Digital-Audio Reviews

I don't have to purchase another digital audio recorder in order to compare and find the "better" brand. There is nothing better than this one! If you are in a professional business, needing to store all your data and dictations, this is the one for you! Get rid of wasted space easy with the "divide" method. Don't worry about your voice sounding garbled. This recorder, with all Panasonic digital recorders I'm sure, has such clarity that you will think you are hearing it "live"!
And if you are a ghosthunter, as I am, in search of the perfect device to capture EVP, this is SURELY the recorder for you, as well! The very first time I used this recorder, I captured my very first EVP! It was so crisp and clear, that after I heard it, I knew that I had purchased the BEST recorder for EVP. I had been recommended the use of Panasonic digital recorders before I bought this one, and it's the best advice I've ever accepted from someone. This model, to my knowledge, has been discontinued, but I strongly suggest ANY of the Panasonic digital recorders for ANY type of office voice dictation and for those who are beginning their search for paranormal sounds. Thanks to Panasonic for giving me something unique to discover, and I know their work will get even better!!!! Two thumbs up on this product!!

I've had two of these. Perfect size and layout, work well. thought I lost one when I jumped in a swimming pool with it in my pocket and it filled with water, but after letting it air out for 3 weeks it worked fine.
For a while they were improving them, cutting the price, upping the memory then for some reason Panasonic discontinued them, the new ones are way too big.
After thousands of hours of use, one basically lost most of its memory - it can hold only about 4 minutes of notes now. The other one (the wet one) looks totally beat up and has lost its screen coating-no more display :( But it still works perfectly!
Operational problems: One is that the hold button can be accidently released in your pocket and then you find you have 20 minutes of ambient pocket noise and a full recorder. this happens at least once a week. Also, they can get confused somehow and you'll see the display all wierd with no way to fix it, you need to remove and replace the batteries to recover, but that's no problem really, you don't lose your notes.

First, if you're perusing these reviews because you're switching from a micro cassette recorder, you're in for a treat. While you can't take the tape out and hand it to someone, the advantages of digital are too numerous to mention here. My favorite is the ability to playback or erase individual notes without having to search the tape to find them.

Anyway, as for this unit: I was looking for something easy to use, [price], decent sound quality, small, and good reviews. While it does take awhile to decipher the instructions, the RR-QR80 is relatively easy to use, and I especially like the fact that the two major buttons are Record and Stop. Let's face it, these are the buttons you want to get to fast. You press and hold the Record button for about a second to pause, but I wish you could just click once to pause, then click again to resume. Playback is easy, but all the secondary buttons, including the Erase button, are quite small but have a solid feel. The Hold button feels secure and is easy to use. I've seen some small units where you need to use your fingernail to move the Hold button.

I got my unit refubished from Sunshinelect, so the price was right, and the unit was shipped the following business day. Excellent! However, you have to wonder why there are so many "refurbished" RR-QR80s out there. One can only hope there was some inherent problem with this unit that Panasonic fixed. So far so good.

Sound quality changes with record mode. HQ will only record for 15 minutes, but sound quality is outstanding. Standard mode will record for 30 minutes, and quality is more than adequate. LP mode will record 60 minutes, and is okay but not great. Let's face it, your not going to be recording live concerts with this thing. Also, the mic level is adjustable, and set to High will record voices from a distance accurately.

Size is where this unit really shines. It's the size of a business card/credit card and <.5" thick. It fits easily in a pocket, but if it finds its way to the bottom of your purse you may forget what you wanted to record by the time you find it.

Anyway, I write two newspaper columns and needed something to record fleeting thoughts, and wanted something small enough that I wouldn't hesitate to carry around. So, this unit works perfectly for me. However, if you intend to record lectures or lengthy notations, a unit with more memory and a "real" fast forward and rewind might be a better choice (this one will cue and review, but it's choppy).

It has far exceeded my expectations. Sounds great on DVD or Audio CDs. The 'party' decode is unusual, allowing stereo CDs to sound 5.1-ish.

I did spend good money on speakers, especially a quality sub.

As another reviewer wrote here, this is my favorite toy.

I've had mine for almost a year now and love it. If you don't have a DVD or 5.1 receiver yet this is a great way to get both for a reasonable price and reduce the wiring clutter of separate units. Only gripes I have are that I could have used one more audio input for the CD changer, and the remote is one big checkerboard of small buttons. You can also find more features on newer DVD player components. But all in all, this is a great deal for keeping the budget down and having one less component to fit in the entertainment unit.

Go for this and Bose Acoustimass 6 speakers and you've got fantastic theater sound for a pretty reasonable investment.

I have owned a Toshiba 6109 for about 1 year and I am very happy with the unit. The dvd player is excellent. 50 watts per channel is sufficient with the efficient speakers I have attached to the dvd/amplifier.

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.

I've had this receiver for about 9 months now. Very handsome product, easy to install and set up. The self-surround calibration is a very useful feature and avoids a lot of complex set up know-how. I rate the audio quality as excellent not quite to audio-file standards but most people will be very happy with its capabilities.

A few negatives that are not really serious: the manual should be improved, it is very hard to read and for neophytes will be quite frustrating. The surround processsor modes can only be accessed sequentially so you cannot make A-B choices. Plus there is no phono capability.

I highly recommend this receiver as a low to mid range product with high-end capabilities.

I have this model for more than 2 years and enjoy it everyday. This is a bargain with high-end features for less. I would sugget to buy this receiver with Bose acoustimass speakers for ultimate experience.

This receiver is a great buy. It sounds great for movies and music. The 192/24 DAC for the left and right channel provide better clarity for music than other receivers in this price range. Most receivers only come with 96/24 DAC. And if you want to send your music to all 5 channels then the Logic 7 dsp sounds great. For movies the receiver has both Dobly digital and DTS, and they both sound great, lots of bass for the special effect scenes and voices are clear. I paired this receiver with the JBL SCS150 home theater speakers and I think they are a great match.

I know people might be turned off by the receiver only having 5 channels but if you have a small apartment or small living room than 5 channels is probably enough. Two tips for receiver shoppers. One, don't pay for features that you won't use. Two, buy by the pound. A heavier receiver usually means that it was made with better components. This recevier comes in at almost 27 pounds. Compare this with other receivers in the price range and I'm sure you won't find many that weigh more.

Well, call me spoiled or call me cheap, but I waited a long time to begin to upgrade my A/V systems. I knew I needed something that would be my "server", and the Harman Kardon DPR 1001 is a great choice. I could've spent more, but why? This baby gives me everything I need to upgrade my listening and viewing pleasures. The receiver was easy to hook up to my existing television, speakers, and CD/DVD, and the types of connections you can make are only limited by what your other peripherals have. Digital co-ax, fiber optic, you name it, the HK 1001 has it. I've even figured out the remote control, which for me is like discovering anti-gravity. This piece offers value and excellent performance. I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to put their home A/V system at a new level.

I just purchased this receiver less than a week ago and I am amazed at the value and apparent quality of the piece, especially considering the currently discounted price. The sound is clean, and answering to perhaps one of my biggest concerns, 50 digital watts per channel is more than adequate for a basic home theatre/stereo system. It blows my 80 watt, 2-channel analog (piece of junk) JVC amp out of the water! I am so happy I bought this receiver!

As other reviewers have noted, the sound is clean, perhaps "too clean" for some audiophiles, however I play reggae, trance, and rock music, loud, and it sounds great! There is adequate bass, and I suspect the addition of a powered subwoofer will take it over the top - that is next on my list.

I suspect that some users who wrote reviews did not have the desire or patience to work through the somewhat laborious set-up required to optimize the sound. While the setup requires a somewhat sizeable time commitment, once you finish it is unlikely that you will ever have to deal with it again, at least until you make a change to your system. It is worth it because an accurate setup results in the cleanest sound I have ever heard, no matter what the source (DVD, CD, PC, TV/Cable, Laptop, Tape, Tuner, etc...I have all 7 of these sources hooked up). 6 of the inputs have connections on the back, while the seventh is made through the jacks on the front of the machine.

I think the biggest asset this receiver brings to the table, besides the crystal-clear sound, is the fact that each of the digital inputs can be mapped and assigned to any number of the seven available sources. There are more than enough digital inputs (3 coax, 3 optical) and outputs (1 dedicated coax, one dedicated optical), owing in part to the fact that one set of input jacks can be reversed from their default setting to become outputs - leaving you with two digital ins, and two digital outs (both coax and optical).

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS PRODUCT, esp. for $500, there is no better value anywhere! And in the words of another reviewer, "This is the best purchase I have ever maid!!!" I recommend that reviewer purchase spell check next!

This system has been one of the best buys i ever maid. While some might shy away from this recever becaues of the little power out put, but if you put good speakers with it, you will have a spectacular suround sound experiunce.

Great Volume, FM is average but I've droped it many times and never had a problem. Very Great purchase!!

If you're buying an Intel Pocket Concert, save yourself some time and get the accessory kit right off the bat (or choose the package that includes it with the player). You'll want this kit...

For a start, it adds rechargeability to the Pocket Concert, sporting a pair of nickel metal hydride (NiMH) "memory free" AAA batteries. The docking station featured in this kit serves as your desktop charger... Just insert the Pocket Concert, and it'll begin refreshing your batteries.

The docking station doubles as a fancy (and more practical) USB connection to your PC for downloading your tunes into the player. And while I question the value of the feature, the docking station also has a pair of RCA connectors providing line-level output for your stereo system (or to the line inputs on your computer, presumably).

The carrying case is superb. According to the brand legend on the zipper pulls, this is a Case Logic case -- a fact that Intel doesn't bother to present. But typical of Case Logic products, it's a well made and useful way to carry around your Pocket Concert.

Finally, the standard issue cassette adapter provides you an easy way to play your Pocket Concert on the move in your car, or anywhere a standard cassette deck is available.

The reason I rate it 4 stars, not 5? Price... At late-2001 "ballpark" pricing, this kit boosts the overall price of the Pocket Concert ..., which is at the high-end for 128 Meg audio players. (By the time you read this, no doubt pricing and competitive issues will likely be different, so make your own assessment.)

But price aside, it's still an important thing for any Pocket Concert user to have.

The accessory kit is awesome!! I have the dock set up by my home stereo with a cord running to my computer. It is nice becasue you can send songs directly to it from your computer and then play them through your stereo. The only minor complaint is the rechargable batteries do not last as long as real batteries but I was able to go over six hours on a plane with them. I only wish it had a remote.

It was fun while it lasted. Bought it last Father's day, and by this Father's day, it was already broken--won't load, freezes, won't play DVD (apparently the lens needs replacing). A local TV repair shop says it will cost more than the player itself with labor involved. Audiovox will charge a flat rate of 93.75 plus the cost of shipping it to them to fix it. So basically a year later I'm having to buy the player all over again. Pretty steep considering it is only one year old, and that I took impeccable care of the player (cleaned often and kept in padded case).

I bought this for a planned cross country road trip that did not happen. Now I use it often if not for movies, to listen to music.The picture is great, sharp and clear. The sound is great as well.It is lightweight and it comes with the things you need to either use it in a car or to hook it up to your tv at home. The battery holds the charge well. Things that are important to me in a portable. Do not let the price fool you. Yes it is lower than most other portables but the quality is outstanding. I would and will someday buy another.

I bought this for my husband's birthday (50 - so I splurged a bit). He absolutely loved it! Our two teenage children were fascinated. My husband's co-worker wanted to see it - and then ordered one for herself. My husband loves to watch dvds that I don't really want to see so the portability of the dvd player is very useful to us. It has a great picture - extremely clear. I highly recommend this player.

The only problems I have noticed is poor stagiging in the rear speakers - lack of volume too.

I purchased this receiver and the companion DVD711 player 2 years ago and it still impresses me to this day. I have it breathing through a pair of Klipsch LaScala's and a single powered sub and the power output can either be subtle or breath-taking. Has enough features to be funtional and no unnecessary gee-gaws I find to be useless price-inflation toys. I bought this to replace an old Kenwood integrated amp and I found it to put out as much oomph, if not a little more.

I would highly recommend this unit to any frugal audio/videophiles out there more interested in value rather then fluff.

This receiver is stunning.... It has raw power.... It has 5 S video inputs/outputs,and it has 2 optical inputs/outputs with options for your vinyl Lp's, satellite and more.... This receiver is a steal, hands down the best receiver for the money!!! I have shopped around I have been in Bestbuy,Circuit City,Radio Shack,Sam's Club I've even gone to department stores looking for the right receiver. I have been in numerous sound rooms and yes Harmon Kardon,Onkyo,Denon,and Yamaha do sound good but the FR975 receiver has more raw power than all the names Ive just mentioned unless you want to pay a grand or so for a few extra features and some pretty lights....Dont get me wrong just because you find a receiver for cheap,doesn't mean you should use cheap speakers.) I would still recommend high quality speakers.Your electronic equippment is as good as the quality, but sometimes you can find quality without the expense. This also an awesome upgrade from dolby surround to digital surround.(Nothing Ive seen carries the digital (DTS) signal and has the power of this receiver let alone the price of this receiver.)If you want to get crunk then crank this!!! Most underated buy for a receiver....

The "Harman Kardon AVR-500" Surround Sound Receiver,
is, without a doubt, The finest receiver I've ever had the privilege to experience "Over the Top!! Being a classical Violinist, I listen to various aspects in music mostly from the perspective of a "live performance". The dynamic and transient responces of the AVR-500, offer the listener who is unfamiliar with accurate "True to the Source" Sound Re-Creation, a most shocking and delectable surprise!! What I look for in home music listening, are the subtle nuances of a whisper and the thunderous rage of an immensely powerful organ, tearing up the Earth. Without these characteristics, it quickly becomes tedious to listen to. H/K's High-Current design, is meant to express these delicate and votile surges without fatigue, all the while preserving the intimate details underlying the music's "hidden harmonics". The H/K AVR-500, handles this effortlessly and with aplomb. +)*(+ If this sounds like a description of a fine musical instrument, it is. The H/K AVR-500 is easy to set up, and the remote is straight-forward, you will not find divergent discrepancies prompting constant visitations to the unit proper. After initial set-up, you can relax, everything else is handled via remote, which also has an attractive "Blue-Green" backlit illumination. H/K is known to be ultra-conservative in their Power Ratings, as well as THD (total harmonic distortion). With the AVR-500 at no more than .07% THD, that's driven "Wide Open"! A very Very Clean Machine Indeed!! I could say much more, but its better to let H/K's AVR-500 tell you!!

Harman Kardon AVR-500. Elegant, Understated, Smooth

Highly Recomended *****

Stan Slonski

+)*(+

Harmon Kardon by far is the best in home theatre there quality of receivers is almost as good as the movie theatre
sound itself.If you only have 1000 dollars to spend buy this
baby and when you get it home it has enough power to blow you out of the house , with crystal clear dynamic Dolby Digital &
DTS sound incredible power this is the top of the mountain for
below a grand if you own Gladiator slip it in turn it on DTS
and crank it up and you'll see it dosen't even phase it at all.

When I, invite my friends over they think iv'e purchased an
actual movie theatre system.All receivers come with a midnight
setting incase your in an apartment and your bothersome lanlord
complains about the sound it is useful for when people are sleeping.Enough options to keep you busy figuring them out but
one things for sure when you buy this you know exactly how awsome this receiver is when you get it home it's a good deal.

I purchased this amp/receiver about a month ago and had it hooked up the night it arrived. The setup is kind of confusing at first but once you figure it out (what the manual is saying) it isn't too much trouble. I am a big believer in amps over watts because you can create high watts with low amps and hence no sound but if you reverse the order; high amps and low watts the neighbors come a knocking. I also like to be able to "feel" my sound ie. the rumble of a tornado in the movie Twister. This receiver does/has all of this and more. The one con I have for this receiver is that it is short of inputs by 2. 1 is phono which I don't listen to alot so it wasn't a big con. The 2nd missing input is one for my satelite which has digital outputs which would have been nice to hook up but this was overcome by entering through the VCR. Oh well can't have everything on a buget. Overall this is one of the best AVR's I have seen for the price. If you like the artificial sound stages of other systems then don't buy this AVR but if you want the sound that came with the DVD, CD or Tape then this one is for you. You won't complain about the price when you get it set up.

This is a supa little recording device. Very compact and easy to use. I agree that the LP mode is rather crap, but it does work for emergency long recordings (if you were say kidnapped and held in a small box and needed to record what the criminals were saying). The HQ mode is cool tho, offering 22mins of hi-quality recording time.

I mainly use it for recording ideas for tunes that I have whilst away from my Mac, so 22 mins is easily long enough. Much better than trying to remember a tune in you head until you get home.

I recommend this voice recorder. The size is excellent. I carry it everywhere in my pocket and use it everyday at least once. Haven't had to change the batteries yet after 3 months of use. It's easy to use, easy to organize your recordings and will keep track of when you recorded them (date and time). It doubles as a pocket clock for those without a wristwatch.

You can even keep it by your bedside and use it at night if you have to make a note. The REC button is easy to locate and there's a small red light for when it's recording. The voice detection feature works well, too (it stops recording during periods of silence). You can turn on distinctive beeps in the menu, which could work pretty well for the visually impaired.

The reason I rated it 4 stars instead of 5 stars is because it claims 90 minutes of recording time at LP, when SP (33 min) and HQ (15 min?) are the only modes that produce voice recordings you can actually understand. If you think you need more than 30 minutes, go for the model with more recording time.

I've had this recorder for almost a year. I've dropped it, gotten it wet, and it's still ticking! Never had any problems with it; it's been a huge asset in my record keeping. I HIGHLY recommend this recorder!!!