A fine, little radio.

Audio legend, Henry Kloss (the "K" of the famed audio company, "KLH") was noted for many sonic accomplishments during his lifetime, not the least of which was his justifiably famous Model 21 FM radio. Introduced in 1967 for a then rather pricey $79.95, the Model 21 was far and away the best sounding FM table radio available anywhere.
Many others copied the 21, but it stood fast as the best of the lot. I purchased several of them over the years, and while the unit's cosmetics may have changed slightly, the inner workings and that splendid sound never changed at all. As the company fell to its demise, this wonderful radio simply disappeared from the marketplace.

My remaining Model 21 recently gave up the ghost, and I simply thought that that was it: nothing like it anymore, so I'll just listen to FM on my rather elaborate sound system, even though that's not always convenient. I did see the Tivoli Model One (also designed by Henry Kloss) at a retailer (Restoration Hardware) a couple of years ago, and was mightily impressed with it, but found its price of $119.95 a bit more than I wished to spend. And, I didn't need it since I still had my trusty 'ol Model 21.

Recently, I went online to look for items in the American Express Rewards catalog. I had acquired a huge number of points on the program, and while scanning through a myriad of vacuum cleaners and kitchen mixers, there was the marvelous, little Tivoli Model One! As it used only a fraction of my total points, I figured, "What the he..," and ordered it.

It arrived today, and I'm as thrilled with this little gem as I was with the first Model 21 I purchased almost 40 years ago. No, it's not stereo, but the BIG sound that comes from such a little box (it's a good deal smaller than the Model 21) is remarkable. Tuning is done in the same manner as the Model 21 with an analog, geared tuning knob, which some may find a bit strange to use, given the predeliction for everything today to be of the digital variety.

The Model One is beautifully finished in a top quality walnut veneer that's applied to the top and sides from a continuous run of the stuff. As such, the Model One has an uncanny similarity to a walnut vinyl wrap, as opposed to the real thing! I actually thought the unit was covered in vinyl, until I looked at the information on the outside of the carton. The Model One lacks both a bass and treble control (there's no room for them on the front panel anyway), and is both FM and AM. AM never sounds especially good, but it's always nice to be able to tune into an AM news station while having my morning coffee.

So, with only a volume knob, a combination on/off, FM or AM selector knob, and a tuning knob, which is the same size as the projected grille for the remarkably fine sounding little 3" speaker, the Model One is certainly very simple to use. But, WOW, what SOUND! There is no question that the Model One sounds even better than the Model 21, and it's also a good deal better in pulling in stations and not drifting.

I can't compare the Tivoli Model One to other radios on the market today (as another epinions member did so well), but will mention at least one competitor: Bose. I've never been a fan of anything Bose has made, and have always thought Bose products to be overhyped, and grossly overpriced. We own a large Bose "Acoustic Wave" radio that we got for nothing as part of a Nissan/Bose promotion years ago when we purchased a Nissan Pathfinder. It sounds nice, but nowhere near $1,400 nice. Right now, that unit is somewhere inside one of a sea of as yet unopened boxes since our recent move to South Carolina. It will be interesting to see which unit sounds better - the ridiculously expensive Bose unit, or this little gem from Tivoli Audio. The Bose may be stereo, and it plays CD's, but we'll see about everything else...

Still, $119.95 is a lot of money for a table radio. Is the Tivoli Model One worth that? In a word, "yes." I may not have paid anything for mine, but if I had been in the market for a superb sounding FM table radio, this certainly would have been something I would have considered. Getting it essentially for free is something else altogether!