I love my Brooklyn as a alternative to fill the void between today's modern technology and my old school blaster. I also enjoy its analog style tuner and....yes....having a cassette deck is a major plus. For this reason it was a no brainer that I would take this box to the beach this year.
However, as a beach box the Brooklyn has a few issues that make it not so beach friendly. For one the CD slot up top is a magnet for sand and will likely send it right down into the CD mechanism if not protected by tape or towel. Also at the bottom of the stereo in the rear are the ported bass reflex slots for each of the lower speakers (one on each side). Little did I know how much sand had got in it during its 7 hours on the beach. When I placed it on it's back on the hotel bed to pack it up and leave for home, a tiny bit of sand poured out of these holes...and I had it on a blanket while on the beach not on the sand directly.
I like the analog style tuner appearance and the dual antennas. I also like the idea that it has both AM/FM capabilities however, I mostly listen to FM and despite the large telescoping dual antennas, it lacks the DJ-Techs tuner reception ability. Despite the Brooklyn having an analog scale and dial to indicate station, I am starting to believe that the Brooklyn still utilizes a chip for bringing in stations versus a true analog tuner box. It survived and grabbed a few folks attention however, I believe this box will not go onto the beach again.
Last year when I took the DJ-Tech, it faired much better. On a negative note, I did find that the front slider arms were prone to getting bent in transit if not careful. Aside from that, weight and the fact that it lacks the old school analog features of the Brooklyn, it more than makes up for it in performance overall. This includes sound, radio reception and battery life (after 5Ah mod). The DJ-Tech (having no extermal antenna), grabs stations out of the air as good as my vintage blasters with antennas and picks up the stations that the Brooklyn doesn't even know are there. It is heavier due to the wood frame and SLA battery versus the GPOs plastic and Lipo battery but it is smaller in size when space is more of an issue in transit. The DJ-Tech has no holes/slots on the back or at the bottom. This keeps the sand out and the speaker ports are up top...not on the bottom. The sound is way better than the Brooklyn and I would compare it mostly to the JVC RC-M70 and with the right song could almost compete with my M90. Considering its size that's amazing to me.
So just like every box out there, vintage and new, they all have their pluses and minus areas. In my opinion of these two boxes I have to say, when it comes to a modern portable to take to the beach between the DJ-Tech and the GPO Brooklyn, the winner is the DJ-Tech.
I have attached a few photos of my Brooklyn at the beach
However, as a beach box the Brooklyn has a few issues that make it not so beach friendly. For one the CD slot up top is a magnet for sand and will likely send it right down into the CD mechanism if not protected by tape or towel. Also at the bottom of the stereo in the rear are the ported bass reflex slots for each of the lower speakers (one on each side). Little did I know how much sand had got in it during its 7 hours on the beach. When I placed it on it's back on the hotel bed to pack it up and leave for home, a tiny bit of sand poured out of these holes...and I had it on a blanket while on the beach not on the sand directly.
I like the analog style tuner appearance and the dual antennas. I also like the idea that it has both AM/FM capabilities however, I mostly listen to FM and despite the large telescoping dual antennas, it lacks the DJ-Techs tuner reception ability. Despite the Brooklyn having an analog scale and dial to indicate station, I am starting to believe that the Brooklyn still utilizes a chip for bringing in stations versus a true analog tuner box. It survived and grabbed a few folks attention however, I believe this box will not go onto the beach again.
Last year when I took the DJ-Tech, it faired much better. On a negative note, I did find that the front slider arms were prone to getting bent in transit if not careful. Aside from that, weight and the fact that it lacks the old school analog features of the Brooklyn, it more than makes up for it in performance overall. This includes sound, radio reception and battery life (after 5Ah mod). The DJ-Tech (having no extermal antenna), grabs stations out of the air as good as my vintage blasters with antennas and picks up the stations that the Brooklyn doesn't even know are there. It is heavier due to the wood frame and SLA battery versus the GPOs plastic and Lipo battery but it is smaller in size when space is more of an issue in transit. The DJ-Tech has no holes/slots on the back or at the bottom. This keeps the sand out and the speaker ports are up top...not on the bottom. The sound is way better than the Brooklyn and I would compare it mostly to the JVC RC-M70 and with the right song could almost compete with my M90. Considering its size that's amazing to me.
So just like every box out there, vintage and new, they all have their pluses and minus areas. In my opinion of these two boxes I have to say, when it comes to a modern portable to take to the beach between the DJ-Tech and the GPO Brooklyn, the winner is the DJ-Tech.
I have attached a few photos of my Brooklyn at the beach
