Digital radio reviews: Testing digital radios
Tuning digital radios
Digital radio sound quality
As well as putting our digital radios through a multitude of technical tests we use an independent, expert listening panel to assess sound quality under the same conditions for each digital radio in a sound proofed room.
Benchmark samples from previous digital radio tests are also used to ensure continuity.
When we test digital radios we transmit our own DAB signal, effectively creating our own radio station for the period of our testing.
We broadcast a range of specially selected audio tracks to test the capabilities of the digital radios.
Music on digital radio
Classical music, including Tchaikovsky's piano trio, tests how the digital radios cope with music from a full orchestra. We check for clarity and if individual instruments sound real and natural.
A jazz track by Jacques Loussier demands clear bass and highlights a range of frequencies and also the balance between bass and treble. A Rickie Lee Jones song tests how a female vocal sounds on the digital radios.
And U2’s ‘Even Better Than The Real Thing’ checks the digital radios' ability to cope with dynamic energy, synthetic sounds and give a sense of space.
We test music and speech sound quality on digital radios
Speech on digital radio
Not everyone likes music, and if you're a Radio 4 fan or someone who enjoys sport you’ll be more interested to hear that we put each digital radio through its paces by listening to both male and female voice recordings.
We look out for problems such as sibilance (an over emphasis of the ‘s’ sound that can result in a hiss), which give a good indication of too much treble on a digital radio.
Sound quality accounts for 40% of the overall test score for both tabletop digital radios and pocket models. Check out the Which? Best Buy digital radios for radios with the best sound quality.
Digital radios ease of use
There’s no point having a digital radio that sounds brilliant if you have to open the instruction booklet every time you want to change to a different station.
Two lab experts assess the digital radios for everything from initial set up, the clarity and size of the screen, how easy it is to record to the internal memory or pause live radio, and even how suitable the digital radio is for use at night.
Ease of use accounts for 30% of the overall test score for tabletop digital radios and 20% for pocket radios. Check out the Which? Best Buy digital radios for radios that are easy to use.
Battery life on digital radios
If you plan to use your digital radio in the garden, then you need one with a good battery life – a digital radio which scores the top mark in this test will allow you to listen to at least 60 hours of DAB radio, whereas a digital radio with our lowest score will give you less than five hours.
Listening to digital radio can use a lot more power than analogue radio – one radio we tested could run for 40 hours when we listened to a station on FM but just 16 hours when it came to digital.
Battery life accounts for 15% of the overall test score for tabletop digital radios, and 20% for pocket radios. Check out the Which? Best Buy digital radios for radios with the best battery life.