I live in a noisy NYC apartment above a major avenue, and use the "sound machine" to screen out street noise during the day, when I'm working at home, and at night, when I need to sleep. I've used several machines over the years (this, the Marpac, HoMedics and a portable one, the Nature Disk by Pacific Pathway). Without question, the Sound + Sleep is the best white noise machine ever. Why?
First, the cheaper sound generating machines (HoMedics, Nature Disk) have a very short loop on the sounds which your brain identifies as a pattern and which then become an irritant. The Sound + Sleep has either very long or non-repeating loops and this doesn't happen. I truly feel that I am on a train, listening to rain or in front of a fireplace. That's awesome.
Second, the "adaptive" sound setting really does work. As the level of the street noise outside changes, so does the audio volume of the machine. This is especially helpful to me during the day, when I'm working at home. The decibel level of the street noise outside is usually pretty constant at night at between 50 and 60 db, so it's less of an issue then, but during the day it spikes with motorcycle engines, trucks with back-up beepers, large trucks, etc. at 60-75 db. I plug in a pair of over the ear headphones into the headphone jack on the side of the unit, and voilà, I have a pair of noise-canceling headphones that I can use in my study. The Sleep + Sound machine is the only sleep machine that I've seen that is capable of doing this. Amazing.
Third, there is a lot of attention-to-detail in the design. The buttons are straightforward and easy to use for the sleep-impaired. They have small LED's that illuminate the settings. Press the Display button and it will turn off all the machine's lights after 15 seconds. Furthermore, the unit (black plastic and metal in the shape of a tear drop) just looks great, almost sculptural, and not like a cheap piece of plastic electronics.
Fourth, the Sleep + Sound offers ten sounds, including meditation and white noise. My personal favorite is the Train sound. I find that it lulls me into thinking, first consciously and then not, that I am in a comfortable old-fashioned sleeping car on a train going somewhere. My other favorites are the Rainfall and Ocean settings. I even use the Meditation setting when I am, in fact, meditating during the day.
Finally, the level of customer service here is outstanding. My first Sound + Sleep machine stopped functioning after more than three years of solid use. I emailed the company asking if they could fix it and received next-day responses by telephone and email telling me that they were shipping me a replacement. Customer service like this is unheard of these days. These folks really are heroes to the sleep-deprived.
Really, the only other competition out there, in terms of durability and function, is the Marpac white noise generator, which is a electro-mechanical machine. The Sound + Sleep machine also generates a white noise (which, like the other sounds, can be adaptive to your home's noise level), but does so much more else.
It even has a timer (with settings from a half hour to two hours, in 30 minute increments). I find that with the Sound + Sleep I am asleep long before the 30 minutes have passed.
Best sleep aid I've ever used. Most Highly Recommended. read more
