Panasonic SL-SX420 Portable CD Player: The economic MP3 player.
Written: Feb 13 '05 (Updated Feb 13 '05)
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Pros: Plays mp3’s, easy to use, long battery life, compact design.
Cons: Limited amount of memory, bigger than most mp3 players, doesn’t play Burned DVD’s.
The Bottom Line: A very economical MP3 player for those on a tight budget.
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| yakkowarner's Full Review: Panasonic SL-SX420 Personal CD Player |
When I asked to borrow this from my brother I never intended to review it. After all I have about 50 products in my review folder that need to be tended to. But after using this cd/mp3 player I had to post my take on it.
This is just a simple cd player that can play MP3’s. You can also think of it as the cheapest mp3 player on the market. The only media is takes is CD’s, sorry no memory cards on this unit.
How it works.
It works just like any other cd player except that you can play cds with mp3’s in addition to regular music cds. On the top of the unit you have the 2 lcd screens and the play buttons (play/pause, stop/off, skip forward/back, mode). On the side you have the volume buttons, eq button, and the memo button. The memo button is for setting tracks to memory.
You have the basic features of looping, random, or normal play. This is pretty standard.
In addition to the buttons there is also a corded remote control. This device connects between the headphones and the 1/8 inch jack on the unit. You can turn it on and off as well as skip tracks and adjust the volume.
Capacity
You can use cdr’s and cdrw’s. The ones I used went up to 700mb and held around 140 songs. How many songs you get is dependent on the size of the songs themselves. If you rip your mp3’s at a higher quality then each song will take up more space (and sound better). Most of my stuff is sampled at 144. I had no problems with the cd’s I burned.
Display
you have 2 screens that list the player’s status.
-Track #
-total cd length
-Song expired time
-battery life
-eq mode (live, s-xbx, or normal)
-Random/repeat/normal modes are listed
The display can be hard to see in direct sunlight or dark rooms. I also had trouble reading the display with my polarized sunglasses on, it created a dark edge around the bubble display.
Sound quality
When mp3’s are compressed they do not sound good anyways, but that is where I am going to start. I used my Sony MDR-V6 headphones for the test and I did not use the remote control unit. The mp3’s bass sound was strong but the bass sounds seemed to bleed into themselves. The treble was weak and a bit tinny. I had no major complaints with the midrange. The midrange music, especially the vocals, was good.
Basically the mp3 music was what I expect out of a simple walkman.
When I tested a couple of cd’s I discovered that I had the same complaints. Now the music source was of a much higher quality so the overall sound was good but the bass and treble were still lacking.
Live- This just adds a little reverb type effect and increases the higher end sounds slightly. This gave the illusion of bringing the sounds forward. I felt it primarily enhanced sounds in the octave just above middle C. The treble is not increased as much as other players do but I still find this setting a bit annoying.
S-XBS- The XBS picks up the bass volume. It does not help with the bleeding effect I seem to be hearing. I will usually have this on for most of my music. I will not use this setting for classical or other music that is truly balanced.
Features
Plays cd, cd-r, cd-rw, mp3’s, mwa.
Memory button to set the tracks you want it to play.
Corded remote.
2 equalizer modes.
What I do not like.
-I had problems seeing the display in direct sunlight, especially around the edges.
-Sound quality if not great.
-Does not tell name of mp3 tract.
-No way to sort or compartmentalize according to style.
-The LCD screen is not backlit (although battery life could be a problem if it was.)
Durability
My brother has had it for a year and he has had no problems with the player unit itself. The only issue I had is when I opened up the battery compartment I found one of the batteries leaked. I just removed the culprit, cleaned off the contact point, and put in fresh batteries. The player seems fine.
The headphones that came with the player have started to deteriorate. If the cord is pulled tight then the sound is cut off. This is typical of thin-corded headphones.
Battery usage
As stated earlier, the disk is not always running. The player only spins the disk about once every 48 seconds then stops. This helps the battery life a great deal as well as reducing skipping. My brother felt that the battery life for mp3 disks averages him 2 weeks and he found that it lasted about 3 weeks if he played compact disks. This is for sporadic usage when he had free time from class. From my usage of the unit I estimated you will get 25 hours of life when you listen to the unit on random and listen to mp3’s. Still a lot longer than my old compact disk player.
The unit uses 2 AA batteries or a 4.5 volt DC connection.
Weight: 8 & 3/8 ounces
Height: 1 & 1/16 inch
Diameter: 5 & 3/8 inches
Summary
This is a cheap cd/MP3 player. It will not satisfy anyone that wants an Ipod, but it will satisfy someone that wants a cheap alternative because of budgetary restrictions. This would make a great gift for the younger members of your family but if you are an audiophile then you will want to avoid this device.
Other reviews you might be interested in.
Bose Wave Radio
Sony External DVD burner
Pelican Eclipse Wireless Controller
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): gift
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