PL-880 in the house!
Since this has been covered elsewhere extensively, I won't be posting any sw tuning performance. First impression - it's (almost) the same size as the ICR-110! This surprised me. The 110 used to be my most used radio (as of arrival of the 880), and it's a lightweight compared to the heft of the PL-880. One of my ICR-110s has fallen several times from more than 4 feet off the ground with only a small dent on the speaker screen. Should my 880 take the same plunge I'd imagine there would be more carnage.
The first station I tuned in was one of the FM stations where I get my news and the sound was orgasmic. I thought the passive radiator speaker sound out of the ICR-100 and ICR-110 was great - this take it up a few notches. I'm not one to define good sound with bass - but clarity, reproduction of the spoken word - I've never heard better from a portable radio / boom box radio.
The three tuning knobs on the right hand side have a smooth, precision machined feel. The bottom is the volume knob. I've come to wish for a volume knob on the 100 and 110. There invariably comes a time when I need turn it up a click (push button + and - volume adjustment) and it's always too loud - with the 880 this is taken care of. As seen in the pic, the front of the knobs have about 45 percent of the knob shown, and the back of the knobs are recessed into the case, but there is a slight extension of the knob past the case to you can pinch the knob with your thumb (on the front) and pointer finger (on the back of the knob), allowing precise adjustments.
If this took micro discs like the 100 and 110 does, to play mp3 music, it would be perfect for my uses. I'm sure the record to disc file feature would also come in handy for many users.
The only hidden feature I've used so far is the check on the firmware version (8820) and to make sure the FM de-emphasis was set for U.S. (75 uS). Both showing the correct version / setting.
I've got the new (to me) EVVA 18650 3500 mAh battery in there. I love that it uses 18650 and my 110s lasted more than a month (or two) between charges (not that I ran them to drain).
So after a few hours of ownership since last afternoon to early this morning, it replaces my every day listening spot and relieves (one of) my ICR-110 units.
edit #1: The best power on / off button. Press, detent clicks, power's on. No slide click on, slide click off. No push and hold. No push and slide. Not on the side. Not on the other side. Not on the top. Right there on the front right in orange, the largest button on the unit.
ICR-110 (top), PL-880 (bottom)
110 still has the speaker sticker (red and blue on bottom left). 880's sticker comes right off:
Since this has been covered elsewhere extensively, I won't be posting any sw tuning performance. First impression - it's (almost) the same size as the ICR-110! This surprised me. The 110 used to be my most used radio (as of arrival of the 880), and it's a lightweight compared to the heft of the PL-880. One of my ICR-110s has fallen several times from more than 4 feet off the ground with only a small dent on the speaker screen. Should my 880 take the same plunge I'd imagine there would be more carnage.
The first station I tuned in was one of the FM stations where I get my news and the sound was orgasmic. I thought the passive radiator speaker sound out of the ICR-100 and ICR-110 was great - this take it up a few notches. I'm not one to define good sound with bass - but clarity, reproduction of the spoken word - I've never heard better from a portable radio / boom box radio.
The three tuning knobs on the right hand side have a smooth, precision machined feel. The bottom is the volume knob. I've come to wish for a volume knob on the 100 and 110. There invariably comes a time when I need turn it up a click (push button + and - volume adjustment) and it's always too loud - with the 880 this is taken care of. As seen in the pic, the front of the knobs have about 45 percent of the knob shown, and the back of the knobs are recessed into the case, but there is a slight extension of the knob past the case to you can pinch the knob with your thumb (on the front) and pointer finger (on the back of the knob), allowing precise adjustments.
If this took micro discs like the 100 and 110 does, to play mp3 music, it would be perfect for my uses. I'm sure the record to disc file feature would also come in handy for many users.
The only hidden feature I've used so far is the check on the firmware version (8820) and to make sure the FM de-emphasis was set for U.S. (75 uS). Both showing the correct version / setting.
I've got the new (to me) EVVA 18650 3500 mAh battery in there. I love that it uses 18650 and my 110s lasted more than a month (or two) between charges (not that I ran them to drain).
So after a few hours of ownership since last afternoon to early this morning, it replaces my every day listening spot and relieves (one of) my ICR-110 units.
edit #1: The best power on / off button. Press, detent clicks, power's on. No slide click on, slide click off. No push and hold. No push and slide. Not on the side. Not on the other side. Not on the top. Right there on the front right in orange, the largest button on the unit.
ICR-110 (top), PL-880 (bottom)
110 still has the speaker sticker (red and blue on bottom left). 880's sticker comes right off:
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