GPX C3946BI Portable CD Player with Car Kit

by GPX

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 6 x 2 x 11.2 inches ; 2 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00004SYAG
• Item model number: C3946BI
• Batteries: 2 AA batteries required.
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #333,845 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

With the many competing brands of portable CD players available in the $50 to $75 price range, it's difficult for us to recommend the GPX C3946BI.

Although the C3946BI has lots of features, including a car adapter kit and volume control, we found its best asset to be its 40-second electronic antishock protection (ESP). With the ESP engaged, we dropped the player and bumped it repeatedly without causing the music to skip.

Unfortunately, even the antiskip feature has its flaws. Because the ESP button sticks out from the side, it was prone to being accidentally turned off each time we lifted the player.

The player's build quality is below average, with a design that offers fake screws as part of the lid's plastic mold.

The supplied headphones are among the least impressive we've heard in a portable CD player, exhibiting very little dynamic range and distorting frequently in the midrange.

Although the headphones come with a volume control, the circuit that's used to adjust the volume level hissed each time we moved the slide-rule-type control, with the music fading in and out and distorting through the headphones.

The supplied car kit did nothing to convince us the C3946BI's faults lie specifically with its headphones. When we plugged the player into our vehicle's normally impressive six-speaker sound system, the music distorted in the higher frequencies and demonstrated weak bass, indicating the built-in digital-to-analog converter is below average. --Eric Gill

Pros:

• Impressive antiskip memory buffer
• Lots of features

Cons:

• Unimpressive build quality
• Below-average headphones
• Volume control distorts music when used

Amazon.com Product Description

The GPX C3946BI portable CD player features an eye-catching blue and silver design with a translucent lid, 40-second antishock memory, top-mounted controls, and a bass boost switch. Equipped with its own car connection kit, the GPX C3946BI is ready for road trips. Matching headphones, with their own volume control, are included.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars You Get What You Pay For, August 4, 2000

By 

Theodore J. Freeman "sounio" (Westtown, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: GPX C3946BI Portable CD Player with Car Kit (Electronics)

The price is right for this portable CD player, but it lacks the quality one might get for a few dollars more. The design itself is awkward. Loading the CD is a task unto itself, especially if you're using this in the car. The buttons range from being ultra-sensitive to being incredibly stubborn, which again does not make for ideal use in a car. Sound quality is mediocre; there seem to be glitches in the track reading every so often. Since I have only used this CD player in my car, I can not attest to the quality of the headphones, but I can't imagine they could take much abuse. If you're looking for a CD player that doesn't do much more than simply play the CD, and if you're not overly concerned about true sound quality, then you might consider this machine. You might want to consider, however, spending a few dollars more to get a more reliable, sturdy product.

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Never trust GPX, July 1, 2000

By 

Abby (Cambridge, Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

This review is from: GPX C3946BI Portable CD Player with Car Kit (Electronics)

I have previously bought other electronics from GPX, such as theportable walkman, and have discovered what lies beneath the nice looks of GPX's line of products. The GPX line of products are rarely built well, and almost every product I have bought and heard had been very cheaply made. It makes you think that it cost little to manufacture them, but they sell them for a high price. First off, on this discman, the volume is messed up; they advertise volume control in the headphones but dont be fooled; the inline volume control just makes the music even more fuzzy. The ESP button does stick out, as the editorial reviews said, and if you put it next to something often when you pick it up again it will automatically switch off. The headphones are extremely cheap. The product will not skip, which is one of the few good things about this discman. But personally, I would rather have it skip a little instead of the fuzziness the headphones deliver. The price may be good; but at the expenses a new good pair of headphones (which are a must if you want this product) are going to be, your better off just using the money to overall buy a better and more expensive discman. Even if you are on a low budget, you can still get a KOSS or Memorex discman for 40.00 and below which are far better. If you want a good quality discman KOSS or Sony are your best bet. But to be safe, I would be sure to read the editorial reviews on these types of things. The customer reviews are also very often helpfull, but I think the editorial reviews get right down to the quality of the product, as well as some customer reviews, but not all...

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great value, November 6, 2000

By 

Trevor J. Hall (PERRY,, ME USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: GPX C3946BI Portable CD Player with Car Kit (Electronics)

For about five dollars more than it takes to by a car kit for a CD Player, here you get a CD player as well! The player performs faultlessly when driven over the roughest terrain, the sound quality is good, and the unit is attractively finished in light blue. I was most impressed. The ear phones work well but are fragile, but who buys a CD Player for the ear phones? A great present for that young neice, or purchase as a spare around the home. I shall keep mine in the car.