Philips

- For how long have you been using it? I had this for about 8 years. - What thing do you like most/least about it? It's plain & simple, and very fast at reading/playing a cd when inserted...unlike the brand new Sony SACD player i just bought damn it (SCD-XE597), which doesn't even have a volume setting on the remote, which the Philips CD723 did!! Can read CD-RW too in theory but not all models did in practice...mine did, though. Had a coaxial digital output, which i prefer to optical...again, the Sony XE597 has optical...aargh... Also, i think the design is quite ok, even now...again, better than the pointlessly bulky Sony SACD i just got... - Did you try many other models before getting this one? None, saw a review in an audiophile magazine and they actually liked the CD723, which is amazing for a £100 player. So i got it. - What is your opinion about the value for the price? Obviously, the player must have cost virtually nothing to make, i mean there is nothing inside...but compared to other players i'd say it was good value. - Knowing what you know now, would you make the same choice?... Yes, however i would have sold it sooner...i had a 5 year warranty and just before the end of that the drawer started to come out slowly...so i got that fixed under warranty. Then about 3 or 4 years later it started doing it again. Sometimes it wouldn't open, sometimes it would work fine. I sold it for 50€ (£30) and bought this slow Sony SACD player (the cheapest i could find) that doesn't even have a volume setting...what a rip off. That'll be my next review, and it won't be all good, i tell you! ;-D Had the CD723 had CD-text then it might have deserved a 10.

This is a review of the Philips SBC HP250 Headphones. There's not much I can say about these headphones. They were my dad's and I inherited them from him. He was a major audiophile so I assumed that they would be pretty good headphones. They were. When I got them, I realized how big the ear cups were. They're airy and comfortable, and fit snugly but not too tightly over one's ear. One drawback was the rigid plastic headset part that attaches the ear cups and goes over the top of your head. The only problematic part of this component was the part that physically attached to the ear cups. Multiple times I had accidentally put too much pressure, whether it be almost sitting on them or getting caught under a chair leg, this part was the most vulnerable part of the construction and eventually snapped. Though I don't expect headphones to survive Vietnam, I think that this part was a faulty piece in terms of design. However, if you generally take good care of your headphones, this shouldn't be much of a problem. Another thing I noticed was how absolutely, devastatingly long the cord was. I mean, the cord was gigantic. One thing that I liked was that it wasn't one of those little dingy cords. It was a big, beefy cord and it was helpful to have so much slack. Also, the cord couldn't split under normal conditions. Take a pickaxe to the cord and you're going to slice it, but the cord was so well insulated and so rugged that it would be almost invulnerable to normal use. This was a plus because you can step on it, roll over it with a chair, get it caught under corners and such and it would still function great. Other headphones with thin cords are very prone to splitting and/or ripping in half or separating with the headphone jack at the end. In general, these headphones were great. They were loud, but not too loud, bass-y, comfortable and versatile. Anybody who's a gamer and wants full stereo effect surrounding them, or anybody who just listens to music, I'd get these, especially for the low price of only $20. Cop them.

I've had this Hifi amp for a long time and it has always satisfied me.  The components are good quality, no problem on this side. I love the aesthetics,  fresh and the soft light emanating from it.  The sound is more than appropriate, it also depends on the speakers. The amp is powerful enough for good speakers libraries or large high-output boxes. The tuner is flawless and the reception good. In short, for the nostalgic who love vintage, it's a very nice piece. Obviously, it is not in the high end but it becomes a rare piece, sought after for its fine quality at a very affordable price (I estimated 100 euros with speakers but this is only my assessment).

(Originally written by zvolaidge/translated from Audiofanzine FR) - How long have you been using it? I bought it in 2003 because I needed low-budget headphones to avoid disturbing my neighbors. I chose this Philips SBC HP 800. - Which features do you like the most / the least? Pros: good sound at very high output volumes, long single-sided cable. Cons: lack of sound clarity, lows and mids are to loud, no detailed signal reproduction. You'll have to apply some pressure on the ear cups to hear and feel everything. Broken after one year even though I was very careful. You can swivel the ear cups but I don't recommend it because the axis wears out and the ear cups fall down. They make you tired after only one hour. - Did you try any other models before buying it? No - How would you rate its value for money? Not good in spite of the price. - Based on your experience, would you buy this product again? Yes if I have no money and I need a pair of headphones. But now that I can spend a bit more money, I recommend the Sennheiser HD650, which are wonderful for home studio applications.