Sound+Sleep Aquarius Review: Good Features, But Flawed

[@Tomasquo]

Another great review, thanks! The ability to change sounds via remote is a great feature. The speaker sounds really good. And I agree that bees (mosquitoes, flies) are not soothing sounds. Since every battery will eventually fail, it would be great if the unit could continue to operate on AC power alone thereafter. I have a feeling that the battery cannot be replaced by the consumer. Also, I wonder if the bluetooth signal can be completely disabled (to reduce EMF).

[@nosleeplessnights1]

Hi Tomasquo - nice to hear from you again, and I'm glad you liked the review. I'm also happy to see you're still watching my videos - it's always good to hear back from people:-) So, yes the speaker does sound good I think, especially compared to the vast majority of lower cost white noise machines I've reviewed over the years. On reflection, I didn't really focus on the remote control, but I agree it's a great feature and very rare for a white noise machine to have one. If they can be controlled remotely, it's usually with an app, such as the Snooz models. In case you're wondering, it came with a watch style battery, and the buttons glow in the dark, which I thought was a nice touch. The internal battery question is an interesting one. Honestly, I don't know what options you'd have if the battery failed - especially if it's out of the warranty period. Out of interest, I just took a look at the base, and it feels like I can get a fingernail or sharp edge under the inner rubber base plate and potentially lift it up. It's really stuck in there though, so I didn't want to continue in case I damage it, as I always keep in mind the potential to need these machines in good condition for when I compare them in future videos. But I am tempted to see if there are screws underneath it to open it up. Having said that, even if you can open it up, I'm not sure how easy it would be to replace the battery if it fails. I imagine that is a question to ask Adaptive Sound Technologies. As for the Bluetooth signal, there is nothing in the manual about disabling it completely. Now you've got me thinking about buying an EMF meter for future reviews though. Another section to add to the videos!

[@lorestentoi2536]

Hi sir, can yo help me ? Im looking for a white noise machine who actually make real white/pink noise, blocking all the frequencies, not just medium and high. Maybe a big fan would do the trick costing less ?

[@nosleeplessnights1]

Hi! A big fan might be your best option, yes. Otherwise, take a look the white noise machines with speakers capable of a bit more bass, such as the Snooz Breez, LectroFan Evo or Classic, Dreamegg D3 Pro, or Yogasleep Dreamcenter. You can find reviews of all of them here on my channel and listen to the sound. You could also just use a Bluetooth speaker with solid bass and a phone app. But ultimately, a powerful fan may create a wider range of frequencies that you're looking for I think.

[@pillingthemsoftly4738]

I've had the older model of this without the remote/Bluetooth for 3 years now, used nightly. There's a recurring problem with Sound+Sleep white noise machines, including the very expensive $100+ SE model. I like it a lot because I like rain/water sounds the most, but there's a big issue. The sounds "wear out." Eventually, every sound I use will stop working and the machine simply just shuts off. It could shut off in 60 seconds or 3 hours, but it will shut off by itself. And no, the timer is not on. You then have to pick a new sound which will work for 6-9 months, and then at some point, that new sound will randomly shut off. This is extremely frustrating because these are expensive machines and there are very few sound machines with high quality sound, and even fewer that have a lot of rain/water sounds. In looking at the reviews, you can see many people have the exact same issue, regardless of the model, including the very expensive SE. It's a bizarre problem and unacceptable considering the cost of these machines. At this point, all of the rain sounds I like the most, no longer work.

[@nosleeplessnights1]

That does sound frustrating! Sorry to hear your favorite sounds aren't working. Have you tried the factory reset? I just took a look again at the troubleshooting section of the manual for my Sound+Sleep SE and that's the suggestion for issues with 'unexpected behavior'. In case you don't have the manual, here are the instructions: 1) Unplug power adapter from the AC outlet 2) Press and hold the Power Button down while plugging power adapter back into AC outlet. 3) Continue to hold power button down for 5 seconds. If that doesn't work, you could email their support if you haven't already done so. Maybe they have another suggestion. Here's the support contact page on their website: www.soundofsleep.com/product_support/ Let me know how you get on. I know this does happen to white noise machines in general, not just the Sound+Sleep models. So I'm curious to know if you can fix it.