Customer Reviews

Marpac 980-A Dual Speed Sleepmate: INCLUDES a SOUND of NATURE CD voucher- white noise machine

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This sound screen is exactly what I was looking for. I have trouble sleeping at night and in order to block out those night sounds I have been using a Honeywell HEPA filter on high all night long for the last 3-4 years. The problem is the HEPA filter is moving a lot of air and draws roughly 250 Watts of electricity, which is a lot to be running 12+ hours a day, ever day of the year. Also its not very feasible for me to take it with me traveling, which makes it hard to sleep on the road. Electronic white noise equivilents all sound very electronic to me and I can usually hear the point of repetition, which bothers me and keeps me awake.

So I asked for and received the Marpac 980A for christmas - it is the perfect solution. It draws a lot less electricity, which was something I was looking for. It creates the same sort of sound the air filter or a fan creates - the dial allows you to adjust how loud it is and the type of noise - one way is a mostly rushing air noise, the other is more of a pleasant mechanical hum. It also has two settings on the on/off switch, low and high.

The sound screen is a lot softer volume wise than something like my air filter, when I first turned it on my husband remarked 'Is that as loud as it gets?', however, while my air filter sits on the other side of the room, far away, I put the marpac next to me on my nightstand and it actually seems about the same volume at that proximity. It's small size (about 4.5" diameter) means I can take it with me when travelling. I also liked that it has foam padding on the bottom so it will not scratch nice furniture it is set on.

It does let off a very very slight airflow out the holes, if I put my hand right over them I can feel it, but not enough to reach my face sleeping next to it and bother me.

I wanted to note that the first picture in this listing is NOT of the 980A, it must be a slightly older model, the switch is different, the second picture is correct.

I love this thing. We bought it after our neighbor rented out his house to people with large constantly barking dogs. Our 7-month-old son can now get his nap again. I find it soothing as well. Unlike just using a fan or a humidifier, it can be adjusted to make sure it hums at a low frequency but with enough volume to really help in an urban situation like ours. The two speeds are great, and I go back and forth between them depending on what I am trying to tune out. It even makes losers with their loud car stereos blaring more bearable. You can still hear really loud things through it (I do want to hear the phone for instance) but it takes the edge off. It really does reduce stress and makes it easier to sleep, or stay asleep, dispite the unnecessary noise of inconsiderate neighbors. Even when we move to a better neighborhood, I am still going to use it because I find it so relaxing. Combine it with a variable sound like waves crashing (like on many alarm clock models) and the baby has a total womb-like sound environment -- better than those womb sound machines because it does not annoy Mommy.

I have always needed some sort of noise to sleep due to a fairly mild case of tinnitus, so for the last several years I've had a fan running during the night. Living in Ohio, this didn't really make sense for over half of the year when it is 20 degrees outside. This little machine makes a very nice type of white noise (which is adjustable in tone and volume) and doesn't sap near the power as a fan, nor does it unnecessarily cool the room down just for the sake of noise. I've only used it for a few nights so far, but have gotten good sleep and hardly noticed the switch from the fan to this. It seems to be very well built and doesn't take up much space. The only thing I would like to see would be a battery option so it would run through the occasional power outage or during trips. Otherwise a very great product!

I was excited to get this and so was my wife. We normally use a fan to add a bit of background/white noise but winter is coming and we don't really need a fan anymore.

From what I can tell it has a fan inside that blows air out adjustable holes to create different tones and wind-like sounds. Some may say its too loud and I imagine it would be if you had it right next to the bed or something. We placed it on a desk at the end of our bed and it seems to be about the right volume. I even recently adjusted it to be a bit louder.

It's a bit larger than I thought. I guess just going by pictures I thought it would be a bit smaller. I suppose its not too big to travel with so not that big of a deal. It's about the same size as a 50 pack of blank CDs (on a spool).

On the slower speed it sometimes rattles. This seems to be internal because the base actually has soft foam to prevent movement to rattle with what its sitting on. We just used the high speed for a while. Good news is this problem seemed to have almost fixed itself over time. It hasn't rattled for a while so perhaps it just needed a bit of time to "break in".

Overall we are happy with it. It does seem a bit pricey for essentially a fan in a box but it does help us sleep. Can you put a price on a good nights rest?

After growing up on a farm my ears were trained to the quiet life, I moved to the big city. Upon living here I discovered that my neighbors like to drink a lot, play dominoes, fight, call each other horrible names, and not use quiet inside voices while addressing their friends as "Dawg and G" and play this redundant music called Crunk or Crap or whatever. SO, after several visits with my shrink I realized I didn't need to pay her to complain about how loud my neighbors were, but just buy the little white noise machine she had outside her office door. The sleep I lost was soon made up, I no longer scowl at my neighbors for being loud asshats, and I sleep soundly albeit the occasional gunshot or fireworks in the middle of the night. My husband and I are even more relaxed because of it.

This product is MUCH BETTER than the sound machines (homedics, etc.). The problem with the other machines is that the white noise is on a computerized loop, which does not make it easy to fall or stay asleep. This machine generates "true" white noise because it uses a real fan.

I take this with me whenever I travel. The consistent white noise helps me sleep and blocks out outside noise very well. One caveat when bringing this in a carry-on: Airport security almost always selects my carry-on for additional inspection due to the odd look of the device.

My pre-teen son is ADHD and it's hard to calm him down at night to sleep. The Sleepmate has been great. He knows it helps him and he'll turn it on at night. It provides white noise that doesn't loop so that every little regular house sound doesn't bother him and he can get to sleep. I even bought one for my sister, who is extremely noise sensitive, and she loves it!

My wife purchased one of these white noise generators for a vacation we were going on over a year ago. It is small and very lightweight with an eight foot long cord, which is nice and long. Its small size means that it fits easily into any luggage and takes up very little room on a night stand. The noise it makes is pleasantly "white," which means that it doesn't disturb you while reading in bed and yet it provides enough cover for the little noises that can sound so loud at night. The volume produced can be modulated by turning the top, making it louder or softer.

Overall, we are very pleased with our purchase of this item. We have experienced nothing but trouble free service from it, and we have even purchased a second one for the baby's room. We love this item and give it our highest recommendations!

We have an older sleepmate that we have been using for years. It started to make some noise like the fan was speeding up and then slowing down so I figured it was time to get a new one. The dual speed is great for that time when you want it a little more quiet or if you need more sound to block out the background noise you have the option for the second speed.

My Old sleepmate
I took my older sleepmate apart. Cleaned it up. Put a drop of oil on the spindle of the motor and she is just like brand new. Our daughter now uses it and recently slept over at a friends house and wished she had brought it with her! She is sleepmate lover too.

This is the perfect solution if you like a little "white" noise as a background noise for sleeping. My husband and I have a fan on in the summer and fall but it was too cold for winter use. We had become used to the noise which made it easier to sleep. I purchased this item for him for Christmas this year and we both LOVE it. I would highly recommend it. It's small and lightweight. We are using the lowest setting, but it's nice to know we could turn it up higher if necessary. A perfect solution to a fan!!