Sangean HDR-1 Table Top HD Radio Receiver
by Sangean
|
List Price: Category: CE See more product details |
|---|
(Click here)
Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Sangean HDR-1 Table Top HD Radio Receiver
Customer Review: Excellent FM, poor AM - edit - 1 1/2 year later, still four stars.
Summary: 4 Stars
I purchased this radio a week ago and was disappointed with the poor reception. In my case, the AM reception is poor. The FM reception, with the built in antenna was OK, but, the radio will not go digital unless it has a strong signal. I recommend an antenna like the C. Crane 'FM Reflect'.
After I connected the C Crane antenna, the FM was better than my component FM receiver with a similar antenna.
I am now receiving most all of the Los Angeles stations (about 45 miles away) with good digital reception. Some stations offer three digital channels, and I get those.
Ken
Edit added:
I connected a "Terk Technology AM-1000 Advantage Passive AM Indoor Antenna " to this radio and was able to get standard AM reception up to the quality of my other radios. A note on connecting the antenna, the connections appear to be polarized. If you get poor reception with the Terk then switch the wires around. The sound quality of even standard AM is the best that I have heard on any table top radio.
k
Updated 3 Dec 08;
My latest opinion after owning two of these for a year and a half:
This is a good sounding radio. One person commented about the brightness of the display, hey, you can turn that off. I have had one of the HDR-1 radios on my night stand for about 18 months now. I use it to wake me in the morning. My main complaint is about the 'clock radio' features. If the power in your house goes out for any amount of time, the radio WILL forget what time it is and revert to some bogus default time. The other settings, such as alarm time and station presets are remembered ok.
Other than that, I love this radio. It does have two custom equalizer settings (along with the fixed ones) called 'my bass' and 'my treble'. The manual is not too clear on this, but, basically set the amount of treble in one and bass in the other. Then select either setting and both will apply.
If you do not live within about 30 miles (depends on terrain) of the broadcast stations, YOU WILL BE UNHAPPY with the HD part of the radio, as in, you probably will not have any HD reception.
I like the sound, on the weekends, I plug one of my ipods into the 'aux in' jack and listen through this radio's speakers. If I need to 'turn it up', I connect the ipod into my 1000 watt home theater system. I do prefer the lower volume and excellent sound of this radio.
Ken
Customer Review: Great HD Radio
Summary: 4 Stars
In spite of some of the negative comments others have made about this Sangean(sane-jin)(company in Taiwan, factory in China) HD (hybrid digital) Multicast radio, once you get it set up and learn how to access its numerous menu options using the unique single knob on the front, or the small light-weight remote control, you won't want to part with it; it takes patience at first. I bought this radio to access a classical music station on HD that isn't available on regular FM. The sound for this size radio is amazing. There are about 5 different equalizer settings (flat, classical, pop, jazz, rock, etc.) as well as separate bass and trebel controls. The backlight display has 7 different brightness settings or can be turned off completely -- but comes on briefly for about 10 seconds if you make a change in any of the control settings. There is a Headphone jack as well as an Aux input (both 3.5 mm diameter) on the back. Also on the back is a single retractable "rabbit ear" FM antenna which can be removed (using the included wrench) if a regular T-type or other antenna is needed for better reception. You can even split the incoming radio signal to play one station (music) on the left speaker and another station (baseball, talk radio, news) on the right speaker at the same time -- if a person is so inclined to do so. It would be difficult to imagine a radio having more features and settings than this one. There are display modes for radio text, program type, frequency, preset station, signal strength, audio setting (stereo or mono), graphic equalizer, time and date, alarm 1/2, snooze function, sleep timer, 12 or 24 hour format, and system reset, which allows you to return to the initial factory setting status of the radio. It comes with a well written and illustrated manual, AM loop and installed FM telescopic aerial and separate dipole antennas. There is no cooling fan or AC "brick" to deal with and the electrical cord is detachable; it uses 35 watts of power. Pushing the contol knob in turns the radio on or off; turning it adjusts the volume. The other features shown on the display are accessed by holding the control knob in and then turning it left or right. If you have the patience and take the time to learn how to "operate" this radio, you will not be disappointed. I've had mine for two weeks.
Customer Review: Excellent Initiation Into HD Radio
Summary: 5 Stars
After owning a Sangean WR-2 clock radio for a year and a half and growing more fond of it, I decided to get another upscale radio for my office, a radio with a remote control so I could avoid computer interference by keeping the radio a good 6 feet away. After reading about HD radio and Sangean's entrance into the market, I decided to take a chance. Worst case scenario, I figured, is that it would be another high-grade radio like my Sangean WR-2. Like the WR-2, the HDR-1 has a high-grade feel, a solid construction, memory presets, a remote control, and strong sensitivity on AM and FM. However, the HDR-1 is definitely an upgrade and you might consider that it has the following advantages and differences:
1. Two speakers instead of one.
2. Easy-to-use (simply plug in) AM external antenna for hard-to-get stations.
3. HD quality is clearly discernable, clear, full, no static, no "birdy," no chirps.
4. Some HD stations have multi-broadcasts.
5. Most functions have to be performed with the remote. For this reason, I don't see this as a bedside radio. Who wants to squint at their remote in a dark bedroom? More appropriate for a bedside radio is the Sangean WR-2 or the Eton Sound 100. But for office or anywhere that requires a distance between you and your radio, the HDR-1 is an excellent choice.
Update: Be aware that in AM it takes a few seconds before the radio "kicks in" to digital mode. The sound is so good it's hard to listen to non-digital AM stations. Even the strongest station in Los Angeles, KFI 640, sounds bad because it's non HD. One last point: I'm more and more in love with the speaker sound. I can't even play them as loud as I want to as I'm working when I have the radio on. But these dual speakers really shine.
Second Update: 1-19-07: After 3 weeks, I've discovered a weakness on AM: Rainy weather compromises the HD signal. This problem is compounded by the fact that the radio has weak conventional AM (much weaker for example than my Sangean WR-2 and my Eton/Grundig S350) so that when it's not in HD mode the AM sounds bad, a constant crackle in the background. FM remains strong in both HD and non HD mode, but Sangean needs to address this AM weakness.
Customer Review: Not Worth the Money
Summary: 1 Stars
Sangean receivers used to be considered to have a "hot front-end" by ham radio enthusiasts, and holding a General Class license, I expected great things from this radio. This receiver is pretty poor and my $10 clock radio does much better! I have trouble pulling in AM stations that are 5 miles away!! Menus are convoluted and too complicated. Sound is very good when you finally can pull in an FM HD station. Worst part is the digital clock loses about one whole minute per week, so it is 10 minutes off at the end of a couple months and then I have to reset it. Very aggravating. A digital clock ought to be more accurate than that! You almost lose an hour per year!! Maybe this is Sangean's way of saving us from adjusting our clocks one-hour for daylight saving! For $250, this radio is just not worth it. I would return it if I had not purchased it with gift certificates so the cost was much less for me, personally. A fellow office worker has the Boston Accoustics HD radio and it is much better...not nearly as pretty to look at, but much easier to use, the clock is accurate and it even sounds a little better. Take a pass on this radio unless someone practically gives it to you, as in my case.
UPDATE:
Sangean has fixed some bugs and I sent mine in for warranty repair and now it keeps good time and pulls in stations better. Still, whenever there is the slightest power outage, it loses time AND memory presets for stations and the menus remain convoluted. It also has a very slight, low volume AC hum that can be heard when the power is turned off. I continue to love the sound of a HD radio station emanating from this radio, and this unit is attractive, yet it's overpriced and needs improvement. Boston Acoustics still looks like the better deal, and if you don't want HD, try looking at the Tivoli table radios.
Customer Review: Very nice sound. Reception a little tricky
Summary: 4 Stars
In Cincinnati, you can still get the once-dead WOXY with an HD receiver thanks to the generosity of our public radio station with its HD-2 signal.
It's nice that the Sangean comes with a rigid antenna attached, but it's very ineffective at pulling in any HD stations. For that, you really must install the included flexible antenna and find someplace to tape or staple it where it will stretch to its full length.
We'll need to try a different location in the kitchen, because we lose HD reception whenever the oven or microwave are running.
The controls are probably not for everybody. It comes with a small remote which can handle most of the functions. Trying to do anything from the radio itself is an interesting exercise. There is one control on the face of the device. This handles every setting. On/off, volume, treble, bass, presets, tuning, you name it. It makes the face of the radio very elegant and uncluttered, but it's not always immediately obvious where to find all the functions.
When HD radio does come in, the sound is really very nice. The bass has a very warm, rich tenor that i wouldn't expect from a radio this size. It seems this model is very well priced compared to other HD-capable devices. I have difficulty imagining any of them sounding better.
If you don't mind spending some time to get the proper setup, and can live with an attractive but mildly clumsy user interface, you may find this to be an excellent choice.