Lasonic IPod ghetto blaster...anyone have one?

[1991Brougham 10+ year member]

On a lark, I went to see what was going on in vintage ghetto blasters and found out about a company called Lasonic. The old ones are considered collector items and they have a new one that is IPod-focused. Here's a link to an auction for one on eBay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=300210857955&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=020

Reading through auctions with vintage Lasonic gear, it appears they break down and aren't built like battleships even though they are as big as one...LOL! I'm curious as to how good the new units are. Does anyone here have one or at least had a chance to see one in action?

Also I'll be using a new logo to celebrate my 100th post. The Pyramid Blaster logo is from one of my favorite groups, The KLF. What time is love?

Rick

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[1991Brougham 10+ year member]

Having owned the Lasonic for a few weeks, I'll give my take on this retro boombox.

Sound quality: Fair. The EQ presets are nothing special and there's no real boom to the bass at lower volumes with the bass turned all the way up. The tweets are okay though.

Tuner: Worst excuse for a tuner I've ever seen. No selectivity at all and stations bleed all over the dial. Tunes in .1 increments on FM despite US standards being .2 increments. Does have an extendable antenna but that does little good with this crappy tuner.

Inputs: The iPod door isn't the greatest thing but at least when you get your iPod in there, it fits well thanks to Lasonic including a variety of iPod case adapters. As for controlling the iPod, good luck. You'll be tearing your hair out to perform functions like selecting playlists, albums and such. The USB port works well for the memory stick but you can only program the files, up to 20 of them. I just set the stick to play 'em all at random. I haven't got an SD/MMC card to play with that feature. Also included is an AUX port for other forms of input like MP3 players and for you karoke fans, you can plug in a mike, adjust it's volume and even add echo.

Outputs: For video iPods, you can connect the Lasonic to a TV with an output jack on the back. A headphone jack is also included.

Control feel: It's not uber-high end but the controls at least feel solid.

Battery/AC: Long cord to plug it in and it takes 10 D cell batteries. Ac?DC switch is on the back.

Clock: Only shows up in 24 hour mode. Does have some alarm settings though.

Bling factor: Good with plenty of black/chrome, buttons/knobs and graphics. The size is that of a small HDTV and will make a good impression. The LCD display is blue with black characters. Easily readable at a distance, it shows the title/artist info when using the memory stick but all you see when using an iPod is "IPOD".

Fit and finish: Below expectations for a $200 radio. It's made in Taiwan, so what did I expect, a Grundig? Well yes, as a matter of fact I expected something closer to that as opposed to being close to a $39 cheap boombox.

What the Lasonic represents is the 1st gen of audio devices meant to play new formats instead of CD/cassette. Style-wise nothing out there even compares so if you like boombox looks, you'll love the Lasonic. Those are the highlights. This could have been a much better executed setup and I'm hoping in a couple of years that some other retro-style boomboxes come out that are of a higher quality.

Rick