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[6233638]

Jim, why is it that you are recommending wireless speakers for the id?
If the speaker is wireless, you can just play to it directly from the server or control device, the id is redundant.
 
 
If I recall correctly, with the SRS-X7 you lost full DSP control when using an analog input too.
But again, I cannot recommend the X7 at all.
 
Its DLNA capabilities do not work correctly with Media Center.
Various functions either don't work correctly via Media Center (i.e. seeking) or via the device. (track selection)
 
The battery life is only rated for three hours when using DLNA or AirPlay.
When you're running it off the battery rather than via the mains adapter, there is some sort of dynamic volume control to keep the power consumption down, which results in the volume noticeably fluctuating when the speaker is playing at louder volumes.

I'm not sure that I still have my measurements, but the frequency response was basically an upwards line that was 20dB from about 100Hz to 10kHz, and then there was no high frequency response at all. I checked my equipment against a couple of other devices too, as it seemed so bad, but the measurements seemed to be correct.

Admittedly, it did sound better than it measured when playing some tracks, but then I compared it to our old Aiwa "hifi" system which cost less than this did, but came with proper bookshelf speakers, and there was no comparison. The old Aiwa system (probably 20 years old at this point) sounded significantly better.

And the sound from the X7 is basically mono. The DSP functions to expand the sound field work with some tracks and completely destroy the sound for others.
I'm a bit of a Sony fan, and as far as I know it's still the only portable speaker with DLNA/AirPlay built in, so I really wanted to like it, but I don't know that I'd have been happy with it at half the price.

It's basically the opposite experience I had when buying a Logitech UE Mini Boom. I had very low expectations for that product, but it performs much better than you could possibly expect for something that size.


Unless you need portability, you're much better off with active speakers or bookshelf speakers with a small amp.
You can either save some money, or get much better sound for the same price.

And if you do want a portable speaker, I'd look for something other than the Sony models.

[JimH]

I'm not recommending anything.  I'm just trying speakers and using the forum to keep notes.

I used it wired to an Id to check sound quality.  I also tested it with DLNA.

I moved this from the original thread.  In that thread, I'm looking for reasonably priced, smaller speakers that might be suitable for listening in secondary locations like a kitchen or study.

[6233638]

Sorry, I misinterpreted things. I thought you were recommending products to go with the id.
Still, if you don't require portability, I think you are much better off with a pair of small active monitors or bookshelf speakers.

[JimH]

Sorry, I misinterpreted things. I thought you were recommending products to go with the id.
Still, if you don't require portability, I think you are much better off with a pair of small active monitors or bookshelf speakers.

A perfectly valid point of view.  In some locations, like my garage, I'd be happy with a single speaker.

[JimH]

The SRS-X7 battery lasted about 3 1/2 hours for me.

[6233638]

Am I right in thinking that you were using the network features at the time?
I don't know about the US, but when I bought a couple of them here it was clearly labelled as being "6 hours" for the battery life, with the small print saying that only applied to Bluetooth playback, and it would be halved when using the other functions.

When you consider that the similarly priced/specced units from Jawbone/Bose (Big Jambox/Soundlink III) offer ~15 hours battery life via Bluetooth, six hours really doesn't cut it in my opinion.

And the battery is a non-replaceable li-ion too, so in a few years that ~3 hours (depending on volume) will be considerably less than it is now.

I don't know how how those other units sound relative to the X7, it's just that those three were the ones I was deciding between.
The main reason I chose the X7 was due to the networked features - I don't like the idea of having to tether a speaker to a device via Bluetooth rather than just connecting to the WiFi network that has full coverage in my home. But after using the device, I now see why others don't include that functionality.

The other reason I chose it was that all the drivers are forward-firing on the Sony, whereas the Jawbone/Bose units have rear-firing radiators. That's fine in open-air, but not if you're going to put it on a shelf.

If I had to pick one now, even though it's not meant to be the best sounding unit, it would probably be the Jawbone for the physical playback controls.
Having to keep a touchscreen device nearby as a remote, unlock it, then open JRemote, and finally be able to control it was a real nuisance when all I wanted to do was skip a track.

Ultimately, I decided that I didn't need the portability enough to compromise that much on sound quality, when I could just buy a pair of active monitors for a similar price that sound a whole lot better - though I haven't bought anything yet.

I'd still like to have something which is portable but I haven't yet found anything which I feel is worth the money.
Wanting to have physical playback controls on the device really limits your selection too.


Of course the X7 might meet your requirements, and if you're using it with the AC adapter connected most of the time anyway, the unit sounds better, and the battery life may be less of an issue.
I was just left extremely disappointed with it, considering that it's one of the more premium priced portable speakers.

[JimH]

Am I right in thinking that you were using the network features at the time?
I don't know about the US, but when I bought a couple of them here it was clearly labelled as being "6 hours" for the battery life, with the small print saying that only applied to Bluetooth playback, and it would be halved when using the other functions.

You're correct.  I was using it over the network wirelessly.

[Skeilio]

To those of you who are having issues with unit sleeping or power saving and not waking up
when using this unit for DLNA streaming the following has helped me greatly

Some assumptions will be made that one knows how to do VB Scripting if others could help them as I just registered here to help with this issue

Create a file KeepAlive.vbs
edit it
Place the following in it and Stop at the "Rem ======================"

Dim o
Dim t
Dim i
Dim c
i=0
WScript.Echo "Start"
t="http://10.254.1.69/1000/device_details.asp"
Set o = CreateObject("MSXML2.XMLHTTP")
Do While 1=1

   o.open "GET", t, False
   o.send
   i=i+1
   WScript.Echo i
   WScript.Echo o.responseText
   For c=60 to 0 Step -1
      WScript.Echo c
      WScript.Sleep 1000
   Next
Loop

Rem =============
Notes
10.254.1.69 would be changed to the ip address of the SRS=X7

c=60 Where 60 is the number of seconds before requesting more data from the speakers

WScript.Echo o.responseText  can be deleted if you dont want to see the response text

When done right click on the file and choose "Open with Command Prompt"
or make a shortcut to the file with the following in the Target line
cscript.exe Keepalive.vbs

You may be able to keep the speakers alive via any page or maybe invalid pages this is what worked for me
Hopefully this may inspire someone writing a real program for this : )  or add on a check mark for MC
Take Care