Great Flash Based MP3 Player
Written: Nov 06 '02 (Updated Jan 14 '04)
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Pros: Great sound, Custom EQ, Backlighted
Cons: MP3 conversion, No battery meter
The Bottom Line: If you are looking for a great sounding flash based MP3 player, then the RD2211 is a great choice.
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| hpq_nighthawk's Full Review: RCA Lyra RD2211 (64 MB) MP3 Player |
The Lyra 2 is a great compactflash based MP3 player. I mostly use the unit as a travel companion to and from work via a 1/8 to 1/8 cable to the car radios CD plug. This could also be accomplished by the use of the cassette adapter, but the 1/8 plug is a much cleaner connection with cleaner sound.
Sound:
This is were the Lyra 2 really shines. The sound quality is excellent. The volume controls allow plenty of power for both earphone (volume range 8-15) or car adapter (volume range 20-23). I find that a higher level is typically needed for car applications due to loss of volume outputted from the car radio. If the MP3 player does not supply a loud enough signal to the car radio, then the radios volume has to be turned way up, resulting in more signal noise and the tendency to blast the system when the MP3 player is disconnected. The customizable EQ rocks. This feature is much better than the pre-programmed settings that may not suit your listening style. The EQ allows you to tweak the frequencies you like and complement the car radio setup.
Battery life:
I use the unit both ways on a 1 hour commute. With 2 hours per day listening, 5 days a week, the batteries need recharging weekly. Notice I said recharging, you definitely want to consider buying NiMH rechargeable batteries for any MP3 player if you listen constantly. I find the unit will last about 10 hours on these batteries. The lack of a constant battery indicator is one of the only dislikes I have with this player. By the time the low battery warning shows up, you have less than 10 minutes left to listen. This can be a problem if you just started your commute and do not have backup batteries with you.
File transfer:
This is the area where the player lacks the most. Having the external flash writer is nice, but the software has to convert your songs from the original MP3 format to RCA's MPX. This slows down the whole process of setting up the player and makes organizing your playlist a pain. The software also limits the song rate to 128, but since this is the typical rate I keep my songs in I did not find this to be a big hassle.
Size/Operation:
This player is slightly larger than some of the similar brands, but is still small in comparison to portable CD players. It uses 2 AA batteries which also increases the weight over single AA players. The menus are easy to navigate and setup. The song load time when starting the player and skipping songs is a little slow, but not excessive. The screen could have been a little bigger, but is adequate to allow the user to see song information and menu choices. The backlight is nice, but turns off fairly quickly. This requires you to keep turning it back on when navigating the menus at night. There is also a FM tuner to use when not playing MP3 files, but since I use my unit mostly in the car, I do not use this much.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 127.00
Recommended for: Beginners - Easy Enough for Tech Newbies
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Epinions.com ID:
hpq_nighthawk
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Location: Georgia, USA
Reviews written: 21
Trusted by: 30 members
About Me:
Engineer who likes gadgets and the outdoors.
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