The best CD player died long ago.
Apr 27 '01
The Bottom Line Current players cannot handle loud volumes, and even medium volumes with bass boost causes distortion. Minidisc players/mp3 players may be a better option.
Take any portable CD player on the market nowadays, and just try to crank up the volume. Hear that loud popping noise? Is that caused by the earphones sucking majorly? No, it's far worse. Pretty much all PCDP (portable cd players) nowadays have built-in limiter systems (in addition to the one you can turn on and off), which limits the output of the handheld system. This is to conserve battery power, but where do they get off, putting in a terrible amplifier and then selling it as a plus? Back in the old days, where a skip free PCDP was unheard of, I have a beauty of a player. It took 4 batteries, lasted for about 5 hours, and cranked tunes out flawlessly at even the highest volume with bass boost on! The entire method of thinking behind the big boys in the industry is backwards. Create a CD player which saves on batteries so it'll save you money. But the players themselves are ridiculasly expensive! An option should have been made on these systems, a kind of battery saver option. That way, those of us who would like to listen to it loud can, and those who need to save money on batteries can too.
My advice in purchasing a CD player which will give you the sound you want is don't. All Sony discmans which have G-force protection (pretty much the only tolerable skip protection next to Panasonic's high end player), have limiter systems, and Panasonic is under the same roof. A good indicator is how many batteries it takes, and how long the player is advertised to last under those batteries. 1-2 batteries with a lifespan of 4+ hours will guarantee you sound that is not up to par (unless you're a librarian and love silence). If you can find a player which takes 3-6 batteries, you can be pretty much assured that thing will crank out tunes no matter what volume you love. RCA reputably makes the loudest MP3 player on the market, and their discman's are quite cheap. It's worth investigating, but unless it's got a really long skip protection time, it's probably not worth your money.
If you do give in and buy a PCDP with a limiter, find a pair of headphones/earphones which take an extremely low wattage. Don't worry about the music sounding worse, as it's a trade off either way. Good sound quality and volume restrictions vs. okay sound quality with higher volume options.
And don't think that mp3 players are any better (though the RCA player should be looked into if you're in the market for a loud mp3 player).
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Epinions.com ID:
mr_chupon99
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Member: Adam Richards
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Reviews written: 57
Trusted by: 5 members
About Me:
Video game guru, and a loving sexy man for any women who needs one[wink].
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