Customer Reviews

Panasonic SL-SW895 Shockwave Portable CD Player with Brainshaker Headphones

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This cd player can withstand almost any shaking. I jog with it and have never heard it skip. I heard that the earpieces were painful before i bought it but thought that these stories were overblown. They were not. The headphones cannot be worn for longer than 20 minutes without being uncomfortable and painful. I already replaced the headphones from an old player and it sounds and feels better. unfortunately they do not give you another option for headphones.

This is the toughest CD player I've ever seen. If you drop it, it won't skip. To test this, I dropped it from a height of 3 feet onto an Army cot. It bounced twice, and didn't skip a beat. The anti-skip gets 5 stars.

The unit itself is metal, which doesnt sound like that big a difference until it's been subjected to 130+ degrees. The only downsides that I have seen from the unit itself is (1) my volume knob has some sand in it, so it's not 100%, and the "hold" switch, which has yet to fail me, seems poorly designed. The cherry on top is the waterproof feature, yes, it's waterproof, go ahead and spill anything on it; It's also sandproof, I haven't gotten any sand in the player in 2 months. 4 and a half stars for the player itself.

On to the headphones... This is the weakest point of the player. The headphones themselves are uncomfortable (not padded); any movement and they fall out, but forget about laying down with them on, they're built for maximum discomfort. The vibrating feature is novel, but after the bass "bulb" vibrates against the base of your neck for a while, you'll wish they had included a different set of headphones. -1 star for the headphones.

I've had varying degrees of success with using different headphones: My beat-up Sony earbuds work well; my JVC headphones (big DJ Style headphones) although bulky, have the best sound; the Kenwood earbuds I bought are junk.

Your mileage may vary, but with a different set of headphones, this is a great portable CD player, even if the harshest environment you encounter is sitting around the house. If you spend more time outside than in, this is the CD player for you. If you are going on an overseas deployment, this is a must have.

I bought this for my night runs and walking to and from school...Let me tell you this thing is well worth it!!! I have had it for 2 years now and it still works like new!!!all my other cd players break but this one has gone through it all...and servived!!Batteries last 3 times as long in this cd player!!!the grip makes it easy to run with!!plus the batteries are stored underneath were u put your cd so they wont fall out...and its resistent to water and shock!!!!LEt me tell you i have never had this thing skip on me!!!EVER!!!

I ordered this cd player to use while jogging and also for my pre-teen kids to use occasionally. I am really happy with it. It seems really well-made and durable. That said, every bad thing all the reviewers said about the headphones is true. They are tortuously painful. I am using my 15.00 Sony headphones from my cassette player instead and they are fine. I think that for the price this cd player is a great deal!

I bought this CD player because I had bought a Panasonic seven years ago, and it is still working, but I need one that doesn't skip as much when I jog. I thought that the remote on the headphones was a good idea, but the first one I bought didn't work, so I returned it and on the next player the headphone remote didn't work either. The headphone jack was jacked up and the player scratched one of my CD's right after I put it in. So after two that didn't work I've given up on this terrible model. PS The headphones HURT your ears.

I bought this to use at work to replace another unit I gave to my parents to use. I thought the idea of the bass thing that rests on the back of your neck was a neat idea. I wish I could have tested it out before I bought it. The sound quality of this is far from the best I have heard. You can not turn the volume up too high because of distortion. The bass thing is not that great. Like mentioned the headphones are very uncomfortable after a little while and other headphones will sound even worse cause this unit is made to work with the VMSS headphones that come with it. I think the VMSS is what makes this kind of pricey casue I have seen the same features in other brands that cost less... save your money and get a better sounding unit cheaper.

I like the overall look and feel of this portable cd-player, however, the sound quality leaves a lot to be desired. The headphones themselves are quite a neat idea with the pseudo-subwoofer in the back, but it doesn't usually add to the bass and the earbud-like protrusions themselves don't fit well enough to have much bass or clarity on their own. The main problem with the sound however, comes from the headphone jack itself. Basically, the headphone jack on this model seems to have a somewhat poor power output and it distorts the sound very easily, even at low volumes. Compared to other panasonic portable cd-players, the sound output is really quite poor. Even with the use of a headphone amp the sound still distorts very easily.

This is a wonderful CD player that is very sturdy, never skips, and is easy to use while jogging, walking, etc. The battery life is also solid. I agree the headphones could be be better, and in my area the fm reception is not particularly strong, but these are small quibbles....Buy it, you won't regret it.