Sanyo FXCD550 CD/MP3/Cassette Player

I was skeptical at first that they could put this ...

Strengths: Small size, large buttons, simple controls, all functions work well

Weaknesses: Panel light too bright, no volume-"ATT"-control, clock not viewable if radio is off

Summary: I was skeptical at first that they could put this much in a reasonably priced single DIN unit and have it work satisfactorily, but so far I am very well satisfied. I installed it myself in an over the road 18-wheeler so the ease of installation should speak for itself. In addition, it has been subject to some minor bumping around, dust, and general handling typical to the over the road environment, but so far is responding very favorably and I'm well satisfied. Uncomplicated controls work very well and dial is easy to read and understand, but it helps to thoroughly read the manual first of course.

On the down side--At night the bright dial is very distracting to the point that I must hang something in front of it to reduce the glare.

I also wish they had a control button-"ATT"- to instantly muffle the volume down so you could speak on a hands-free cell phone for example and then return to the setting you had before the phone rang. Now I just have to shut the radio off and then turn it back on when I'm done.

Also it would be nice to be able to see the clock without having to have to turn the radio on to light up the panel.

I have noticed some static on AM which closely correlates with bumps and/or vibrations in the vehicle. It could be a loose connection (remember who the installer was) or it could be a cold solder joint in the unit itself. Not a serious flaw but it is irritating.

In spite of the few weaknesses, I've enjoyed the unit and would not hesitate to recommend it to somebody who has not a lot of money to spend but wants to own a unit with AM/FM/Cassette/CD functions and only has a 2"x7" hole to put it in. Unless you're very concerned with the tweaks and nuances of a top end audio system, I think you'd be satisfied with this unit.

100% of People (18/18) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?

  Report this as inappropriate.

 There are no comments for this review. Post a comment.

Sanyo FXCD-550

Strengths: Cd PLUS cassette! Good amount of power. Easy to set clock. Extra bass-boost feature. Song search for cassette player. Detachable face.

Weaknesses: Volume buttons are on the wrong side. No time display for cd player.

Summary: This is an excellent single DIN head unit - one of the very few units that will play both Cd AND cassette. Everything is very easy to figure out and use. No problems setting the clock - also very easy. 18 FM/AM radio presets, including a feature that will automatically set your presets for the strongest-signal radio stations at the area you are in. Includes song search for cassette (an essential feature), which will skip/find up to 9 songs. You can get tons of bass out of this unit. In addition to the usual bass adjustment, this Sanyo also features 2 different low-end bass boost options.

There are only 2 drawbacks to this unit that I can find. The biggest one is that for some reason, the design team thought it would be a good idea to put the volume buttons on the right hand side - the side furthest from the driver. Dumb. Too out-of-reach for such an essential function. The other one is that there is no time-lapse feature for the cd player. You are not able to see the time of the song you are listening to. Just the track number.

Aside from these two flaws, this is an excellent head-unit with plenty of power. Highly recommended if you want both a tape player + cd player in your vehicle.

100% of People (12/12) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?

  Report this as inappropriate.

 There are no comments for this review. Post a comment.