Customer Reviews

Sangean WR-2 Digital AM/FM Tabletop Radio, Black

5 star:		(59)
4 star:		(26)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This is a very appealing clock radio with digital readout that gives you name of song, artist, and other information as you listen. The mono aural speaker is warm and full. The radio is attractive, solid and well-built, evincing nothing cheap or plastic-laden. The AM is very good. Most FM stations come in strong. But hard-to-get FM stations like 89.3 from Pasadena (I live 40 miles away in Torrance) requires that I move the FM antenna, but this is not a big deal, just a nitpick.

Most listeners will love the WR-2. But if you're a radio buff like I am and enjoy the outstanding FM reception of the Grundig S350, the Kaito 1101 and 1103 models (called Degen in China), then I'm afraid the WR-2 will disappoint. To be fair to the WR-2, the more expensive Bose radio suffers the same problem of mediocre FM reception.

Another important point: Because this radio has a remote control, it works great in your computer office. You can keep the WR-2 six feet or so away from your computer and avoid interference as you toggle stations and volume with your remote.

Post Script: Make sure to turn on the external antenna switch in the back of the Sangean. It improves reception by tenfold.

Update: I bought a second WR-2 (in black) three years after the first and get excellent FM reception so apparently the radio has improved in newer models. New rating: 5 stars.

I got the WR-2 from Amazon a week ago. Since the previous reviewer stated the reception is mediocre on FM, I was really worried about the reception for my favorite station, 105.3 MHz, at my apartment. I have several high-end radios, SONY SW77, ICF-2010CGrundig Sat 700 and Sat 800. Both SW77 and ICF-2010 receive the station with a high distortion using the built-in antenna. The reception of Sat 700 and 800 are better, but the signal is somehow unstable with the stereo and RDS (Sat 700) signals flashing. With the included external antenna, the WR-2 can deliver a clear, warm and full sound from this station with stable stereo and RDS signals.

I was looking for a simple, powerful alarm radio, that also accepts AUX in (for iPods, etc.). The three primary radios I considered were the Sangean WR-2, Tivoli Audio Model One, and Boston Acoustics Receptor. Compact size, simplicity, and audio quality were my primary criteria. I looked at the Tivoli and Boston Acoustics "hands on" in a Target. I was quite disappointed with the Tivoli - seemed very cheaply made. The Boston Acoustics felt more solid, but the entire thing is plastic. I bought the Sangean sight unseen, but must say it is clearly superior to the competition. Build quality is exceptional and very solid - high quality wood and metal. The controls are intuitive and the remote is compact, yet fully functional. Audio quality is unmatched. The Sangean supports preset stations (which the Tivoli does not) and features a rich display that the other radios lack (including name of song, artist, and other information).

The Sangean is an elegant and handsome radio that has met all of my expectations. I expect to buy one for the office and maybe a third for the kitchen.

I was looking for a high quality clock radio, and found the Sangean WR-2, and the favorable reviews led me to try it over the Boston Acoustics Receptor. When I unpacked it, I thought I had made a good choice - looks fabulous, great sound, nice input/output features, nice remote. And yet, when I started to set it up for its intended use - as a clock radio - my opinion fell. First of all, the radio can only store one alarm time. Many (most?) clock radios sold now have the ability to store two alarm times - one for, say, weekdays and one for weekends.

But more importantly, the procedure to set the particular alarm mode - on, off, music, or tone - requires a tired person to press no fewer than three separate buttons in sequence, one of them a press and hold. Not a particularly intuitive process, and one that would quickly turn annoying for one of the most commonly used processes - just turning the alarm on and off right before one went to bed would be a complicated ritual, and one that my wife, for example, would not want to engage in on the times that I am away. And, myself, being in a wearied mental state would probably not handle it gracefully either without referring to the manual.

So, a great sounding and looking radio with good features (AM reception is awful, but so it is on the Boston Acoustics, too), but with an overly complicated alarm setting process that makes it difficult to use as a clock radio.

My boom box ran out of steam and I wanted to buy a small table top radio to listen to NPR. Originally I looked at the Trivoli (smart looking but didn't have a digital tuner), and the Boston Acoustics Radio Receptor at Target. Although the Trivoli looked very sharp and retro (which I loved), I later read several reviews that the manual tuner (non-digital) tended to drift off the radio signal. I then tried the Boston Acoustics (BA), and found that this radio sounded a bit richer and clearer than the Trivoli, however I didn't like the price ($150) and the look of it BA, which is all black plastic and doesn't have the classic retro charm of the Trivoli. The BA also brought in radio channels that the Trivoli wasn't picking up at the store through all the brick and metal of the Target building. Still uncomfortable with the BA's price, I went searching on the internet to find a cheaper BA, when I stumbled on the relatively unknown Sangean WR-1 (non digitial radio tuner) and the Sangean WR-2 (digital radio tuner with a clock radio AND a credit card sized remote control.) I ended up buying the Sangean WR-2 and am VERY PLEASED with my purchase. The radio is much more substantial in weight and size (about 50% bigger) than the Boston Acoustic and Trivoli radio. The WR-2 also looks very expensive and beautiful (yeah I loved superficial stuff like that) and has 6 presets (like in a car radio). But most importantly, I think this radio has a beautiful rich tone, an adjustable treble and bass, and radio presets, something that the other radio's didn't have. The Sangean is located next to my bed and looks absolutely stunning with its super shiny veneer box, and beautifully arranged controls. For $136 (which included shipping and handling), I am quite pleased with my purchase of this very handsome radio that has a rich and super clear tone (even though its not in stereo). I expect to enjoy my purchase for many more years to come and would high recommend anyone purchase the Sangean WR-2 radio.

This product is wonderful. After I returned the Cambridge SoundWorks 730 Radio (Black) because it lacked sensitivity in my fringe reception area, my Amazon.com refund was burning a hole in my pocket. In my previous research of Tivoli, Boston Acoustics and other brands, reviewers seemed to have issues with features and operation that dissuaded me, too.

Then I read all WR-2 reviews and decided to purchase the radio. I was impressed with the quality, the display's size and adjustable brightness, the RDS information feature, input and output jacks, 12-volts DC operating capability, auto clock-setting and search mode.

Since I was primarily looking for a radio receiver, not an alarm clock radio, I was pleased with both AM and FM sensitivity, which I gauged by comparing my Henry Kloss Model 88 and the WR-2 connected to the same C.Crane FM indoor dipole. With an external AM loop, I noticed only more directionality, not a boost in signal strength. On AM the WR-2 seemed to be much more sensitive than the '88.

I love the Sangean's look, tuning feel and controls. I cannot believe I bought a radio with a single speaker, but I am over it. I thought the "Alternative Frequency" feature was intriguing but silly. I do not believe there is yet a solid replacement for the '88, but this box is a great second radio for me. Previous reviewers that gave it 5 stars were right.

I own a Boston Acoustics Recepter radio and think it's fantastic. I use the Recepter at my bedside and have no complaints about it. When I needed a new radio for my kitchen, I started with the Recepter as the base product and asked what other features I'd want. I came up with three: auxiliary input (which now is included in the Recepter); headphone jack; and remote control. That led me to the Sangean WR-2. I did not want to give up the digital tuner of the Recepter or the the strong tonal quality. The Sangean has those features, plus the additional three I wanted.

When the price dropped recently, I sprung for the Sangean WR-2 and I'm glad I did.

The tuner works very well on both AM and FM. The remote is simple to operate. The auxiliary input function works well with my iPod. The radio data display is a plus, as is the tone adjustment function. I know there have been complaints about the complexity of the alarm system. Since this unit is in my kitchen, it won't be a problem for me.

The sound quality is comparable to, perhaps not quite as good as, the Recepter's. The black case is beautiful and could be displayed in any room.

My only reservation is that the display is a little less elegant than I would like, but I'm sure I will adjust. This is an extremely well designed radio and I'd be hard-pressed to ask it to do anything it doesn't do. And I paid less than I would have paid for a new Recepter.

This is an exceptional radio. I could go on and on about the features, but other have done that already. This radio has great sound, a super sensitive and selective tuner and has RDS which displays on a large bright backlit LCD screen. If you live in an area with lots of FM stations, the selectivity is important.

It also works great with MP3 players , your computer's sound card and other external sources of audio. Although there is only one speaker, the radio does have stereo line output, and a stero headphone jack.

You can take the line out jack and plug into another amplifier, or pipe into a whole house audio system. I have done that on a couple of occaissions because the tuner in this radio is more sensitive than the cheap tuners built into most AV Recievers these days. ( Especially AM)

This radio also runs on 12V DC or on standard AC. This is good for emergencies. The radio will run about 6 mins after a power failure, then you need to power it with DC.

If you want a high quality radio with solid construction, this is it. It is a fairly heavy radio that won't slide of the nightstand or table top when you push a button on it. Or of course you can use the included remote control and never touch the radio.


Update - 09/2011 Still using this radio and it still sounds great. No problems since the original review. Just thought I would update the review as s testament to how reliable this product has been for me. In my original review I stated that I wanted to see an HD version of this radio, but that changed. I have an HD Tuner and the sound is not as good as Classic Analog FM Radio. I was really disappointed with HD radio performance. That being said, the WR-2 is a great radio, at least the one that I have is. I know sometimes manufacturers look for ways to cut cost over the life of a product. I don't know how the current production models stack up to the one I bought a few years ago, but mine is still going strong.

What can I say that others have not?

The good: a weighty, seemingly very well-made clock radio with a wood, piano finish, case and a nice machined-metal face (all black, no orange ring as in the photo). The other optional finishes look equally good. The time/station back-light can be set to bright, medium, low, or none and you can use one setting for clock mode and a different setting for radio mode if you want (I especially like how you can set the clock to be dark at night but to wake you with a light when the alarm goes off). A light button allows you to easily change the light setting. The radio has a very good snooze (hit any button to activate it) and the unit will wake you to either music or an alarm, both starting out quiet and then getting progressively louder if you ignore it. After you turn off the alarm, it automatically resets itself to go off at the same time the next morning, so you never have to remember to turn on your alarm at night.

The indifferent: the unit is the size of a lunchbox and comes with a remote control.

The bad: the unit only shows you the time when the radio is not playing. So, when the alarm goes off and wakes you with music, you can only see the station playing, not the time. This makes it very hard to tell if you have time to hit the snooze again. Also, there is no easy way to set or disable the alarm: you have to press a complicated pattern of at least 4 buttons to do either. And while the unit has the best brightness controls of any clock radio I have seen, it would have been even better if the brightness control had been a dial that let you choose the exact brightness between none and bright and did not just force you to choose between 4 settings, 3 of which (low, medium, and bright) are really too bright to have on at night and one of which (off) is too dark.

Conclusion: this is a very well designed clock radio with some major flaws. The flaws are so big, and so nonsensical for a clock radio--that most people probably buy for its clock and radio alarm functions and not for its pure radio functions--that I suspect that the unit was designed by a very good designer but that his or her design was screwed up by some moron in charge right before production started. So, all in all, if you can live with its flaws, this is a very good product. I would buy it again given that, even with its flaws, it seems better than its competition. But I really wish that Sangean would put their brains back into their heads and fix these--presumably simple to fix--flaws.

If you're looking for a tabletop radio with classic looks, impressive balanced sound, but also want modern features like a remote, auxiliary input and clock radio, look no further than the Sangean WR-2.

Originally all I wanted was a way to amplfy my iPod in my bedroom and something that would function as a clock radio, so I bought the iHome IH5 clock radio, because it seemed like the perfect solution to my needs. It is a very nice product, but the tuner couldn't pick up my favorite station WHYY 91 FM (NPR). Living in Center City Philadelphia, 91 FM is a hard station to get clearly. I realized I needed something that had a hifi quality tuner.

In the end I found 3 hifi radios that met my needs for under $200. The Tivoli Audio Model 3 ($199), The Cambridge SoundWorks Radio 730 ($199) and the Sangean WR-2 ($169). I preferred the classic looks and compact size of the Tivoli and Sangean, so I ruled out the Cambridge.

I bought both the Sangean and Tivoli and in the end the Sangean won for me. The Sangean pulled stations (both AM and FM) better than the Tivoli and had more power. The Sangean also features station presets, a remote and a backlit diplay, things that the Tivoli lacked.

The Tivoli is the better choice for someone who is technophobic as it's designed to be really intuitive to use. But in making it so simple to use, it's also missing features that I wouldn't want to live without. For me the Sangean is the clear winner, but I may find still keep the Tivoli for another room.