The Reviewer

Laney LX20R Review

admin — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 12:56:14 +0000

The Laney LX20R is a 15-watt guitar practice amplifier with a single 8-inch driver. It has two channels—clean and crunch, has decent reverb, and has bass, middle and treble controls. It has a very compact case with a tough-looking metal mesh grill. Why it was built to look that tough, we don’t know, since it will almost always end up in someone’s room.

Sound

The Crunch setting lacked a bit of power. You can tweak it real high and get decent metal tones, medium and you get that classic rock feel, and low and you get something good for blues.

The Clean is very good, and well, very clean. We can safely say that this amp’s clean channel is better than other 15-watt amps we’ve tested so far.

The amplifier has a bit of noise when your volume goes past 75% at the crunch setting. It might be a little too much for the amp to go past that level, but we know of other practice amps that are as quiet as a cat even on full.

Overall impression

It’s very well built and looks like a tank, and can be had for $179.99 retail. It has a headphone socket and a line on—probably the only other non-standard additions we saw on it. It has global controls for crunch and clean, which is quite alright for its application. It has reverb which makes it different from other 15-watt practice amps.

The sound is quite decent especially with the clean channel. It brought a little of that Laney clean sound, which can be used as a canvass for your distorted/lead if you have effects. The crunch channel, as stated above, was a bit weak, but if you devote some time to tweak the equalizer, you’ll get something there to suit just about any music genre.

Dirt Devil Kruz Review

admin — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 12:30:33 +0000

The Dirt Devil Kruz, model #0313SLV, is one sleek-looking vacuum cleaner. Cordless, comes with a charging stand, has a powerful 12-volt motor, swivels 360 degrees and has a 9-inch cleaning path. But, is it as sleek a performer as a looker? Read more and find out.

Dirt Devil is infamous for producing beautiful almost furniture-like vacuum cleaners. Makes sense, since most people shopping for such are women—mothers, housewives—and women don’t take beauty for granted.

We’ve found two great reviews aimed at opposite ends of the spectrum. We figured we would highlight each one’s strong points and let you be the judge. First, we feature Laura McMillan, a mother from Georgia, who says:

“The Dirt Devil Kruz is perfect for daily vacuuming around the house. I received mine for Christmas and have used it every day since. I have a big dog who sheds a lot, plus an eight-year-old son who runs in and out of my house with the other 4 kids that live on our street. If you purchase the Kruz with the expectation that it will replace your daily sweeping, you will be thrilled. It picks up dog fur, cookie crumbs, and dirt/dried grass in your kitchen and around the front door perfectly. I agree with the review that compares the Kruz with a dustbuster. That is exactly the amount of power that it has and the Kruz also holds about the same amount of debris (a little more actually).”

She then added a couple of things she liked about the Kruz…

“It is cordless and lightweight. It sits on the charging base during storage so it is always ready to go. It releases from and latches back onto the base easily. The gliding action across the floor while vacuuming is effortless and feels very futuristic. My son loves to use it because it feels so cool. Plus, I can let my eight-year-old use the Kruz without worrying about him taking a chunk out of our furniture! (you know that sound when your electric vacuum rams into your coffee table or kitchen table legs!) The Kruz isn’t heavy nor cumbersome enough to do damage.”

“The swiveling triangle head is shaped perfectly to manuver into corners and under/around kitchen cabinets and tables. The Kruz is also very gentle on your hardwood floors-no scratches. I use mine to “refresh” my bathroom rugs and also to clean my jute runner. It is very easy to empty the debris. Just push a button and the receptacle pops right out. Bang it lightly into the trashcan, pop it back on and you are done. I empty the Kruz everyday when I am finished. It is never full.”

…and concluded:

“Again, if you are looking for daily vacuuming or light cleaning several times a week, this is the perfect lightweight floor vacuum for you. The Kruz doesn’t (and isn’t meant to) compete with your electric vacuum cleaner. But it sure is a lot easier to grab and use on a daily basis than your electric vacuum, and a lot more fun to operate.”

“I am very happy with my Kruz and I would highly recommend it for use in the above conditions.”

Now we look at a review from Kenna Hall, a dog trainer from Atlanta:

“I recently installed beautiful new hardwood floors and I wanted a vacuum that was for hardwoods and would not scratch. This vacuum is marketed to do just that. There is no false advertising, but it just isn’t a practical design, and it would be very difficult if not impossible to clean a whole floor with this thing.”

“First of all, it’s cordless and lightweight. It has the same suction power and battery life as a hand-vac. It also has the same suction width as a hand-vac. If you look at the picture, you can see on the front of the head where there is a little black rectangular opening; that is how wide the path of cleaning is – it makes a little stripe on your floor. There is no way I could get all the dust off my floors! It’s just like cleaning your floors with a hand-vac except you don’t have to be on your knees.”

“Another issue: it does not fit into tight spaces or under furniture. You have to be right on top of a crumb to pick it up and the little opening has to be facing the crumb. No sideways suction means I can’t get the corners clean – there is no way it will fit in a corner.”

“So, the only reason I would recommend this to anybody is if the person is disabled and cannot use a hand-vac to pick up a small amount of dirt on the floor (perfectly legitimate if you have trouble bending over).”

“One star for the Kruz – because the marketing led me to believe that I could clean the dust and dirt off my floors, but I can only make 2-inch wide stripes of “clean” in an erratic pattern and then the battery dies. Sorry. I could have done that with a hand-vac and at least I could have controlled what I was drawing on the floor.”

So, there you go, two conflicting reviews from avid users. You decide. Although, we’d like to think that at only $109.51, the Kruz is still quite a steal. By the way, both of them failed to mention that with its design (its obvious strength), you need not hide it in a storage bin. You can keep it in, perhaps, your living room, where its theme might go with some of your electronics like your television, and home theater.

Karcher G3050 Reviews

admin — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 11:27:55 +0000

Karcher G 3050 OH

The Karcher G3050 is a 3,000 psi, 2.5 gallons per minute gas powered pressure washer running on a Honda GC190 (187cc) motor. It sells for around $330, which is not that steep, considering this pressure washer is industrial grade, and can be used multiple times daily worrying about something breaking or overheating.

It is a popular model, the G3050, and a handful of users have attached short reviews with their purchase. Below is a summary of the best and most critical reviews for the Karcher G 3050.

Reviews

“I’ve used a number of pressure washers over the years—mostly the vertical coil engines that you find on the lower priced machines. But, since we’re talking price point, this is where this certified machine shines—the price is astounding! The ones you’ll see in your local Sunday paper from that store we all know are about $299. For about $30 more, you’re getting the Honda engine with horizontal coils, instead of the Briggs and Stratton. If you go to the CPO Karcher site, the unit is $20 more for the re-certified model. A new unit is pushing $500.” — Matt Patin, Pasadena

“This is a Power Washer that is heavy on the power. I will warn you to always start with the spray nozzle with the widest spray—otherwise you risk damaging whatever it is you plan on cleaning (this thing can peel of human skin). The motor starts 90% of the time on the first pull. It has a variety of nozzles to help control the power and width of the spray—the smaller the angle the more intense the water jet. As with customer service, I received a new part within 24 hours of giving my serial number. This thing is loud and powerful.” — Edward Charles, North Carolina

“I hesitated giving a review of this product until I was able to use it extensively on various surfaces. It has performed better than exceptional. I am very pleased with myself for purchasing this item. It outperforms pressure washers costing much more money. The Honda engine always starts in one or two easy pulls. Light, attractive and compact, it can be lifted into my pickup and stored in the garage. It is easily maneuvered on air-filled tires and stays put while spraying because it rests on an over-sized rubber grommet at the rear. I am so impressed with this little marvel, it never gets put away without a complete wipe down until it shines like new again.” — Terry Warden, Michigan

Laney LC15 Review

admin — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 13:31:49 +0000

The Laney LC15 is a highly regarded tube practice amplifier, garnering an 8.9 out of 10 average rating for Sound Quality at Harmony Central. It is rated at 15 watts with an EL84 tube, out to a 10″ Laney-designed driver. It may only have 1 channel, but what it lacks in features, it makes up for pure unadulterated tube tone. Let’s see what users have to say.

“Sound is king and this amplifier can sing. With stock preamp tubes you get a clean sound with the gain knob set to lower than 9 o’clock. Past that it starts to break up but no matter what you dial in you will find a useful sound. Seventies hard rock sounds hit you in the face past 12 o’clock. I mainly use this amp for recording clean to bluesy sounds though and I found it better to put in two 12AU7 preamp tubes because of their lower gain. A good clean tube sound is hard to achieve but I actually think I found a personal favorite in this pup. It has got more personality than other low watt amps I owned over the years. Try and record with it and you will find it always finds its spot in the mix. It is like glue on the tape.” — Larry Johnson

“This amp is pretty good for its value, very reliable, easy to tweak, but it lacks a bit of the drive power. It’s good for blues and some classic rock, but those who want headbanging gain would have to pass on this amp and look for the other. It doesn’t work too well with distortion pedals either, but overall smoothness is pretty good for an amp this small.” — Nance Horrowitz

“Very usable and beautiful English clean/crunch sounds—not too hot for squeely distortion on its own, but a pedal pushes things up nicely. It is a little noisy but not bad considering it is all valves. The volume knob is not particularly subtle at high gain, but again if you are using a pedal to provide most of the overdrive it is more responsive.” — Richard Alexander

“Overall, for the price, this is the best deal on a tube amp out there. Replace the speaker and tubes, and yer set. This amp excels at clean to slightly dirty sounds and is great for recording. It’s definitely a UK sounding amp, and if you dig that tone you’ll like the Laney.” — Glen Bestmore

Peavey 6505 Reviews

admin — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 11:20:27 +0000

The Peavey 6505 head has five 12AX7 preamp tubes and four 6L6GC power amp tubes. It has controls for presence and resonance and a three-band equalizer. The 6505 series was created to celebrate Peavey’s 40 years in the amplification business. It has 120 watts of raw power, fed into either 16, 8 or 4 ohms. It has high and low gain inputs and two foot-switchable preamp channels.

The 6505 is basically an updated 5150 (Van Halen), but let’s see from current users what Peavey added to make this anniversary model even more special.

“I play metal and this thing was made for it. I’ve been playing for about 5 years. At the time I had been also looking at Mesa Triple Rectifier, Mark IV, and a Marshall DSL100 and JCM800. If money wasn’t an issue I would still buy this. It’s just that good. If you can find one to try out go for it; I would be willing to bet you’ll find something to love about it. I couldn’t be happier with my purchase. The only reason I don’t give it a 10 is because it does have small things that could be improved on, but what amp doesn’t? So in my opinion the best an amp is ever going to deserve is a 9.” Crimson_Eve

“I play lots of music and this amp does a pretty good job at obtaining the sound that I need. My favorite feature besides the sick amounts of gain is probably the effects loop. I can put my POD XT Live through it without it sounding like shit. I wish it came with a footswitch, but I bought it off the floor so oh well. If it got stolen, I’d cry for a very long time because I couldn’t get another one for a long time. Good, hard-rockin’ amp dude.” robsta_65

“I mentioned that I play from jazz to extreme metal, this amp has proven to be a perfect match for what I have thrown at it. I have had the amp 3 weeks and I played every guitar I own through it and all sounded kick ass. All my amps are Peaveys, I own a Classic 30, Transtube Supreme, TNT 115 and now the 6505+ Head. I run the 6505+ through a 5150 4×12 Slant and an Ampeg 4×12 Straight cab. I must be honest I did not try anything else, my experience with Peavey products now goes back 15 years and I have never had a problem. By the way all my Peavey amps are made in USA.” Triumph2002

Denon 1800BD Review

admin — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:58:34 +0000

The Denon DVD-1800BD is a Blu-ray/DVD and CD player. It is equipped with the latest technologies such as Dolby TrueHD and Digital Plus as well as DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks. It also has its own brightness, sharpness and gamma control adjustments plus a bonus picture-in-picture view. This Blu-ray player can play up to 1080p resolution via HDMI. It has its own SD card slot (front panel) which can play WMA, MP3 as well as JPG, and it also features Denon’s proprietary Pure Direct mode.

Below is a compilation of what users think.

Reviews

“Here I go again with a review of the Denon DVD-1800BD bluray player. I knew I was getting a Denon so I wasn’t too worried about its performance, because I own a Denon 2500Btci. When I received it I took it out of its box and hooked it up via HDMI to my Onkyo Sr-606 AV receiver. I set the player up in the menus which took about 2 minutes. After that I played The Dark Knight, Terminator Salvation and a few concerts like John Mayer, Rolling Stones, and George Michael. The movies looked amazing and the sound came alive as well, which is strange because this player supposedly doesn’t decode anything, it just bitstreams it directly to your receiver. Well, I have to say that my bedroom setup has never sounded like it did with the Denon 1800bd. Everything has changed, and the performance is very close to the Denon 2500Btci. This player is a must have for $198, and I have to say that none of the Sonys, Pannasonics and Samsungs will ever come close to this Denon. Thank You Denon for making products with so much passion and hard work.” — Levi via Amazon.com

“There are other Blu-ray players on the market that offer more features for less money, but the DVD-1800BD is targeted at the step-up market. Denon loyalists might appreciate a less-expensive Blu-ray alternative, especially if they’ve already purchased a Denon receiver with onboard Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD decoding and don’t need all the features found on the flagship DVD-3800BDCI. If you want the ability to access Web content on Blu-ray discs, you should look elsewhere.” — hometheaterreview.com

“We wanted to be blown away by the DVD-1800BD but sadly it’s left us feeling a little bit underwhelmed. Although it’s an all-round solid proposition, we can’t help feeling that it’s a touch overpriced for a player that lacks BD Live support, multichannel analogue outputs and HD audio decoding. And while its picture quality is undeniably impressive, it lacks the jaw-dropping sharpness offered by the latest Pioneers and Panasonics. Maybe we expected too much from an ‘entry-level’ player – hopefully the sumptuous-looking DVD-3800BD can show us what Denon is really capable of.” — trustedreviews.com

Waring Pro Wine Chiller Review

admin — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 17:33:25 +0000

The Waring Pro PC100 is an elegant electronic tabletop wine chiller with programmed temperatures for many varieties of wine. It can chill wine bottles up to 3 1/2″ in diamater and measures 8×6x9 inches.

Reviews

The following are some of the best reviews for the Waring Pro PC100:

“The value of this machine is that it finds and maintains the wine’s OPTIMUM temperature it within a narrow band. Choose your wine (though the library is not comprehensive, you can always find an appropriate facsimile), and it will get cooler until it reaches your setting’s temperature. If you want white or sparkling wine, chill it first in the fridge (or freezer if you’re in a rush), then plunk it in there and let if find the ideal temperature.”

“It’s a fun, simple, and wine-enhancing gift. The difference in temperature makes a big difference in the pleasure of enjoying wine.”

M. Watkins, Los Angeles

“I had been looking for a wine chiller that didn’t require the addition of ice or water and that included some sort of automatic listing of wine temps…well, i found it. It was easy to use and my Pinot Noir came at the perfect temperature. I also tried it with some Asti and it cooled that down to a nice chilly temp. It recycles every time that the temp drops more than 3-5 degrees. My only complaint is that some of the lower temps take a long time to cool, otherwise, this is a great product!”

Rogelio Medina, Nashville

“I have one if these and have used it several times. I am really surprised at some of the other reviews whose writers apparently had trouble with the unit. In my case, it worked like a charm. I have a friend who is a home vintner and who had given me a bottle of his Merlot. In addition, a client of my wife’s gifted her with a bottle of Shiraz, and we also had a bottle of dessert wine which we had never used. All three were just great after being chilled to the proper temperature in the WaringPro. I even tried it with a can of non-alcoholic beer, using the ‘white table wine” setting. It worked very well. I guess I just lucked out, and am really enjoying using the Waring Pro. It has me drinking wine again!”

John B. Hall, Pasadena

Waring Pro Wine Chiller

TomTom ONE XL•S Reviews

Genelec 6010A Review

admin — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 09:42:38 +0000

The Genelec 6010A sells for about $350 per speaker—these are not cheap, and yet, they are the least expensive of the Genelec line. Genelec is known for making industry standard studio monitors, but the 6010A, with its compact 195 mm x 121 mm x 114 mm dimension looks more like computer (multimedia) speakers. Factor in the white color option and it looks like it was made to match even Macs. Note, these are not your average Logitech or Creative desktop speakers, but if you want to bring that hi-fi experience to that where you spend most of your time—your desk, then these speakers are worth considering.

Review below by Marshal M. Rosenthal

Rubber feet keep the pair of speakers steady on the desk, although I could have used the included wall bracket if I wanted to. Checking out the back finds slots for attaching a power cord and RCA cable from the PC’s line out, as well as a set of controls for adjustments based on the acoustics of where it’s placed. This is serious stuff—I mean, when was the last time you saw reference frequency response charts in a PC speaker manual?

Taking out the techno speak, bottom line is that they should be aimed so they converge at ear height and are at about the same distance from one to the other to you. Plan on spending some time adjusting their response using the controls on the back, because this is where it gets personal—zero them out and start with the manual-suggested settings. In my case, I ended up adjusting the “Level” trim to three-quarters full, and put the Desktop nub to OFF and the Bass Tilt at -6dB because the desk was so near the wall.

Of course all the tweaking in the world doesn’t prove anything—like most folks, I judge the quality of audio based on what it sounds like and not from some audio measuring meter. So I popped in the DVD of The Dark Knight and navigated to the scene where the Joker’s smoking the streets from a 16-wheeler. The strength of the sound was awesome—the bass was like a hammer as the helicopter smacked into the side of the office building and then crashed to the pavement. I also tried listening to the cars zooming around the tracks in Speed Racer—the speakers articulated details that frankly I hadn’t heard before when listening in my home theater.

And as expected after that, playing the CD of Telarc’s Mussorgsky: Pictures At An Exhibition, Night On Bald Mountain, Prelude To Khovanshchina (Paavo Järvi & Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra) sounded as good as I could have hoped for; delicate passages came through without incident and nothing was being overwhelmed by the bass. There’s plenty of power, forget about what the specs say, but more importantly these little guys put out a real depth and an impressive soundstage that is dead clean. I even tried playing some B-52’s off of my iPod and for damn sure this is how you want to be listening to techno-beats! So yeh, I guess it’s fair to say that the cast-aluminum enclosure, optimization of the air flow, active crossover filters, automatic protective circuitry and other enhancements all add up to this not being your usual plastic squeaky PC speaker. And at nearly $400, that’s only right. Also, I’d agree that the 6010A could be considered “portable”, but in that case I’d want to have the white, not black finish.

Genelec includes pretty much all the cables you’ll need, and for once a quick start up guide really does just that – although tweaker-heads won’t feel left out. At the end of the day, these speakers are overkill for those who only use their computers for serious office stuff, but if your PC is GHQ for gaming, listening to music and operating in general as your secondary home theater, then boy does Genelec have a loudspeaker for you.

Notes

The 6010A is available in black, white and silver. The 5040A active subwoofer was made to match the 6010A.

Genelec 6010A

Braun 570cc Reviews

admin — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 19:45:28 +0000

A new category—Health & Beauty

The 570cc is part of Braun’s Series 5 line of electric shavers. It is a rechargeable foil electric shaver which uses Gillete technology for its blades, so one can expect the closest shave possible in a single stroke. The Power Comb and Contour Hugging Head feature also adds to how this nifty shaver tackles challenging facial contour differences.

So, how does the Braun 570cc compare with other similar-priced products? See below for a summary of consumer testimonials.

“The Series 5 is a re-design of Braun’s popular 360 Complete. It uses the same cutter, so the shave is the same as the 360. The differences are in the overall shape—Braun has done a great job with the re-design. The shaver is easier to grip and has the same basic form factor as the top of the line Braun Series 7 (Pulsonic).”

“If you favor a gentle shave over an ultra-close shave, this Braun is for you. While I like the shave from the Series 5 (more than the shave from the Pulsonic), I have to say that I prefer the shave from the Norelco Arcitec—it’s a rotary shaver, but still quite comfortable and excels at getting those pesky neck hairs. My absolute favorite foil shaver is the Panasonic Arc IV—90% as comfortable as a Braun, but closer and faster.”

“This model lacks the pulsating action of the Pulsonic, but don’t let that stop you from buying it. I’ve used the Pulsonic and, on my face, the Series 5 does as good of a job in most spots, and a wee bit better on the neck. I also find the “push up” format for the sideburns trimmer easier to use than the “flip out” format on the Pulsonic.”

“I’ve had this razor for nearly 2 months now. Before buying it, I was concerned I’d be wasting my money on yet another electric razor. I’ve used both rotary and foil electric razors in the past and never have I had one that performed as well as the Braun Series 5 570cc. I use it every day, and every day I am amazed at how smooth my face is after shaving without any irritation whatsoever.”

“I clean my shaver daily using just hot water then once a week using the cleaning system. The best part of the cleaning system is indeed how fresh smelling the razor gets. It’s like a brand new shaver each week—and always a close shave.”

Braun 570cc

Dyson DC15 Review

admin — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 09:39:10 +0000

The Dyson DC15, more popularly known as “The Ball,” is one “uncheap,” but unique vacuum cleaner. The Ball is an upright, bagless, cyclonic vacuum. What that means is, you bring the whole body slash mechanism where the dirt is. Now, that may not sound like something that is easy to handle and maneuver, but, they did not call it “The Ball” for nothing.

The “ball” is the pivot point of the whole vacuum cleaner. It’s that bright yellow wheel that is located where you’d imagine the heel of your foot is—with your toes as the sucking part and your leg as the handle. This ball also contains the motor by the way, which makes its center of gravity very low, hence, maneuverable.

What about corners and/or places above you which need to be cleaned (celings, top of cabinets, etc.) you say? There is a 37-foot telescopic wand for that, and it expands with the touch of a button. Nice.

So how does this sucker perform? It has a lot of sucking power. We tried it on all kinds of floors and all of time it got everything up with one pass. On carpets, it did as well but the important thing we noted is that it did not “shave” (that much) the carpet as other powerful vacuums we’ve accustomed to. One pass on floors—none of that sweeping ala painting motion, which saves time and energy. Nice.

We can’t stop raving about the “ball” on this vacuum. You really have to try it to understand what we are talking about. It makes hard to reach places such as those under the bed or cabinets very easy to access and manuevering feels so light on the user. You do not put up a fight with this vacuum—even the rerouting or untangling of the cord have been thought of.

For now the only negative mark we give on the DC15 is the price. But even that can be justified. Just think of it as an investment, a vacuum that will stand the test of time. Some reviews say it’s a little loud, but we say it is not one meant for small cleaning tasks, it is one you you’d use when you’d like to clean the whole house, hence, you use it during the day. It might be a little big for urban apartments though.

What else? Well, there’s a HEPA filter, which we are not in a position to review, it is easy to clean (as in clean itself), it shows you the dirt that you’ve sucked, and it looks toughly built (for us at least).

Dyson DC15 red

Dyson DC 15 yellow