Thread: Ziisound d5

Evolution and innovation are two inseparable aspects of speaker technology. Ever since the transducer was conceived in the 19th century, it has gone through several mod i fications in shape, size, material and all possible points that one can think of. The latest trend is to explore the possibility of making wireless loudspeakers. Therc have been numerous efforts made by manufacturers, and the most popular one is transmitting audio through RF signal. But this particular technology has witnessed a lot of skepticism by audio enthusiasts because of the potential RF interference with other signal sources such as cordless phones, and its relatively low sound quality. Creative has tried to overcome this difficulty in their new range of ZiiSound speakers namely the moo, 0200 and the 05. These speakers use Bluetooth, a more reliable and an efficient media when it comes to aud io transfer.

The ZiiSound 05 is Creative's flagship compact speaker range that is based on Bluetooth audio. The two-speaker single unit design is basically a 4" square extruded to a length of approximately IT'. Most of the surface area is wrapped with an acoustically transparent fabric mesh covering the two full range speakers. The speakers have a smooth plastic stand that houses a touch sensitive connect button on the front and a touch sensitive volume slider on the top. The ends are capped in a polished gun-metal, giving the spcakers a bit more of a premium look and feel. A dock sits in the centre of the back panel with a power button, aux input, and AC input. Also, it has a bass port to provide the speakers with a bit of a low-end bump. Coming to the main aspect, the Bluetooth-it simply opens a lot of avenues for the 05 to perform in. With cross product capability, through the use of Bluetooth, there are quite a few devices you can use with the ZiiSound 05.



According to us, it will be very useful for laptops and desktops. It would be nice to skip the sound card since they are usually poor sounding, and get all of your PC audio out of the 05. At your desk, even eliminating one wire helps. However you could wire it through the aux-in and use it as a sound bar since it takes up very little space. Well, Creative sells a USB Bluetooth dongle for desktops and laptops, if you don't already have one. Another way would be to pair the 05 to a streaming device like the Logitech Squeezebox or even a music server. It might seem a little convoluted as there are a lot of devices involved in this but it all configures well with a little effort. The last and most convenient way is to use your phone to stream audio through Bluetooth.

Here, we would like to lay emphasis on the fact that even Bluetooth is not the best solution for wireless audio as it faces limitations such as distance of use, but it is certainly the best option for now. The 05 looks promising and you can expect a review in our forthcoming issue.