Like, you know, wow, not like, "wow" but like, "WOW!" Ya know?
Written: Nov 15 '03 (Updated Jan 14 '04)
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Pros: Small, lightweight, sounds good, good battery life, excellent remote control,
Cons: sound falters at high volumes, crappy external battery pack, breaks easily
The Bottom Line: If you can afford it, and you want it, then I can think of no reason why you shouldn't go buy it.
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| zoogelsnof's Full Review: Sony Walkman D-EJ2000 Personal CD Player |
I need to start with a small preface, I love sound, I’m obsessed with it, and I listen to sound all day and all night on all different speakers and TV’s and car systems. Due to my audiophile nature it is very possible there are things that would bother me in a set of headphones that most people wouldn’t notice, or care about.
Real World Experience
I have owned/used the same portable CD player for the previous 4 years. A great sony D-FJ61 (sony never has been very big on catchy names) and finally decided it was time for an upgrade. Now that I live somewhere cold, I need to put my hands in my pockets, and it’s hard to share space with a mammoth CD player like my old Sony. I purchased this online from abtelectronics.com after having seen one in a store in London when I was there over the summer. I use the CD player on my mile long walk that I make to and from classes on a daily basis, sometimes a couple of times a day. It lives in a pocket in my REI Jacket. (http://www.epinions.com/content_118224424580)
I tested this with a pair of Beyerdynamic DT 250 headphones (http://www.epinions.com/content_112033304196), an Irish Rock CD (The Young Dubliners) and the “Kill Bill” Soundtrack.
Sound Quality:
I used the DT 250’s because they are one of the best mixes I know of a great headset, which can be driven by a portable device.
The bass is the weakest part of the system here. It simply isn’t capable providing the power to hit those really deep bass notes at moderate-high volumes. The bass is great at medium-low volumes, especially when using the bass-boost feature; it falters, however, when the volume is increased to the level I prefer for blocking out ambient noise like busy street traffic. It does base about as well as I’d expect from an average CD player. (I bought my previous one specifically for it’s high-powered internal amp, so I’ve personally become accustomed to a particularly nice bass from my portable.)
The mid notes are the strongest point of this CD player They sound fantastic and as good as I’ve ever heard these headphones sound, regardless of the volume. Notes are reproduced effortlessly.
The highs are frighteningly good. For anybody who has seen Kill Bill or heard the sound track, you know the freaky-whistle song, and it does each and every one of those ultra-high piercing notes to perfection. For those who don’t know, suffice to say that the highs on this sound far better then the average portable, and as good as I’d expect out of the average home stereo system. They do, however, falter a tiny bit at the max volume, not significantly, but certain noticeable to me.
In terms of volume these get fairly loud. Not extremely loud, but loud enough for the applications I’d imagine 95% of the people in the world use. Certainly loud enough for my walk down the street next to a 6-lane highway full of potholes and 18-wheelers. The bass falters first, at around 85-90% of max, and the highs falter around 90-95% of max. The mids never falter significantly. For reference, I listen at about 75-85% of max in order to achieve a sound level that is at my personal preferred listening volume. At home, with no ambient noise I listen around 50-65% of max.
Aesthetic:
Were these simply to sound how they sound at the volumes they sound it, for $200 I would say, “meh, you can do better in this price range. The aesthetic of the machine however make sit all worth while. First the unit itself has a radius approximately one millimeter longer then the CD itself. It weighs essentially nothing at 4 ounces, and is paper thin at a mere 5 CD’s thickness at its thinnest point, and a scant 9 CD’s thickness at its widest. It is, essentially, as small and light as a CD player is every going to be.
On Unit Controls
There are no, “rolling” controls on the unit, something for which I thank Sony so very much. On my last player the volume control, “rolled” so even when the unit was in hold the volume could be changed, something that became very annoying if the unit was simply rubbed the wrong way in a pocket or some such similar event and suddenly everybody in a 10 block radius knows what I’m listening to, except me, because I’d gone deaf.
There is an input for a headphone and/or unit controller. Next to that is a line out for optical devices. I’ve never, in my life, used this hole on any CD player I’ve ever owned, but I suppose it’s nice that it’s there if I wanted it. Then a volume control toggle, you flick it one way to raise the volume, flick it a bunch of times to make it go way higher, or vice versa. Not possible to accidentally drastically change the volume. This is followed by a charge/low battery warning light that blinks when the unit is low on power. Next to that is the track controls, you roll it one way to go forward a track, the other way to go back, and push it to play/pause. It is vaguely annoying that there is no, “stop” on the unit itself, you have to open the unit and close it to make it stop without the controller.
Off Unit Controller:
For those of you who are unfamiliar with this concept, the idea is that instead of plugging the headphones into the unit itself, the headphones plug into a controller, which plugs into the unit. This has one primary benefit, it allows the unit to be controlled remotely. This allows the CD player itself can be stuck deep in an inside pocket and the user still has complete control over the unit.
Sony claims, “easy thumb control” of every feature. And, unlike most claims that something is easy to use, Sony is serious. Using the controller is completely intuitive, there are buttons to do everything from change tracks and volume, to the button that toggles shuffle, repeat, and one play, and even a feature that lets you, “bookmark” certain tracks on a CD so you only play those tracks when you insert the CD. All of these features are easy to use and understand, and the LED text is clear and simple to read. The controller itself is about 4 cm around, and 2 inches long. It has a detachable clip with which you can clip it to your shirt, or an exterior pocket. Every function you could want with a CD player is easily and simply controlled with this controller, and the LED can be backlit in a pretty blue color so you can read it at night and in the dark.
Battery Life:
Sony doesn’t like, but they certainly stretch the truth about the battery life. They claim 65 hours of playback, and show a picture of the unit. They don’t mention that to get 40 of those hours you need to attach an ungainly, poorly designed, cheap, “external batter pack” that holds a single AA battery and whose actual use completely ruins the aesthetic of the, “smallness” of the unit. If it’s sitting in a backpack or a suitcase, fine, but in my pocket there’s no place to put a 3 inch long cord attached to a 2 inch long black cylinder.
The internal battery is rechargeable using the handy recharging stand provided, simply plug the CD player into the stand and it recharges itself. With jus the internal battery the unit has a playback of about 25 hours, which is still damn good, just not even close to the 65 I had been expecting.
Included Headphones:
They suck, ‘nuff said.
Shock Protection
These feature Sony's patented, "G" Shock protection. I don't know how exactly it works, but I do know that if I the CD player and wave it around in my arms really fast, twisting and turning like a martian space craft crash landing on earth, it plays on like nothing has happened. I have yet to experiance a situation, even when i'm sprinting full speed to get across the street before another Taxi aims for me, where it has skipped, even a little bit.
Overall: (Note, this is compared to other things in this price range.)
Sound Quality:B+
Size/Weight:A+
Controls:A
Battery Life:B+/A-
Craftsmanship:B-
Shock Protection:A
Brand:A-
Overall:B+
UPDATE, 1/14/04: I have had SERIOUS maintence issues with this unit, already the remote control broke and had to be sent in for repair and the unit itself just broke yesterday and will also need to go in for repair, so I am lowering my rating and my review to account for these maintence issues!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 199
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Epinions.com ID:
zoogelsnof
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Member: Zac Cramer
Location: Boston, Mass.
Reviews written: 48
Trusted by: 17 members
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