Audio Reviews

This is the first time that I have bought a reciever of this type. I was reading all the reviews and recommendations from everybody before I bought this sucker. I actually bought it at a good price at the time ( 379 bones ) knowing from comments that the manual was lousy. I figured that it shouldn't be all that bad since I have a technical degree. Receiver was great. But it took me a fairly long time to get it work right with the subwoofer ( I had to fumble with a bunch of settings before I found the right one ). Still, it's a great system for the future.

I purchased this amplifier about three days ago. I had been looking for quite some time looking at sony, pioneer, denon, yamaha, morantz, onkyo, and some others that were so expensive I can't even remember the names of them. Of all the brands I looked at I chose this one because of the things I had heard about it from friends. With cost being no factor I wanted something dependable, sleek, powerful, and good sounding. This reciever is all that and then some. My home theater is now complete. Compared to the other brands I looked at (including the $5000.00 ones), this one seemed more reasonablely priced and more so high quality. It sounds great, looks great, it is great. Thanks to the JVC engineering. I needed something that was compatible with my DVD player and something that would sound great with my music. I have front speakers that were $1200 for the pair and I needed something that was powerful enough and clear enough for them. This amp is. I would reccommend it to any future buyers looking for one, not to mention it does have a very nice light set on the face of it. That just adds to the look of the home theater. Im glad my friends reccommended this to me. Thanks guys!

I have owned this receiver for a couple of months and bought a JVC DVD Player with the receiver. The sound and clarity is outstanding. I tried units like Yamaha and harmon kardon and found that this unit has more features and sounds identical to the Yamaha or H.K. The TEXT CompuLink between the DVD Player and the receiver makes using the unit extremely easy. The One Touch Operation keeps a memory of all the settings for the different functions used on the receiver. The remote is great. I use it to operate my satelite, tv, vcr, dvd, and receiver. The DTS and Dolby Digital is great on this unit as well. I would recommend this unit for any individual that wants a clear, precise, digital sound for a fraction of the cost of a high-end unit. JVC uses the Motorola DSP chip for its decoding. This is the same chip used by all the high-end units.

If you are looking for the most bang for your buck, this is it. In this price-range you just cannot beat the performance and features of this radio. The compact size is perfect for tight spaces and the modern design looks great. I highly recomend this CB.

The previous review that mentions antennas are key to a good CB setup is correct. For a normal CB user I would recommend either the Wilson lil' Wil or the Wilson 500 antenna. Both are magnetic mount antennas. The lil' Wil antenna is a relatively small antenna and it's only around $39.00. Actually any Wilson CB antenna will be fine. Also, to do a good job at setting up your antenna you should purchase an SWR meter. They are not expensive. You only need the meter connected inline between the radio and antenna when you are adjusting the antenna. Once you are done adjusting the antenna you can take the meter out of the connection and connect the antenna directly to the radio. Don't be fooled by cheap ordinary CB antennas like you will find at radio shack. Do not settle for anything less then a Wilson antenna. Cobra and Uniden both make fabulous CB radios so either make will be fine.

This CB is the best CB I have had in my life time and I already had 3 CB's besides this one and this one is the best of them. Its unique design and mobility can set up to a cigarette lighter in your car or truck although you might want an adaptor since it only comes with the cords and nothing to plug into the cigarette lighter. When you are talking to someone else your voice goes to them crystal clear and there voice is crystal clear too. I have not found yet why it has a sound tracker system since it does not clear the signal up anyway all it does is make it louder. Although it clears it up a small bit of the signal. When talking to someone squelch becomes useful to get rid of the static. This Cb is a best buy especially with the super saver shipping and no tax

While this product is being faded out with the new Audigy line, there is still a quality sound card here. If you don't have the speakers to support the 5.1 or 6.1 you are better off with this card.

This one is hot and works good with ur dvd player and audio equipment.

I have had a version of this sound card for over 2 years.
I have no compatability problems with Windows 2K or Linux, every game I play sounds great.
The software that you can get from creative's website allows you to do all sorts of fun things in realtime. I've not used the digital out (Sorry, don't have DD receiver just for my computer) but the 4 speaker out works great.
I put these cards in every one of my machines I've built.
If you are a computer builder, this card requires no additional drivers out the box for W2K which always makes windows more stable :)

I waited for quite awhile to pull the trigger on these because I believed that anything this size--no matter how well done-- would have limitations. I eventually bought them because they have little competition (one Sony product), I was curious, and I really needed travel speakers for my IRIVER IHP-120. The good news is that they are a noble effort in such a small package; the bad news is (with all respect to the other reviewers) they don't quite cut it if you're thinking that you can get "big" sound out of the small package. I can't quite agree that they provide "room filling" sound (and maybe expecting that is unfair). As a result, I think they'd be better priced at about $50 too.

I've spent a considerable amount of time listening to these with all different types of music and am impressed by the speakers mid and mid-high range---very clean on vocals and acoustic instruments, provided the overall sound isn't too dense. If you're into that type of music, and do not need serious volume, I think you'll like them quite a bit. Acoustic jazz also shows these little speakers to good advantage.

With a more "dense" sound, however, they become "good for their size," but IMO not as good as one might wish--even for the small size. Don't get me wrong--I will not be returning them, but I think if you listen to serious rock, funk or hip hop, their inherent size limitation *do* matter and some disortion may result at high volumes. While I respect the engineering involved and am trying to allow for their diminutive size, I think, all things being equal, Creative would not have compromised their portability and could have added to their sound by making them only slightly larger, charging a bit more, and trying for a fuller sound. As they exist, they are a very neat, compact design that I'd recommend for casual, personal listening given the lack of competition--just don't expect *too* much at higher volumes depending on your taste in music.

Amazing sound from such a small package!

I bought these because of the excellent sound they produce, even though the bass response is not thumping. And because they can be powered by 4 AAA batteries or by AC power - most other portable speakers that I could find could not be AC-powered. And the batteries last for a couple of days of lengthy sessions.

Easy to carry around - they fold up neatly and come with a handy black velvet soft carry case. They are not well-balanced when in use - they fall over rather easily. But that's the only negative that I can find with them.

Most of my friends are surprised by the quality of the sound - we've used the speakers plus my iRiver 350 CD player at picnics and BBQs with 6-8 people - as background music providers, they were great.

I have not regretted buying them for a minute, even though they are more expensive than many others around. Creative gear is generally good gear, and these are no exception to that generalisation. You won't be disappointed.

Creative products seem to be hit-or-miss. I've owned many of their speakers and other electronic items -- some of them have been spectacular and others have been mediocre. This one-speaker system is their best product, IMHO. One correction to the review above: the speaker uses 4 AAA (not AA) batteries. It makes a difference -- this speaker is so compact and light!

My AVR 110 was a great unit, but failed quite soon after I received it. Then was in repair for quite some time. Once I contacted Harmon Kardan directly though, they decided I had waited long enough without a receiver and replaced it for me. I appreciated the gesture and hope my new unit is more sturdy. It is a great sounding piece of equipment.

I researched mid priced A/V receivers for a while, and after I ruled out Sony, Yamaha, Kenwood, Aiwa, and all the other companies that rely on customers assuming that bigger numbers mean better product (now lets see, how exactly does sony sell a 100w x 5 receiver for $200 again? I've seen charts where it drops much lower as the volume goes up), that left H/K and Denon standing.

I really didn't want to spend too much on my receiver and this receiver was right at the max. Denons have very good reputations, but A: They look cluttered with all the buttons on the front, and B: I found their interface somewhat confusing.

This unit on the other hand, is VERY simple. I skimmed the manual, which is not the best I've seen, but as I said, this receiver is not brain surgery. The front of the unit has 5 buttons to select different tuning options and then a few sets of scrolling buttons for surround sound modes, source select, etc. I was up and running with all the channels and speakers calibrated to my liking within an hour.

Logic 7 is quite lovely for movies, TV, or video games. It uses the rear speakers and gives you some nice depth. 5ch stereo is another nice feature, but just sends the same sound out of all 5 speakers. I haven't played with the other modes much (except for DD and DTS, which I use all the time for movies), but they are Hall, Theatre, Vmax (far and near), Prologic, Prologic 3-Stereo, and, ofcourse, just regular stereo :)

The binding posts on the back for the speakers are a blessing and the fact that there are S-video jacks for every video input.

Other reviewers have commented on the remote, which I'll admit, isn't great, the buttons are too close together. If you do get another remote, make sure its one that can learn fuctions (such as the Sony RM-VL900 like I have). There is a button on this remote that I haven't been able to access from the front panel of the unit. That function is: night mode. This "night mode", brings more detail to Dolby Digital and DTS sound tracks when you're listening to them at lower volumes.

Note: there's an AVR-120 out now, that is the same as this, but offers I believe 5 more watts per channel and has Dolby Pro-Logic II which is supposed to be the best thing since sliced bread. I'll find this out when I get my AVR-520.

Don't underestimate the power of this receiver. Its' 50/40 watts per channel is far much better than Sonys', Yamahas', or any other Japanese famous brands'... 100 watts per channel. Every single small sound will be delivered to your ears straightly, smoothly, and satisfactorily, guaranteed...

It's may be a little too high in price but it's worthy for every single of your peny. REMEMBER, you get for what you pay & don't !!!...

Bought this sytem at a great price from a local retail chain in chicago. Got it home and loved putting it together. The sound is incredible. The unit is sleek and very stylish. The remote made my friends jealous. The only complaint that I have is that the spaker wire is too short and those freaky clips at the ends make it impossible to fine replacement cable. I also wanted to find the speaker stands. Called JBL and they couldn't give me any info. I would give this sytem a 5 because it is so great but I have to give it a 4 because of that really short speaker wire, accesories being impossible to locate, and lousy JBL customer service.

I really like this set up for how inconspicuous it is. The speakers sound solid. The only problem with mine is the cd player spindle is out of alignment and some cd's will actually scrape against the player's plastic chassis as they play.

We got this for our master bedroom. To our surprise we thought we were in the entertainment room. Great sound. Easy to setup. User Friendly. The remote is credit card thin which we really like.

It would be nice if I could decode the latest digital video standards, but that's about it on complaints. Considering the extremely reasonable price, this is simply the best receiver I've ever had.

It offers astonishingly clear sound (with my 5 ohm Magneplaners and a/d/s/ sub), plus plenty of inputs and outputs, and all around versatility. Simply superb. Even more importantly, whenever I want to do something, I just reach for the analogue buttons and dials and it happens. No perusing the manual. Try that with a Yamaha or Denon.

Note: this receiver is no longer produced. However, the current Nakamichi AV-7 is almost identical (but with more video inputs), and the AV-8 and AV-10 combine extra features (like a built-in crossover and DTS decoding) with the same amazing usability.

The best receiver-family going. Get one, even if you already have a McIntosh or a Mark Levinson. You may be very surprised by which one you actually use.

I purchased this receiver from Amazon.com at the very reasonable price offered, and have since enjoyed its class of quality and performance. I can confirm other reviewers' opinion of its very clear sound quality and nice looking built. Beyond that I want to say that it's very discriminating to the nature of its source material: good recordings sound fabulous while poorly mixed ones sound intolerably muddy. Several shortcomings nevertheless are present: limited A/V connectivity with only 2 video inputs; a merely moderate current output--perhaps not enough to drive large speakers or low-impedence ones well; somewhat flimsy connectors on back panel requiring careful pluggings and unpluggings. But these reservations are secondary for me given its nice balance of costs and benefits. If you want quality more than newest technology (DTS etc.) this is definitely worthy a try.

Wonderful price and quality sound. I was concerned about low price and non-digital. Price reflects a great value NOT a cheap budget line of Nakamichi, super suprise. Power is more than enough, pushing (2)200w Technics & (2)150w Advents. IT MOVES YOU! Super clarity for surround set-up with solid power for all music styles.

Ordered this item from amazon a month ago and continued to get weekly updates saying there was a delay in shipping. Finally they told me they couldn't ship it and cancelled my order. Service was terrible because I couldn't cancel the order due to it being in the "shipping process", but the item never shipped. Not giving this product a bad review just amazon's customer service.

I just got this item from amazon. It shipped in 3 days! I was very impressed considering I expected over a week. It came in a small plastic case, with neck strap, usb extension cable, headphones, the player (of course), AAA battery, a small clip and rope to keep the cap with the player, and manual. I was not able to use it right away as the battery they gave me was bad. It was corroded and dented. Looked like some old used battery. I went out and bought some new AAA batteries and it worked right away. The controls are incredibly easy to follow and the quality of the sound is superb. I like all its features and think this is the best Mp3 player on the market, especially for its price. Very light weight, fits in the palm of my hand, and incredibly easy to put music on. I am a student and enjoy this product because I can put my documents on it (it's durable so I don't have to worry about it breaking like 3.5 floppies or zip disks), listen to music while I bike/walk home, and can record voice tracks (wav files) if I need a quick reminder. Highly recommended.

I have not owned mp3 players before this one, but i have seen other peoples. I also got it because it doubles as a storage device.
This thing is light as air. It has to weigh no more than the AAA battery that powers it, if not less than it. I get like 10 hours or so out of it. It has fantastic sound. I NEVER use the full volume, and it has different equilizer settings. The LCD display is a must for mp3 players in my opinion. You can make voice recordings if you need to, and it plays both mp3 and wma file types.
You need to have Windows 2000 or higher for it to be recognized as a new plug n' play device, since it comes with no installation disks. I love not being reduced to those unstable and zero capacity floppies. You just plug it in, drag and drop, and go.
This is well worth it, not to mention it just looks tight!

i've tried to use this on two macs. terrible results

m-audio does not have forums on their site.

there is a reason. their drivers are unreliable and highly incompatible.

absolutely refuse to provide any documentation nor do they accept returns.

if you value the stability of your computer, stay clear. stay well clear.

I have been using this interface with both a Mac and a PC and it works well with both. Great product!

This is a good adapter for home use. Having been a roadie, I can pretty confidently say the Midisport Uno's build quality isn't roadworthy -- the attached MIDI cables are about as thin as the RCA cables that come with most home audio equipment, nowhere near as tough as patch cords for a stage rig. But the average home user, who's not plugging and unplugging in a hurry and stepping on the equipment and such, should have no worries. I have one, and it works fine.

A note about appearance: My Uno's body (the oval part, smaller than an average computer mouse) is a deep translucent blue, rather than the opaque color in the current photo here on Amazon. Also, the cables are all one color, black, though the IN and OUT plugs are clearly labeled in molded lettering. There are three green LEDs: one that lights up when the computer recognizes the adapter, one for MIDI in signals, and one for MIDI out -- handy for troubleshooting.

I bought the Uno to connect my Roland alphaJuno-2 to my PowerBook and play with GarageBand. I took it out of the packaging (a rare treat: a molded clamshell-type plastic package that isn't heat-sealed, so it doesn't have to be cut to shreds to open) and hooked it up, and nothing happened. I initially thought that Mac OS X would recognize it automatically, so it took me a few minutes to realize I needed to install the driver software. Although there are drivers on the included CD-ROM, I downloaded the latest version from the manufacturer's web site, installed, and the Uno instantly lit up and GarageBand informed me (because I already had the Roland powered up) that a MIDI device was now connected. It's worked flawlessly since.

Simple to use; no extra cables to attach -- I think this is the perfect USB MIDI adapter for GarageBand users or anyone else connecting one MIDI keyboard to a computer at home.