Sony ICF-CD863V AM/FM/TV/Weather Clock Radio/CD Player

• 3-D Sound System with Adjustable Bass
• Auto Dimmer Brightness Control
• Gentle Wake and Gentle Sleep
• Large/Dual Time Display with Auto Dimmer
• Space-Conscious Cube Design

Was looking for a reasonably priced, good sounding CD clock radio to replace my old Sony cassette clock radio that had great fidelity. Overall, this unit was a disappointment especially for the price and the Sony name. Despite two front speakers and a rear "subwoofer", the sound is tinny and lacking in power. My old cassette unit, with only one 4" speaker sounds much better. Also, reception is weak. Only the closest, most powerful stations come in clearly. Others are full of static and you have to change the direction of the wire antennae for each; a nuisance. Another annoyance is the chirping noise made by the CD when changing tracks, especially long while it searches for a track in random play.

While very full featured, the controls are a bit awkward. Those on top are easy to use thanks to the tactile dots on the critical buttons. The ones on the front are hard to find by feel. Several are very small and awkwardly placed. The primary radio on/off and CD play buttons are flush with the face and almost impossible to find without looking. The display is large and easy to read, and has lots of information, though fades when not looking head-on.

I'm still using this though I continue to search for a better sounding unit with more thoughtful controls.

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Recently my husband I returned to the place we honeymooned over 10 years ago in Blue Fin Bay (Tofte), MN. Much was still the same, but one of the new additions was this little player. I have never been so impressed by the quality of sound from such a small system. And the features???? WOW! Each night we went to bed playing our favorite CDs (which faded out gradually after 15, 30, 60 or 90 minutes) and awoke to a specific track, radio station or weather report. We could set differing VOLUMES for going to bed, wake up, or general listening, AND it even picked up broadcast channels 2 through 13. In short? If I don't get one FOR Christmas, I WILL be buying one immediately after!

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I purchased two of these clock radios (Sony ICF-CD863V) in October 2003, after a fair amount of market research. I put one in the baby's room (he's almost 2.5 years old now), and one at my work desk. I like the small size and functions (clock/radio/CD) of these units. I decided to review this clock radio while I am thinking about buying two more to replace the old clock radios my wife and I have on each side of the bed.

Likes: The functionality of these units is great. Our son goes to sleep most nights with a softly playing Enya or lullabye CD. Digital volume control and settable power off timer are great for that. He can even put in his own CD, since there's no flimsy pop-out tray. CD sound is excellent. Radio reception is also very good much better than our old clock radios get. Digital radio tuning and preset channels are also a must that's a primary reason we are (finally) replacing our old clock radios.

Quibbles: 1) Button placement takes some getting used to, especially for operation in the dark. Also, you have to remember that some seldom-used controls on the side. 2) The CD motor makes a small high-pitched whine. It's not much, but I can hear it. The two boom boxes I own have a louder whine, but I don't think my personal CD players have a motor whine. 3) I sometimes wish there was a remote control. I know: clock radios are supposed to go by the bedside, where I can reach them. Well, I like the small form factor better than that of a mini-stereo or boom box, so I use these in places where they are not always within reach. For example, I would like to turn the sound down as the baby goes to sleep, and we used to rock him to sleep...

Summary: Generally an excellent clock radio. I have had two for over 1.5 years, and I will probably buy two more. I like the many features that I use very much, and my quibbles are few.

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This was a BIG disappointment. The FM radio receiver is a joke. On almost all channels, you need to fully extend the wire antenna in a specific direction (different for each channel), or your reception is full of static. I have a cheap Zenith clock radio that is far superior with no special actions, so you know it can be done; Sony just missed the boat. The Mega Bass is a Mega waste. While this unit does a lot of things, there are no 'nature sounds' or weather station type items, which I think would be better than TV sound. I rated it so low, since it does nothing exceptionally, and for the price, it should. Also, the Sony reputation rightfully warrants a premium on many product lines, but definitely not here. I suggest you keep looking ;)

I bought this cd alarm clock a month ago and it has been working out pretty well. I use and really like the automatic display dimming feature, which brightens the display when there's lots of light and turns it way down in the dark. The FM/AM reception is pretty good and actually better than my Kenwood home theater receiver. The dual alarm feature was important to me when I was shopping for an alarm clock, and this product has a handy triple alarm feature. I am able to wake up to random tracks on a cd I made specifically to wake up to (although you can wake up to the same specific track if you want.) I also love and use the "Gentle Sleep" feature, so I can go to sleep listening to the radio.

One of the cons is that the display can be difficult to read from across the room and when in bed, if you're not on the exact horizontal plane as the alarm clock. However, these issues don't bother me too much because I'm used to checking the time on my watch or phone, and in bed, it doesn't bother me to have to raise my head to see the clock. I'd actually rather not see exactly what time it is all the time on one of those more sleepless nights, as I'm sure a lot of people can appreciate. I also like it to be as dark as possible when I sleep, so an overly bright display was a concern. This unit, while it doesn't dim completely, does not bother me at night.

The only issue that I consider a major one since I'm pretty picky about speaker quality and sound, is that the tiny speakers on this system (I think there are perhaps 3) are crap and start to pop and crackle when the bass level is turned up more than half way and you don't even have the volume that high. But alarm clocks are not known for their great sound, however I'd expect more from Sony at the price you pay for this unit. A workaround for this clock and actually any other with a headphone jacks, is to use that jack for a pair of quality bookshelf/computer desktop-type speakers and I'm sure this product would then be perfect.

Overall: features -execellent; ease-of-use -excellent; sound options -good; speaker quality -poor.

I only give it 3 stars just because of hte speakers.