Panasonic SC HC3DB Bookshelf HiFi & Ipod Speaker Dock Review - by Techmoan

[matias13julio]

is good sound

[GHOSTthaHOST]

I cant find an antenna that will work with this. What kind of antenna do you need for the fm radio feature?



[Techmoan]

@GHOSTthaHOST It comes in the box - it's a thin black wire that goes over the centre pin in the bottom co-ax plug. If you've lost it, then any FM aerial with a Co-ax plug will work.

[GHOSTthaHOST]

@Techmoan yea the box is long gone, so i think its lost, is that what i would say at a store? Ask for a FM aerial with a Co-ax plug?

[Techmoan]

@GHOSTthaHOST Yes - you need to pick a style of aerial - Bunny Ears or Dipole (thats like a couple of wires which form the shape of the letter T - can be hidden behind pictures etc).- but yes ask for one with a co-ax aerial plug. Not an F-Plug

[GHOSTthaHOST]

@Techmoan Thank you so much for helping me. You were a great help. Although i decided to take the easy way out and just use pandora internet radio on my ipod instead of getting an antenna, i still greatly appreciate your help.

[bulldog3425]

do you need an extension chord for this or do you just unbox it and start playing it i have an ipod touch 3rd generation and whats the difference between this one and the SC-HC35?

[Durbot999]

just bought a refurb one from play.com for £89 - well worth it

[willbraham]

My second viewing of any of your videos and you find some great stuff. I'm subscribed.

[charrogent]

What are the titles of the tunes that where played?

[Techmoan]

@charrogent The first track was the Meters with CissyStrut - from their compilation off iTunes called Funkify Your Life and the second track was Shifting Gears by Johnny Hammond from the compilation album Pulp Fusion Vol 1 and the third track was Bonified Funk from the Brand New Heavies with Main Source.

[charrogent]

@Techmoan Thank you!! Very kind on your behalf! :)

[arfank199]

there's costco in britain?

[bdazzlecolors]

i forgot to mention earlier in my comment that the HC30 has a wall mount for those who want to hang the system up... plus it is an energy star efficient product. whoo hoo !!!!

[bdazzlecolors]

i bought the SC-HC30 today at best buy for134.99 . I am so pleased and happy to go with this model and style... it was originally 159.99... sound system is clear and the one i bought has universal dock for ipod and iphone... i have the iphone 4 and it works great...i bought the last one so that alone tells u its a hot item....

[GiovanniC91]

looks really cool but i have a feeling the sound isnt that great. It's just too thin!

[CocoKing238]

On a scale of 1 to 10 how loud can this dock get?

loud enough to hear while playing cod with suround sound...

[irtamaki]

thanks for the video, it really help :)

couple question follow up I wish you can answer~

1.is SC-HC40 the newest model?

2.does it charge iPod /iPhone during use?

3.does it fit for all kind of iPod/iPhone (from the original iPod, nano to iPhone4)?

thank you so much!

[Techmoan]

@irtamaki

1 I'd say the SC-HC30 is the newer version of this. The HC40 adds Bluetooth too.

2 Yes

3 Can't comment on the 2010 Nano or IPhone 4. But I'd imagine they would fit, everything else does.

[irtamaki]

@Techmoan

thank you for the fast replay!

[polo151821]

doesnt work with iphone4

[ajburr]

How much did you get it for? If you said sorry didn't catch it :D

[Techmoan]

@ajburr It was £175 - but this model has been superceeded now. I saw the new model in Costco today - but didn't notice the price - I'd imagine that it will be the same or slightly less.

[ExplicitYourSelf]

i have a few questions...am visually impaired do you think i can work around this by myself after being told what button does wat on the stereo/remote.how is the sound quality and how would you rate the bass from a scale from 0-10.0 being weak and 10 being strong and how would you rate the loudness from a scale from 0-10.your feed back would be great thanks

[Techmoan]

@ExplicitYourSelf - The remote seems ideal for someone with reduced vision - all the buttons are different shapes and there are raised nubs on the Volume Up, CD and number 5 keys to aid in tactile finger location. I have difficulties giving scores on these kind of things because it's all subjective - but I can say that this goes as loud and gives as much bass as I would ever want in a bookshelf system. Any more and it would vibrate itself off the shelf. I'm really happy with the sound quality.

[al708]

If you are the one to design your docking machine like that, how will you design? What will you add or delete?

[nevno1]

i agree the ones where the ipod sits on the top is ugly. i want to buy this its realy stylish thanks great video!

[manu2VI0II]

It seems to be a great product =)

nice video =)

what's the first song?

[Techmoan]

Thanks for the feedback.

The Group are the Meters and the track is called 'Cissy Strut'. It's the first track on the Meters 'Funkify Your Life' Anthology album available through iTunes. Over 40 tracks - highly recommended.

[manu2VI0II]

Ok thanks =)

[4jas4]

Hi, thanks for this vid! Just wanted to know if this system plays AAC files from an ipod? Thanks...

[Techmoan]

In essence it's really just a set of speakers attached to the iPod's audio out - so the iPod does the playing and the system amplifies the output. Therefore anything your iPod can play will work fine.

[SiBryan1979]

Hi Techmoan.

Great Review, thanks.

Please could you tell me if you need to buy seperate adaptors, when using this system with different iPod models?

And how good is the sound quality please compared to say a Bose Sounddock? Thanks

[jusj23]

Can it be hung on the wall?

Thanks!

[Techmoan]

No it can't.

[canihazburger]

@Techmoan .....are you sure it cant be hung on the wall, Panasonic say it can, or do you think that it would be unsuitable?

Good review, thanks.

[Techmoan]

@canihazburger I've just double checked the back of it and can 100% confirm that it cannot be mounted on a wall - it's got no mounting holes, the aerial socket sticks out at the top and it's just the wrong shape. Shelf only.

[Techmoan]

Yes it works with the classic.

[NathanDay1977]

Excellent video. Very informative in helping me choose an iPod docking system.

[BryanMumble]

is this available in ireland?

[Techmoan]

Well Dixons seem to have it in stock (at the time of writing) it's £229 there though - Weymouth HiFi are showing it as £189 and Argos only do the FM only version.

I'd ring your local Panasonic independent HiFi retailer - most independents don't show up on price comparisons because they are charged every time someone clicks through to their site even if they don't buy the product - so the costs of getting listed are prohibitive.

The Panasonic UK site lists all local dealers.

[Techmoan]

Sorry - I've had a look around myself and can't find the non DAB (Panasonic SC-HC3EB-S) model anywhere. As you know I got my DAB model from Costco and they still have plenty in my local one - it also has an FM radio on it too.

If Panasonic want to offer me a job (or send me some commission, I wouldn't say no - but I won't hold my breath).

[jpararaja]

Hi Techmoan: firstly, superb review - I've bought the unit and an iPod Touch 8GB 3rd generation for my girlfriend. On delivery however, I noticed the box has a list of all the iPods the unit carries, and while it mentions 1st and 2nd gen Touchs, it doesn't mention 3rd. Do you think I should I be concerned? Obviously I don't want to unbox and test myself since it's a gift...

[Techmoan]

I'm sure you'll be OK. Apple didn't make any compatibility changes between the Touch 2nd gen or 3rd gen.

Also thanks for the positive feedback - it's very much appreciated.

[jpararaja]

Excellent, that makes sense. Also I should have been clearer - I pretty much bought this as a direct result of your review. So thanks again :)

[quallinator]

can you connect headphones to the stereo?

Nice review by the way!

[Techmoan]

@quallinator

Thanks.

Yes you can - the headphone socket is on the back - it's 3.5mm jack.

I whizz past it at about the 3:19 part of the clip.

[mundhras]

Nice review. I wonder why this product is not that famous and not on cnet. I am looking for a dock and this one seems to have it all. I have a 3GS. Have you had a chance to test it with 3gs. One more thing that I read was that is not shielded so we can expect static noises when used with a phone is that true.

[Techmoan]

I haven't tested it with a 3GS unfortunately - but as far as I know the iPod connectivity configuration is unchanged between the 3G & 3GS so it should work the same.

I haven't heard any static noises with mine yet.

[guptonw]

Thank you Techmoan!! This is the only non-bias video reveiw I could find on this product. This one is going on the Christmas list. Oh yeah, (i know this sounds ignorent) you guys have Costcos in the UK? I always thought of Costcos as really redneck American stores.

[Techmoan]

We only have a handful of Costcos in the UK (they are still growing) they've probably only been here for 10 years or so. I really like them as they import some stuff that I can normally only get hold of in the US - it's also a 15 min drive from my house to the nearest one.

As far as the Panasonic goes - I think the US model is missing the DAB radio (Euro-centric Digital Radio Standard) and just has the FM radio - but it is a bit cheaper because of this.

Thanks.

[callumpowell123]

does it charge ipodtouch2g as it plays

[Vectrexuk]

It will do - it charges the iPhone 3G.

[callumpowell123]

thnx

[RaaneHolmg]

Can i put this up on my wall?

[Techmoan]

No - it won't mount on a wall unfortunately.

[andrewj08]

Does this system run on batteries? If so, what kind?

[Techmoan]

No batteries - mains power only (see  3:19 in the video)

[mongomondomongo]

Very slickly produced video! It's so much better than the official Panasonic promos. I'm really thinking of getting one, it's much cheaper here in the States - $170 USD.

[Techmoan]

Yes it does - when the HiFi is in iPod mode.

[Shaun2White]

Does the iPod charge while in the speaker system?

[davidaud777]

nice...always had good experience with panasonic

[s1eepyghos1]

Does the alarm increase its volume gradually or does it just turn on at full volume? Can you set the alarm to play music from any source? Do you know if anything doesn't work with iphone 3g? Thanks!

[Techmoan]

* Volume fades up.

* Alarm will play any source - it just plays the thing that was last on when you switched it off.

* My 3G works perfectly - I can't think of anything missing.

Although it's advisable to turn the iPhone's auto-lock (screen lock) off to avoid having to swipe the screen to unlock it.

[monobau]

Very good review!

I usually check my gear at Cnet but they don't have a review of this product.

I have 2 questions :

1:

Does the iPhone / iPod album art stay visible all the time or does the screen go black at a certain time?

2:

Can you use it as an alarm clock and stop the sound (or even snooze?) with the remote?

Kind regards.

[Techmoan]

Thanks for looking in.

Answers to your questions in two parts.....

1) Yes the album art stays visible throughout whenever the iPod is playing - it disappears whenever another source is selected or the machine is powered down - or if you choose to display a different menu on the iPod.. One tip - turn the brightness up and auto-dim off on the iPod/iPhone settings to avoid the display going dim behind the smoked glass.....

[Techmoan]

2) Yes you can use it as an Alarm clock. There are three alarms - each with start and stop times. It will play whatever source was playing when it was last shut down. The alarm will repeat each day until it is deactivated again - no snooze function - but you can turn the alarm off with the remote - all functions are active so you can switch the HiFi off/press mute/stop etc. You could therefore activate alarm 2 or 3 and switch the system off again I suppose.

It also has a sleep timer.

[monobau]

Thanks!

This will be my bedroom stereo now!

I had the opportunity to listen to it in a store and it sounds really good.

Grtz.

[Techmoan]

Cool - thanks.

[Ash0153]

Nice review :)

Does it charge the iPhone / iPod?

[Techmoan]

Yes it does (I probably should have mentioned that in the vid)...

Thanks. ;-)

[Ash0153]

That's good =P

Do you know how many speakers it actually has? - I've looked around but I'm non the wiser.

[Techmoan]

Each side of the unit has just the one drive unit.

The specs from the manual state.....

Type: 1 way, 1 speaker system (Bass reflex)

Speaker Unit(s)

Full Range 6.5cm Cone Type

Impedance 6 ohm

Input Power (IEC) 30 W (Max)

Output sound pressure 79dB/W (1.0m)

Frequency Range 55Hz to 25kHz (-16dB)

90Hz to 22kHz (-10dB)

[Ash0153]

Oh right... I know you've said it's a clear and warm sound, but how do the highs, mids and lows sound?

Thanks for the replies so far by the way =]

[Techmoan]

I'll be honest and say that I don't really have enough experience to comment with any kind of authority. I know it sounds really good and well rounded to me - but you might find it less impressive. I haven't heard anything better for a similar price - but I haven't tested that many alternatives either.

I'd really have to suggest you give one a test drive - seems like Comet stock this one too for £199 as per Andy who commented on my blog entry.

[Ash0153]

Fair enough, I appreciate your honesty. My 3 nearest Comet stores are all out of stock, and I didn't see a display one when I went to look at iPod Docks. They seemed to want to sell me a Bose SoundDock though, probably the most expensive in the shop. Thanks for the replies and good luck with with your videos and blog :)

[Techmoan]

Thanks - maybe I should get around to sorting out my channel page sometime although I've never been one to actively chase extra viewers, if anyone at all looks in I'm happy.

[LTLemon]

you diserve so much more views and subs, and lol at the spinning table. As for the speakers themself they look damn good but for me i prefere just to plug my ipod in to a set of regular speakers