More satisfied customers

[Len14043]

Here are a few reviews from people that have actually purchased JVC HD radios. Noticably absent are the negative platitudes such as: 60% coverage, defective technology, destructive technology, dipole antenna, no public interest, interference, IBAC, hoodwinking the public, poor audio quality, etc.


[EDIT]

Great upgrade
Written by Dave, Southern Minnesota on February 12, 2007

This head unit fit my 94 Thunderbird using the the Scosche FD02 adapters. Then crimped it all on my kitchen table cause it was -15 out there. Dropped it in the car in 5 mins. HD radio is something - wcco and kfan come in great and they are 60 miles away. It's flat out here near I35. Main knob is slippery and small and buttons are small. The reception is better than I thought - well worth the money.


[EDIT]


[EDIT-post truncated because originating material is copyprotected. Unauthorized use of copyrighted content is in violation of Radio-Info's TOS. Any use of copyprotected material(s) requires the correct URL(s) for citation.]

 

[jim8230]

O. K. Now where are these testimonials from? You just posted reviews about a radio without mentioning the source.

 

[Len14043]

The source is Crutchfield's website.

 

[Mike Walker]

Well I'm an HD fan, but I would point out in fairness that dealers have a vested interest in keeping negative reviews to a minimum. I'M NOT ACCUSING CRUTCHFIELD, just pointing out that it would be in their interest not to have many negative comments on their own site!

 

[Len14043]

In fairness to Crutchfield, there are a few negative comments for the JVC HDR1 radio among the current 107 comments. My point is this: These comments are from people who have actually purchased the radio, and not from anti-IBOC people that post the same negative platitudes on retailers sites and blogs such as 60% coverage, defective technology, destructive technology, dipole antenna, no public interest, interference, IBAC, hoodwinking the public, poor audio quality, Iniquity, etc.

 

[Mike Walker]

And I agree with all those points. Here's my point. I own an audio dealership. I sell HD Radios. I pay for the website, domain name, and bandwidth for my site for one reason ONLY...to sell my product. I allow customers to post their (hopefully positive) comments. Wouldn't I be TEMPTED at least (since everything in the chain is paid for by ME, and hopefully will provide an income for my family) to keep negative comments to a minimum? I'm not accusing anyone of anything, just pointing out, as an attorney might put it, that MOTIVE is present, even if no crime has been committed

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

In fairness to Crutchfield, there are a few negative comments for the JVC HDR1 radio among the current 107 comments.

107 comments, when there are 800 million+ analog radios out there? That's not even a tiny blip on the radar.

My point is this: These comments are from people who have actually purchased the radio, and not from anti-IBOC people that post the same negative platitudes on retailers sites and blogs such as 60% coverage, defective technology, destructive technology, dipole antenna, no public interest, interference, IBAC, hoodwinking the public, poor audio quality, Iniquity, etc.

Precisely what proof do you have that the "anti-IBOC" people haven't purchased a radio? Answer: NONE. This particular "anti-IBOC" person has attempted to use four different HD Radios (different brands, not four of the same model), and returned every one of them in disgust. Further, every time I took one back to the store, the person at the returns desk would mutter something like "just the latest one...they've all come back." To my skepticism ("Yeah, right...you mean to tell me they ALL came back??"), each and every one of them confirmed that every single HD Radio they've sold has been returned...and this is in a large market with about a dozen HD signals on the air. Oh, BTW...those "negative platitudes" all happen to be facts, but you forgot a few: Incessant hype not backed up with performance. Attempting to increase audio quality when it's been obvious for the better part of the past decade that audio quality doesn't matter...content does. Cases of AM interference to other stations within their interference-free contours extending hundreds of miles from the transmitter documented and on the record. No economic basis whatsoever for doubling or tripling the number of signals on the FM band (as if programming costs nothing to produce). Programming on secondaries of niche formats that won't draw enough of an audience to make them profitable on their own. Attempts to market the product that border on the farcical. Licensing fees which amount to extortion, and a federal regulator which allows such nonsense, effectively handing a monopoly to a single entity which will profit handsomely from it (since when is that in the public interest?). A radio industry which keeps proving that it's unable to learn from its past mistakes.

I'm on a remailer system with dozens of professional broadcasters from all facets of the business, including a few from some of the broadcast companies which comprise the HD Alliance, and I'd say about 85% of them predict that IBOC will go nowhere. It's an answer without a question...a solution to a non-problem.

 

[Len14043]

In fairness to Crutchfield, there are a few negative comments for the JVC HDR1 radio among the current 107 comments.

107 comments, when there are 800 million+ analog radios out there? That's not even a tiny blip on the radar.

OK. But how many of the 800 million+ owners leave comments. If 107 owners of the JVC HDR1 car radio left comments, how many do you think were purchased?

This particular "anti-IBOC" person has attempted to use four different HD Radios (different brands, not four of the same model), and returned every one of them in disgust. Further, every time I took one back to the store, the person at the returns desk would mutter something like "just the latest one...they've all come back." To my skepticism ("Yeah, right...you mean to tell me they ALL came back??"), each and every one of them confirmed that every single HD Radio they've sold has been returned...and this is in a large market with about a dozen HD signals on the air.



Oh, BTW...those "negative platitudes" all happen to be facts, but you forgot a few: Incessant hype not backed up with performance. Attempting to increase audio quality when it's been obvious for the better part of the past decade that audio quality doesn't matter...content does.
I'm on a remailer system with dozens of professional broadcasters from all facets of the business, including a few from some of the broadcast companies which comprise the HD Alliance, and I'd say about 85% of them predict that IBOC will go nowhere. It's an answer without a question...a solution to a non-problem.

If you are an anti-IBOC person, why did you purchase 4 radios? Were you just trying to make a point? Do you expect me to believe that every person returned the radio? I personally own an HD radio and none of the negative platitudes are true for FM. Just like anything else, HD radios run the gamut from being a piece of junk to a fantastic product. My JVC radio works as was intended, and the audio quality is a vast improvment on FM. The multipath is gone.

 

[jim8230]

Now hold on a second, Len.
First you post a series of selected five-star reviews for a radio without mentioning where you got them, then you proceed to insinuate that there may be some dishonesty among the anti-IBOC crowd. If I may speak on behalf of Mr. Hair, perhaps he was on the fence about IBOC....went out and purchased various product to test the waters...failed to be impressed and THEN became anti-IBOC. This, as opposed to your accusations, would explain his comments and feelings towards the technology. (Not to mention you still have not answered his question about the "proof" you have regarding those evil IBOC bashers.) How many pro IBOC soldiers have purchased a radio before they have sung its praises? Do you know the numbers? I personally know people in the business that are total pro-IBOC but haven't quite experienced it themselves yet. Maybe they are convinced that all the positve spin they hear is accurate and therefore need not think twice about its impact....or, perhaps they know if they speak outloud about its drawbacks they might be out of a job. Just a thought.

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

If you are an anti-IBOC person, why did you purchase 4 radios?

Because, despite my well-honed BS detector going off continuously once the hype started, despite my reservations that this tech was worth the time and effort in today's world, and despite the fact that radio thought that new tech was their salvation once before (and was wrong about it then too), I was willing to try it for myself before making a judgment.

Do you expect me to believe that every person returned the radio?

I don't care what you believe. That's what the sales folks told me at these particular stores. Anecdotal experiences, for sure...but not a good omen for this tech. I'm a broadcast engineer with nearly 40 years in the business, so perhaps I'm super-critical. But radios which, for the most part, aren't set up in the stores to play HD signals, and which require the buyers to fiddle with antennas, aren't going to cut it with the average consumer. Radio is supposed to be a no-brainer, and has been for decades. Buy one, turn it on, and it works. Anything beyond that is too much effort for the average person.

BTW, a very well respected broadcast consultant with whom I've communicated by e-mail sent this little gem to one of the remailers I subscribe to: He was trying to listen to WTIC-FM-HD2 (a rebroadcast of WTIC[AM]), and was hearing double audio on all the commercial breaks. He tried to call the station (in Hartford CT, owned by CBS), during the business day, and was answered by voice-mail no matter who he tried to tell about this. He left messages on half a dozen voice-mails, but hours later the problem is still there. Is this the care that broadcasters will show toward the secondary signals, since they earn the stations no money and will probably never have enough of an audience to pay their own way once the commercial ban is lifted?