Sony ICF-CD831 PSYC Clock Radio/CD Player (Red)

The radio is nice with good quality sound.

My only complaints are the lack of station presets and the lack of ramp-up when the radio turns on. The volume hits you with full force when the alarm goes off, rather than a gentle rise. Same goes for the Nap timer the buzzer is loud and will jangle you awake.

I didn't realize that I'd miss presets, but I do. It's a pain to try and find a favorite station.

I am planning to return this radio and find a more gentle model.

I bought one of these for my daughter's Christmas present last year. She uses the CD player for the alarm, and very rarely to play music in her room. After less than 12 months of gentle use, the CD player only works intermittently.

I checked the warranty information after the fact, and SONY only warranties for 90 days, parts up to 6 months. After the 6-month period, you pay for labor to service the product. It's a waste of money, because the labor cost will certainly be more expensive than buying a new radio.

DO NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT.

Buy Sony ICF-CD831 PSYC Clock Radio/CD Player (Red) Now

I mainly bought this CD/Radio alarm clock simply because I wanted a small boombox cd player. I was very surprised by the excellent sound quality of the cd player and the excellent sound quality of the radio. It sounds ten times better than the regular alarm clock radio I have, so now every morning I wake up to a very clear sounding radio. The best part is, the sound of the cd player and radio has the ability to fill a whole room just as good as any other regular boombox. I'm very impressed!

The only things I wish the cd player had is an ability to repeat one song over and over.

However, I was surprised by the fact that this cd player has the ability to turn on the cd player to the track you want when you want to wake up. I've never had a cd/radio alarm clock like this before.

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Clack-clack-clack! That's the sound you'll hear too often when you put a CD in this player. The CD itself seems to sit on the turntable fine, but the part of the lid that rests on the CD is loose and often misaligns. So when you lower the lid and spin up the CD, it clatters. That can't be good for the CD or the player. Each time you open and close the player, that component moves. No matter how carefully you place the CD in; no matter how carefully you close the lid, you are prone to this problem. You don't want to damage your CDs, and the noise spoils the music. So you have to be careful with it, or exchange it, or buy a different product.

Otherwise, it's a pretty nice product. The clock-radio portion is fine. The CD player, when it works right, is OK. The layout of the controls is no better and no worse than others of its kind. (Why is it no two digital products ever have the same layout?) My only other complaints would be the antenna wire that dangles from the back and ought to be eliminated entirely, and the marketing gimmick of the goofy little logo tag on the right side.

The critical thing to me is the clattering lid on the CD player. I didn't expect that from a Sony product. The other things I've mentioned are minor flaws. It's clear they put some thought into the design, they just should've done a little better.

In summary, buy a different model or buy from another maker. Don't put up with clattering in your CD player.

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I purchased this Sony Psyc for our baby's room to replace a boom box we used to play music at night. Our oldest took the boom box to college! The sound is good and it serves the purpose I purchased it for--playing a cd and having the ability to "repeat". It doesn't take up much room (although there are smaller ones out there), and it has a sleek look. I'm not sure what the "Psyc" clip is for; so I'm sure I'll never use it. I do wish it had presets, but since it's in the baby's room, it doesn't matter that much.