Sangean PR-D8 Portable Digital AM/FM Stereo Receiver with SD-MP3 Recorder and MP3/WMA Player (White)
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The new compact portable PR-D8 FM/Stereo/AM Receiver with MP3 and MP3 Recorder/WMA Player is ideal for small spaces such as the office, workshop, kitchen, or bedside table. Its advantages over similar devices include its versatility, quality, styling & performance definitely exceeds the competition. Its functions are so simple and user friendly and its controls are so intuitive. Have you missed an AM or FM program when you weren’t around? Well, the PR-D8 solves your problems. Set the timer for the time your program goes on the air and it will record your program on the SD card. In addition, this versatile AM/FM Receiver/Recorder will charge your rechargeable batteries while in the radio. The Sangean PR-D8 is an AM/FM Stereo Portable Receiver with built-in SD based MP3 recorder and MP3/WMA Playback. It also offers 5 AM and 5 FM Presets, and auto seek and auto scan. A full Featured Alarm Clock will wake you to Radio, Alarm, Buzz or SD Card based content. You’ll appreciate the large adjustable amber Dot-Matrix LCD screen. It also features two separate Dot-Matrix LCD screen for MP3 functions including Disk Name, Folder Name, Track Name, and 3 segment battery level indicator. The MP3 Recorder with auto gain control has up to 32GB HCSD capability.Time recording from FM/AM/Aux In or internal microphone. The MP3 features separate folder creation capability, random play and browsing, and 3 separate bit rate recording levels. Playback from MP3 or WMA formats. 3W rectangular full-range, magnetically-shielded speaker delivers crisp clarity sound and range. Includes 9V AC Adapter, uses 4 “C” batteries or 4 Rechargeable batteries (not included). Headphone input, and line out socket. Size: 9” X 5” X 2”. Weight 1 ½ lbs. THIS IS TRULY THE ULTIMATE AM/FM STEREO MP-3 RECORDER.
Features
- Time Record AM/FM/Aux-In/SD Programs anytime automatically
- 2 Alarm Timers-Radio and Buzzer
- 5 AM and 5 PM Presets
- Line out for external amplifier
- Recording Code: MP3 format, stereo, 64k/128k/192 kbps
- Dimensions (W x H x L): 5 x 2 x 9 inches
- Weight: 2 pounds
Sounds GREAT! Was worth the wait!
I ordered the Sangean PR-D8 months ago before it was actually even released, and after shipping delays, my order being canceled due to uncertain shipping date,etc., I re-ordered. I am glad I did! I love this radio (and I hate to call it that because it is SO much more!). The reception is fantastic on this (and I do not even put the antenna up!), the speakers are awesome and sound like a very large boom box is in the room, rather than this tiny radio. It is just unbelievable! There are 3 sound settings (news, music, and something in between which is what I usually use, as the music setting seems too boomy and the news seems to sound better for talk). Anyway, I just love the SD card player! I have looked for something like this forever!!! I put about 20 CDs on my 4GB SD card, popped it in, and it played them all w/out any problems at all. There is a search button that shows you all the folders on the SD card, so you can choose which CD you want to play. I have this stereo in our large bathroom, and it fills the room with music while I shower. I was considering the Sangean shower radio before purchasing this, but I really wanted the SD card feature, which that model did not have. I mostly use this on AC, but have tried it on batteries for an entire day and it did not really use them much at all (there is a battery indicator on it). Only 3 things I could wish for with this: 1) that when running on AC, the light should stay on (rather than go off after a set period of time) so I can see the clock from across the room, 2) I wish it had some way to hang it on the wall (ie. bracket or holes on back), and 3) the AC plug comes that out of the side should be an “L” shaped plug so it is more invisible when you are trying to hide the cord… it just sticks out way too far from the left side of the radio. Overall, I am very happy with the Sangean PR-D8, and I am so glad I waited for this model! You will not be sorry if you order one! In fact, I want a couple more for other rooms now!! (I just wish the price were lower though)
Festering Anticipation
Alright this isn’t a review but I wanted to gauge interest on this bad boy. I almost bought the PR-D5 (D7 has no aux input) today but I’m just too excited about this new model: snooze function, media mobility, recording, better power efficiency with fewer batts than the D5, plus more compact.
The most recent availability I’ve seen is November 19 on C.Crane’s site. Does anybody have better info? Any insights to share on the new model? Please post
Sangean PR-D8 in Europe/Asia
I recently deployed to Iraq and wanted to pick up a radio that did it all; radio, alarm clock, and played MP3s. I was looking for something that would play MP3s off a disk, it never occurred to me there might be one I could slap an SD Card into. I found the concept intriguing. After much deliberation and shopping around I decided to spend the extra money on this one. One of the big selling points for me was the ability to switch between frequency types (European/US). For anyone that’s taken a US made radio or car with a US radio in it, to Europe you know listening to the radio is very frustrating. I should point out, when I’m not in Iraq, I’m stationed in Germany. I’ve been using this radio for about three weeks now and it has not disappointed. I immediately set it to pick up European frequencies and I pick up plenty of stations (although it’s kind of wasted while I’m in Iraq). I live in a brick plated building with a metal frame but that doesn’t stop this radio from picking up the radio signal from three different Armed Forces Radio transmitters around the area. The SD card allows me to easily change out the MP3s I listen to without having to burn a new disk or hook up cables between the radio and my computer… very convenient. I opted for the recommended Eneloop rechargeable batteries. What a great combination. The radio charges them when I have it plugged in my room and the charge lasts for a long time. I have been going 3 days since my last charge and I haven’t even lost a bar of battery power yet. I recommend this radio for anyone, especially if you’re headed to Europe or Asia!
CON: One shortcoming… kind of poor planning by the manufacturer. They designed this radio to work in European/Asian areas but the power adapter supplied with it is 120V only… kind of silly.
Best Radio I’ve Owned
This radio is well made, stylish and the right size I was looking for to take to a picnic. The sound quality of the speaker is quite good considering its small size. The AM/FM reception is excellent. Having the MP3 player built-in is an important feature for me, but is a little disappointing that it organizes songs only by album unlike most MP3 players that will also organize songs by genre, artist and playlists. A nice feature is the Aux In which I can connect my full featured MP3 player and use it as a portable speaker. I tried out the MP3 recorder and it recorded my voice very clearly. If you are intending to use rechargeable batteries, the built-in charger is a great feature and convenience since most battery chargers do not handle c-cells. No carrying handle, a minor inconvenience. Although not perfect, it’s well built and packs a lot of features in a small box. I’d give it 4 1/2 stars rounded up to 5.
Works as advertised
This Sangean radio works as advertised, however, there are some minor problems with it. First of all, you cannot set the radio recorder to do multiple recordings, such as a 4pm recording and a 9pm recording, unless you are by the radio when the 4pm recording ends and have enough time to re-program the recorder to do a 9pm recording. You can have the radio record the same starting time program daily, without having to set it up each day, which is good, for your absolute favorite programs that you cannot listen to when they are broadcast live. Also during the playback, there is no sound equalizer to fine tune your bass and treble, there is an adjustment on the side that goes from 1)music, 2)normal 3)news, with “music” adjustment adding more bass and “normal” and “news”, buttons adding more treble,its better than nothing, but it could be a little better for such a good quality made radio. Finally, the “Fast Forward” during your playback of recorded programs, is not very good at all. In order to fast forward you have to press and HOLD, the button for it to work, it is very slow, and your finger can get tired really quick if you want to go far into the program that you are listening to? However, the radio divides its recorded programs into 1 hour files, so if for example, you want to skip a hour of what you are listening to, that is just one quick button to push. The radio is far from perfect, but I am still very happy with the radio, as I will be ordering a 2nd radio soon…
nice features! TOO BIG!!
this one has some nice features, but it is also too big and not that portable!! I am a little dissappointed so I returned it!
Excellent Radio
We use this in our newly remodeled master bathroom. FM reception is great. We have always had issues with getting good FM reception where we live and that is why I purchased this brand. The SD card option for mp3 is also perfect. I put in a Class 6 8Gig SD card and navigation around the sd card is nice and fast. The ONLY thing that this radio is missing is a handle. I knew that going into it. Everything else on my list was either satisfied or exceeded with this radio.
Satisfied With The Sangean PR-D8
While not bad overall, the Sangean PR-D8 falls just short of perfect in several areas. Lets start with the minor issue of cosmetics. Black components are obviously far more common than white. Thus, when I could not find anything decent in white (mainly iPod toys) while searching for amplified speakers to boost the volume loud enough to be heard in my noisy workshop, I ended up with black speakers. The resulting white radio with black speakers is just not all that attractive.
With the mention of speakers, now might be a good time to talk about audio quality. The sound provided by the tiny speaker within the radio is fairly typical of a small radio – good enough for casual listening, but clearly weak and tinny. That said, a set of external amplified speakers improve sound dramatically. Amplified speakers designed for either computers (like mine) or portable devices will likely work just fine.
If the Sangean PR-D8 has a true Achilles heel, it would most certainly be the absence of genuine tone controls on either the radio or MP3 player. Individual bass & treble controls are replaced with a three-position switch to adjust sound for news, music, or normal. The music setting does help the sound of the internal speaker somewhat, but the result seems a bit unnatural. The normal setting is adequate through the internal speaker, but improves dramatically with external speakers attached. Haven’t found any use for the tinny news setting. Real tone controls would obviously provide greater options.
The MP3 player within the Sangean PR-D8 has a limit of 999 music files on each SD card, regardless of memory card size. Thus, a large music library exceeding 999 files must be spread across multiple SD cards. In other words, forget the notion of having a huge music library on a single SD card and listening to selections from that entire library at random. You can group similar MP3 files into folders (99 max), but that 999 overall file limit evidently cannot be exceeded (the player will not play the extras).
My music library is spread across three 8GB SDHC cards, roughly nine hundred 192kbps music files on each card. Another card is used for my much smaller country music collection, with still another used to time-shift recorded talk radio shows. A different SD card is selected at the start of each workday in my woodworking shop. Not a big hassle, but still not as nice as all on a single memory card.
While the MP3 player does remember what you were listening to (radio, MP3 player, etc) when switched off and will return to that when next switched on, options such as random play must be reselected each time. Likewise, to start listening, the “Play” button must be pressed each time the MP3 player is selected. A single button (“Play Mode”) is used to select the main options (random play, etc).
The filename (not ID3 tag) scrolls horizontally across the MP3 display while music is playing. Longer names (exceeding roughly 39 characters) are cut off. How long a song has played is shown, but not time remaining. Finally, the display also shows the current folder, the song’s bitrate, and a cute left/right output indicator. Because the display is small, most of this info cannot be read further than a few feet away.
The ability to record is by far the best feature of the Sangean PR-D8. One can do so in stereo from the AM/FM radio, an external device via the 3.5mm “Aux In” jack, an SD card (basically duplicates a file), or the built-in microphones. The result is an MP3 file (64/128/192kbps) written to the SD card or added to a card with other files already present. Recording from the radio is especially useful for time-shifting radio broadcasts. Great stuff.
A 120v (only) power adapter is included, which is a bit strange for a radio with international time formats (12/24-Hr), international radio formats (9/10kHz AM, 50/100kHz FM), and a multi-language owners manual (English, French, German, Netherlands, etc). If you plan to travel overseas to use those international options (or live overseas temporarily as I do), you’ll need to purchase a universal 120/230v power adapter (9.0v DC, 700mA, 2.2 diameter center tip, center pin positive).
In a nutshell, I like the Sangean PR-D8 well enough overall and expecially like some features, but the old adage saying “nothing is perfect” still applies.
Nice replacement for my JVC RC-s22
I just received this radio and “more” today.
I was pleased not only by it’s “cool” and modern look but also by the way it felt.
It is solid.
Buttons are spaced nicely for my hands and the use is simple.
Reception is excellent even without raising the antenna.
The best part is it’s recording ability.
I have over 400 hudnred cassette tapes with radio programs spaning some 35 years.
It is time to transfer all those irreplacible memories to digital format and this device will do the job perfectly.
My old JVC RC-s 22 radio will be retired.
I bought that device some twenty years ago and it still works almost as it did new.
I have replaced the rubber pully on the deck once and that’s it.
The Sangean has no moving parts so I am afraid it it will outlive me.
Good solid product even the price it’s a little high it is normal where there is not much competition in this specialty field.Amazon delivered it in 4 days with free shipping.
Great Radio/Recorder
As a highly anticipated gift for Christmas, I received this radio/recorder for the specific purpose of recording Coast2CoastAM in the off hours for later enjoyment. It is a very good AM/FM receiver and has an equally good MP3 recorder built-in. It has all the necessary features to start and end recordings at will. One issue I have with the playback of MP3 files is the FF>> button is hard to keep from actually stopping and thus resetting the counter back to zero – very annoying. Also, the 3-way tone switch is not tailored to the sound frequencies I’m accustomed to. Finally, the price is high for a unit without an SD card and rechargeable batteries. Bank on spending another $50-$60 for those items. Although this is a niche device, I absolutely recommend it for the purpose I’m using it for and wouldn’t be without it by my side. Throw in the batteries and SD card, then it would be a perfect 5!
Can’t fast forward
The main reason I got this device was for recording talk radio shows and then fast-forwarding over the local station’s obnoxious commercials. Unfortunately, the fast-forward button doesn’t work. No matter how carefully I press it and hold it, it frequently ends up rewinding the file back to the beginning.
I suspect the problem is that 1) they use the same button for rewind AND fast-forward (an unbelievable design flaw) and 2) the slightest bit of contact noise while holding down the button causes it to think the button has been released and re-pressed. Once the file is rewound, I have to hold down the fast-foward button for an eternity to get back to where I was; and while doing this, the same problem frequently recurs. I couldn’t get much further than 15 or 20 minutes into the first program I recorded; so I sent the device back for a refund.
I’m now the proud owner of four rechargable C cells–and this is the only device I’ve ever seen that uses this size.
This is one sweet little unit
I was looking for a way to record talk shows while I was at work so I could listen to them after work or on weekends. I also wanted to be able to save certain shows on my computer. This radio is the perfect tool for that purpose. It’s easy to record radio shows on the fly by pushing the record button or you can set it up to record on a schedule. I like the fact it saves recordings on a removable SD card and that it runs on C cell batteries so I can listen to my talk shows while exercising, working in the garage, etc. The recordings are very good. In fact, I have my radio set for the lowest bit rate recording and the recordings are virtually indistinguishable from live radio. Of all the electronic do-dads I have bought over the last few years I think this one will get the most use. I highly recommend this radio if you like to listen to radio shows on your own schedule rather than when they are actually on the air.
Rugged, reliable with excellent reception.
I bought this radio because of it’s ability to time-record to an SD memory stick. It does that beautifully and does play pre-existing mp3 files you may have on the stick. The case is made of a sturdy plastic, not your regular cheap stuff. Add to that the built in ability to charge Ni-Mh batteries and you have a quality radio that will last. Reception and audio quality are also excellent.
It’s expensive, but then you get what you pay for.
Great radio recorder! Couldn’t be more pleased.
I purchased this to record my favorite talk show during the day while at work so that I could listen to it on my way home. The reception is very good and the delayed recording is easily setup. The sound quality was better than I had expected. The over all quality of the radio itself is well above average. I would highly recommend it to anyone.
So close…but…not the answer to recording talk shows.
It’s worth mentioning to prospective buyers of this unit that it DOES NOT have a user friendly recording interface. In fact, most people familiar with computers will be amazed at just how un-friendly the recording experience is. I purchased with hopes of recording and listening to talk shows- I thought it would be nice to fast forward past the 4 or 5 minutes of promos and advertisements. But, this radio makes that SIMPLE exercise almost impossible. Also, if you listen to say…45 minutes of a recorded program and you have to stop, you can not return to where you left off. You have to FF forever. And, on mine, If I try to rewind, it STICKS and returns to beginning! Very frustrating. I give it three stars because I simply remove the SD card and transfer the recordings to my computer so I can edit using audio software (Audacity). Seems counterproductive, doesn’t it?
well, OK, it works, but you need to know what’s wrong…
OH, AND ANOTHER THING… as I mentioned in my review, following, the AC power doesn’t charge the batteries. But worse, if you REMOVE teh batteries to place them in the (separately purchased) charger, the radio will lose all preset frequencies and the TIME… you WILL BE PUNISHED if you forget to plug in the radio onto AC before removing the batteries. There’s NO MEMORY BACKUP! SHEESH!! Sorry, just another bummer.
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Bought this a couple months ago, first ran it on alkaline “C” sells, then on NiMH “C” cells (fancy 4500 mAh, AccuEvolution low self-discharge – be sure to get “C” cells that aren’t just “AA” cells inside). Batt life is poor on alkaline, great on NiMH. It is designed to use NiMH primarily; that’s indicated in teh manual. But you need to charge the NiMH OUTSIDE the radio: the radio plug-in feature doesn’t charge the batteries! Sheesh! It has no handle but has good rubber feet, and has a finger hole in the back. This is OK for picking it up, but a handle would be a lot better for carrying it a mile down to the beach, say. But here’s more:
AM reception is OK; not great, but adequate. FM reception is also OK. Controls are generally intuitive, but pretty simple, not a lot of control. Has 5 AM and 5 FM presets.
SD… ah, this is why I bought it: I think car radios, portables, etc, should have SD slots – forget CD’s – so one can burn their CD’s to the little postage stamps and take ‘em everywhere. (Of course, then it might become hard to sell iPods, so do you think there just MAY be some industry resistance to this implementation…?!)
This SDHC system works… but not elegantly. In fact it’s a clunk. It has a small separate B&W screen which shows folders by name and song titles within, when opened. You don’t play an album, tho – you open it and play the songs within, not a problem, but not elegant. You can’t FF in a song, only skip forward and back. The menu always starts from the top if you back out of a folder. Scrolling down through the menu is quirky; sometimes it jumps around a bit, skipping forward a folder, jumping back a couple folders. The folders take default names; you don’t get to name them, and list alphabetically. Recording off teh radio is fairly easy, and there is even a way you can delete a file if desired – but it’s pretty deeply buried in menus somewhere. I hve found it but never remember how, and usually put the SD card in the computer to do that. Basically, the MP3 player implementation is really crude. Sheesh! Even my Blackberry Tour blows it away on that score, and it’s MP3 is an afterthought app.
Output is good quality stereo on teh jacks (earphone and separate line-out), stereo on the line-in, and mono on the single weird little ~1-1/4″ x 3″ internal speaker. And there’s the biggest single rub – speaker sound quality is abysmal. Terrible. Irritating. A turnoff. Hard to listen to. A real squawkbox. Hard to hear it outdoors. Underpowered amp, midget peculiar speaker, POOR sound!
Am I being cuel? That speaker is obviously a technological leap. But hey, this is first and foremost a portable radio, right? You take it out with you when you work on your car in the driveway, or repair the line-fence behind the back-forty, lounge around the cockpit of your sailboat. The “portable radio” aspect of it has to work well. Well, it doesn’t! It’s almost as if they TRIED to make it sound bad. Why? WHY?? For comparison, My old similar-sized Sony ICF-36 sounds a LOT better, louder, and mostly better balanced, somehow. I’m not looking for Bose here, just something tolerable.
It could have been a contender. It could have been something. It could have used big “D” NiMH cells, and had five times the amp power (these little amps are cheap!), and a nice big speaker (also cheap!) with decent range and clarity. It could have charged its batteries internally, f’gosh sakes. It could have had a decent MP3 player, able to cue on a song, show track progress, etc. Even the cheapest MP3 players can do that and a lot more. I don’t believe all of this would have added fifteen bucks to teh price, probably a lot less. If the result was an elegant radio, no one would quibble about the price – you’re already in a hundred and a half. Sheesh!! Sangean! What’s WRONG with you guys?!
Anyway, bottom line – I’m still looking for a good portable radio. You might too.
Useless for audio-books
The MP3 player will reset the MP3 file to beginning (time 0:00) when ever the unit is turned off or when the unit is switched back to radio mode. Impossible to pick up where you left off on large MP3s like an audio-book or a webcast. Fast forward is of little help – it can take several minutes just to fast forward 20 minutes in the MP3 file (no acceleration mode). Also, the rewind button malfunctions if the pointer is beyond 28:30 minutes – it locks in rewind mode and won’t stop until the rewind button is pressed again – which resets the pointer to 0:00. On the positive side, AM/FM reception is very good.
Best radio found!!
I had been searching for a radio that included an internal MP3 player for a long time. “The removeable SD cards recorded on my PC are changeable in seconds.” This radio is perfect in almost every way. Speakers are quite adequate. Multi features are more than I could ask for. It is very easy to learn to operate. It only needs a handle on top to make carrying it around safer and easier.
Really great functionality and the AM receiver is excellent on week signals.
The built in mp3 recorder is very convenient. I record my favorite program (Dennis Miller by the way) on a weak AM station so I can listen to it after work. This radio does a very good job on weak AM stations that my other radios have a lot of noise on. This one eliminates almost all of the noise on the weak station I usually listen to. I highly recommend this radio. On a side note, it receives FM stations very well but the speaker seems to be selected for its response to the vocal spectrum. It isn’t a high fidelity speaker, but you can use headphones when fidelity is needed. The purpose of the speaker seems to be to help eliminate extraneous AM noise and it does this well. Tim
Needs a Bit More Refinement
Radio section works really well. You’ll need headphones to hear stereo on FM. AM section does a good job of pulling in weak signals, but does not feature RF selectivity filters to control whistles and adjacent channels, just three audio filters (Music, Norm, News) which control tone. On very weak AM signals, the built-in MP3 recorder creates enough RF noise to add noise via the built-in antenna. The Scan button is extraneous, as holding the tune-up or tune-down button scans in that direction. The scan button only scans up in frequency. Radio will not automatically pick up and program the station presets, like good in-dash car radios often do.
Unit takes ‘C’-size batteries, and seems to go through them pretty fast. Much, much shorter battery life than the C. Crane CC Radio which uses D cells.
The white finish seems to resist scratches very well, but will show smudges and dirty fingerprints. Key-lock feature blocks button inputs, but the volume control is NOT locked – it’s a real potentiometer, not a digital volume control (pros and cons to this).
MP3 controls are horrible – really needs a firmware update to de-bounce the fastforward and reverse functions on the rocker. Will only go one speed in FF, when it would be nice to have it speed up after 5-10 seconds depressed. Navigation of folders and MP3 files is really crude. Records in 1-hour per file. You can’t use the Fast Reverse to access the end of a file, and if you’re patient enough to hold the FF to get there, any hesitation on the button will bump to the next file.