Digital radios come in all shapes and sizes but few are as cool as Pure
Digital's Special Edition Evoke-1 XT. It's teamed up with amp-maker Marshall to
create the trendiest DAB this side of Rocksville.
As far as features go, it's 90 per cent identical to the
Evoke-1
XT. That means a kitchen timer, alarm, six presets and a screen that shows
station information and other scrolling text attached to DAB broadcasts.
The differences are, most notably, design – it's a miniature replica of a
Marshall
amplifier, replete with gold plating and rotary dials – and the red on black
LCD screen. And yes, Spinal Tap fans, the volume does indeed go up to eleven.
For its stature, sound quality is very good. A bass port on the bottom adds
extra thump and the 3in speaker doesn't suffer from nasty vibrations and creates
a warm, rich and balanced tone.
On the back is a headphone socket, a 3.5mm output for hooking the Evoke-1 XT
to a bigger sound system and a USB port for downloading firmware updates from a
computer's internet connection. There's also a socket for connecting an
additional
XT-1
Speaker that costs £30 but, unfortunately, is finished in a gloss black
rather than the Marshall's leather trim.
Pure
Digital's Special Edition DAB radio is £10 more than the normal Evoke-1 XT
and well worth it for the looks. However, if you can bear its other-worldly
design, Pure Digital's
Bug Too costs exactly
the same but has an EPG, records radio and play mp3s; far better value for the
modern radio buff.
Also consider
Pure Digital Bug Too
The successor to the Digital Bug has landed
Gizoo DAB
USB Digital Receiver
Given availability of a strong signal, the DAB USB Digital Receiver is a decent
computer add on
Terratec Noxon
iRadio
An internet radio that will also wirelessly stream music from a PC
All
digital radio reviews
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