Sony XDR-C706DBP

Sony XDR-C706DBP stopped working - no power – Had this Alarm/DAB Radio for 3 years and all of a sudden it stopped working - no power on at all. It has as suggested elsewhere a tinny speaker but otherwise been a good radio. Show details

Was good, then failed – The antenna is loose and doesn't pick up reception anymore, making it useless for listening to radio. Such a shame, because it was all I needed before that happened. Not made to last. Show details

Dead as a Dodo after 18 months – This clock worked perfectly for about 18 months, reception was great, sound quality o.k., and then sound started to falter, the next thing it was completely dead, no power whatsoever. I did contact Sony who offered a miserly discount on another model, much less than I could have brought a replacement for at a retail store. Considering the price… Read more

I paid for it, I would have expected it to last longer than 18 months. I have an old Sony clock radio, at least 20 years old and it's still going strong. I'm not surprised that this clock radio was discontinued. Too many issues, unfortunately after a good start, it ended up being a dud. By the way, Sony weren't able to offer any explanation or reason for it's complete failure, nor did they suggest a solution to the fault. Sadly, it will be thrown out with the garbage, I had hoped I might read a forum where someone could offer a reason for it's failure and a way of repairing it, but after more than 12 months, this clock radio which still looks as good as new will meet it's demise and sail off into the blue yonder in the garbage truck tomorrow! :(

Random time changes – Experienced clock time randomly jumps 2 hours ahead. Never sure when this will occur during the night, the impact is it happens to jump 2 hours within the 2 hours of when your alarm is set then alarm doesn't activate. Sony replace the clock with same model and experienced the same issue.

great little DAB FM alarm clock radio for functions, but very poor tinny sound quality – I bought this unit last week on gumtree for $70, hoping for a good quality sound on radio to play next at my bedroom table. The unit itself is very nicely designed. the buttons and menu items are very good too. the screen is amazingly well laid out and very clear. The radio sound quality was very poor, very weak, tinny. I used it for 1 day… Read more

only, then it is now sitting as an alarm clock only. it is pretty expensive alarm clock if that is all it is used for.

back on gumtree it goes....

Snap CRACKLE Pop – Only a year old and there is just this constant background crackle. Very disappointing. Was meant to provide some night time background music but the crackling makes it unbearable. Not sure if this model is even still available but I would stay away. I'll be doing a lot more research for my next DAB radio.

AM clarity lasted just under two years – I bought this radio two years ago specifically to listen to 774ABC on AM . It has lasted just under two years, brilliant sound at first and suddenly started cutting out and now has constant crackle on that station. Also complex set up alarm. Do not recommend this product unless prepared to only last a couple of years. I am grossly disappointed.

No ABC – I have just bought this model and find I can't get any ABC stations. Not even 702, let alone radio national, jazz, country, or any of those. It does however get Stardust, a station that plays all the old music like Ella, Louis, Frank and all those, with no ads. A big downside is that there is no battery for backup when there is the occasional… Read more

blackout, meaning the unit has to be reset each time. Also the reception sometimes cuts in and out.

I think the display window is good and the styling, but it will have to go back to the shop if if doesn't give me the ABC. I have 2 Pure digital radios that are brilliant, but so far haven't found a suitable Pure clock radio.

December 11th 2014 Update:

This is my second review of this item, the first one a few days ago. I thought there was something I wasn't doing right when setting up, but I have now discovered that this radio is not equipped to pick up AM radio in Sydney. In my ignorance I thought I just had to make sure the radio had DAB, but not so. After a l-o-n-g on-line chat with the charming people at Sony I learnt that it does not have AM. Gosh, surely I'm not the only one to have asked why I can't get the ABC. I must have been on-line to them for about an hour, trying to reset, just to learn that I can't get AM. This radio gets 2GB, 2SM, 2UE, etc and the wonderful 'Stardust', but apparently through their digital frequencies. ABC and 2CH must be too poor to have this facility. So-o-o this little beauty has to go back to the appropriately named Good Guys.

It's almost impossible to find a clock radio that ticks at least most of the boxes. Why don't the makers ask the consumers what they want. Obviously I want (desire?) too much.

Buy a Sangean – Lasted 2 years then lost ability to pick up Digital Signal so useless now. Previously had a Sangean so going back to them

Would not recommend -short life span – I had this radio for 2 years with no problems then it spontaneously stopped working. Would not recommend if you are after longevity, should consider extended warranty with purchase to cover for faults.

Dissapointment – I don't want to give this product a bad review because of my experience. But please read on and make your own decision. (one problem related to where I have situated the clock and the other possibly a software glitch) The issue I am having is that there is poor radio signal where I want to put my radio (bedside table). I bought this digital… Read more

radio in the hope I would get better reception with a digital signal. However I have found this not to be the case. With the analogue signal the sound would have some static/interference noise, but still audible reception. With digital signal, if the signal strength is weak,no radio reception is heard and therefore there is no alarm to wake me up.

Because of this I can only use the radio in the analogue mode, defeating the purpose of buying this unit. The major issue I am having is with the time & date settings. I manually set them and the radio updates them when it does get signal but I end up with a totally wrong time & date. Not good if I were to rely on it for an alarm.

I am not sure if this problem is related to signal strength, as when this happened the clock was in an area that did get a strong signal.

I like the design and sound quality when I get good signal, but the back light is slightly bright at night & dull during the day. The text size is ok for next to the bedside, but is harder to see when elsewhere in the room. I do like how it displays the date & radio station info, and if the time & date auto update worked, it too would be a nice feature. Another nice thing was the when my alarm went off and the unit couldn't get radio signal, it reverted to an alarm sound (quiet a pleasant one actually) and gave me satisfaction that if the digital signal wasn't strong enough (and time hadn't been wrongly updated in my sleep) I would still be woken.

Update: I have been informed that the area I live in is on the edge of the DAB reception range. This would be a factor in the performance of this product. Check out coverage in your area on the Digital Radio Plus website. http://www.digitalradioplus.com.au/ Nice stylish design, clean sound when in digital mode. Digital update of time & date wrong at times. Mildly bright backlight at night. Small display.