Search results matching tags 'Bose' and 'sony'

Father's Day Gift Ideas-- Part 1: iPod and accessories

Chad — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 21:05:00 GMT

As a father, I can attest that nothing makes a better gift than a good piece of electronics. And as a Crutchfield advisor, I'm often asked for gift ideas along those lines.

One of my first questions is this: "Does your dad have an iPod® yet?" That's a good place to start. And if he does, no problem. A well-chosen accessory can make a great gift, too. Here are some of my recommendations (both as a Crutchfield advisor and a hopeful Father's Day gift recipient).

Apple iPod Touch $299.99
What makes the iPod® touch special is the multitude of applications available through Apple's App Store.Even if dad's just a little tech-savvy, he can easily mix and match apps (both free and paid) to expand the player's functionality to do what he wants it to do. And although it plays music and video like a regular iPod, the touch can do more.

For the younger (or young-at-heart) dad, the iPod touch's Wi-Fi® connectivity can give him some of the same entertainment he enjoys on his PC. He could stream music from sites like Pandora, check Facebook, play games, even just surf the Internet. Very handy if other family members are clamoring for their time on the computer.

Bose® in-ear headphones $99.99
If dad already has an iPod or another type of portable music player, one of the best things you can get him (and one of the most overlooked gift ideas) is a good pair of headphones. The earbuds that come with the iPod are serviceable, but they don't deliver the level of performance high-quality in-ear headphones can. The Bose in-ear headphones deliver on sound quality, and have extremely good dynamic range.

If your dad needs the functionality of in-ear headphones (as opposed to larger, over-the-ear headphones) but doesn't like the way most of them fit -- these may be just the ticket. The Bose in-ear headphones feature an ergonomic design and soft, silicone ear tips that hold the headphones comfortably in place without requiring insertion or earclips. And if he likes other Bose products, these in-ear headphones are almost a sure bet.

Sony ICF-C1IPMK2 Clock Radio With iPod/iPhone dock $99.99
Even if your dad has an iPod or iPhone™, chances are he's still waking up to the same old clock radio he's had for ages -- we dads tend to hold on to things a little too long. You can help him upgrade his nightstand with the 'C1IPMK2 clock radio.

This handy device features a built-in iPod dock, and a selectable alarm source. So iInstead of a harsh electric tone or an obnoxious DJ jolting him awake, dad can greet the day to his favorite music from his iPod. And of course the 'C1IPMK2 doubles as a powered speaker system, so he can enjoy his iPod's music any time of day.

Alpine CDA-105 CD Receiver with iPod Control $199.99
Is your dad still spending hours commuting, or shuttling other family members around to various activites? Why not give him a way to have a little quality listening time in the car, then? The Alpine CDA-105 lets him play his iPod or iPhone through the car's sound system -- and with a Alpine KCU-440i iPod cable, he can control his player straight from the receiver.

The receiver also displays text information from the iPod, so dad -- and his passengers -- can see what's playing. And of course it keeps his player while connected, so dad won't run out of his favorite music no matter how long the drive (sorry, kids).

If your dad already has an iPod and/or the various items he needs to go with it, no worries. I've got some other suggestions.

Is your dad a movie buff? In part 2 I'll offer up some Father's Day gift ideas for the dad who watches a lot of TV. And if dad travels a lot (or just has to spend a lot of time in the car), well, I have a few suggestions I'll share in part 3.

Lonely For My Headphones, Part 3: Sony Headphones

Gabrielle — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 14:10:00 GMT

One Thing Leads To Another

I've been auditioning a lot of headphones over the past several weeks, looking for a relatively inexpensive pair that would, nonetheless, give me great sound quality. I'm terrible at making shopping decisions, so I asked my family to go along and help me choose. I should have known better. Magically, they all needed new headphones too.

With my budget chopped, I decided to explore the low-to-mid end of the spectrum, where (happily) there's still a decent selection of headphones.

Take A Chance On Me

Sony’s MDR-110LP headphones are good, entry-level headphones designed as replacement headphones for portable CD and MP3 players. For me, they sounded adequate, but they didn’t have the level of sound quality I was looking for. And the cord length, while fine for a clip-on MP3 player, was a little too short for my needs.

On the plus side, these headphones were super-inexpensive — so inexpensive I had no problem in buying a couple sets for the kids. And because the price was so great, I also popped for a couple of the slightly higher level versions of these headphones (MDR-210LP) for comparison. I did get a better bass response, but the quality of sound still wasn’t quite what I wanted. It also had the short cord, but it did come with a nifty mini-to-standard plug adapter — that alone made them worth the slight increase in price.

Neither of these models were going to do for work. I need something with a significantly longer cord, and earcups that not only let me hear music, but would screen outside noise and were comfortable enough to wear all day. I also wanted better sound reproduction--since I wear headphones all day, great sound really is important.

Love The One You're With

So, I tried Sony's MDR-X200 model. These are mid-level home headphones in the lower price range: the kind you might purchase for late-night TV viewing. They include a much longer cord than I'm used to seeing. Some people may take issue with the extra length, but I'd rather have the length than not — it's a lot easier to zip-tie an extra-long cable than it is to wrestle with a too-short cord, and I don't have to add extensions that could potentially introduce noise into my signal.

I find the padded vinyl, over-the ear style distinctly more comfortable than the on-ear foam pads of the previous models. The fit (for me) is a little loose about the ear, even after adjusting. But because they fit over my ear I feel reasonably secure when I wear them, and I get a touch of natural noise isolation. It comes with a movie/music switch, which lets you choose how much bass you want to filter into your sound, and the sound is definitely decent — better, when I make the fit tighter on my head.

I admit, I'm totally spoiled by my Bose® QuietComfort® 2 headphones, so my long-term plan is to save up for a set of Bose QC® 2's and make the MDR-X200 my nice "at home" phones. Unless of course, I find something better.

Song title references:

One Thing Leads To Another — The Fixx
Take A Chance On Me — Erasure
Love The One You're With — Stephen Stills

Tuning/Adjusting The Headunit Equalizer

Tahmid — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 14:15:52 GMT

i have a pioneer cd player...dont remember the model number....2 bose rear headrest speakers....2 pioneer front door speakers...2 boschmann rear door speakers...2 sony xplod tweeters.....1 Audiobahn DUB200 subwoofer..and 1 Ampex mosfet high power amp 1200w 4-channel.....the sub and 4 speakers are connected with the amp....now the problem is....my sub hits really hard at low volume....today i had to show off my sub to some of my friends....and i put the volume a bit more higher.....there was really small amount of and unclear bass..treble and music/vocal was high..at that time all my speakers was balanced...left right...front back....loudness was high....treble was at 0(it goes from -6 to +6)....bass was at +6(goes from -6 to +6)...music/vocal was at +6....SLA was at +4(max)...i was really dissappointed with the performance...then i made a little changes to my Headunit equalizer....i put loudness to medium....treble at -3....and music/vocal at +3...and bass was max as before....then the bass increased a little bit more....do you think this is the best adjustment?or should i change it?if yes...can you tell me the adjustments...thanks...