, the sound is absolutely amazing.

I personally like the sound of this one over the Bose Soundock. The Klipsch has much better sounding highs as opposed to the Bose and it seems to have a cleaner, fuller sound. And for 33% less than the Bose, what are you waiting for?

WIRED (2006 holiday Test issue) gave it the Editor's pick in the genre of MP3 speakers (8 out of possible 10) although they did not test the slightly more expensive Bose Sound Dock. No video output port, but offers true reproduction over the entire audio spectrum.
To quote their review: "Wired: cool curved design, lush full bodied sound. Dock adapts to non iPod players, with remote. Tired: slight audible rattle on bassy tracks, as volume increases highs tend to dominate. shallow rear handle is difficult to grip securely, doesn't take batteries"
I personally have the Bose product, which is wonderful, but am buying the Klipsch as a gift for my son (more in my budget)

I bought an iGroove HG two days before heading out of town for a month-long business trip in which I would be working in a temporary office space. I had a table radio to which I had connected my iPod, but the radio reception at my regular office isn't very good due to location and I thought it would be a nuisance to carry all the wires and such with me on the trip (even though I drove my own car). I tried out a couple of different sets of iPod speakers at the store and bought the iGroove based on sound. Of course, I used my own iPod for the demo so as to have music I knew. The first track I played on the iGroove was the version of "Mustang Sally" from the soundtrack to the movie "The Commitments." I was at a big-box electronics store--thus, a generally noisy environment--but as soon as I turned on this song, several other customers and salesmen all came over to see what was playing. The sound, especially the bass, was that compelling. The other units I tried all sounded tinny by comparison. (Of course, any music recorded as an MP3 will sound like garbage regardless of the speakers; I use lossless encoding, and that may well have made a further impression on the other customers and the salesmen.)

After I came back from the trip, the iGroove took up residence in my office and I took the older radio home because I get better reception there. After living with the iGroove for almost a year, I can say that I'm still happy with it, and quite a few colleagues who have other iPod speaker setups have all said that they find the sound on this unit to be very impressive compared to theirs. I would not trade it for any of the cheaper units out there.

There are a couple of annoyances noted by other users that I will echo or flesh out:

(1) The unit powers down into standby mode if you leave it paused for too long. Saving energy is a good thing, but when you turn the unit back on, it returns to a default volume rather than the previous volume you had set. MAJOR ANNOYANCE because the default volume is fairly loud. It's definitely too loud for an office, and I always have to turn it down even though I have my own office with a door (i.e., I don't work in a cubicle). If you don't have your own office, or if you have a cubicle, the default volume will pose a problem. Other users have said it's hard to find an office-appropriate volume. I don't agree with that, but I do think the iGroove sounds better if played at a volume that would be too loud for cubicle-dwellers. This is the ONLY piece of audio equipment I've ever encountered that insists on resetting the volume every time you turn it off, and I find it extremely annoying.

(2) The remote control is EXTREMELY finicky. You have to point it "just so" or the unit won't respond to it. Pausing the iPod, say if the phone rings, is not necessarily a matter of pointing the remote and hitting pause. I find that I have to hit pause three or four times before it works. I've also found that sometimes it seems to misinterpret the remote signal--for example, yesterday I pressed the "volume up" button and, instead of adjusting the volume, it skipped to the next track. That's annoying. The solution for me, I suppose, is to lean over and operate the unit with its built-in controls (it's maybe three feet from my desk chair), but it's a requirement of maleness that you use the remote :-) If my iGroove were further away from my chair, the remote would really drive me berserk, and I would caution users who are considering this unit to pay careful attention to where you intend to place it. If you won't have a perfect line-of-sight to the remote sensor (which APPEARS to be just to the right of the iPod behind the speaker grille), you probably shouldn't consider this unit because you'll go nuts trying to operate it.

Point (2) about the remote also goes hand-in-hand with point (1) about the volume, of course, because you'll probably need to turn down the volume every time you turn on the unit.

For me, the sound quality is by far the most important consideration, which is why I give the iGroove four stars. If I were more concerned with convenience, I might have to give it two and a half stars because of the nuisance issues I mention above, but for me they're both comparatively minor.

Picture this:

36ft long, 22ft wide, 18ft ceilings. Brick, wood, and more wood.

On one end of this room sits my Klipsch, w/ entombed ipod, and on the other end is me, with remote in hand.

I press play. And then, very clearly, very succinctly, very deeply...

Vivaldi reminds me what Spring is, Beethoven shines on me with moonlight, Jeremy bites off a mouthful of [...], and Isaac Hayes shares some wisdom on getting the jelly out your spine.

It's amazing, and, until you hear it for yourself, pretty unbelievable.

I used to own the Bose ipod speakers; it was great, until they discovered gravity, and then it wasn't so great. After a little research, I bought the Klipsch as a replacement, primarily because they were $100 cheaper, and had great reviews. This was one of the few/only times that my hereditary cheapness has done me right, and I couldn't be more pleased.

And yes, they do sound better than the Bose (better low range).

The bottom line: Skip the Bose, and please your wallet and your senses with Klipsch.