Camp Stereo

[Cee-Jay]

Those are the qualifier words that would give me concern along with others who prefer to enjoy the wilderness as close to city music-free as possible. Myself, I have never bothered anybody with tunes. I leave 'em in the city, they be there when I get back. Further, I go so far as to close my car doors as quietly as possible especially in dark hours, and I keep my voice low when talking. But then we are getting into camping etiquette, which is a whole other more intensive discussion. Simply offering a perspective that may be overlooked with regard to "camp stereos", a pair of words that are mutually exclusive in my book.

I hear you and respect your opinion... and I think it is all relative. For example, many people think that vehicles and wilderness do not go together. I am sure that my noisy, exhaust spewing vehicle spoils the experience of hikers at times and yours probably does too... unless you know for sure who is in the next canyon over. We all draw our lines in more or less arbitrary places. All that said, I appreciate your comment and will think of you next time I consider putting on some music.

 

[77blazerchalet]

I hear you and respect your opinion... and I think it is all relative. For example, many people think that vehicles and wilderness do not go together.... All that said, I appreciate your comment and will think of you next time I consider putting on some music.

Understandable, but consider the vehicles passing by are doing just that, with periods of quiet in between. In the campgrounds I stay at, on the random occasions when someone decides the natural sounds are not enough, the music is on for hours. Non-stop. That's a large distinction, made worse by the outright lack of necessity for it. Glad you see where my viewpoint comes from, but rather than thinking of me the next time the urge comes to play camp tunes, I'd simply ask that you weigh the balance of a nearby unseen camper's last day of quite solitude before having to face another 51 weeks of big city mayhem vs your desire to hear something that you will be freely able to listen to for the next 51 weeks.

 

[h2os2]

Cool thread! Thanks for reviews on different speakers. I have been looking for a ipod speaker, reading the reviews on different units helped out a lot.

 

[ravenccorax]

ammo can marine speakers with good grills. small ups battery and a cheap aux in sdcard/usb amp off ebay. also a small 10 watt led spotlight lasts a long time on a small battery and gives a fair amount of light.

 

[MicroOverland]

Please just use some amazing headphones in the wilderness. You are ALWAYS being obnoxious when playing music out loud when camping. "camp' and 'stereo' should NEVER be used together. Just my 2 cents....

 

[Corey]

Please just use some amazing headphones in the wilderness. You are ALWAYS being obnoxious when playing music out loud when camping. "camp' and 'stereo' should NEVER be used together. Just my 2 cents....

My thoughts exactly.
If I must listen to music when camping, I can use my Sony Bluetooth headphones with my Droid.
For some reason I have never wanted to listen to music when camping, I must prefer the sound of a rushing stream/creek (one requirement for where I setup my site) and relaxing with something to read.

I have been in campgrounds in the past where TVs have been setup at night to watch.
That is just wrong.

 

[SWITAWI]

I wonder if it only plays banjo music?..

http://www.uncommongoods.com/product/mason-jar-speaker-amplifier

 

[Glorybigs]

Camp stereo thread should be about camp stereos, it should not be filled up with opinions from people on outdoor audible edict.
But since opinions are being expressed... This forum is all about expedition outings, not driving over to a camp ground and enjoying a spot where someone else thinks you should set up "camp". If you don't have an opinion or question regarding a camp stereo perhaps you should refrain from posting in this thread, just a thought.

 

[DJGoo]

I use headphones if I want music, and my Subi's radio if I wish to listen to Coast to Coast. I wouldn't mind having one of those CCrane radios to preserve my battery, though. Avoiding the subject of audio etiquette, I think a stereo rarely sounds good outdoors if it doesn't have a house backing it. I like sound quality, so headphones are really the way to go, if you're by yourself. Otherwise, I would use a small boombox (or whatever kids these days call the modern equivalents) that doesn't have lot of projection.

I don't know enough about the fancy boomboxes mentioned in the first page, but I would just get something from SONY. They've always made great stereos, they're affordable, and the sport series are pretty darn tough, if you ask me.

 

[JohnnyS]

A pair of Goal Zero speakers & an I-Pod; complete with a solar panel in a Storm Case picked specifically for the task of camp radio.
I'll take some pics, it is a great setup.

 

[JohnnyS]

Everything, including the I-Pod, fits neatly into the Storm Case without a lot of fiddling.
The speakers & I-Pod can be charged by 12V while driving, or solar if stationary, plus the Goal Zero battery pack provides sufficient backup.
The only thing that would be better is if I could "link" the speakers without having them unzipped, but really no complaints.

 

[LR Max]

I picked up one of these:

http://www.gearxs.com/Hype-Hi-Fi-Bluetooth-Stereo-Sound-Speaker-Speakerphone-Rechargeable-Battery

Overall for the price, its pretty good. The pairing sequence is pretty obnoxious but sound quality is good. Its got a darn good battery on it and it uses the same charger as an android phone. Music plays very crisp and clear, especially considering what it is. It can get pretty loud and my phone volume is typically set well below half and its all the volume I need.

I use it a lot around the house and it is especially awesome in the garage. Range is pretty good but I typically keep the phone near the speaker anyway. I've heard mixed reviews from callers on the speaker quality. Just recently my g/f told me that she was getting bad feedback from it and the noise was very annoying. So now I just disconnect it when I use the phone.

As mentioned before, battery life is epic. I charge this thing once a month overnight. Otherwise I keep it off when not in use. Works great.

My plan is to put velcro on the bottom and velcro this thing to the dash of my Land Rover (got a 109). Then I can have music on the trail but then be able to put it on a table or whatever at camp.

Overall, for the price and capability, these bluetooth speaker bars are awesome.

On Saturday someone had one of those little cup looking speakers. Overall I was underwhelmed by its performance. Literally you had to be right next to it to even know it was on. Pretty useless.

 

[Scoutman]

Philips Shoqbox

I saw this at Sams the other day and am curious if anyone has tried it out. It's the Philips Shoqbox. Bluetooth, rugged, compact, rechargeable, wireless, microphone, among other features....

 

[BigSwede]

Music has its place. I fondly remember an evening camping on a mesa overlooking the Badlands, drinking margaritas and listening to reggae softly playing...

I am watching this thread because I am old (school) and have music mostly on CDs. But now I have loaded some MP3 songs on my Samsung Galaxy 7" pad and would like to be able to play them occasionally in camp.

 

[DJGoo]

Yeah, most of the suggestions here lack CD players, which is also a problem for me.

This is where it's at: