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"Nice Radio with a few small problems" on by hzolla
Pros: Price, Classy Looks
Cons: Turning Alarm On/Off, Doesn't Dim Enough
Summary: I've had this radio for almost a year and like the sound quality. I put an antenna up on my roof to get distant stations so reception is great.
I have some small complaints
(1) It is difficult to enable or disable the alarm (like on Friday and Sunday night). You need to go through the settings menu and submenu and toggle the settings. There should be a direct button, somewhere, to turn the alarm on and off.
(2) The display offers three levels of dimming. However, the lowest intensity is still too bright and lights up my whole bedroom at night. I place a tissue box in front of the display at bedtime to keep the room dark.
These are pretty small matters. I like this radio and recommend it. -
"Analog reception great - Digital reception poor" on by nervous_cat
Pros: Good AM/FM reception on analog tuner only. Remote control is nice (aim it away from radio and still works).
Cons: Poor digital reception. The speakers do not sound that great for a table radio.
Summary: I bought this radio on eBay (used) and hooked it up. At first I couldn't pick up any digital broadcasts on AM or FM. I ended moving my FM dipole antenna over the window inside my apartment and was able to pick up one HD station. While listening in HD, the background noise gets quieter (no FM hiss from multipath). Maybe it is my aging ears, but the sound quality from the built-in radio speakers does not result in the improved listening experience in HD that I was expecting.
This radio also has a very large, annoying AC adapter "brick" on the power cord that hums when plugged in. I recommend getting the newer Sony HD table radio with the power supply built in (Sony XDR-S10HDiP, which also has an iPod dock).
Sometimes I can pick up one AM HD station briefly. While clearer sounding than analog, digital AM radio sounds like an low bit rate Internet audio stream. I was hearing the AM signal cut in and out from analog to digital while listing to a baseball game.
Since I bought this radio for HD listening, I was somewhat disappointed with the very low number of stations I can pick up in HD (and I am in the New York Metropolitan area where analog stations are crowded all over the dial).
Updated on Jul 22, 2009
Updated on Jul 22, 2009Correction: My previous update was incorrect. I later discovered the Sony XDR-S10HDiP radio also has a external AC adapter (power supply not built into the radio). -
"very good but no snooze" on by orlcam2002
Pros: great sound
Cons: no snooze, no dual alarm
Summary: I had bought the Sangean RS-330 but that one broke down on me in 3 days. The Sony is it's replacement. The sound quality is great and reception is great if you use an antenna. I in NY so I get a lot of stations. The only things that prevent me from giving it an excellent rating is the fact that there is no snooze and no dual alarm.
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"Disappointing" on by jerseyblues
Pros: Nice look.
Cons: No snooze on alarm; time does not display when radio is on.
Summary: Bought this to be used as an alarm clock but will return. Useless without the snooze and if I have to look at my watch when the radio turns on, then it defeats the purpose for a CLOCK/radio.
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"Nice Little Unit - Works as advertised" on by CNET Reviewer in IL
Pros: Excellent AM reception; Good FM reception
Cons: All presets reset if unplugged.
Summary: I've been thinking about purchasing an HD
Radio for my office for some time; the holidays got me the $$ to get one. After some reading on line, I decided to purchase the Sony. The included antenna for both AM and FM work fine for me at home, but not the FM for the office; will invest in another FM antenna. What surprised me was the quality of both the AM and FM signals. AM does have a bit of a "digital" feel, but is an amazing upgrade to regular AM signals. FM is good sounding; the "hidden" channels are nice to have. Sound quality of the unit is excellent. Good sounding with both the speakers and headphones. Not too many bad qualities, but the headphone jack should be somewhere else on the unit instead of the back. My biggest complaint is that the unit "resets" when unplugged; you must reenter all of your presets and time each time its unplugged. Once I get it set in my office, that wont be a worry. Would I suggest to buy this? Yes. Its a great table radio and should be considered if you're thinking of going to HD Radio.
Sony XDR-S3HD user reviews
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