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It is a maximum of 9cm wide in the centre and 5cm at the front while the back is only just over 3cm, it is 23cm tall and 28cm deep. As far as most iPod docks go they are light this one certainly isn’t down to its speakers.

It has no obvious controls when off, just a sleek slate grey object. Plug in the 1.8metre mains lead (yes mains lead not power adapter) and a volume indicator shows in small while lights up the front while a play pause touch control is on the front top edge.

Your iPod or iPhone goes into the dock towards the bottom of the front using the standard iPod connection, only when you look closely at this do you see a volume up and down control as part of the dock, very clever design.

Both the curved sides are just speaker grills in the same dark slate grey colour as the rest of the unit there are also two 1cm round extra grills one front and one back of the unit. Look at the rear for any of the other connections.

See also: iPod docking stations

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Just when you have a warm glow thinking this is nice and maybe it was worth the money as the quality of sound that you never knew your iPhone or iPod could give you then you think lets investigate the connections.

The eight pages in the ‘Get Started’ booklet have got you to here and while one of the illustrations showed the rear of the unit that was all, still there was a sheet marked ‘Get the app’ that allows you to create custom EQs. Ah now the manual still small but at 72 pages this must explain things, first problem its multi language with only the first 12 pages in English and covers ‘Important Safety Instructions’ and ‘Warranty Instructions’ but no manual so how can they call it a USER MANUAL.

So with only the supplied leads and remote control the information on the outside of the box and common sense I will try to tell you what the connections do.

First there is a mini USB to USB lead, the already mentioned eight button remote that uses a circular clock type battery and two 3.5mm to 3.5mm leads.

Just below the rear 1cm circular speaker grill is a Bluetooth button and an LED below that. This is you can ‘speaker phone’ your iPhone calls through the unit. Further down is a USB button and below that near the base where the mains lead enters are two 3.5mm jack sockets one marked with a microphone symbol and also a hard on/off switch.

While this is not designed to be picked up while working I certainly did to check certain items and found myself inadvertently touching the play/pause button on the top front edge and on occasions the volume control on the base of the iPod dock.

Sound quality is excellent and while I have only an iPod I have no doubt the ‘conference call’ option with an iPhone will work. The stated speaker specifications are two four inch woofers, two .75inch tweeters, four discrete amplifiers, active crossovers with bi-amplification. It has Bluetooth (A2DP) and of course is a USB2 product.

Apart from the price, is the ‘User Manual’ or really lack of one as the downsides and if they get warranty claims for items being wrongly connected they only have themselves to blame for not providing information on the sockets.

The Audyssey Audio Dock South of Market Edition is available from the link below for £349.99

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B004GJXLP2?ie=UTF8&tag=gadge0a-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634

http://www.audyssey.com/products/southofmarket