Sony DNF430 MP3/ATRAC CD Walkman Portable Compact Disc Player with AM/FM/TV/Weather Digital Tuner
by Sony
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List Price: Category: Network Media Player See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Sony DNF430 MP3/ATRAC CD Walkman Portable Compact Disc Player with AM/FM/TV/Weather Digital Tuner
Customer Review: Four different issues, One great CD player.
Summary: 5 Stars
Before getting the DNF430, I owned the DNF420 version and was very happy with its performance. But, there were four different issues with the SONY ATRAC CD player: 1) the player 2) the sonicstage software 3) headphones 4) recording in atrac. The CD player was excellent - it displayed songs, allowed jump from song to song, or album to album. Also, the FM tuning allowed reception inside gyms that broadcast tv shows on FM stations, like CNN and ESPN. Every once in a while, I would watch a CNN breaking story on the gym TV monitor, and to hear the sound, I just flip to the FM pre-set dial, and presto. But, the headphones needed to be replaced with Noise Reduction, over the ear headphones. At the beginning, I was not prepared for the headphone fuss. In the gym, with all the exercising and sweating, the standard headphones did not withstand the daily wear and tear, I am sorry to say. Yet, I was able to overcome this issue. I have dropped the CD player a number of times at the gym, on the treadmill, yet it continues to perform quite well. My critical issues was the sonicstage software. Unknown to me - until purchased and started to use stonicstage, this software was delicate and took a while to learn. "RIPPING" a CD and "BURINING" a CD was relatively new to me. So, I was not prepared to "tolerate" with the learning curve issues surrounding the software. It took me time, and it was frustrating in the begining. When all the tweaking was done, the learning understood - the software, the library, the burning, and the performance worked like a charm. I was able to store over 250 songs onto a single CD. Yet at times, I was skeptical about reaching the quoted 400 songs SONY talks about. Anyway, I also backed-up my music using the sonicstage software, and later restored it. This worked like a charm, too. I was very lucky to have this backup, since my PC system crashes at least once a year. My library and the selections were recovered nicely, thanks to Sony and the restore feature! The ATRAC system featured a slightly different recording than MP3. MP3 was transferable format, while ATRAC was not. I don't thik the MP3 playback also had the descriptive and navigating features during playback mode. So, I stayed with the ATRAC recordings. I am very happy with my CD player, because it performs well, has great sound, and can be stored in my gym bag, and left in my car overnight. The CD player was able handle the COLD and HOT weather temperatures of Northeastern USA. I use the CD player at least three times a week, at the gym, and so far - no problems.Customer Review: SUPERB SOUND, 1 AA BATTERY, REMOTE, I LOVE IT!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
Bought this from Amazon and I am very, very pleased! Why? (First, I have owned and still do the 420 model Atrac). I bought this model because of the ONE AA battery, remote, TV, AM FM, Weather and resume. Here are the wonderful reasons I love this:
1) Only uses ONE AA battery! And it will last a long time(I have had it last over 40 hours on MP3! (Suggestion: Go with re-chargable batteries when at home, however on the go, then keep an extra AA battery handy).
2) Receives, TV, AM, FM, Weather, and CD, MP3 all just perfectly. This is the only model that I found with FM, AM, TV and Weather.
3) Resume feature--I listen to a lot of CD Audio books and MP3 Audio books and love the fact that I can turn the player off and a few hours or days later, just turn it on and pick up just where I left off! This is one of the few players with RESUME.
4) Does not skip! I walk around a lot with this in my purse or in a waist pack and it does not skip!
Great earphones!
5) Remote is easy to use!
6) Love the easy to use ON button in the center.
7) This is one of the few CD players that the AM works, I love my TALK NET RADIO!
7) The sound quality is so much better than the other MP3/CD cheap models that I had before. (I hear bass and treble sounds on my CD's and MP3's that I did not hear on the cheap models).
8) I also own the DNF420 MP3/ATRAC CD Walkman Portable Compact Disc Player with AM/FM/TV/Weather Digital Tuner, which is the older model and love it as well. (This model does not have a a remote). And since I have loved and still do, my DNF420 Sony Atrac, I knew I would love this model. In fact, I give it a 5 because I love it even more than my Sony Blue Atrac Psyc with AM, FM, Weather, TV. Note that to listen to weather if you are far from a weather station as I am, go outside or near a window and then you can hear it. All in all, I am just thrilled so far with this model. I highly recommend this to anyone who is active, travels or listens to alot of Audio books. To me, this is the very BEST of ALL the CD/MP3 made. I wish I would have bought this first. (Before I wasted my money on 8 cheapie MP3/CD players that did not have resume and had a not that good sound).
Customer Review: Great player
Summary: 5 Stars
I got one of these for myself many months ago. Then I got another for my daughter. Unfortunately, mine was stolen. I got it through one of the Amazon stores for under $50.00, brand new. It looks just like this one. The model number is the same. So why the ridiculous, inexplicable, plain ol' wrong spike in price? That said...I do love the thing. This is my second Sony ATRAC. I got the first years ago, and it finally fell apart after years of play, hours every single day. I used it so much, the silver finish wore off. The little black piece that holds the CD on came off. Even then, I pushed it back on occasionally and used it for months until it finally just wouldn't stay on. So I borrowed one of the kids cheapos for awhile. I couldn't stand the sound quality. So when I started looking to replace mine, I had no other thought than to get another Sonly ATRAC. My first one had been dropped, stepped on, flung across the car (before I put a CD player in my car), and otherwise abused. It just kept on playing and rarely, if ever, even skipped. I remember one time, on a particularly curvy road through the mountains, it was flung off of the seat onto the floor and just sat there, playing as though nothing had happened, until I could retrieve it.
On this one, the TV reception is good and the radio is good. Unfortunately, the weather radio has a very limited channel listing, and in our remote area picks up nothing... The ATRAC software is very easy to use. I can put a whole group of, or specific genre of music on one disc. That way if I'm in the mood for Jazz, or chill, or what ever, I can take a whole slew of music with me, without taking my precious CD library out into the cold, harsh world. Unfortunately, I had difficulty downloading the software (I'm not the best at this sort of thing, so it is probably just me). Fortunately, I had my old ATRAC disc from the first one and it still works great. So, if you can, skip the cheapo discount store offerings and get this. You'll actually be able to hear music the way the musicians and producers intended. You won't be disappointed.
Customer Review: The only quality portable CD players left standing.
Summary: 5 Stars
[Update: Notice that this player is already commanding a premium price. ATRAC is dead, and Sony and Panasonic are phasing out personal CD players. Sony no longer even makes a single-battery model. But what's left in the marketplace is sheer junk (don't be misled by the $20-30 price tags for GPX, Audio Solutions, Colby, J-Win, and all the other "generic" excuses for CD players). If you still want a CD player, now may be your last chance. Sony's DN340 is the best that's still available, and even that is going above retail.]
If you have a good portable CD player, hang on to it. Of the models currently advertised on Amazon as best-sellers--Colby, J-Win, Emerson--they're at best very temporary solutions, sure to fail in short order, to consume batteries voraciously, to skip and play erratically, to be deficient in volume. Only the Sony DN series is worth considering, even at twice the price of the others (including the more basic Sony models) and even if you have no interest in ATRAC/AM/FM/TV/Weather capabilities. Unfortunately, these features slow down and complicate operation (I still find it quickest to turn off the machine by simply opening and closing the lid). But most importantly, the Sony continues to work when the others fail. Moreover, Sony's getting the machine to run efficiently on a single AA battery is in itself a minor breath-through, practically making AC operation beside the point.
It's clear that manufacturers are no longer attending to CD player technology with any commitment, but if you're still a fan of the format, this line of Sony players is probably your best (maybe your last) hope. I'm not sure I understand why the compression features of the machine would appeal to some users more than an MP3 player, but if that's the trade-off for a decent CD player I'll put up with them.
Customer Review: An improvement on a great personal CD player
Summary: 5 Stars
I owned a Sony DNF420 with almost identical features for almost a year. I was quite happy with it. I wound up giving it to a relative (it's surprising how few people under 25 own a dedicated CD player today) and buying this model.
I was surprised to find Sony improved an already great product. The buttons were easier to operate and more intuitive, the sound seemed better, and battery life (already astounding -- over 20 hours on a single AA) was better. On top of that the radio was improved -- reception was better on all bands.
Sony also included a remote control with this unit. I didn't realize how handy that would be, but I use it all the time. The Walkman can stay in your jacket pocket while the much lighter and smaller remote stays in your hand.
CD players may be fading away as mp3 players replace them, so this Sony CD Walkman might be regarded one of the peaks of personal CD player technology before personal CD players go the way of 8-tracks. A few more years and units like this may be hard to find.