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Rachel Guest
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 7:23 am Post subject: DAB |
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We’ve had a DAB deck on our Hi-fi system for ages but rarely use it. On Saturday we bought a DAB radio for the kitchen (it looks like a Dualti toaster!). It’s really cool beans, but these things are dangerous. I took the time to read the destructions, put in 10 preset stations and bingo! The thing just works. ( It has an egg timer on it too! Who’d have thought of that?) Anyway the dangerous part of it ( in our house anyway) is you can just press a button – and like magic …..hazzan kabarr- a whole new station… I’ve had Radio 1, Absolute Radio, and a truck load of others I cannot remember (just to try- you understand) None of them as good as Radio 2 in the main but at times I can see myself being tempted to press a button. |
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MadeinSurrey
Joined: 11 Dec 2006 Posts: 3130 Location: The Beautiful South
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 7:31 am Post subject: |
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Rachel, I've recently invested in a DAB, and it's great to have so much more choice. Increasingly these days, Radio 2 just isn't doing it for me (Alan Carr? Steve Wrong? Elaine Pain no thanks~) so my horizons have been broadened. _________________ MiS |
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RockitRon
Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 7646
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 8:12 am Post subject: |
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Funnily enough I was just poring over some DAB radios, since Amazon had sent an email about a special offer on one (which isn't very special, it turns out).
I've always been very sceptical about DAB when I've heard the radios on display in the stores - poor reception and sound quality. I can get fifty-odd digital stations through my television courtesy of Virgin and Freeview,, but apart from the odd excursion to BBC7 for classic comedy or BBC Radio Scotland or Planet Rock I'm still largely content with Radio 2, so I haven't felt I'm missing anything.
When I wanted a new portable with an i-pod dock last year there were very few with DAB, so I got this http://www.amazon.co.uk/Altec-Lansing-inMotion-Docking-Station/dp/B000SKN5RC/ref=tag_dpp_lp_edpp_img_in which does sound good (I know it looks old-fashioned but that's me all over, anyway I don't want to look at it, or worry (too much) about it getting scratched) and it has come in very handy when we've been on holiday. If they could do that with DAB I might be sold.
Actually, if they could do that with DAB and an egg-timer and a facility for making toast properly I'd be over the moon! _________________ Ron |
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Rachel Guest
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 8:36 am Post subject: |
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This is the one we bought...
http://www.johnlewis.com/230510201/Product.aspx
It's fab. It only looks like a Toaster, Ron. but it does have a timer, and a clock.
Yes MiS it's fab to be able to flick ( liike having a TV remote), obviously all the good shows, Alex, Sarah, Chris and the oher weekday crew are hard wired, but at the weekends, I'll be spending for time in the kitchen so I can dab-ble with some others. |
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RockitRon
Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 7646
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 8:55 am Post subject: |
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Blimey, it is actually a Dualit, and they even do a black one, which defeats the object, but why aluminium and not stainless steel? (Aluminium will mark easily). _________________ Ron |
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Rachel Guest
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Helen May
Joined: 10 Dec 2006 Posts: 19391 Location: Cheshire
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 10:05 am Post subject: |
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Rachel wrote: | It's Chrome, Ron , the same as our kettle, bin and other kitchen things( I can't spell cafetiei) , I spend a significant chunck of my day polishing off finger marks....
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Rachel
Have you tried E cloths, the polishing one? They were recommended for cleaning the ceramic hob and oven front, but they are also brill for mirrors and cleaning your specs! I've cut one up into suitable sizes.
I saw the radio in JL a little while back and thought it would match our toaster LOL!
Will check out all the other suggestions in a while.
H _________________ 88 - 91 FM this is Radio 2 from the BBC!
I said it live on air in the studio with Jeremy Vine on 10/3/2005 |
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Rachel Guest
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 11:08 am Post subject: |
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Helen, I've not heard of those E cloths before- just checked em out on the web- they look like they do a good job- I'll give em a try. I use a mild solution of Detol mixed with water, wipe on with a cloth, polish off with a dry kitchen towel at the mo for all my kitchen glass, oven doors, Microwave and Chrome polishing. It works pretty well- just time consuming.
It was the same with us Helen,- I thought wow! It looks like a Toaster!... Of course hubby was all- what's the spec, how many channels, power output etc? But it was too late. I'd picked it up by the time he'd stopped telling me that I should compare it with some others. |
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Helen May
Joined: 10 Dec 2006 Posts: 19391 Location: Cheshire
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 11:16 am Post subject: |
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You won't regret buying one Rachel! They are great on bathroom taps as well, they even remove water marks with a bit of water and then polishing.
H _________________ 88 - 91 FM this is Radio 2 from the BBC!
I said it live on air in the studio with Jeremy Vine on 10/3/2005 |
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RockitRon
Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 7646
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 12:26 pm Post subject: |
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Rachel wrote: | I thought wow! It looks like a Toaster!... Of course hubby was all- what's the spec, how many channels, power output etc? But it was too late. I'd picked it up by the time he'd stopped telling me that I should compare it with some others. |
Sounds familiar but you're probably right - if you like [the look of] it go for it. I daren't think of the amount of time I've wasted researching and comparing stuff like that, and then still end up wondering if I've made the right choice
The E-cloths sound pretty good. Something else from Lakeland - I can't believe I haven't spotted them before.
That Cambridge Audio tuner looks the business as well (and they do it in black!!! - I think I'm in need of black-aversion therapy). I have a Denon one which is now 25 years old - it's the one hifi item I've never had to replace but of course it's FM/AM only and none of the bells and whistles. _________________ Ron |
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Rachel Guest
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 4:12 pm Post subject: |
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Ron, I'm not up on or into HiFi stuff so I don't know really, but I do know that Chris buys only good stuff, after days- weeks( sometimes) of research- so it must be ok.. we have a Cambridge Audio Amp deck but a Sony CD deck and Monitor Audio speakers on rather snazzy speaker stands with really sharp points on the bottom. It's all black! |
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RockitRon
Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 7646
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Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2009 7:29 am Post subject: |
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I've got Monitor Audio speakers as well, in black(!) ash on stands to match; CD and amplifier are Arcam (not the very expensive ones) and I have a Rega Planar 3 turntable for all that vinyl I salted away in the 70s. In a Betamax moment I also got a full-size Sony MiniDisc Recorder, which now serves as a pre-amplifier for the i-pod, whose signal isn't very strong.
Cambridge Audio has always had an excellent reputation and has for the last twenty years been owned and distributed exclusively through Richer Sounds; unfortunately our local store is the size of a postage stamp and they couldn't let me hear anything before buying last time round.
Like buying a car, you can do limitless research (I did) but you end up with information overload which totally confuses you (I was) and the only way is to test-drive/listen to a few, albeit in the totally foreign and artificial environ of the store. You then have to be very strong-willed, because they will inevitably encourage you to listen (and buy) something which sounds better but is rather more expensive than you intended. _________________ Ron |
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Helen May
Joined: 10 Dec 2006 Posts: 19391 Location: Cheshire
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Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2009 8:34 am Post subject: |
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Some impressive kit there Ron!
Ah the mini disc recorder, my favourite method or recording! I've 2 of them although one doesn't record well all the time. How I wish they had come out years ago. Do you still use it?
H _________________ 88 - 91 FM this is Radio 2 from the BBC!
I said it live on air in the studio with Jeremy Vine on 10/3/2005 |
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RockitRon
Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 7646
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Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2009 11:36 am Post subject: |
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Not very often now, H
I bought it when my old tape cassette deck gave out, and the intention was to transfer a lot of my LPs and singles to the more durable format (and then perhaps offload most of them), in the days before it became much easier to put them onto CD or HD, but I didn't get very far in the process. I just used it in the same way I had before, to make compilations for home entertaining and parties. Now the i-pod is used for those so the MD deck is used just as a pre-amp for that. _________________ Ron |
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RockitRon
Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 7646
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Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2009 3:51 pm Post subject: |
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Popped in to John Lewis this afternoon for a look at the Dualit radios - I reckon they should be shown the Trades Descriptions Act (if it still exists).
They only had the big brother of yours, Rach, nearly twice the price, and it looks more like an engineer's toolbox than a toaster; It's definitely brushed aluminium (even though they call it Chrome), so it's not even very shiny. http://www.johnlewis.com/230306909/Product.aspx So smaller looks better in this instance.
Downstairs in their kitchen department I had a look at the toasters, and even they aren't all stainless steel chrome any more - the two "bookend" sides are that brushed stuff again. At a fiver short of £200 for the 4-slice version I think that's a bit mean. The samples on display also looked as if they needed a lot of your TLC with the E-cloth! _________________ Ron |
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Rachel Guest
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Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2009 4:11 pm Post subject: |
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Been out with Mum in law most of today- "ladies what lunch"....it was sunny but a tad on the windy side.
The little one is really shiny- defo chrome- I love it, it's my favorite thing at the moment. ... well hold the cream cakes, chocolate, fast cars, sunshine, those washing machines that you can see through, sit and ride lawn mowers and of course listening to Alex,,, then after those it's my favourite thing.
Good things come in small packages.... my great grandma used to say that a lot. |
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RockitRon
Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 7646
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Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2009 4:21 pm Post subject: |
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Phew! saved me bacon with that little phrase at the end of the second paragraph then! _________________ Ron |
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RockitRon
Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 7646
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Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2009 3:41 pm Post subject: |
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I've seen it now!
Wisely, they haven't displayed it next to, or even on the same shelf, as the bigger one, because it's as shiny as the other one is dull. _________________ Ron |
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Rachel Guest
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Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2009 4:33 pm Post subject: |
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It is very shiny
Also has an egg timer but I may have mentioned that already. |
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Helen May
Joined: 10 Dec 2006 Posts: 19391 Location: Cheshire
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Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2009 4:40 pm Post subject: |
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Rachel,
I saw both of them in JL this afternoon. The small one is MUCH shinier!
H _________________ 88 - 91 FM this is Radio 2 from the BBC!
I said it live on air in the studio with Jeremy Vine on 10/3/2005 |
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RockitRon
Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 7646
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Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2009 8:09 pm Post subject: |
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Rachel wrote: |
Also has an egg timer but I may have mentioned that already. |
It could be obsolete already then...
http://www.thehappyegg.co.uk/hard-boiled-eggs.html
(Launched into your local Waitrose, and Asda, this week)
... or maybe not - I like mine soft _________________ Ron |
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colby
Joined: 06 Feb 2009 Posts: 1216
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Posted: Sun Jul 19, 2009 3:58 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks to DAB I can listen to Planet Rock in the kitchen. Such a great alternative to R2 at breakfast and drivetime. _________________ (signature and avatar removed, violated forum Rule 2.) |
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