Q: I am in the market for a new radio and would like one with a built-in CD player. Many radios have only FM, and I definitely want AM also, to listen to Twins baseball games. My other two radios are Bose Wave Music Systems with CD slots and remotes. I would buy another Bose, but am wondering if I am missing other options. Good radios with CD players seem hard to come by these days.
Why do I have so many radios and still want a new one? I am an addicted radio listener and am not into streaming. I move around the house a lot, and I'm just more comfortable having a radio on. Also, when I transition into senior housing, I want to have a radio in each room so the volume does not have to be so loud it might disturb a neighbor or people walking in the hallway. What suggestions might you have for my next radio purchase?
A: When you said you would buy another Bose but asked for suggestions, were you wondering about radios that cost less but sound just as good? If that's the case, I don't have much to offer. Years ago Cambridge SoundWorks (an American company, not to be confused with British manufacturer Cambridge Audio) made a series of radios with CD players that sounded just as good, if not better than comparable Bose radios, for several hundred dollars less. But they have not been available for years.
I have an out-of-the-box recommendation for you. It requires an even bigger investment than a Bose CD radio, but it certainly is worth it, especially because you are an avid radio listener. It's the Technics OTTAVA f SC-C70 music system (technics.com), which incorporates a CD player, AM/FM radio, streaming via Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, playback from USB drives and an auxiliary input. It has three settings to tune the sound according to placement in your room, and even can connect to your phone and use the phone microphone to fine-tune the sound to your specific acoustical environment.
When I first encountered the SC-C70, I guessed the price to be as much as $5,000 given the Technics name, its technical capabilities, jewel-like materials and finish and stunning, full-range sound. I was shocked when I was told it was $999.
To use one of my car analogies, if the Bose is a Mercedes, the Technics is a Rolls-Royce. You might say, "A Mercedes is good enough for me." But you already have two of them in the garage, don't you? The Technics SC-C70 will introduce you to a new world of quality. Not only will it sound dramatically better when played at normal listening volumes, but the superior speaker components and advanced technology also will make it sound better when you have the volume down, too.
Send questions to Don Lindich at donlindich@gmail.com. Get recommendations and read past columns at soundadvicenews.com.
