Having sold my Tivoli Songbook yesterday, I just ordered a $88 Sangean Sonido and look forward to reviewing it. I especially look forward to comparing the single-speaker Sonido to the $75 Sangean PR-D5.
Will the PR-D5's slightly bigger ferrite antenna (eight inches) give it superior AM reception against the Sonido's 6.5-inch ferrite? How will FM compare? Speaker sound?
If the Sonido comes close to AM reception, gives better FM, and better speaker sound (it seems obvious that the Sonido's bigger single speaker will be sound better than the PR-D5's small dual speakers), then I may feel compelled to put the Sonido on the short list for best current radios. We shall see.
Sangean markets 3 different flavors of the Sonido radio. For the North American market, the Sonido bands are AM, FM, Weather and TV (not emphasized in product description). In Europe, the Sonido radio is sold as the Sangean PR-D4 and comes in two flavors; AM/FM and AM/FM with long wave band...as near as I can tell from here in Mesa, Arizona.
I would bet the family farm that all Sangean PR-D* series radios share many individual components including ICs (with features turn on and off depending model). This strategy reduces engineering and production costs and ensures greater level of product quality.
Posted by: Tom Welch | November 01, 2009 at 08:35 AM
Tom, my guess is that the Sonido will offer far better sound than the PR-D5, slightly better FM, and equal or slightly less AM. Overall, it would not surprise me if the Sonido is a great "one" radio to buy for all-around performance. Also, I like that it takes D batteries. So again, this could be the "one" radio for the novice who doesn't know where to start. I'm eager to review it.
Posted by: Jeffrey McMahon | November 01, 2009 at 10:08 AM
Hey Herc looking forward to the review. I am wondering what issues you had with the Songbook to make you want to get rid of it. I made a visit to my local Sears and picked up 3 iSongbooks for $30.00 each on clearance. I can not believe I got such a great radio for so little.
Posted by: John | November 01, 2009 at 03:34 PM
The price you got is amazing, a very excellent buy.
Your iSongbooks are very good, about as good as the Songbook I sold.
Why did I sell it? Mostly, because its AM is only average. I should get better AM with the Sonido. Also, selling the Songbook allowed me to buy another radio for review.
Posted by: Jeffrey McMahon | November 01, 2009 at 04:06 PM
Yeah I did not think of that and I am glad you did. I also picked up a few months ago two used Henry Kloss Model 88s for $40.00 each. Great sound but a little too much base for me.
Posted by: John | November 01, 2009 at 04:48 PM
John, you seem to be finding some great deals. I rarely have such luck.
Posted by: Jeffrey McMahon | November 01, 2009 at 05:13 PM
Craigslist.org is a goldmine
Posted by: John | November 01, 2009 at 05:34 PM
My wife and I need to use Craiglist for baby stuff. That's what everyone says. Good job.
Posted by: Jeffrey McMahon | November 01, 2009 at 05:36 PM
Jeff, I think you'll find that the sonido is an excellent all round performer. It's not #1 in any area when compared to the other radios I own, but it's the only one that doesn't have some besetting flaw.
It's a radio I have enjoyed consistently for 3 years, and I've not had to worry or be annoyed by it at all.
I think you'll enjoy the mono speaker sound. There's really no benefit to stereo when the speakers are in the same housing and only a few inches apart. It just means the parts budget is being stretched for 2 poor speakers instead of 1 better one.
I look forward to the review. Thanks for your excellent writing.
best, pfm
Posted by: Paul Murphy | November 01, 2009 at 07:43 PM
Paul, your words confirm my hunch. I look forward to reviewing it and comparing it to my PR-D5 and maybe my CCR-2. Thanks.
Posted by: Jeffrey McMahon | November 01, 2009 at 08:36 PM