Full Review
Features and Design Without a doubt, the spherical shape of the mStation Orb (better referred to as "the Orb") is unusual and certainly grabs attention. Though the design is unique, most of the features are standard fare for iPod docking speaker systems. On the top of the Orb is the iPod dock itself. mStation supplies the Orb with a total of six dock adapters for a multitude of iPod models, including the iPod nano and video iPods. Just below the iPod dock is the array of control buttons - power on/off, volume down, volume up, reverse track, forward track, play/pause. Just south of the control buttons is the egg-shaped infrared receiver that communicates with the remote control. On the back side of the Orb, near the very bottom, is a recessed bay where the power adapter, USB plug, optional Firewire cable and 1/8" line-in port are located. The relative positioning of the recessed bay camouflages it pretty well. Technical Stats Remote Control Bass and Treble FireWire
There are two stereo speakers and a single subwoofer. The two main speakers and the subwoofer push roughly 15watts each, though the peak power is listed as 50watts.
Frequency response is pretty good for a super compact, all-in-one system - 50Hz - 20kHz. The subwoofer ranges from 50Hz to 250Hz and the main speakers range from 250Hz to 20kHz.
The signal to noise ratio is >70dB (good, not great) and the total harmonic distortion is less than 0.5%. Neither of these stats are spectacular, but it's slightly above average for a system that costs $100 USD.
The IR-based remote control for the Orb is simple in design. It's also huge; easily double the size of remotes for other iPod speaker systems. I don't know why mStation would design a cool and unusual Orb speaker set and then throw in a mondo remote. I can only hope that their design team will read this and agree to shrink the remote by at least 50%.
mStation deserves a pat on the back for adding bass and treble controls on the remote. If an iPod EQ preset doesn't sound right to you (a common occurrence, for sure), you can further adjust the bass and/or treble to your liking. It's quick and easy. The only thing mStation needs to add to the remote is a way to bring bass and treble back to default/neutral levels with the single push of a button.
One of the most overlooked but appreciable features of the Orb is the FireWire port in the back bay. Unlike 99% of all modern iPod speaker systems, the Orb actually supports older FireWire-connecting iPods. If you're one of those cool reactionaries still using a 1st gen iPod, you'll undoubtedly appreciate the fact that you can hook that 5GB wonder up to a fun looking, good sounding speaker system.
The mStation Orb with adapters and remote control
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by J. Schneider on November 27, 2007:
“There's apparently no way to adjust the bass and treble settings without the remote. This is highly annoying when the mStation is brought on a trip without its remote, and the bass/treble is set incorrectly -- there's no way to fix it. ” More...