Steve999
smooth, DARK
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2002
- Posts
- 2,630
- Likes
- 411
I have had the new Sony D-NE300 portable CD player for a couple of days now. I got it from Best Buy fr $60. I give it a 10/10.
For things that matter to me:
Sound quality is exceptional to these very humble years. There is no audible hiss and no obvious audible distortion or frequency response anomaly for my uses.
It shows time elapsed or time remaining for MP3 or CD tracks.
It fast forwards and goes fast backwards for MP3 or CD tracks.
It has a 3-band parametric equalizer. Each band is adjustable to three different ranges of frequencies (for example there are three alternate ranges of bass frequencies) and for each of the three bands (treble, bass, midrange) the range of settings is up three notches, neutral or down three notches. The settings are very clearly displayed graphically so it's easy to get a hang of it.
The display shows CD Text and MP3 ID-tags.
The controls are extremely easy to use.
The unit is surprisingly lightweight and looks pretty cool.
There's no line out, but I'm very pleased with the performance of the headphone out.
I don't quite know how all of this was achieved for $60. It clearly bests my Sony D-CJ01 and my I-River IMP 350 for features. It very easily bests the IMP 350 for sound quality, IMHO. The EQ on the D-NE300 is clearly superior to the EQ on the IMP350 for my uses. For example, with the D-NE300 you can adjust treble and bass both up and down, not just up, and you can adjust the midrange up or down too.
I don't have a pair of headphones that cannot easily benefit from subtle use of the D-NE300s EQ feature. I suspect the EQ is done in the digital domain, so no noise or distortion is added.
For some reason, the amp seems pretty robust for its 5 mw rating. For example, bass is very full and extended. Don't know quite how to explain it.
The G1 and G2 shock protection settings are now menu options rather than hand-switch controls (as with older Sony PDCPs).
Something new is happening here, and I don't know what it is. I think there has been some sort of technological change and improvement.
It also comes with software for ATRAC3plus CDs (Sonic Stage 2), but I personally do not intend to use that feature.
Worth a try if you're in the market for a new PDCP. This one looks to me like a new low-cost classic and the new portable workhorse for my CD and MP3 collection, anyway.
Thanks for reading.
For things that matter to me:
Sound quality is exceptional to these very humble years. There is no audible hiss and no obvious audible distortion or frequency response anomaly for my uses.
It shows time elapsed or time remaining for MP3 or CD tracks.
It fast forwards and goes fast backwards for MP3 or CD tracks.
It has a 3-band parametric equalizer. Each band is adjustable to three different ranges of frequencies (for example there are three alternate ranges of bass frequencies) and for each of the three bands (treble, bass, midrange) the range of settings is up three notches, neutral or down three notches. The settings are very clearly displayed graphically so it's easy to get a hang of it.
The display shows CD Text and MP3 ID-tags.
The controls are extremely easy to use.
The unit is surprisingly lightweight and looks pretty cool.
There's no line out, but I'm very pleased with the performance of the headphone out.
I don't quite know how all of this was achieved for $60. It clearly bests my Sony D-CJ01 and my I-River IMP 350 for features. It very easily bests the IMP 350 for sound quality, IMHO. The EQ on the D-NE300 is clearly superior to the EQ on the IMP350 for my uses. For example, with the D-NE300 you can adjust treble and bass both up and down, not just up, and you can adjust the midrange up or down too.
I don't have a pair of headphones that cannot easily benefit from subtle use of the D-NE300s EQ feature. I suspect the EQ is done in the digital domain, so no noise or distortion is added.
For some reason, the amp seems pretty robust for its 5 mw rating. For example, bass is very full and extended. Don't know quite how to explain it.
The G1 and G2 shock protection settings are now menu options rather than hand-switch controls (as with older Sony PDCPs).
Something new is happening here, and I don't know what it is. I think there has been some sort of technological change and improvement.
It also comes with software for ATRAC3plus CDs (Sonic Stage 2), but I personally do not intend to use that feature.
Worth a try if you're in the market for a new PDCP. This one looks to me like a new low-cost classic and the new portable workhorse for my CD and MP3 collection, anyway.
Thanks for reading.