Echo & Alexa Forums
General Category => Amazon Echo Discussion => Topic started by: leehop71 on March 31, 2016, 06:22:39 pm
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Haven't heard any reviews on this. Anyone?
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I got one today..... volume is great. I paired it with my iPhone. The music sounds great coming out of it. Pretty much on par with the Echo.
I really like the charging dock that came with it. I wasn't expecting that. You can grab it off the charger and go!
You can also charge the unit without the charging pad too.
Question.... Can you have the Tap remember more than one Wifi access point? I don't see how you can. It sure would be nice to be able to auto connect it to known Wifi points.
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I got one today..... volume is great. I paired it with my iPhone. The music sounds great coming out of it. Pretty much on par with the Echo.
So you don't hear a significant difference in sound quality between the Tap and the Echo?
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Regarding wifi...in the app it looks like you can save different wifi settings to Amazon...perhaps the unit will remember some locally...easy enough to try out I suppose between your home wifi and your phone hotspot or maybe local coffee shop?
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OK, been setting up a Tap and 2-Dots this evening, it's late, I should be in bed, but I told leehop I would let him know if it's OK to buy a Tap. It's a class act like the Echo was. It sounds very "pleasant", it probably can get as loud as an Echo. and it has a smoother sound compared to the Echo. It plays in stereo, I have just the music to test that out; even with round speakers.
I would not trade in my mini BT speaker for it, but I like it about the same as my BT speaker. It is no match, I am sure to the more expensive UE Boom 2 BT speaker, for sheer volume, boom and punch, but the Tap has so many more features than it, I think the better bang for buck award goes to Tap. My mini Jambox could have more punch than Tap as well, and I will check that out for sure tomorrow.
I asked Tap, Dot and Echo to say the Pledge of Allegiance, and the Tap sounded best, and warmer sounding. Alexa gets a voice makeover with the Tap. She sounds pretty bad on the Dot speakers, but great through the stereo via Dot. I'll save the Dot comment for that thread for now.
So, if I want a better BT speaker than I have, I would not recommend this for the BT speakers alone, but I do for all the other "Echo" features it has, along with its real good BT speakers.
More comments later, of course.
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Started playing with mine last night but haven't done a whole lot with it yet. I got it knowing I probably wouldn't use it much since I can't create a wifi hotspot from my cell but figured I might prefer carrying it vs my normal BT speaker. I only have cheapo BT speakers (never saw the point in paying a lot for those things), so this one sounds perfectly fine to me.
So far I like most everything about it - it sounds good for what it is and having the Alexa stuff built in when wifi is available is nice vs just a speaker. The only thing it doesn't seem to support (which I assumed it wouldn't) is using a wake word when charging. I kind of wish there was an option for it to work more like a standard Echo while on the charging station. Not the end of the world by any means, but it's an option I'd love to see added later (though I understand if they don't officially support that feature since it'd basically be a way of undercutting the standard Echo sales).
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Thanks for the reviews guys. As of right now, I think I will pass. I am considering another Dot, setting it up with the third option wake up as Echo. Even though the Echo can hear us from the family across to the living room where it is set up. We have to have a little more volume and make sure we speak clearly.
If I put a Dot in the family room, with the third wake up name, they would not be conflicting with each other.
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Started playing with mine last night but haven't done a whole lot with it yet. I got it knowing I probably wouldn't use it much since I can't create a wifi hotspot from my cell but figured I might prefer carrying it vs my normal BT speaker. I only have cheapo BT speakers (never saw the point in paying a lot for those things), so this one sounds perfectly fine to me.
So far I like most everything about it - it sounds good for what it is and having the Alexa stuff built in when wifi is available is nice vs just a speaker. The only thing it doesn't seem to support (which I assumed it wouldn't) is using a wake word when charging. I kind of wish there was an option for it to work more like a standard Echo while on the charging station. Not the end of the world by any means, but it's an option I'd love to see added later (though I understand if they don't officially support that feature since it'd basically be a way of undercutting the standard Echo sales).
I bought the battery for my Echo so I can eventually use it similar to a tap and take it outside or room to room. Seems a bit of a missed opportunity not have VR on the Tap.
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Seems a bit of a missed opportunity not have VR on the Tap.
Not a missed opportunity. Just a decision to give it a reasonable battery life while keeping the size, weight and cost of the product down. There is no free lunch, and everything is a trade-off.
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Seems a bit of a missed opportunity not have VR on the Tap.
Not a missed opportunity. Just a decision to give it a reasonable battery life while keeping the size, weight and cost of the product down. There is no free lunch, and everything is a trade-off.
Agreed, though I think an option for it would be preferable and wouldn't harm anything from a technical standpoint. I'd be fine if voice control only worked when connection to the charging dock. But chances are that I'll just get a Dot to use in the house where I was planning to keep the Tap when not being portable.
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Seems a bit of a missed opportunity not have VR on the Tap.
Not a missed opportunity. Just a decision to give it a reasonable battery life while keeping the size, weight and cost of the product down. There is no free lunch, and everything is a trade-off.
The trade-off made me not purchase one. So, yes, from my perspective, a missed opportunity.
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More first impressions as I use the Tap. I really like it; it stayed outside with me the whole day, in garage and yard, playing whatever TuneIn station I wanted. My Wi-Fi signal is very good, and hardly ever lost a connection, and it was momentary at worst. I am almost ready to put the original Echo up on eBay! Not really, although it sounds a heck of a lot better than the Echo with its having stereo sound and better bass. And, if it's being a portable internet radio all day, hardly used the VR, which a button push handled fine if I used something to shield my dirty hands from touching the thing. Got the Sling case for it: I could see it's a requirement for picking it up with one finger using rubber loop on top.
So, first and foremost, finding to be great as a portable internet radio, with VR to Alexa when ya need it (although I never felt compelled to ask it to tell me a joke, add stuff to a shopping list or to-do list, nor ask it the weather all day since I was pleasantly in the weather all day. And, really, the push button access is not that big a deal if you view it as a radio first and Alexa as secondary.
Inside, it's so portable, I easily take it wherever I want quiet music alone, like at the PC. I am glad I also ordered the Sling cover/case. Rubber loop at top makes for easy one-finger toting around.
Update: Comparison of Tap vs my mini Jambox BT speaker. I put them head to head, both playing the same music tracks from Amazon Prime. Tap played, and new Dot played directly into BT speaker as wired. Tap won to my surprise. It is just more "listenable" with is smoother bass and less-bright highs. The BT speaker is a great little speaker; until I heard it along side of Tap. I never realized how bright the hi freqs are on it. I would listen to either, but if asked to grab one to go off and listen to, I will choose the Tap. Not just for the speakers, but it is so much more than a speaker.
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I'm going to use mine , which i should have Wed, on my nightstand , so the button is close, i'm also intending using it room to room and on the patio, think there would be any issue with overcharging if its on the base alot, or does the charge portion of it stop if charged fully "?
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I believe the charge stand is designed to stop charging when battery is full. Amazon obviously intends on many Taps to be seated in the cute little charging stand. Now, I find I will not be able to use the stand, because I bought the Sling case for mine. and find that unless I want to remove the Tap from the protective and handy, very snug Sling too often, my choice is not to use the stand. I will be using the USB charging port in the rear of the Tap. Not a problem for me, because the Sling case was a great idea for a portable device like the Tap. It provides a better grip and helps keep the Tap cleaner, because cleaning the Sling will be a lot easier than cleaning the fabric cover of the Tap. I think a few years from now, my Tap could still look brand new by being inside the Sling.
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First off make SURE you have the Alexa App set up on your phone or PC/Laptop, whatever.
Got mine today.
Had a bit of a problem getting it to accept the Wi-Fi but that's due to my system.
Once up and running it did GREAT.
I set the Charging Base up in a separate room from my Echo and Fire Stick. Told it to play a station from my Pandora and w/ no lag started right up.
Took the Tap into every room and all areas of our yard. No drop.
Fired it up to full volume outside...and the neighbors looked over. So I carried it over there... no drop at about 75' from my router.
Had it tell them a joke.... ;-)
Coming by my Echo I told Alexa to play a different station from Pandora. Both stations were cranking along perfectly, Tap and Echo.
Tested the Phillips Hue lighting. Tap found them w/ no problem and no reset on the Hue Bridge.
Added two Items to our shopping list from Tap. Flawless.
Sound is good...not Great.... same w/ Echo but I have a serious whole house/yard sound system for that.
Tap and Echo are used when I don't want to break it out. PLUS can't do anything but listen to the Sound System.
We use Echo dozens of times a day for assistant type things. Shopping Lists, Lights, Talking Books, Weather, Jokes, .......
Haven't tried the Bluetooth but it did pair up first time and fast.
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Now, I find I will not be able to use the stand, because I bought the Sling case for mine. and find that unless I want to remove the Tap from the protective and handy, very snug Sling too often, my choice is not to use the stand. I will be using the USB charging port in the rear of the Tap. Not a problem for me, because the Sling case was a great idea for a portable device like the Tap. It provides a better grip and helps keep the Tap cleaner, because cleaning the Sling will be a lot easier than cleaning the fabric cover of the Tap. I think a few years from now, my Tap could still look brand new by being inside the Sling.
I got the case as well but keep taking it out to use the stand as mine (for now) will sit on the dock more than it will be taken out and about. As far as it keeping the Tap cleaner, I'm not so sure about that since most of the fabric is still expose (I mean of course...that's where the speakers are, lol). Only time will tell I guess. But if I'm taking it out someplace, of course I will throw it back in the sling. That rubbery stuff can be a pain to clean when it gets dusty, though, so again...only time will tell.
As it stands now, I actually have my Dot using the Tap as it's BT speaker, which is kinda funny when I think about it :P
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I wiggled the Tap bottom out of the Sling to charge it on the charging stand to see if I was correct in what I said above; I was, because to get it back into Sling afterward took too much time and effort to get it all aligned in Sling again. My Tap will be used mostly at home, but it still could get a bit roughed up as it joins me in garage, yard and all around the house (which could be more mistreatment than just taking it away from home). So, I decided I will keep it in Sling all the time (except to remove Sling to clean it) and just charge it with the cable. Cleaning Sling will not be hard, because I have a secret weapon called Fantastic; it's my all purpose mild, but super effective cleaner for many years. Rinses off well, too.
>> As it stands now, I actually have my Dot using the Tap as it's BT speaker, which is kinda funny when I think about it :P
Personally I would not admit to doing this, even if I was! Why should this be done if the Tap has all the parts it needs to play alone? It's not "kinda funny" it's ridiculous. LOL ;)
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>> As it stands now, I actually have my Dot using the Tap as it's BT speaker, which is kinda funny when I think about it :P
Personally I would not admit to doing this, even if I was! Why should this be done if the Tap has all the parts it needs to play alone? It's not "kinda funny" it's ridiculous. LOL ;)
If you take a moment to think instead of reflexively popping off yet another condescending crack the logic behind the combination is obvious, and makes perfect sense. The Tap is taken and used for its portability when not inside the home. But when inside, the Dot serves better as the primary Alexa interface because of its "always listening" mode of operation, and the Tap, rather than sitting idle, serves as the Dot's external speaker by virtue of its superior sound.
Not ridiculous at all.
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As an early adopter of most things digital, I ordered the Tap before I read other reviews of the device. Before it arrived I read every review I could find and noted that they all panned the audio quality compared to other BT speakers. Now, I'm glad I didn't read those reviews since I might not have ordered this product. I find that its crisp high end response is better for me since I am somewhat tone deaf in the high end. It really shines when reading Audible books and the crisp frequency response of instrumental music is much better than my Echo. Simple placement of the Tap can enhance the bass response for those who are complaining about that. The charging base is a nice feature but the optional sling cover (over priced imo) is a must for me. The only problem I see is the complicated procedure for updating WIFI since I am not sure it remembers previous settings. My verdict is still out as to its battery charge life. Not sure it will make 9 hours as advertised. Maybe someone can answer this question. What do they mean by dolby sound? I'm impressed and happy with it.
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Maybe someone can answer this question. What do they mean by dolby sound?
It means that the Tap supports audio encoded using one of the Dolby Digital standards: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolby_Digital (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolby_Digital)
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I understand dolby, but wondered if how it improves the audio in the Tap.
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I understand dolby, but wondered if how it improves the audio in the Tap.
I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that it does so the same way it does with any other stereo audio playback device.
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I understand dolby, but wondered if how it improves the audio in the Tap.
The audio you are sending to your TAP will not be Dolby encoded, so no decoding is going on here. Instead, Amazon has licensed what is essentially an EQ curve and some additional signal processing designed by Dolby Labs. As to whether it is better or just different is up to you to decide. Given this is originating over Bluetooth, some tasteful EQ and a little expansion certainly can't hurt.
But it would be nice to have a little control over it. I wish both echoes had some form of adjustable EQ, or at least bass and treble controls. Placement of these devices is rarely ideal from an audio perspective and it'd be nice to be able to make some adjustments.
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The audio you are sending to your TAP will not be Dolby encoded, so no decoding is going on here. Instead, Amazon has licensed what is essentially an EQ curve and some additional signal processing designed by Dolby Labs. As to whether it is better or just different is up to you to decide. Given this is originating over Bluetooth, some tasteful EQ and a little expansion certainly can't hurt.
Just out of curiosity, where were you able to find that info? I'm having real trouble finding anything specific about the Tap's audio beyond regurgitation of Amazon's marketing verbiage. I did find a couple that claimed that the Tap supported one of the Dolby Digital standards (hence my statement above), but that may well have been an unfounded assumption on the part of those sources (my fault for being so quick to accept it).
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I understand dolby, but wondered if how it improves the audio in the Tap.
The audio you are sending to your TAP will not be Dolby encoded, so no decoding is going on here. Instead, Amazon has licensed what is essentially an EQ curve and some additional signal processing designed by Dolby Labs. As to whether it is better or just different is up to you to decide. Given this is originating over Bluetooth, some tasteful EQ and a little expansion certainly can't hurt.
But it would be nice to have a little control over it. I wish both echoes had some form of adjustable EQ, or at least bass and treble controls. Placement of these devices is rarely ideal from an audio perspective and it'd be nice to be able to make some adjustments.
You do know you can control bass, mid-range and treble by saying Alexa increase or decrease bass (or treble our mid-range). It doesn't just increase volume. I tried it multiple times especially with bass and you can feel the vibrations on the side of Echo. I even lowered the volume and the vibration was there. The only problem is if you shut off, at least the Echo, the settings don't remain. You have too do it each time.
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Just out of curiosity, where were you able to find that info?
Just experience. Dolby Labs has a plethora of "standards". Some are based on encoded material (AC3, DD, THD, etc.), and others (PL, DS) that simply act on a non-encoded stereo or multi-ch source.
While the decoding of encoded material provides discrete additions to the audio signal, PL and DS type processing use a number of algorithms to "simulate/synthesize" signal improvements, which many hear as coloration and would prefer to do without. It can work well on some material, but since it is guessing, it can be "not so hot" on others. The better the audio system (source to speaker), the more apparent the guessing process will be.
As to what specific algorithms are being used with the Tap is anyone's guess, but given marginal quality sources (mp3's over Bluetooth), with highly compromised amp/speakers, you can bet they involve dynamic range enhancement (envelope modification) along with EQ.
Think of it as a very sophisticated way of turning up the bass and treble controls to address a flat sounding recording. (c;
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Just experience. Dolby Labs has a plethora of "standards". Some are based on encoded material (AC3, DD, THD, etc.), and others (PL, DS) that simply act on a non-encoded stereo or multi-ch source.
While the decoding of encoded material provides discrete additions to the audio signal, PL and DS type processing use a number of algorithms to "simulate/synthesize" signal improvements, which many hear as coloration and would prefer to do without. It can work well on some material, but since it is guessing, it can be "not so hot" on others. The better the audio system (source to speaker), the more apparent the guessing process will be.
As to what specific algorithms are being used with the Tap is anyone's guess, but given marginal quality sources (mp3's over Bluetooth), with highly compromised amp/speakers, you can bet they involve dynamic range enhancement (envelope modification) along with EQ.
Think of it as a very sophisticated way of turning up the bass and treble controls to address a flat sounding recording. (c;
I see what you're saying. Although the problem with the part I hilighted in bold is that MP3 and Bluetooth are only 2 of the standards supported by Tap for audio playback, and even with MP3 quality varies with bitrates. You can also use it for streaming higher-quality sources over Wi-Fi (my primary source of music playback via my Echos), with providers like TuneIn - and possibly others as well - encoding their streams at rates of 320Kbps (MP3) and 256+Kbps (AAC).
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You do know you can control bass, mid-range and treble by saying Alexa increase or decrease bass (or treble our mid-range). It doesn't just increase volume.
No, I didn't. I tried a number of terms to see if that was indeed possible, but they all fell on deaf ears. Are you sure you're not just hearing a placebo/"fletcher munson" effect. I am not hearing anything change but the level.
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I see what you're saying. Although the problem with the part I hilighted in bold is that MP3 and Bluetooth are only 2 of the standards supported by Tap for audio playback, and even with MP3 quality varies with bitrates. You can also use it for streaming higher-quality sources over Wi-Fi (my primary source of music playback via my Echos), with providers like TuneIn - and possibly others as well - encoding their streams at rates of 320Kbps (MP3) and 256+Kbps (AAC).
Yes... but they are all lossy compression, and have the same types of flaws, albeit some more noticeable than others.
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No, I didn't. I tried a number of terms to see if that was indeed possible, but they all fell on deaf ears. Are you sure you're not just hearing a placebo/"fletcher munson" effect. I am not hearing anything change but the level.
Oh, sure...next thing you'll be telling us that Quija boards don't really communicate with the dead, and making up fancy-sounding terms like "ideomotor phenomenon" to try to confuse us!
8)
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Now you're confusing me. Do you align with dfine1966 and believe you hear a change based on these commands? I'll be the first to admit my ears aren't what they use to be, but I could get out the ol' pink noise generator and make a few measurements.
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Now you're confusing me. Do you align with dfine1966 and believe you hear a change based on these commands?
LOL....no. Sorry, I thought the reference to Quija boards and the ideomotor phenomenon would make the joke obvious.
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>> As it stands now, I actually have my Dot using the Tap as it's BT speaker, which is kinda funny when I think about it :P
Personally I would not admit to doing this, even if I was! Why should this be done if the Tap has all the parts it needs to play alone? It's not "kinda funny" it's ridiculous. LOL ;)
If you take a moment to think instead of reflexively popping off yet another condescending crack the logic behind the combination is obvious, and makes perfect sense. The Tap is taken and used for its portability when not inside the home. But when inside, the Dot serves better as the primary Alexa interface because of its "always listening" mode of operation, and the Tap, rather than sitting idle, serves as the Dot's external speaker by virtue of its superior sound.
Not ridiculous at all.
Parker: If you take a moment to think instead of reflexively popping off yet another condescending crack at me, you would have checked out the reference I gave to lovemyecho.com where the site admin says in her first reviews of the Dot and Tap:
Q: Can you [Bluetooth] pair the Dot to the Tap?
A: Yes, but I don’t recommend it. In my tests Bluetooth connectivity between the Dot and Tap was wonky and error-prone. Future Dot/Tap software updates may help, but for the time being a cabled connection will be more reliable.
I still believe it is a bit ridiculous to use a similar and more expensive produce (the Tap) as a BT speaker for a much lesser cost product (the Dot).
Instead of chastising me once again, why didn't you help out with a better solution?
Well, here is one of many solutions for anyone to consider:
Instead of doing the above, buy an el-cheapo ($15 or less) portable BT speaker and play the Dot to THAT, instead of to a $130 Tap! I have one (I use when doing yard work, etc,) that I can use with a Dot, too, and since the speaker is usually not in use, I will use it for one of my Dots. It may be an el-cheapo BT speaker, but it will still sound better than the Dot's speaker.
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I still believe it is a bit ridiculous to use a similar and more expensive produce (the Tap) as a BT speaker for a much lesser cost product (the Dot).
And I already explained why it's a perfectly logical thing to do, amd why the relative costs of the two devices is utterly irelevant. That you think it's "ridiculous" to put that more expensive device to good use as a speaker when you're not using it for anything else rather than just letting it sit around doing nothing is rather bizarre.
Instead of chastising me once again, why didn't you help out with a better solution?
Because if what he's doing works (he didn't complain about a flaky or otherwise substandard BT connection between the two devices) then he doesn't need a better solution. And telling him that what he's doing is "ridiculous" and that he needs to go out and buy yet another device to clutter up his home certainly doesn't qualify.