RCA RCD148 CD Boombox with MP3/WMA CD Playback

by RCA

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 8 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000093UQ7
• Item model number: RCD148
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Packed with music-enjoyment options, RCA's RCD148 is as powerful as it is conveniently compact. Choose from you favorite MP3, mp3PRO, WMA, or audio CD formats or a 30-preset FM/AM tuner with auto station programming. RCA has conveniently mounted the CD player on top of the unit for fast, easy access. Take advantage of the unit's SmartTrax navigation system to quickly and easily find the music you're looking for among the hundreds of songs available on your homemade compressed-music CDs.

Besides traditional audio CDs, the RCD148 handles MP3 and WMA (Windows Media Audio) files encoded on recordable data CDs. You can store up to 12 hours of music on a single disc (at 128 kbps). Creating MP3 CDs requires the use of a computer with a CD-R/CD-RW writer. mp3PRO is an improved version of the popular MP3 coding-decoding format that provides equivalent sound quality at roughly half the size of original MP3 files. mp3PRO files will play normally on an old MP3 player; sound quality will only be optimized when mp3PRO files are played on a mp3PRO player.

SmartTrax technology lets you sort by song title, artist, album, genre, or year. Its six main categories include My Selection, Artist, Title, Genre, Album, and CD Playlist, a systematic arrangement that speeds and simplifies navigation. To enjoy SmartTrax navigation, make sure you burn your MP3 discs with SmartTrax feature switched ON.

Convenience and options aren't all that this boombox has to offer--it also provides great sound. Packed with four EQ presets (rock, pop, jazz, and classical), you can optimize sound timbre to suit your taste and/or the positioning of the system. Twin Bass sound enhancement optimizes bass response through separate left/right speaker enclosures and tuned bass-reflex ports.

What's in the Box
Boombox, remote control, remote batteries, CD-ROM (MusicMatch MP3/music-management software), an AC power cord, and a user's manual.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Updated review, November 3, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: RCA RCD148 CD Boombox with MP3/WMA CD Playback (Electronics)

Intial review: I got this player as a gift for my spouse. I had reviewed all "boombox" CD players that play MP3 disks I could find on Amazon, then tried them in local stores. There aren't currently that many that play MP3 disks. There are a lot listed, but most have been discontinued. I tried all I could find, which amounted to three: the Sony S2, this RCA player and a bargain brand called Durabrand. First, they all played the MP3 disks I brought with no problem. I don't know why I saw so much about problems with MP3 files. I suggest you take your own disks to a store that has players out to try. The Durabrand was, of course, the cheapest. It had an analog radio tuner and the sound was, I thought, the poorest of the three. I judged it unacceptable for my purpose. However, if you want an inexpensive player for OTR listening, the Durabrand would fit the bill.

The RCA was in the middle of the threee with respect to sound quality but had, I thought, the best MP3 navigation method. The Sony S2 had the best sound (better highs and more volume) but was not head-and-shoulders above the RCA. I think (but don't know) that the thumb-sized joystick on the Sony will be prone to breaking and was somewhat non-intuitive to use at first. The Sony had a lighted display, which is a big plus that the RCA did not have. I don't know why the RCA did not include a light for the LCD. This is a significant problem if you try to use the player in low light. The RCA came with a MusicMatch install CD but it is a trial version and only allows you to make a few disks. However, I didn't care about this. Disks burned with the MusicMatch software supposedly have additional tags that the player can use with its "SmartTrax" system to sort the tracks by artist, album, etc. Again, it did not matter to me. It already recognizes folders on conventional MP3 CDs.

Pluses are: good intuitive MP3 navigation, reasonable sound quality, small size, takes "D" batteries for longer battery life, reasonably skip-resistant (very skip-resistant on MP3s, moderately so on CDs).
Minuses are: no light for the LCD display, no audio input jacks (if you anticipate needing them, they are hard to find any more on small boomboxes), highs a bit "muddy" compared to more sophisticated speaker systems, fast-forward is slow for MP3s (fast FF is good for searching OTR shows which can be an hour in length).

In summary, the RCD148 is a medium-priced player with reasonable sound quality. Sound quality was not as good as the Sony S2 but it was nearly half the price (depending on where you compare prices). It is a good player as a supplement to a stationary stereo to take outdoors or room-to-room. It plays all the MP3 disks I have put in it just fine. I've seen plenty of reviews of MP3 players where people have had trouble so I suggest you try before you buy with your own MP3 CDs.

After a year:
Well, the boombox worked well for about a month. Then the LCD display started going dim, then out. Got a replacement at the retail store where it was purchased. Second one did the same thing. I am very disappointed that a company with a past reputation like RCA will sell such trash. I recently bought a digital video camera as a gift. Wanted something tapeless for short videos. RCA makes one. Didn't even consider it. Bought one from another company (the FlipVideo camera) that cost 50% more. Won't buy another RCA product.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars MP3Pro player is mixed bag of good & ordinary features, July 29, 2003

By 

Knukleur "knukleur" (Atlanta, GA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: RCA RCD148 CD Boombox with MP3/WMA CD Playback (Electronics)

I got this as a moderately priced way to play MP3 CD's in portable boombox format. It's turned out to be pretty good as a small household digital music player; besides regular MP3 CD's it also plays discs with MP3Pro files and WMA's. The MP3Pro playback feature is a plus, as files recorded in this format have CD-quality sound at a lower bit rate than regular MP3's. About 12 hours of music will fit on one CD![...] I've tried playback of in all three formats and they all put out moderate quality sound through the box's low-power speakers. It has a digital bass boost feature and simplified equalizer control: 5 presets and 1 customizable with only "high" and "low" frequency ranges being adjustable.

The box is bundled with MusicMatch software for creating and organizing your digital music library; mine had version 7.5. Unfortunately you have to pay the standard licensing fee[...]to unlock all the burning features for more than 4 free demo burns. You can use other software to record & burn digital music discs and still play them with this boombox, but the other applications probably won't have the MP3Pro option or support the enhanced "Smart Trax" menu navigation features. If your preferred burning software can use folders to organize your tracks, though, that still works pretty well. One downside I've found with Musicmatch is that it didn't transfer the original albums' track numbers, so the menus list clips in alphabetical order by song title within the folders. Perhaps there is a setting I've overlooked, but I didn't have this problem using RealOne.

The overall design of the boombox is fair. It has prominent metallic grills over the speakers reminiscent of a 60's sci-fi movie prop; I guess it's meant to look "Xtreme" or sporty or maybe just camp. The main controls are placed vertically on the front and the buttons have a rather noisy "clack" when they're used, although the rubber buttons on the remote are quiet. Since the LCD screen for the menu is also vertical and not backlit, it can be hard to read and inconvenient to use unless you have it sitting near eye level in a well lit room. The menu has some advanced features including creating playlists of up to 30 tracks, repeat, intro, and shuffle.

The radio works fine and features digital tuning with 30 presets available, and it can be set up to automatically scan and assign the presets in FM mode. Neither the boombox nor the remote have direct access to presets; you have to scroll up or down to select them.

Overall I like this boombox, mostly because of the MP3Pro feature. The basic design of the boombox is fair, and the playback features are good. I can live with the LCD display design but it may be a feature that will put others off.

16 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Does not play ANY mp3 files, September 7, 2003

By 

chw (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: RCA RCD148 CD Boombox with MP3/WMA CD Playback (Electronics)

I bought the RCD148 yesterday only because it claimed it could play mp3 files. I inserted some CD-R's which had perfectly good mp3 files on them. But this boombox never recognized or played any of these mp3 files. It always interpreted the CD-R's wrongly as audio CD's.

Well, I thought let's try the MusicMatch software they ship with the box. Maybe it does something special. I did that, experimented with different discs (CD-R, CD-RW), finalizing the disc, etc. I also tried to burn a 100%-ISO-conform CD-R with Nero and the Windows XP built-in burn software. Nothing worked!

I was even checking out the RCA website if there was any support information or firmware updates. Nothing.

You will also not find any customer service phone number in the user's manual.

I am going to return this product immediately.

DO NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT! IT DOES NOT PLAY MP3 FILES!