King of the Hill
Written: Jul 26 '00
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Pros: Everything. Durable, reliable, sounds good
Cons: Face plate replacement fee is steep.
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| Nb41's Full Review: Sony XR C7220 Radio / Cassette Player - 40 Watts x... |
My personal experience so far isn't with this specific model (boy, I seem to say that a lot, yeah?), but with two of its predecessors. My first car stereo was a Sony XRC-210, and that little receiver, paired with Sony's top of the line 10disc changer, was probably one of the best stereo buys I've ever made. At the time it ran about $320, and it survived 2 car accidents and much abuse at my hands. It was easy to operate, it was reliable, the sound was excellent, and it offered 25 Watts to 4 channels, which was fine by me as I had some fairly plain Kenwood and JVC speakers (nothing to crow about).
I will interject one small con. The faceplate on my first XRC was stolen, and I had to have it replaced to the tune of $100. Ugh. I hated that part. But you CAN get it replaced, which is, I suppose, some small consolation. Still, I was perturbed that I had to shell out 1/3 again the cost of the whole stereo for the faceplate. On the bright side, presets are stored in the unit, not the faceplate, so I didn't have to reset anything.
My second XRC, which is a model that's only about 1 year older than this, is just as good as the first. They've changed some of the design; the XRC-210 gave quite a bit of control over Treble, Bass, Balance and Fade--my current stereo is a little less refined, meant more for someone who'd rather have the stereo deal with itself. No more 'loudness'; instead we have 3 levels of 'dbass' to choose from.
I have, by and large, found Sony's stereo products to be the best bang for the buck. They're durable, the sound is good, and they're by no means difficult to use. Sony makes a range of products (one of the current XRC models is as low as $180 through some vendors) as well, thus you're not stuck with only high end models.
In general, I don't think I'll ever buy a non-Sony stereo system again, insofar as CD players and receivers go.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 320
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Epinions.com ID:
Nb41
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Member: Susannah
Location: Seattle, WA
Reviews written: 44
Trusted by: 8 members
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