Barebones system for a low price
Written: Jan 18 '04
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Pros: low price, quality, good sound
Cons: no remote, inadequate display, few extra features
The Bottom Line: This is good enough for an office or bedroom, and a great buy for the money.
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| childebrand's Full Review: Philips AZ1030 Cassette/CD Boombox |
Philips has set the standards for portable CD\Tape systems for many years now, and although they aren't anything special, they deliver descent sound and functions for a very low price. My experience with this stereo in the past 3 years has been very much as would be expected.
Inside the box of this system one will find the stereo itself, a power cable, and the documentation. The documentation is short and simple, but very adequate, and is in several languagues. The setup of the stereo is very quick and easy - just plug in the power and you're ready to go.
To start with, one must use a toggle to choose between Tape/off, CD, FM, or AM. Choosing Tape/off does nothing until you insert a cassette and press the play button. Choosing CD brings the LCD display to life and the player reads the inserted disc. You can then press play, program the tracks, etc. FM and AM selections simply tune into the frequency that the analog tuner has been left on. Radio reception is fine.
Sound quality from this stereo is crisp at lower volumes, but becomes slightly distorted once you pass around 3/4 volume. The bass sounds good as long as the bass boost is on, but is not for someone who wants their neighbors' window panes to rattle. The power is adequate for a small room, with 1.6 watts RMS on each side, but would not be great for a large classroom, or for someone who really wanted to crank it out. I purchased this stereo for my desk at home, and I have never wished for any more power.
The layout and ease of use of this stereo is good, however the display is somewhat inadequate. It display's only the CD track number that is being played, as well as the words "Shuffle" and "Repeat". It does not show the current position in the song, and is not backlit. The volume control is a regular dial, which I personally like better than up/down buttons. Unfortunately, the radio tuner is also a dial, so it is difficult to get the same accuracy as is possible with a digital tuner, and you can't save station presets. One nice feature starts playing a CD track simultaneously with the tape deck when you are recording from a CD onto a tape.
Overall, I would describe this stereo as a good quality, barebones system without many extra features. I would definitely buy it again.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 67
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childebrand
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Member: Charity Branch
Location: Toccoa, GA
Reviews written: 9
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