A review for the average consumer.
Written: Aug 23 '01
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Pros: Can play regular discs, MP3 discs, CD-Rs and RW-s, affordable, good sound
Cons: Remote attachment lasted about 3 seconds. MP3 works only if no audio tracks are present.
The Bottom Line: If you don't have a CD player in your car and are planning to get one, you're not going to find better functionality at nearly the price.
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| dalepetrie1's Full Review: Aiwa CDC-MP3 Car CD Player |
Okay, I consider myself somewhat of a technofile, but admittedly a lot of today's technology has reached the point where I can only appreciate it, but not always understand it. Same with audio/music...I have been a listener/collector of music in many formats for most of my life, but I've never been the person who would install hundreds or thousands of dollars worth of equipment in my car, with the amp, and the subwoofer and the equalizer and all that...I know what I like in terms of sound, but the subtle differences to which entire audio magazines are devoted never meant that much to me. I'm sure I could understand all this, but I've never found it all that necessary to learn, because what is important to me is does it sound good to me.
So, what sounds good to me? Well, I like clarity. I've found that in my past purchases, AIWA has always been able to give me a crisp sound. What I mean is I can hear the detail, it's not muffled by too much bass, and it's not tinny like an old radio. This stereo is no exception. I can turn this bad boy way up and still preserve the quality, which often goes away with too much volume. I love the fact that I can use the X-Bass feature and add a little boom to my sound, but without sacrificing the clarity (except for at level 3 bass boost, that's too much for my tastes, but it also depends on what I'm listening to). The fact that I have 3 bass boosts in addition to my standard treble and bass controls can ensure me that I can tweak the sound if I pull out the heavy metal CD and put in the rap CD or vice versa. I listen to a wide array of music and it's very nice to have such a degree to which I can contour my listening experience.
The CD-R, CD-RW and MP3 playback are all things that my other stereo equipment can't do by and large. The only place I've been disappointed here was with a demo MP3 disc I got from MP3.com, where I tried to play it, and they put an intro audio track on the CD. The player recognized the disc as an audio disc and therefore never looked for the MP3s. But since I'll be burning my own MP3 discs for use here, I will just keep that in mind. I have tried out all 3 types of discs, they all work beautifully, and I perceived no difference between those discs and regular CDs. I found navigation between tracks on an MP3 disc to be very easy, I think the most important thing here is to have a coherent filing system and useful details on the tracks...if you set the disc up right, you will be able to see what songs and albums you are playing.
As I mentioned above, the remote was the biggest thing I didn't like. It got in the way of my knee, and within a couple days I'm presuming I bumped it with some part of my body while getting out of or into my car, the plastic strap broke, the remote launched onto the ground outside unnoticed and never to be seen again. Also, even while it was on there, the wheel had to be at an angle where the infra red sensor could send the command to the stereo. I'd recommend not even using this feature to tell the truth...it was no easier for me to change a track from my steering wheel than it was to reach the extra foot or two and control it via the console.
I think the display is nice...I've certainly seen neater looking displays, but I couldn't care less. I guess I just felt that the next cheapest MP3 car player cost about $100 more and the only difference was something to do with the shuffle feature on the MP3 discs, not a big deal to me. If you're extremely picky about your car audio, I'm certain you could find imperfections here, but if you are looking for a nice looking, good sounding, easy to use car CD player with CD-R, CD-RW and MP3 CD playback functionality, then look no further.
Three other comments, one I find that the tuner is very good, and there are a generous number of presets, so this player makes listening to just the radio fun. Two, I love the fact that there is a line out jack...if I want to I can still listen to cassettes, whereas I'd have had to have paid three times this much to get a car stereo that could do cassettes, CDs and MP3 discs. Third, the detachable face security is really a nice feature for peace of mind.
In summary, moving up from no CD player to this was the best decision I've made in years. If you don't have a CD player in your car, don't bother spending $100 on something that only plays CDs, go for a bit more and get something you will truly enjoy.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 279
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Epinions.com ID:
dalepetrie1
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Member: Dale Petrie
Reviews written: 16
Trusted by: 1 member
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