| VK2RB |
Rating:  |
2011-04-20 | |
| Nice |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| Have had this speaker for 4 years & it still is my favorite. The sound is very clean & easy on my hearing. |
|
| WQ1Z |
Rating: |
2011-01-24 | |
| High performer in its 6th year of service - Highly recommended |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
Purchased new September, 2006.
Performs "best-in-class". Well constructed. 6 years of tireless listening.
Many of you will determine this speaker to be a solid high performer whether you are a casual phone operator, rag chewer, contester, or if you enjoy pounding brass until your knubby fingers bleed.
Highly recommended.
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Earlier 5-star review posted by WQ1Z on 2009-02-24
Purchased new September, 2006. Performs "best-in-class". If you are a casual phone operator, ragchewer, contester, or pound brass until your knubby fingers bleed, I'm sure many of you will find like me this speaker to be a solid high performer. Well constructed, and price justifies the "value-added" benefits while listening. Highly recommended. |
|
| KG6TT |
Rating: |
2010-11-07 | |
| Lots to choose from, but for me the easiest to listen to. |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I've had my Sounds Sweet Communication Speaker for at least four years now. It is certainly not the only speaker I have but it is the only one on a switch to instantly connect to any one of my rigs (currently six). My only regret is that I don't have two Sounds Sweets (I have two receivers in my Orion...).
Listening-wise what are you like? Personally, I am pretty picky when it comes to 'listening'. Despite that fact that I have advancing tinnitus, overall I am fortunate that I have retained most of my frequency sensitivity (59 yrs old) and maintain a deep appreciation for 'clean' sound. To much distortion, to much hiss, to much boomy bass, whatever, sets my teeth to clinching :)
Because of hard to listen to audio I have dumped numerous expensive receivers... just because there was 'something in what I heard that distracted me... that caused excessive hearing fatigue (don't get me on the subject of DSP audio).
In retrospect, had I owned a Sounds Sweet earlier I may have kept those expense receivers and transceivers . Unfortunately what I did own were the manufacturer's "matching" speakers.. whether JRC, Icom, Kenwood, or Yaesu.... cause they looked right! I do have a Ten-Tec external speaker (recent design)that I have not tired of (but it doesn't sound as open as the Sounds Sweet), nor does a Palstar that I am still debating over.
Now I do have speakers other than the Sounds Sweet. And I have them because I like them too. These are certain brands of very heavy die-cast aluminum enclosed mini speakers.
Two ham friends who visited my shack and listened to the Sounds Sweet went on to purchase their own and still use them. That is a pretty good recommendation for 'some' I would think. Still....
Speakers are transducers. Simple as that. They convert the whole of what our transceiver's output at audio (not necessarily a pretty sound either)into a particular wave-front. These moving waves couple that audio energy to our ears. Right. OK, I'm not saying anything new. But I am trying to reminding that there are a lot of variables, including our own ability to hear.
Beyond the specs, the hype, the reviews plus and minus, I would think speakers are a very individual choice for any Ham operator. And I haven't even touched on the visual appreciation aspect either. Fortunately for me, I had a lot of choice how I arranged my shack so the Sounds Sweet's size was never an issue.
As an old RF, digital and audio engineer I personally tend to look harder at a speaker where the enclosure was made of a material that supported the cleanest sound wave support (with a minimum of self resonances, etc.). I suppose this is why the wood cabinet of the Sounds Sweet is not a determent to me, but rather a plus.... as are the very heavy die-cast aluminum speakers I also use (the don't self vibrate, etc.)
So my review of the Sounds Sweet Communications Speaker remains the same after all these years: a five. I have had no failures, no cabinet issues. Contrary to another reviewers' experiences, I have not found the Sounds Sweet speaker's efficiency to me an issue with the radios I use: Ten-Tec Orion, Pegasus, Omni-VI, Scout, Argonaut V, Corsair II, Triton IV, Yaesu FT-100D, Kenwood TS-940S and others. Of course I have not tried it on hand-helds or other devices with similar, less robust amplifier sections. Of course I can't speak for what I haven't used.
Whatever speaker you choose for yourself, never discount the value of a fatigue-less listening experience. Some are better than others. What works comfortably for you is for you!
73, Jerry
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Earlier 5-star review posted by KG6TT on 2009-03-26
It is interesting to read eHam reviews. I must remind myself and I guess I am reminding those reading this and other reviews that what hams like myself and others express is, in most cases, REALLY subjective, especially concerning devices designed to interface their varied hobby electronics with their person (speaker, headphones, mic, key/paddle, etc.) While one ham says the Soundsweet has too much bass... another too little...one says great clarity... another too little... on and on. How can one product be so inconsistent? Simple, can you think of any part of a typical ham's station that would be more subjective to the individual than the speaker or headphones that couple the sound energy to their ear? Add to that thought the increasing age of today's Amateur Radio operators and how aging effects our hearing and that that aging process is never exactly the same.
I too read the reviews here on eHam very carefully before I bought my Soundsweet. What I was looking for was a speaker that did NOT boom out extra bass (I really don't like listening to sound that wasn't intended to be there - ESSB... Aaauuurrrggghhh! hihi)... I certainly didn't want a lot of output response in the high end either (for the same reason). When I made the decision to purchase my Soundsweet I never planed on using it for FM but rather for CW, SSB, and general Shortwave listening.... and mostly under less than ideal listening conditions. And I feel that for me the Soundsweet has lived up to my expectations with a Rating of 5! For armchair style listening (and FM) I use a collection of Radio Shack Minimus 11 and 7 speakers but that is a topic for a different review. If I were to only have one speaker in the shack it would be the Soundsweet... and it is on a speaker switch that conveniently unites it with six HF transceivers.
Interestingly, my experience with the SoundSweet has not changed over the past four years. And while a lot of other equipment has come and gone the Soundsweet remains.
My listening experience regarding the pros and cons of the Soundsweet has to be as subjective as that of hams and I recognize that. For me the Soundsweet worked out great, although I do have to admit that physical positioning of this speaker is very important. I think the tendency with such a large speaker whould be to put it somewhere more or less out of the way. I've done that too, however, from my repeated experience, if that at-a-distance positioning doesn't place me, the listener, pretty much in the center focus of the speaker then it will sound less defined and noticeably more mussy. At least it does to me (there is that subjective thing again). I find that the speaker's good sound focus to be no more than perhaps 40 degrees off center axis at most with 20 degrees or less being optimum. I can live with that as that is how I get the sound I want.... 'sweet sound'.
Last point, I am not alone in this subjective 'positive' experience. Besides other eHam reviews, I have a number of local ham friends who upon repeatedly visiting my station point out that my station has a clarity and ease of listen-ability that they only dream of having in theirs. My friends have the expensive 'famous ham-maker optional speakers' designed to complement their very expensive ham transceivers too. I have those also but mine are all in boxes now and have been for years.
And that pretty much sums up my subjective review of my Soundsweet experience.
RATING REVIEW
Listenability for CW, SSB, and SWLing - 5
Size and convenience - 3-
Fit and finish - 3+
Overall 5+ cause listenability is all that counts for me.
73,
Jerry, KG6TT |
|
| K8KAS |
Rating: |
2010-11-07 | |
| Best Speaker Today |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
Best speaker I have used, I bought one of the very first ones a long time ago for my FT1000D and it still sounds great, will drive you out with 1/2 AF gain, not a bit of trouble.
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Earlier 5-star review posted by K8KAS on 2002-10-25
I have been using mine for a week and Wow my old Icom base speaker sounds like a tin can compaired to the SS.
It is very EZ to drive, I used both a FT1000D and TS2000 with it.It sounds very natural and full with out hiss,etc. It's a keeper for sure. |
|
| AA2LD |
Rating: |
2010-11-06 | |
| Finally threw it away |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| Worked as a supplemental speaker for a couple of years. A lot of bass is present and this disguises the hiss but the efficiency of the speaker is awful. Now, it's blown and there's a lot of fuzz to the sound with no clarity. In the garbage finally. Won't buy another. |
|
| AD5VM |
Rating: |
2010-02-07 | |
| A permanent fixture at AD5VM |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I'm a gear nut. I love new rigs, mics, tuners, antennas and anything else that I can wear the new off, sell on ebay and replace with something different.
There are however, two items that I currently have that will always be there as long as I have a ham license. The Palstar BT1500A balanced line tuner and the Sounds Sweet speaker. They are simply the best at what they do. The speaker is huge but that's what it takes to get that rich vintage communications speaker sound. I've had it for about five years, it looks and sounds just like it did when I unpacked it. |
|
| N2RRA |
Rating: |
2010-01-25 | |
| Fantastic! |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I've had mine for 5 years now and I LOVE it!
It sure beats buying any of the Icom, Yaesu or Kenwood speakers. Now with Recieve EQ's in radio today you can adjust the tremble and bass the Sound Sweet speaker can handle and deliver the sounds.
Made in America with pride I'm happy to own one!
Don't delay buy yours today!
73,
Eric
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Earlier 5-star review posted by N2RRA on 2007-09-03
Damn! $165. smacka'roos?
I have 2 lucky me, but if I had too buy another I guess I'd fork over the, moola! But! I think I'll wait a bit.
Better than the $200-$300. dollar speaker's out there. So big deal if it matchs the rig. I go for performance!
Plus! It's built here in America. Buy American!
73!
|
|
| NQ6U |
Rating: |
2010-01-24 | |
| Incredible Sound...still! |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
Just buy it! You'll love the sound! It is the best communications speaker in my shack!
It takes up a lot of space, but the great sound more than compensates for the "size inconvenience" factor.
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Earlier 5-star review posted by NQ6U on 2006-11-09
Just buy it! You'll love the sound!
It takes up a lot of space, but the great sound more than compensates for the "size inconvenience" factor. |
|
| W2BLC |
Rating: |
2009-08-02 | |
| Best speaker I have used |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I have been using this speaker since late 2006. Rigs change - but this speaker is a keeper.
I have tried all kinds of speakers and even built some over the past 45 years of hamming. Some have been good, some really good, and some worthless. But, this speaker is the best.
The sound reproduction is full and warm. Best of all, the white noise (hiss) is greatly reduced. The speaker is completely passive in design - no controls or switches - and does its job well. It is large, heavy, and some say it is expensive.
By the way, those book-shelf sterio speakers reproduce too full a range to suit me - they allow hiss and white noise to get through.
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Earlier 5-star review posted by W2BLC on 2007-08-10
The speakers are great - unavailability is lousy. They have not taken orders for many months. |
|
| TF3JB |
Rating: |
2009-04-24 | |
| Sounds Sweet; still recommended! |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I reviewed this speaker on January 26, 2008 when I had only had the Sounds Sweet for a relatively short period of time. I have now had it for 15 months and have not changed my mind and stand by all comments made at that time.
On the other hand, now that I have extended the bandwidth of one of my fixed filter positions for SSB in the IC-756PROIII to a 3.6 kHz (its maximum) I find that I now experience some signals to have too much bass. As a matter of fact some signals can be so uncomfortable that I quickly revert to my usual 2.4 kHz bandwidth.
I would estimate that this low frequency in audio reproduction is though experienced only with approx. 20% of SSB signals when the bandwidth is extended above 2.8 kHz. I have never experienced any discomfort with received signals at the 2.4 kHz bandwidth.
My guess is that possibly some of the criticism raised by a few previous reviewers on the excessive bass might be a reason of the bandwidth used and could possibly be dependent on the make and type of transceiver/receiver.
As a final thought, it is my experience that the positioning of a communications speaker is also very important. As you can see if you type in my call sign on QRZ.Com, the Sounds Sweet is positioned directly above the transceiver in the approx. height as my head. I have tried to position it elsewhere, but I always go back to the current position.
73 de TF2JB. |
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