August 15, 2007
Gizmodo Reviews Sony XDR-S3HD
Gizmodo got ahold of the radio first, and while they like the styling and sound, they hate the interface: The quick review of the $200 tabletop radio says that the sound is fine, but you have to switch to a special mode in order to scan to find stations. Presets require pressing a preset button and then using a knob to pass through them. The review doesn't mention the remote control, which looks to make it easier. It's an alarm clock, and has a simulated cherry wood finish. You can preset 20 AM and 20 FM stations.
May 29, 2007
BusinessWeek Finds Directed Electronics HD Radio Receivers Falls Short
Directed makes Sirius satellite radios, and acquired high-end Polk Audio last year, but its HD Radio offering doesn't meet this reviewer's mark: BusinessWeek says that the radio has many flaws, including short included speakers cables, and a terrible interface for tuning, volume, and other functions: one dial that controls everything based on a mode! The reviewer notes of the sound, "the Directed radio's sound is high and tinny, with almost no audible bass and no equalizer to make adjustments." There's no remote control (it was pulled from the unit before the product was final), making tuning in a dark room impossible. At $250, it's hardly a bargain, either.
The reviewers notes that the radio has one neat feature: on multi-channel-enabled FM stations, it shows a program guide that lists the programming on each channel at a glance.
May 18, 2007
BusinessWeek Reviews Cambridge SoundWorks HD Radio Receiver
The reviewer thinks the sound is on the poor sound, but likes the ease of use: The 820HD from Cambridge Soundworks has the best reception of any radio that the BusinessWeek writer has tested; I have an 820HD that I'll be writing about soon. The reviewer didn't think the sound quality was that hot, with the higher pitches being drowned by bass, and equalization not offering any real improvement. That's a shame, but it's something I've seen in some other HD Radio receivers, too.
April 14, 2007
Directed Offers $250 HD Radio Receiver
The DHHD-1000 has two speakers that can be detached from the main receiver: Generally positive review at Radio World online, although the display is too bright, the bass lacks oomphf, and it's a little pricey. But it delivers good receive sensitivity plus the unrelated decoding of stereo AM. The reviewer would like it better at a lower cost.
December 5, 2006
Big NY Times Round-Up on HD Radio Receivers
My spread in the New York Times on HD Radio is up: I spent a few weeks receiving and testing five tabletop HD Radios, and the results are now in print and online. I was able to get review units from Boston Acoustics, Polk, RadioShack, Radiosophy, and Sangean--apparently, I'm the only reviewer to get my hands on the Radiosophy and one of the few to have touched the Sangean at this point.
My takeaway is that all the radios have excellent qualities and fill different niches. The Accurian is a very fine radio, with its only flaw the decision to omit alarm clock features. Radio Shack dropped the holiday price to $150 before the $25 rebate, and I suspect the price will not go back up to $200 after the Jan. 14 rebate ends. The Polk i-Sonic that I tested had muddy sound, and I hope that's not the case for all units. The Polk lacks equalization features, so despite the bass and treble controls, I was unable to get a cleaner sound out of it.
The Radiosophy Multistream HD is rather cool--just 1.5 pounds for the module with nice rubberized buttons, and a nice look overall. I spoke to the company today, as they had expected to be in production by now and shipping in December. Unfortunately, they've had one more round of delays, and they now expect to ship by Feb. 1. If the unit is purchased (pre-ordered) by Jan. 14, the radio will still qualify for the $50 iBiquity rebate that's due in by mid-Feb.
I love the Sangean's styling. Only Boston Acoustics' design comes close, and it's a very different aesthetic. But Sangean should have invested more in its LCD display, which is oddly clunky looking. I expect that that's a relatively straightforward upgrade for them if they get enough feedback from potential buyers. The radio works very well with a built-in telescoping antenna, which makes the radio easier to move and makes tuning easier.
Equalization (EQ) is the only fault consistent across all five radios. I would expect that digital devices could have very inexpensive and good EQ. None did. The Accurian's EQ is quite awful, but the default, uncorrected sound is very good, so there's no need to use the EQ. (I also dislike the poor design of the icons that are supposed to indicate which EQ mode is in use--a crummy saxophone for jazz, for instance.) Other radios had just bass/treble, or strange preset EQs, and none of the options will please even the least-discriminating audiophile. Except for Polk's radio, the sound without manipulation is quite good for both analog and digital radio.
Another mild issue is antenna placement. I note in the article that HD Radio signals are rather faint by design and regulation. All but the Sangean radio come with external dipole FM antennas--T-designs in which a long lead split into two perpendicular arms. The better the antenna, the more likely you'll get a consistent signal. For some people, a powered FM antenna will be a necessity, and the benefit could be picking up quite distant HD Radio and analog signals on top of the local radio broadcasts. Update: I was informed that powered FM antennas only boost the center band for a station, which could improve analog quality and degrade digital! Time for new powered antenna designs.
The next big market to start expanding is component tuning. Several inexpensive component tuners are due out shortly; Sangean may already be shipping theirs, and Cambridge SoundWorks will have a component tuner and a tabletop radio.
March 16, 2006
Consumer Reports Tests HD Radio
Consumer Reports has just started to test how HD Radio performs: They're not impressed with consistency but they do like the quality. They advise waiting to invest in HD Radio equipment, which is prudent given the paucity of options and pricing. They're optimistic about what's coming--both features and price--and will release reviews of the Yamaha RX-V4600 and Boston Acoustics Receptor HD units soon. I've tested both. The Yamaha is described by the magazine as one of the "only two products for listening to HD Radio at home." Which is a little like saying that, if you had a submarine and a rowboat, the submarine is one of two ways to get across a lake.