Koss CDP1740A Portable CD Player (Blue)

• Translucent blue finish with matching Koss stereo headphones
• 40-second antiskip protection
• Robust dynamic bass boost
• 6-digit LCD displays track and time
• Comes with AC adapter and easy-to-use controls

In our tests, this Koss CD player performed very well. The digital bass boost system (DBBS) does a great job of kicking the bass frequencies up a bit, and it can be switched to remain active at all times. The headphones are satisfactory, though they tend to distort a bit at high volumes.

Koss asserts that its new ASP antiskip protection provides 40 seconds of skip-free music. While the antiskip protection is very good, we found its reliability depends on the amount of disturbance the unit receives. When we ran with the unit in our tests, it occasionally skipped but soon recovered. The button for the antiskip protector is on the top of the unit, along with the other main controls (play, stop, fast-forward, rewind, program, and mode). Unlike the DBBS function, the antiskip function resets when the unit is opened or stopped. We would have preferred if this function remained activated until it was shut off manually, so that we could stop a CD then resume playing with the antiskip still online.

The only other drawback we found with the CDP1740A is the lack of a resume function. That means that if you stop a disc, then hit the play button again, the CD will begin from the first track. That small annoyance aside, this Koss CD player is well made and fun to use. Though it does not have every function we ideally like to see, it does offer good sound quality as well as many features usually found only in more expensive players. --David Lavin

Pros:

• Well constructed
• Digital bass boost performs very well
• Lightweight

Cons:

• Antiskip protection resets every time the unit is stopped
• No resume function