PURE Digital Evoke-1S review

PURE Digital Evoke-1S Review

Reviewed by: Nate Lanxon

Reviewed on: 4 October 2007

Included, however, is a variable DRC control. Some DAB stations effectively boost the volume of their transmissions, sometimes resulting in a less well-defined sound when it's played through speakers. The Evoke's DRC control allows you to turn this down, or even turn it off completely.

Performance
Firing up the Evoke prompts it to scout all DAB stations in the local area. This takes a couple of minutes but only needs doing once. Navigating stations is really simple and as all stations are sorted alphabetically, finding your favourite takes no time. Presets, too, are easy to master: seek to your station, push and hold a number on the keypad, the preset is saved. Painless.

DAB is physically incapable of producing CD-quality audio due to the fundamental restrictions of its technology. The Evoke-1S makes the best of what's on offer, though, and pumps decent sound quality with a healthy portion of bass.

At high volume, the sound is distorted noticeably, though in its defense it is very loud for a small system. Higher bit rate broadcasts, such as Classic FM and Virgin Radio, sound slightly better at higher volume and much better through headphones. As a kitchen radio it does its job well.

PURE told us it was a cost issue that kept it from adding its wonderful ReVu technology, included in the Legato II. The ability to pause and rewind live radio would've really set the Evoke-1S apart from other offerings.

Conclusion
For around £100, this really is a terrific product. It's attractive, easy to use and sounds pretty good, too. If you've got a previous Evoke model, there aren't a million reasons to rush out and upgrade. But if you're looking to move into the DAB world without breaking the bank, this is a solid contender to start with and would also make a jolly nice Christmas present to boot.

Edited by Jason Jenkins
Additional editing by Shannon Doubleday