Radio Reviews

CD Player started to skip in first few weeks of its use. It finally broke after 6 monts of use. The design of the unit isn't so bad , with the exception of volume control which in my opinion should be in place of timer control, but the quality of the equipment is very bad.

I was using a crummy boom box to listen to the radio while I was in the kitchen and hated the way it took up counter space, plus the reception was finicky. I looked at other models of under cabinet radios and the only other one that was comparable was the newest GE model. The older white models were clunky in design. The newer GE did not have as rich of a sound and it had a "busier" design that I thought would be a grunge magnet in the kitchen. I was concerned about the FM antenna in the cord, but it turned out to be an non-issue. Mounting was a breeze and the reception I get is the same as with our big receivers, even without the cord stretched out (I have it loosely looped on top of the unit). AM reception is the best in the house!

I bought this product for use as a bedroom player. Other stereos seemed a bit too bulky to fit my minimalist tastes and I had a limited budget to work with. I must say that I am very pleased with the performance of this player. Even though I mounted it under a bookcase shelf, it still produces amazing sound [despite the fact that the speakers are underneath the player].

As with most Sony electronics, it plays CD-R & -RWs perfectly. The radio is also of very high quality -- the reception is excellent. For the first time in my life I can catch every radio station I listen to. In addition, the remote is small and has a magnetic back for ease of storage.

Installation is a breeze (just make sure you have a drill handy!) as Sony provides a stencil of sorts (holes puched where you'll need to drill) to facilitate mounting.

I highly recommend this product for anyone on a budget looking for an attractive player.

Bought the cambridge soundworks radio through amazon.com who get's it's through J&R Music World. After getting the radio, two days later the indicator light that tells you if the alarm is on stops working. Can't tell if the alarm is on by looking at the radio. This sucks. After paying 213.78 what do i do ? Send it back? Who knows, wait for 2 months to get it back. All for one tiny little light. I,ve decided to live with it . Sounds good, but don't know if the alarm is on by looking at the radio. I am not going through the trouble to send this back. I rate this radio a 2 star.

It simply isn't clear to me if the 730 is actually the old Model 88 with a new skin, or if they are completely unrelated. I don't have a Model 88 to which to listen, and am therefore unable to make a conclusion. However, considering Henry Kloss' emphasis on a natural musical sound, it seems likely to me that the 730 is NOT a Kloss design. Let me explain.

I own a Kloss-designed Model 1. It is a sweet and musical radio, quite an engineering marvel. It is an extremely satisfying radio to own and listen to. Then I heard that the Kloss out-did himself with the Model 88, mainly with extensions of the lower frequencies below 200 Hz. I had to get one, but was told that the Model 88 is now the 730, so the 730 is what I got.

After 2 months of daily listening, I have been sadly dissatisfied with the 730. While the tiny Kloss Model 1 was warm and musical (with a rich bass, mind you), the 730 is, simply put, uneven. Instead of a flat frequency response throughout its range, there is a significant hump somewhere below 200 Hz. (Too lazy to bring out the sound meter to check the exact frequency). When the music happens to have a compenent in that particular frequency, the apparent bass is artificially boosted and overwhelms the listener. Worse yet, it muddies up the frequencies around that hump when the hump is hit, and a lot of musical information is completely lost.

When listening to an orchestra, this effect is most pronounced when the timpani comes in. One particular kettle will set off the radio's artifical bass boost, and any following passages from the timpani is lost for the next 1-2 seconds until the rogue frequency damps away.

Perhaps this radio was designed for listening to electronic music, I don't know. It is too uneven for listening to classical music (or anything that needs to sound natural). The folks who glow about the 730's bass sound aren't looking for music in the bass, I fear. They are just looking for a lot of something that sounds like bass. Psychoacoustics at work again [big sigh].

My hunt for the real Model 88 continues, I guess ....

I bought a refurbished 730 from Cambridge on ebay for $140. At this price the thing is a real steal. Their shipping was prompt. I got several emails tracking their handling.

Pros:

The controls have been done beautifully and the range of functionality is immense ... it speaks 5 languages ... the remote is a tiny marvel ... the 730 is a real sound center, not just a radio. Remarkably hefty. I play my CD's through the rear aux input.

The sound is quite remarkable. In fact, it can be somewhat uncanny. The 730 replaced a long-used Proton radio whose tuner gave out but the 730 is "hifi" and -- in hindsight -- the Proton was just a very good table radio.

The FM tuner sensitivity is OK and I can do secure stereo on the station I most care about in a house where reception is usually somewhat problematic. Oddly, reception was worse with the Terk amplified antenna I use in my basement. I taped the 730's FM antenna wire along the length of the headboard.

Cons:

Yes, the bass response is hot and somewhat quirky ... some recordings just have too much bass for the 730. I keep the bass tone control flat and the treble slightly turned up.
The loudness contour must stay off.

The clock gained 3 minutes in its first 3 weeks, while I was away. But the cleaning lady says she might have touched it.
A mystery.

The display dims greatly when lights are out but still not enough that I can sleep just below it without covering the face. And the lights for the alarms make it even brighter.

The audio and FM input jacks in back were slightly flaky upon first use and required a bit of diddling to achieve secure connections; but they have been stable.

I don't know what I'm doing wrong, with all those other glowing reviews it has made me wonder, but these have been terrible for me. Two out of the three I ordered are DUDS! One receives but doesn't send, the other doesn't work at all. I'm just waiting for the third to die. My family took them skiing and they were not reliable, plus they seem to eat batteries for lunch!

As an avid outdoor person, these radios are a real life-saver.I use them while skiing, hiking, running, biking, etc - to keep in touch with the people I'm out with. More than once we have had folks get off track and call for guidce to meet back with the group (even if it's merely to re-group for lunch, or the end of the day).For such a small investment, these are a huge insurance policy against worry !!

Ive had these radios for a little while, and they are GREAT! They get GREAT reception, I havn't heard any interfearance yet, and ive dropped it a couple times, even on cement. It still works perfectly. It is durable, it has a far range, inside and out, and it is CHEAP! WHAT A GREAT PRICE! If you are wanting to buy 2 way radios, I STRONGlY suggest buying some of these. They are cheap, so buy a bunch! I have no negative things to say about these. The 14 differant channels and 38 sub-channels is a great thing if you are out on the slopes, or anything where you might need these If you want a great, inexpensive radio, BUY THIS THEY ARE GREAT!

You willbe surprised to see that (2) one pair of these are located at iwon.com shopping area for sale at the price of $69.99,and if you have some of those cash points for playing their games that you no nobody ever won, the price goes from $69.99 less $13.00 cash points to cost you $56.99 and that is for the pair of the walkie talkies, not for just one as is this one.Since this is listed as Single, don't be mistaken, make sure you are buying a pair of them, otherwise you will be verymad with amazon.com Also,tell them here tolowertheir price alittle.LOL

Tired of yelling for the kids or your better half? Looking for them in the mall, in the house or at the camp site. Then this is for you! I've been a radio hobbist for years and these little radios are neat! You can use over 340 'channel' combinations on 4 AAA batteries. But here's the rub, the batteries only last 24 hours or LESS total time. The range is pretty good for only 500Mv (about one-half watt) in the city I can go about 3/4 of a mile. Clean clear communications, no static and a neat 'call' button feature. For a family this is a great little radio. Don't expect to get the 2 miles as claimed, unless you are in the desert on open field. Get the rechargable battery packs and charger, you'll need it!

I recently purchased one of thies radios and it was exactly the one i was looking for. the size is great. it is the only radio that i can fit in a pocet without looking like i have big hips. all of the feachers are great to like the water resistant frame, the channle lock and the back lite. But the most importand thing is the channles and privacy codes. All of my frends got somthing with 14 channles and 38 privacy codes and i was stuck with a one channle radio. so I bought this. I think that it is the best radio anyone could ever hope for.

This is not a good product! The range is bad!!!(only 1/2 mile, when it says 2 miles) I test radios for a living and the rank low out of 210 radios it ranks 198 ot of 210. It is good for backyard use only for kids playing! DO NOT BUY IT!!!

I left it sitting on the shelf for a few months w/ batteries inside. When I went to use it, it had drained the batteries. Battery life also seems too short. I'd suggest getting FRS radios that take AA batteries even though they are somewhat larger.

It is clear and loud and has decent range (not sure what other folks are used to, especially the guy who tested 210 radios but didn't post what the top 3 were from his results). It also has the key features (lots of channels and subcode), so it's a relatively good deal for FRS radios.

Having owned a pair of Motorolas that cost twice as much, I can tell you that these are a great buy. Well built, with pretty much the same feature set as the Motorola brand. Battery life is the same as the Motorolas; the more you talk the less battery life you get, as transmission burns up the battery life much more than reception.

I think the most important purchase criteria here is how you intend to use them, as usable distance varies considerable with terrain. If you are in flat farmlands then you can expect 2 miles, otherwise it is typically less than a 1 mile of effective range. In cities I've found it to sometimes be as little as 200 or 300 feet (that's less than 1/10 of a mile).

FRS radios can be used with great success in many situations, such as at Disneyworld (yep, you can stay in touch with lose your kids or significant other), shopping in big cities (I hang out on the street while my wife takes the girls inside), when the kids are biking near the house, etc. If that's what you have in mind, then this is a good purchase.

i give it a 5 star because it gets great range. i measured it once and it got 5 and a half miles with hills. this radio exceads the ordinary radio by far. i have one and my dad has one and we can talk back and forth 2 miles with some obstructions. i think that the batteries work a very long time, i've gotten 5 hours out of them with the rechargable batteries. i got 2 mile radios about 4 christmases ago and they made barley half a mile. these are very good radio's and i would recomend them to anyone.

THIS RADIO IS THE BEST RADIO I EVER USED.

ITS RANGE IS GREAT AND EVERY THING COMES IN REALLY CLEAR.

IT USUALLY HAS A RANGE OF 2-3 IN THE CITY AND 5 MILES IN THE OPEN COUNTRY.

THE MOST RANGE I EVER HAD WAS 16 MILES.

THIS RADIO-- AUDIOVOX 1525 IS THE BEST RADIO I EVER HAD.

IT WORKS FINE IN THE CITY AND BETTER IN THE COUNTRY. I GET 2-3 MILES IN THE CITY AND 4+ IN THE COUNTRY.

THIS RADIO IS CLEAR AND HAS ALOT OF GREAT FEATURES.

It is all good except for a few things: the fm receptor is in the back of the stereo sytem and must be pulled out all the way to receive it the clearest, the cd changer is extremely slow and makes alot of noise, also when theres no cds in there it searches through each dics holder, it takes alot of time and wastes alot of power. Other than that the sound is great, the look is nice, theres a nice and simple remote, and contains all the features of a stereo system!

It is all good except for a few things: the fm receptor is in the back of the stereo sytem and must be pulled out all the way to receive it the clearest, the cd changer is extremely slow and makes alot of noise, also when theres no cds in there it searches through each dics holder, it takes alot of time and wastes alot of power. Other than that the sound is great, the look is nice, theres a nice and simple remote, and contains all the features of a stereo system!

This is a great sounding cd player but, like most people, I have to say that the changer is very slow. Other than that, a great player.

Quality is decent, though the on/off volume knob feels cheap. Good range in the suburbs. Included belt clip a plus. Will only take the FRS-EM8 and the FRS-EMC8 earbud microphones

I bought this radio to communicate with my family in the ground floor of my apartment and the quality was exceptional. I even used it to tap radio transmissions and this can perform very well in bad weather conditions also, If u want to buy a radio , I personally suggest GO FOR IT!!!

I got them a couple of months ago and they are so cool. I have used them on car trips and campouts. They seem to be made very well. And for this price I think they are amazing.

Quality is decent, though the on/off volume knob feels cheap. Good range in the suburbs. Included belt clip a plus. Will only take the FRS-EM8 and the FRS-EMC8 earbud microphones

I bought this radio to communicate with my family in the ground floor of my apartment and the quality was exceptional. I even used it to tap radio transmissions and this can perform very well in bad weather conditions also, If u want to buy a radio , I personally suggest GO FOR IT!!!

I got them a couple of months ago and they are so cool. I have used them on car trips and campouts. They seem to be made very well. And for this price I think they are amazing.

I bought this player because, to be honest, it looked good. Another reason was that it plays CDRs and CDRWs and it had a radio.

At first, I had no complaints, but then I decided to used smaller
headphones and that's when the problems began. I didn't know that the headphones acted as an antennae. Those earpiece headphone don't work good for reception. I don't like bulky headphones and that's was a problem for me.

The second thing is that even when I turn the "hold" switch on, the songs began to skip. I never dropped it so that couldn't be the problem.

The sound is fine and it has nice features but the problems overshadow the positives. Not recommended.

Was an awesome player(fell off roof of car on highway and couldnt find when i realized i left it and went back.. OOOPPSS), played every cd i had NEVER skipped. Good bass although i would recomend getting bigger headphones, then again no portable cd player comes with good headphones. Had this player for almost a year. Dropped it, ran it over while biking, you name it. CD player is almost flawless. Good Tuner better then the sony i used to own, my only complaints are you have to put the bass on only half way when you crank the volume to max and it's akward look. Good battery life, as the manual says you get better battery life with the antiskip on full then with half on or all the way off.

I needed a CD player that could play CD-RWs for editing purposes. Being an electrical engineer, I auditioned several brands that I could use for editing RWs. I finally chose the Aiwa XP-R220 and the Panasonic SL-SX289V. Since these units both have tuners, I selected the Sony DF20 for comparison of the tuner only. The SONY DF20 (doesn't play RWs) sounded better than the Panasonic SL-SX2898V on CDs; the Aiwa CD sound quality blew away the SONY DF20 on CDs! Need I say any more about the winner for CD sound - it's the Aiwa by far! As for the tuner, the SONY was the winner here (but it doesn't play RWs). The Panasonic and Aiwa tuner have equally poor sensitivity. The Aiwa doesn't pick up many stations when scanning automatically (I am located in a large U.S.northeastern city with strong signals); therefore, to program stations you must step the tuner manually to your favorite stations before storing them in memory. If you play CD-R's or -RW's on the Aiwa, you might have to turn off the anti-skip circuit or the player won't play the manually selected track you want; the player just hangs up and 'hunts' for the track without playing it! This was also true on the Panasonic player.