Customer Reviews

Monster RadioPlay 300 Universal Full Spectrum FM Transmitter (MBL-FM XMTR300)

5 star:		(138)
4 star:		(70)
3 star:		(28)
2 star:		(33)
1 star:		(46)

 

 

This is the BEST product of it's kind. Unfortunately, that's not saying much. Unless you have a tape deck in your care or you're willing to drop about 4 bills, an FM transmitter is the only universal tool for hooking up your mp3 player to your car stereo.

We live in DC, and considering that the radio waves are pretty crowded here, the transmitter works very well. There is some fuzziness between songs, but we have found a few stations that offer mostly good quality sound. It is essential if you live in a metro area to purchase a transmitter that allows you to use any station.

However, in order to change stations you must first save it as a preset station and then move to that station. You can't just push an up or down button and stop on a station you want to use, you must first save it. This can be annoying and almost impossible if you are driving.

Despite all this, I would recommend this product specifically for anyone looking for an FM transmitter. Trust me, this is my third one!

I enthusiastically endorse this product (shame it's not in stock right now as I type this). I purchased the iRiver AFT 100 and the Belkin TuneCast II after buying this product, and was able to do a direct comparison. I live in the San Diego area which is flooded with FM radio stations where it's difficult to find an empty, available radio station. My best bet with each player was 88.1, which I used to test all three products. The TuneCast was first up: It made a horrible sound as I plugged it in, scratchy and staticky which then faded into the music. Overall, it sounded like a semi-weak radio station. The iRiver was a little less weak, but still very scratchy with an inredible background hiss that persisted even as I tried every volume and position combination. The only product that created a very crisp and clear sound was this Monster Cable Transmitter. It's even powerful enough to overide live/powerful stations (though with some static) and at best sounded very similar to my CD player. I am so extremely satisfied with this product and so completely bummed out about the iRiver which from the bulk of its reviews sounded like a champ. It's not, it's a chump. The Belkin product has mixed reviews, but I have a friend in San Fransisco that says it works as well my Monster product there. All in all, thumbs up for the Monster Cable Transmitter for its shining reign over the other two "top rated" products.

I bought this item at the local Circuit City a few weeks ago and I must say this was one of the best investments for my MP3 player I've ever made. I like the fact that you can tune this transmitter digitally instead of using a wheel and having to "guess" what station you are on. I have the transmitter set to 3 stations: 88.1, 88.3, and 88.5. I even set my car stereo to these stations as well, instead of the local radio stations! Sometimes I have to switch channels when coming into a busy area (I live close to Memphis). It's VERY nice having the option of listening to my MP3 player when I'm in the car instead of all the garbage the radio stations play.

The Monster RadioPlay 300 Universal FM Transmitter is highly useful for playing mp3 players in the car, and unlike a lot of other FM transmitters out there, it works. The best thing about this transmitter is its full spectrum (88.1 to 107.9), which is essential if you live in a metro area (where a lot of stations are usually taken). I use this for my Microsoft Zune, and the sound is almost CD-quality, most of the time. You have to make sure, however, that the cord connected to the player doesn't move too much, though, because if it twists or gets pulled out a little, the sound becomes "static-y" and it may even drown out the music. So find a steady spot to hold your player and make sure the cord isn't pulled on by anything. This was really the only reason for the 4-star rating opposed to a 5-star rating. Another tip - if the bass sounds excessively static-y, try turning down the volume on the Zune (it worked for me). Before you try it out, try finding the blankest radio station you can find, and program it into one of the Monster's presets. The transmitter seems to work better if it is playing through a station saved as a preset rather than one you just found. The reality is that CD's have the best quality sound in almost any car system. With mp3 players, you're stuck with cassette adapters and FM transmitters for the most part. But that isn't necessarily bad. A tape adapter comes pretty close to a CD-sound, and I'd put them ahead of transmitters just because you don't have to change stations while travelling long distances. The Monster Universal Transmitter isn't far behind either, providing you find a blank station. It works awesomely on a very blank channel. This is the third transmitter I've tried, and it works the best...by far. Other FM transmitters don't even deserve to be mentioned along side it (maybe I just bought the crappy ones?). It is highly worth the price.

Ive had a Belkin Tunecast II for a year and a half until the wire gave out.....I was all set to but another one, but thought better of it, I always hated the auto on/off feature of the Tunecast II......I then ordered the Tunecast III, and while I liked some of the new pluses over the II, it was actually weaker in signal strength over it's predecessor, so I returned it. Looking around I noticed the praise that the Monster RadioPlay series of FM transmitters got, and thought to myself, maybe it's worth it to spend a little more, and try this baby out.......BOY, am I happy I did, the Monster RadioPlay 300 is by far the strongest FM transmitter Ive ever seen!!!!!!!!

THIS THING ROCKS!!!!! I highly recommend it!!!! Also, buy it from Amazon directly, even though it may cost a few bucks more, it's SO worth it, they shipped it to me in ONLY 2 days!!!!!!!!!

I have had this for over a month now. Previously I used the Sony DCC-FMT3 Car FM Stereo Transmitter and I have tried others that I have returned because they were not as good as the Sony (Griffin makes at least one of those that I returned).

I wanted a second transmitter that I could use in my wife's car and this is the one that I settled on. The Sony has an antenna cable that can be strung out to improve the sound quality. This one does not and it works as good.

This is more compact and is easy to use and if I wanted to get another one, this is the one that I would get because of past experience.

4 stars because of the inherent technology. When using the aux input on some stereos, the volume of the device does not need to be turned up, but with all that I have tested on any of the transmitters, either the volume of the device needs to be turned up or the volume of the stereo needs to be turned up, or both.

This and the Sony have given me the best performance, so far.

I have purchased 5 other transmitters (all but one returned) and borrowed several other models/brands from friends/family. This one is the BEST BY FAR. Very little distortion even at high volumes, strong enough signal to block modest FM bleed, and transmits lower frequencies better than any (subwoofer actually works well). I have used this in four different vehicles, all with decent audio systems. Programming frequencies into the three buttons is a little arcane, but does the job.

If you're a buyer in Connecticut, I hope this review will aid your purchase decision. After buying a cheap (~$10) FM transmitter and returning it, this one was recommended by a friend who has the iPod version. Prior to its arrival, I scanned the entire FM band for dead stations and found five good ones to try. It turned out that all of them were good candidates to use with this transmitter. All of the stations I selected work well in various parts of the state: New Haven, Waterbury and Hartford. Thought I have to sometimes switch among my preselected stations, I haven't come across a situation yet where none of my programmed stations work.

A few things to keep in mind:

(1.) Since you don't have an auxiliary jack in your car (which is why you're using an FM transmitter), the sound quality is NEVER going to be CD quality. Rather, it's like listening to a very strong radio station -- there are always times when you might get a burst of static.

(2.) I'm using my Monster FM Transmitter with a Sansa Fuze. I can control the volume independently on both the radio and the MP3 player. Often, I have to turn the radio volume up higher than I would normally. Don't be afraid to do this; just remember how high the volume might be when you switch your player off or switch to another station.

(3.) I listen mostly to rock (classic and modern) with a few eclectic things on the side. I've read some reviews where people complain about not be able to listen to classical or "lite" music with this transmitter. I haven't experimented yet, but my experience has been that listening to classical music in the car is difficult under the best of circumstances. I like Beethoven, Bach and Mozart as much as the next music aficionado, but normal road noise usually cancels out anything less than Carl Orff's "Carmina Burana."

Good luck and happy listening.

I bought this locally because I've always been a Monster fan. Put it in the car, tuned it (the full band tuning was nice) and the buttons felt totally cheap. They were loose feeling. With the cheap FM Transmitter I had I got clear stereo sound, picked up no engine or transmission whine or static unless in a large city. With the Monster, I heard transmassion whine no matter where in the car I placed it. The sound was muffled as if I had the treble all the way down although the bass was very good. It did not work with the headphone jack on my Cingular 8125 Pocket PC for MP3s. With that device it only played out of one side of the stereo speakers. THEN, for some reason, the internal fuse would keep tripping even when I had the volume on the CD player all the way down. The display would flash "8888" and I had to unplug it and plug it back in to reset it.

The good thing is it looked slick and was unobtrusive. I took it back to Radio Shack the next day.

If you want a GOOD FM Transmitter, check out the Accurian FM Transmitter. It's the same price, will seek out the clearest frequency for you and is as unobtrusive as the Monster. I'm wondering if Monster made it for Radio Shack and put MUCH MUCH better quality/components in it. It's the same price and works GREAT!!

My opinion? Stick with Monster for audio/video cables, but go with someone else for wireless transmitters.

I have a Microsoft Zune and bought it for car use mainly. I hate what's on the radio today and CD's just don't cut it anymore. I had previously bought the Belkin Tune Cast II and liked it but he wire went bad and it quit working. So I bought this hearing that it was good. It confused me at first on how to change the presets, but after that I was amazed and the sound quality that came out of the transmitter. It's just like listing to a CD. At first I heard cracking when songs with heavy base played but then turned the volume down on my Microsoft Zune. Problem solved. If you listen to your MP3 player in the car I highly recommend getting this superb product.