RUARK AUDIO R1 MKIII DAB/FM Alarm Radio (Walnut)

So, initially slightly horrified by the price, but was looking for a really good quality, small dab radio for use in the bedroom. I am stickler for good quality sound. This seemed to tick all of the boxes and look extremely stylish at the same time.After plenty of research and reading reviews I decided to purchase it. Am I please? VERY pleased. As soon as I turned off the 'loudness' setting (which is default) the balance was perfect and, bearing in mind this thing isn't stereo I was blown away by the sound quality. Very intuitive controls and so simple. No unsightly myriad of buttons on the front, which hugely appeals to me. Build quality is top notch. Easily fits on the bedside table.Alarm features easy to work out and set. Low brightness setting whilst in standby is not too dim at night. Alarm works well and slowly builds up to volume rather than assaulting you with loud volume in the morning. It was a joy to wake up to Classic FM this morning.Fantastic piece of kit, worth every penny. When I can justify the cost, the R2 or R4 will make their way into my kitchen / dining room.

I've recently decided to retire my old 20 odd year old manual tune FM/AM clock radio and had been spending quite some time looking at different makes and models of DAB/FM clock radios. None of the ones that I read the reviews for really grabbed me, until a recent visit to John Lewis, where they had the Ruark Audio R1 MK 3 on display. I was instantly taken with it's obvious quality of manufacture and sound and it's ease of use. Unfortunately, the shop didn't have any in stock so I decided to order one in walnut from Amazon.It is rather expensive, but as with most things in life, you generally get what you pay for. In short, I'm delighted by the unit and now that I'm using it at home, the sound is even better than that experienced in the shop (never the best listening environment). The sound is rich and clear. I did find the bass a little overpowering at it's default setting, but this was easily remedied via the settings. With the walnut veneer, it almost looks like a piece of furniture, if that makes any sense. It is as nice to look at as it is to listen to.In summary, I would have to say that the Ruark is worth every penny of it's asking price. It is simply a pleasure to use and to listen to. There are cheaper alternatives out there, but I can see this giving many years of listening pleasure. It comes highly recommended.

I like everything about this radio except the price - hence a lost star. Gives a good sound and interface/usability is well thought out for my pretty limited use. It's so well thought out and a pleasure to touch every time.I was about to say that the light is too bright at night, and illuminates the dark room too much. Then I thought I'd better check and whadayaknow - the standby light intensity is adjustable. In just a few seconds (without a manual) I set the standby setting to Dim. Another option is Off.

Great sound and lovely case but we’re very disappointed with the menu and the lack of Bluetooth. The mk2 was much better, though it was more expensive.I am disappointed because the reason I bought it for my partially sighted mum was the sound, how easy it used to be to use (very important for her) and the Bluetooth. If I’d known about this model downgrades I just wouldn’t have gone for it.Ruark, you have made a one-size-fits all product (a potato) and thrown-out the exquisite excellence of the mk2.

I mostly bought this to act as a desk radio / computer bluetooth speaker. As such it works very well, and sounds clear and quite musical. Good sound at low volume. It is extremely well made, (Designed & engineered in Great Britain Assembled in China). The controls are solid feeling and reasonably positive. I had to turn down the Bass a little to increase clarity as it is rather close to me. Clear display, I don't use the alarms or or any of the other features but generally everything seems easy and intuitive on the whole I'm delighted.Pity about DAB. I was foolishly expecting DAB to be sorted after all these years. Sadly not, for speech it's just about acceptable but if it's available on FM and you've got a strong signal even speech sounds less flat on FM. Jazz FM on DAB+ is unfortunately absolutely dreadful. Streamed via Bluetooth it sounds superb (always presuming you like JazzFM). Radio 3 is OK but still better on FM. Bizarrely R5L(SX) is very clear and doesn't to me seem to sound any better on online or on my phone via headphones, as this is 90% of my dab listening I can live with this.

A top quality product. As the mark 111 has only just been released I paid virtually list price and to be honest not sure its worth so much for what is a simple mono radio alarm.However the build and design are faultless and the sound quality from such a small package is outstanding. Only one annoying issue is that the transformer plug is designed in such a way that it cannot be used in skirting mounted plug sockets and needs to be plugged into an extension lead which is untidy. Ruark should be able to solve this quite easily, I may search out a 3rd party transformer to solve the issue. However it does not stop me awarding 5 stars for this quality piece of kit.Its looks stunning is simple to set up and takes up minimal room. The display also is perfect being adjustable to a dim light on standby which easily read at night and switching automatically to a brighter display when the alarm switches on.

Although the sound and build quality of this Ruark are absolutely excellent, Planet Gizmo (the vendor in my case) sent one that had the wrong software installed: it was software for the hotel version, so I couldn't set the alarm properly and the volume is limited.While Ruark have been fantastic, arranging free collection and re-programming from Ireland, it has been a real inconvenience. Do make sure that any version of this that you get from Planet Gizmo is correctly programmed.