aiwa Retro Boombox BackTrack CD Player with Cassette Recording, Bluetooth 5.0, FM/AM Radio, USB/SD/AUX Inputs, VU Meters, LCD Display, Dual 40W Speakers (Black and Gold)

This boombox is the best example of a true boombox from the good old days that is available. The cassette player is limited to the tanashin style decks that are available but, it gets the job done in the cassette department. Everything works the way you would expect. The speakers are mounted internally into their own enclosures which are ported to the rear. The sound is spot on with an old school blaster. The tweeters are silk domed and are very crisp. The weight is right where an old school radio would be and the handle is sturdy. The 8-D battery compartment is true to that old school radio. The Bluetooth range is acceptable. The radio has good reception on FM and fair AM. Stereo separation is very good on this radio. I'm hearing stuff in my old cassettes that I didn't know were there. It's advertised as 40 watts however, if you are interested in clean power, it's more at 10.6 watts X 2 RMS for a total of 21.2 watts clean stereo output. It's more than enough to make your ears ring if turned up loud for long periods of time. VU meters are back-lit. They bounce nicely to the output volume of the radio without the needed to crank it way up to enjoy them. They are mainly for esthetics as they do not contribute to tuner strength, battery level or recording levels. When recording, this radio records at 128kbps MP3 from any source to USB, microSD or cassette. This includes AM/FM, Aux, Bluetooth, CD and Mic inputs. The CD player has a 1 minute buffer. After reading ahead, the CD will stop and play off the buffer before spinning back up again. This saves on battery, helps prevent skipping and scratching the disc when carrying it. In addition to MP3, this unit will also play WAV and WMA files. It will not play Flac or other file formats. The cassette player is what you would expect from the available mechanisms. W/F is acceptable but do not expect to record onto cassettes. Like most of these aftermarket tanashin style players, they use a permanent erase magnet which add loads of hiss to your recordings. Recording from cassette, radio, aux, CD and Bluetooth to USB and microSD has a more satisfactory result. This boombox will work just fine on rechargeable NiMh D batteries except when recording. I recommend using a higher voltage Alkaline battery or have it plugged in when recording to USB or microSD. The radio does not rattle or buzz when the bass hits and feels very solid.Overall, I am happy with my purchase.

Unlike most of the reviews for this i didnt receive this for free.. so my review is unbiased.. i also made a video on YouTube under my Amazon name.. Aiwa back in the early days of the 80's and 90's made some really high quality electronics.. eventually it was bought out by Sony in the early 2000's.. in 2008 Sony sold off the name.. years later Aiwa made a sweet comeback with the Exos 9 Bluetooth boombox.. which was a highly rated powerful portable speaker system.. now they released this modern take on a old school boombox.. and i say they did a great job! although this version of the Aiwa has been around under different names in other countries it finally released here.. even though the price is a bit steep.. it IS a quality modern take on the retro boomboxes of the 80's with some modern touches to bring it to todays standards.. it's not perfect.. it should use a rechargeable battery instead of outdated "D" cell batteries.. but it does have solid controls and is well built.. and it does sound great.. with punchy Bass and loudness.. so if you want a modern boombox with old school feel and ability to play cassettes and CD's you cant do much better than this beast.. a solid 8 out of 10..

WOW! WOW! WOW! A (BRAND NEW) LEGITIMATE OLD-SCHOOL BOOMBOX!!Technically this is not an original vintage unit - but it’s as close as you’ll probably ever get to owning a brand-spanking-new early 1980’s boombox.The biggest reason why I love it: It’s LEGITIMATE.I never bought any of the new “retro” boomboxes bc they were cheaply made, generic looking caricatures of real vintage radios. Yuck.The Aiwa on the other hand looks and feels like a brand new old school boombox from the early 1980’s. Even the small details are mostly correct. It’s a nearly identical aesthetic clone to the Sharp GF575 from 1982!It has a high quality feel about it:- Knobs feel solid and weighted.- Cabinet plastic feels thick.- It’s really heavy- Old school handle is solid.Sound quality is on par with most of my better vintage units. I’d call it really solid mid-fidelity. CD’s sound fantastic. Cassettes sound better than I expected and FM reception is also great…pulls in a ton of stations.The yellow color is HOT!! I was worried it was going to look like cheap shiny toy plastic. The yellow is painted on, not molded in. It has a matte finish which adds to the quality aesthetic.Just a few very insignificant nit pics - I think the meters look a little cheap up close, the pink and blue button accent panels are a bit garish, the am/fm dial face plate looks a touch cheap. Lastly, the Bluetooth badge on the CD face plate belies its vintage aesthetic. Nothing to dissuade my joy for this awesome radio. Overall quality exceeds my expectations.I’ve showed the radio to friends and their reactions have been awesome. The radio is huge and the electric yellow color just “snaps”. I get an eye-popping WOW! when they see it for the first time.As a serious vintage boombox collector, I’m overjoyed that we finally have a “real”, brand new, old-school radio to purchase and enjoy!!If you’re on the fence whether to buy it or not - BUY IT. IT’S LEGIT!

Everything worked well. Sound is great. We love it!