SANGEAN WR-2 AM FM-RBDS Wooden Cabinet Digital Tuning Radio White

After the FCC reduced the transmission wattage of the radio station I've listened to for years I had to do something. I purchased two other radios with larger antennas from a big box store. The larger antennas on those radios made no difference in reception and those radios had no external antenna connectors. After reading MANY, MANY reviews on Amazon I decided to get the Sangean WR-2 because of its classic/modern look and most importantly, it has the external antenna connectors for both AM and FM bands. Since I live in a low reception area far from town I was not surprised that the antenna included with the WR-2 had no better reception than the two radios from the big box store. I already had a rooftop TV antenna so I simply ran an RG-6 Solid Copper Core coax cable from the rooftop antenna into the WR-2 external antenna connector. (Don't forget to push the switch to the external antenna position) Without a doubt, I now have the best radio reception I have ever had. I'm picking up stations CLEARLY that I didn't even know existed. Now, as far as build quility is concerned I am very pleased. The buttons have an excellent feel with an audible click very similar to my (expensive) ham radio equipment. The display has three brightness settings plus a total off for the display. The wood which is one solid piece that has been steam bent has a very nice finish. This radio does not have a cheap plastic feel as it is quite heavy for it's size. It also has a built in 12V recepticle so you can use a battery/solar panels in case of a power outtage. Sound quility is unbelievable!! You can change the treble and bass, but I chose to leave it as it came from the factory. I do not own a B*se radio, but I have friends that do and I can honestly say that this radio sounds much better. I listen to talk radio almost exclusively and this radio is perfect for that. Just to hear what it would do with music, I tuned into a station (around 90 miles from me) that was playing Christmas music and I was just blown away by the sound quality. Unfortunately, there are three minor annoyances I have with this radio. None of which is a deal breaker for me, but I'd like to point them out in case the manufacturer is reading this. The first one is the fact that the ON/OFF switch is illuminated by a blue LED that is extremely bright and does not go out when you turn off the display at night. The second issue is the remote control. I feel that it offers decent control of the radio, but it is so thin and flimsy I'm afraid I'll break it as I tend to be a bit rough on remotes. The third issue I have is the fact that the radio does not come with the 12v power cord. I have a hunting cabin that I run 12v LED lights using a solar panel and this radio would be perfect if it included the 12v cord, but since it doesn't I've got to find one that will work. If I can, I'll be ordering another radio just for my cabin. That is how incredibly happy I am with this radio. I've noticed others complaining that the radio isn't the easiest to operate. I had no problems setting up the radio as far as setting the time and preset stations, but I did have to refer to the manual to understand all of the alarm, sleep, and auto-off features. Just a quick read and I am now able to do these things quickly and easily. For someone not accustomed to how electronics in general work the setup may be a concern. Put it this way, if you can program a VCR (man, I'm getting old)then you can easily operate this radio. Read more

As much as I love bass, always have, as commented on by several reviews I’ve read, the bass was too much for me. That never happened before. Fortunately, the radio has treble and bass controls. You can go from -5 (or -4) on both treble and bass and go up to something like 10. I had to go down to the lowest minus numbers, and still, it irritated my ear drums. However, I read on this site or on another Sangean W2 review site that you can place tape on the hole on the back to help with the bass. The review said it would not damage the radio. So, I took the writer’s word and put some packing tape over the hole. Now I am very happy. It sounds as good as my old Panosonic radio which was build in with my record player. That sound quality was the best I remember on any radio. I originally bought a more expensive brand from Amazon but was very disappointed. The treble just sounded like so much static. I’m very sound sensitive. It was torture to listen to. Also, I was worried when my radio came very hot from the outside heat’s effect on the atmosphere in the carrier vehicle. The box was hot…the radio was hot. Since I had just returned another, I decided to hope for the best. That was a good call. My radio came in the wrong box. I ordered white wood (That’s what it said when I bought it.), but the box was for the brown wood one. The radio is more of a nice plastic. Initially, I was disappointed, but after seeing how slick and sophisticated it looked out of the box, I have grown to completely love the look. When I think I can afford another, I’m getting one just like this for master bedroom. I have searched for several years for a plug in radio with stations that stick and don’t need Blue Tooth. For a while I was disappointed. Now I am so happy and grateful that manufactures have made it easy to listen to radios again. This one also presets stations…more than I expected. I can listen to beautiful Christmas music on my Christian stations this holiday. That’s the number one reason I got this radio. The sound is really, really good. Just don’t forget the tape trick. Read more