The Best Radio I Own That I Can't Recommend: The Tivoli Songbook

I'm really enjoying my blue Tivoli Songbook, which I purchased over 3 years ago, around March of 2005, for $159. The radio looks good, chic even, and complements my workout room. I enjoy the above average AM/FM reception. I enjoy the relatively big, warm sound that comes out of such a small radio. I enjoy the radio's sleek design. Sitting on my piano in the exercise room, I listen to the Songbook 5 or 6 days a week for an hour. It really does the job, pulling in my favorite FM stations, even the weaker 89.3 and 103.1.

What a fine, appealing the radio the Songbook is. And yet having purchased over a hundred radios in the last 5 years and recognizing the Songbook's excellent performance, I find myself in the perplexing situation of not being able to heartily recommend it. The reason? The price-performance ratio is abysmal. In fact, I thought I had spent too much on the Songbook 3 years ago, but the retail has shot up to $199 (today Amazon is selling it for $179). 

Now I'm all for the philosophy of "you get what you pay for" and I'm not for cutting corners and saving a few bucks if it means compromising your performance standards. Having said that, if I was on the market for an appealing table radio and someone told me that there is a similarly sized radio that gets BETTER AM and FM than the Songbook and that costs 60% LESS, I'd say point me to that radio right now.

 

The radio I'm talking about is the Sangean PR-D5. Costing about $80 and sporting the world's biggest internal ferrite AM antenna at 200mm, the PR-D5 is a Songbook beater. 

Is it superior to the Songbook in every way? No. A case can be made that the Songbook looks better. And a very strong case can be made that the Songbook produces better speaker sound out of its 3-inch monoaural speaker than the PR-D5's dual 2.5 speakers.

In fact, the PR-D5's speaker sound, which isn't bad, is for me its greatest need for improvement. All Sangean has to do is stick the Sangean WR-2's 3-inch monoaural speaker on it or even stick two of them on it. I don't care if they boost the price 40 bucks or so. The PR-D5, with its big AM antenna, deserves big speaker sound. 

Whatever it lacks in speaker size, the Sangean PR-D5 delivers the biggest bang for the buck on table radios and it is the biggest reason I would steer a radio buyer to the PR-D5 over the Songbook.

To the Songbook's defense, if you have the money and love the Songbook's look and feel, then by all means buy it. I'm enjoying mine. I'm in no position to tell you not to do the same.

Comments

[Mike W]

"...certainly one of the best medium wave DXing machines to come down the pike in a long time."

That's Universal Radio's opinion of the PR-D5, and they don't print comments like that lightly. It is certainly stronger on MW than the RP2100/CCradio-SW, but the PR-D5 has kind of flown under the radar so far, perhaps because it doesn't have SW and is so funny-looking.

[jeffrey McMahon]

No company wants its product "under the radar." I think Sangean will get more buzz if they make the radio bigger and give it a boombox sound. Change the look also. Make it more rugged. Make it look like a Panasonic 1150. But now I'm getting carried away, projecting my own radio fantasies.

[Matthew]

ALL of Tivoli's radios have gotten overpriced, unfortunately. The Model Two has gone from $160 to $300. How that's justifiable with the Model One @ $119 is beyond me. The PAL is $219 now. And they have the expected list price of the new NetWorks at $600 and up. Some of the stereo table radios are over $1000.

I thought that Henry Kloss was a big proponent of impressive quality at mere mortal pricing. Tivoli's pricing lately, though, has gotten sky-high.

I'm going to have a look at the Boston Horizon Solo this weekend, and the PR-D5 looks like a good gift for my father, who is currently using a CCRadio with dead display for his MW listening.

[jeffrey McMahon]

Tivoli has priced itself out of the market, or at least mine.

I own two BAHS and I love them. The best reception and speaker sound. There have been reports of bugs on the sleeper and alarm however. But mine have been fine.

[Mike W]

Matthew, that's exactly why I bought my PR-D5, because the display and buttons on my CCRadio gave out. MW performance is comparable. I wish the PR-D5 had one large speaker rather than two small ones, but that's a quibble. It certainly is better for music than the CCR is.

[jeffrey McMahon]

I agree with Mike that the PR-D5 offers better music sound than the C.Crane.

[Tom Welch]

Funny, my fantasies are usually about Shania Twain, not radio.

[jeffrey McMahon]

Tom, there are fantasies and there are fantasies. Apples and oranges.

[Ed S.]

I have to put my $.02 in: I've now tested 2 samples of the PR-D5 in my home. Sorry to report, but both are easily overloaded by a nearby AM station (1070-KNX). There is no way to reduce AM RF input, ie no LOCAL/DX switch RF Gain control. And I have many cheaper radios that do not overload so easliy on AM. This is a glaring design flaw in my opinion. Of course, on FM, just keeping the telescoping antenna unextended cuts the FM gain. Therefore, I can only reconmmend the PR-D5 for FM.

[Mike W]

I've read similar comments elsewhere, Ed, so apparently the overloading problem is in the design, not in unit-to-unit variation. I suppose whether the PR-D5 is appropriate for a given listener depends on location.

[kansascitypianomoving.com]

The Tivoli Songbook, with its chic design and warm sound, has been a delightful addition to my workout room. However, at its current price of $199, its value is questionable.

The Sangean PR-D5 offers superior AM reception and is priced around $80, making it a more cost-effective option. Despite its smaller speakers, the PR-D5 provides excellent performance for the price.

If you appreciate the Songbook's design and can afford it, it's worth enjoying, but for better value, the PR-D5 is a solid alternative. If moving or upgrading your equipment, consider professional services like Kansas City Piano Moving for a smooth transition.