Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Sometimes one can only wonder what the engineers at these consumer products companies are thinking when they design and test these things. Finding a quality portable CD player with tuner these days is like trying to find a quality digital alarm clock radio. Neither exists because they are frequently made by the same company. Another mystery solved...
Pros:
- Yes, it has a radio tuner!!!
- Lightweight because it can only take one battery, but battery life is therefore half of last year's Sony models.
- Plays MP3 files more reliably, even @ 320kbps
- Atrac3plus specs have been improved to 256kbps to improve audio quality
- The included OpenMG SonicStage software is a huge improvement over last year's buggy and very limited SonicStage Simple Burner software that was included with the D-NE710. Now you can record your CD collection to your hard drive for later listening and transfer to Atrac3/MP3 CD's as needed. It appears that Sony made some nice changes to the burning software based on customer feedback. Thank goodness!
- The Seamless playback feature eliminates the annoying one second gap between tracks on an Atrac CD. Yay!
- Parametric equalizer is nice for a portable
- Can charge rechargeable battery in unit
Cons:
- Radio reception is terrible compared to just about any other portable radio. I have no such problem in the same location when using a cheap five year old Sony cassette walkman with tuner. Perhaps this is due to the D-NF600 having only one AA battery instead of two to have enough power to pull in a signal. FM/TV signal reception is poor for all but the closest local stations no matter how you contort the headphone cord, and no, this is not with the Local setting turned on. AM reception is satisfactory only when the unit is horizontal; when held vertical, such as is the obvious case when the unit is on one?s hip at the gym, the orientation of the internal ferrite bar antenna is totally inadequate to pull in a signal for all but the strongest local stations, and susceptibility to nearby interference is extreme. WB reception is not even worth trying. Reception quality defeats the purpose for having a CD player with built in tuner. Why would a new model tuner be designed and built to be worse than previously proven technology?
- During audio CD playback, *SNAP*, *CRACKLE*, AND *POP* make their introduction at about 30 seconds into the first track and about every 15 seconds thereafter. It's subtle but annoying, particularly if you're listening to quiet classical or new age music in a quiet environment. If you're listening to loud heavy metal or thumpy poppy songs and/or you're in a noisy environment, it won't be much of an issue since the volume of the music will drown out the audio artifact that happens every 15 seconds. Playing a test CD track with 0 DB output displays no audio artifacts, so there is a presumption that the silly cackle during regular music playback is due to a flawed design with the anti-skip protection circuitry, which unlike CD player models from years ago, cannot be turned off for your inconvenience. I would have gladly given up other nice bells and whistles on this unit in exchange for consistent quality sound, but that still seems to be asking for far too much in this "modern" era of consumer product hell. At least the D-NF600 doesn't chirp with this audio glitch bug like last year's dreadfully birdy D-NS921F did, but the problem still hasn't been successfully addressed by the Sony engineers. If it was just the drive motor spinning up and down, that would be more obvious with the 0 DB test playback, and trying different CD's with the same results rules out any disc surface defects such as scratches, dust, or fingerprints. If only one could turn OFF that awful anti-skip junk feature!!!
(It really begs the question why last year's excellent D-NE710 with no tuner does not have any obvious regular audio artifacting like the tuner models. If only one could have the CD audio quality of the D-NE710, but with a built-in AM/FM/TV/WB tuner!!! Sony, are you LISTENING??? Please???)
- The AC adaptor is not included in the package. The printed paper manual supplied accessories list states in regard to this fact: "Not supplied with the USA model". Who did we tick off at Sony this time to deserve this? Furthermore, AC adaptor model # AC-E30HG is not listed at the Sony Style website, so you have to call the Sony parts 800 number to order it.
- Using a rechargeable battery with the AC Adaptor (not included in the package - was this already mentioned?) is practically a requirement, since removing the AA battery from the battery compartment results in an immediate loss of all stored memory (e.g. all radio station presets, default annoying button beep deactivator setting, silly red/green/orange light deactivator setting, equalizer sound configuration, etc.).
- The included remote is a downright weird departure from last year's remote model, which could only be ordered separately from the Sony parts 800 number for $42, but at least it had an alligator clip that could easily attach to clothing, case, etc., and stay relatively put. The keyring-type remote included is dubiously useful for working out at the gym, unless you've been looking for a material justification to yourself or your significant other for finally getting some trendy body jewelry to hold on to this silly remote. Still, thinking of the Sony engineering interns who must have installed nipple rings to test the usefulness of this aspect of the product is potentially disturbing, if only on the basis that they could have better put their time into ensuring that the CD player had consistently clean sound output and not a hidden gnome inside crumpling up the latest audio quality test reports.
- The included carry "case" is nothing more than a plastic spider web snap-on that allows you to thread your own belt or luggage strap through it to wear around your hips. At only 6.7 ounces, a sturdy belt clip would have been a whole lot more useful. By the way, if you lose or break that plastic snappy thingy, it's $15 to replace direct from Sony.
- Parametric equalizer only works on CD playback, not on the tuner. Ummm, why???
- The flimsy plastic lid does not inspire confidence for longterm durability, especially using the odd snug fitting plastic web snappy.
So, Sony still has to work on resolving some hassles on this unit. After three weeks of striving to put up with the significant downsides, it got returned. Let's hope next year's model is hugely improved!
Click Here to see more reviews about: Sony D-NF600 ATRAC Portable CD Player with Digital Tuner (AM/FM/TV/Weather)
Spin your commercial CDs, your homemade music CDs of almost any stripe, or listen to the radio, TV, or weather-band transmissions with Sony's versatile, D-NF600 Walkman portable CD player. The player includes a complementary high-tech-looking carry case, which hooks right to your belt, and SonicStage software, which lets you take full advantage of ATRAC3plus (Sony's proprietary music-compression technology) when making custom MP3 CDs on your computer.Playback options include 32-track programming, repeat (track, disc, or program), random play, and--thanks to Sony's great work in DSP efficiency--more than 42 hours of ATRAC3plus CD or up to 50 hours of audio CD playback from 1 AA battery (not included). Affix the supplied clip-on-style remote to your bag or belt, or hold it in your hand.The D-NF600 offers a 4-line dot-matrix display, full ID3 tag recognition, and bookmark playback (which lets you program your favorite songs from multiple CDs and play them back at the touch of a button). Jog-dial navigation simplifies song access, and file-view image display lets you sort through your tracks by folder for easy access to your favorite songs or albums. CD Text support displays artist and title information with compatible commercial audio CDs, and the unit's 3-color playback-mode LEDs indicate whether you're in play, fast-forward, or rewind mode.ATRAC3plus is a high-quality audio-compression technology that reduces the size of digital audio files while preserving much of a track's original sound quality (similar in concept to MP3 or Dolby Digital sound formats). With ATRAC3plus, music can be burned and compressed at 132, 105, 66, 64, or even 48 kbps (kilobits per second), letting you select the right balance between fidelity and storage space (you'll get around 490 songs per disc at 48 kbps).Compatible with ID3 tagging and most CD burners, the SonicStage CD Simple Burner software transfers songs from CDs or MP3 music files from your PC's hard drive and burns them to recordable CDs using ATRAC3plus compression.The D-NF600 offers a whopping 51 station presets, which works out to 30 FM, 10 AM, 4 WB, and 7 TV stations so you're never far from your favorite channels. You can hook the player up with your home system through an optional analog stereo "Y" interconnect.Skip-Free G-Protection technology boosts the laser pickup's shock protection to minimize read errors that would otherwise interrupt your music, providing quick recovery from both horizontal and vertical shocks. The D-NF600's heat-resistant lid helps protect the player against high-temperature build up, especially when you're using it outdoors or in a vehicle.There's a built-in equalizer with 3 preset curves and 1 customizable setting. Sony's automatic volume limiter system (AVLS) conserves batteries--and guards your hearing--by capping your listening level at either of two settings. The player works with an optional AC/DC 4.5V power adapter (AC-E30HG or -E30A).What's in the Box CD player, MDR-027 stereo headphones, CD-ROM (SonicStage software), belt carry case, clip-style remote control, a user's manual, and warranty information.
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