2 Responses to “Tivoli Audio Model Three AM/FM Clock Radio, Cherry/Metallic Taupe”

1. Michael Cooney says:

   August 4, 2012 at 6:12 am

   138 of 144 people found the following review helpful

   
   Mixed emotions, January 14, 2004

   By 

   Michael Cooney (Wilmington, Delaware) –
   
     

   This review is from: Tivoli Audio Model Three AM/FM Clock Radio, Cherry/Metallic Taupe (Electronics)

   I purchased the unit for it’s renowned tuner but also for a replacement of my clock radio. The tuner is everything as claimed and nearly as good as a very high end tuner I currently own. The sound quality is also much better than expected. Where this unit falls apart is with the sleep functions. I could not get the snooze function to work as the radio would never come back on. An email to Tivoli revealed that the snooze must be activated within 120 seconds or it simply turns the radio off. This information was NOT in the manual! I know I’m not counting down from 120 seconds the moment the alarm awakes me from a soind sleep… Poor design. I’ve also discovered that the clock runs from the single AA battery at all times. It should run from the AC and only rely on the battery for back up. Another poorly thought out design. The two most important sleep functions are an afterthought and in my opinion not worth the cost or questionable functionality. If one were to add a second speaker the total would be $250 or $100 more than a model Two. That $100 only gets you a cheap battery operated clock and useless snooze function. Instead, spend your money on the model Two, the $80 sub and a wall timer. That’s what I’m doing… You’ll have a better system and save a few dollars as well!

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2. M. Prince "The CoffeeGeek" says:

   August 4, 2012 at 6:56 am

   47 of 49 people found the following review helpful

   
   Beautiful – But with good points and bad., December 27, 2004

   By 

   M. Prince “The CoffeeGeek” (Vancouver, BC) –
   
     

   This review is from: Tivoli Audio Model Three AM/FM Clock Radio, Cherry/Metallic Taupe (Electronics)

   I heard a friend’s Model One Tivoli, and was sold, so I decided to buy the Model Three and the Dual Alarm / Second Speaker unit for my bedroom, to replace a very cheap and unreliable alarm clock radio.

   So for $200 what do you get? Well, you get a modified version of the Model One / Model Two Tivoli, and a clock radio with a sleep timer and wake to Aux / Radio / Alarm function. To be frank, I can’t figure out how Tivoli justifies an extra $100 for a battery operated quartz clock insert that has barely advanced features (setting time is electronically controlled – that’s about it). In retrospect, the sensible in me would probably not make the same purchase again – instead, I’d opt to get the Model Two unit, and a nice alarm clock (though the style wannabe in me probably would – getting an all in one unit). Tivoli simply doesn’t have enough “omph” or value for the dollar tossed in with the addition of the clock functions for the extra hun.

   But let’s break down the positives and negatives.

   Positives: Sound quality kicks big time with lots of base in the unit (single speaker, dual speakers, even without the sub). FM radio, when dialed in right, sounds like near CD quality to my ears (with a caveat – see below). “Action” on the tuning dial is sweet with the 4x stepped down gearing. Clock is fairly readable, though it is pretty recessed into the case, so from an angle, it’s hard to see the hours well, esp. in the dark. Ability to plug in your iPod or other mp3 player to the Aux, hook up a sub, hook up a second speaker (or as I’ve done, the Model Three Dual Alarm second speaker) and other hookups – wowsa for a clock radio! Ability to record audio is good as well – I have an MP3 player / fm receiver thingie, and when I compare FM radio recordings made with the device on its own, and with the audio in ability, recording the Tivoli’s FM radio, there is no comparison – the Tivoli’s FM sound quality is stellar (with a caveat – again, see below)

   Negatives: People proclaim the Tivoli’s ability to pull in FM signals. I haven’t experienced this as well as i expected – some local stations sound hissy and tinny on the Tivoli, but in my ’04 Jetta (with a radio that’s often panned), they sound better. Where’s this legendary FM ability across the dial? That said, when a station is pulled in by the Tivoli, it sounds (to my untrained ear at least) like big base CD quality. Other negatives: The 120 second “bug” in the design for the snooze feature has caused me to sleep in a few times (see another review for more info). Yes Tivoli – that is a major design flaw. The decision on fonts and font colours makes the tuning dial and other labels on the front of the box almost unreadable in most bedroom light. And as mentioned above, the clock functionality is not worth the extra $100 in price – maybe $30, maybe $40.

   But it does look goooooood. 🙂 And the sound is stellar – rivals my other sound systems in the house costing $100s more.

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