Avantek White Noise Sound Machine
20 non-looping ambient sounds
I was recently given five white noise machines to review, one of which was the Avantek White Noise Sound Machine ($36). I’ve got to say that the Avantek is the one that impressed me the most. My husband is a light sleeper and he’s always had trouble sleeping through the night, while I have trouble getting to sleep in the first place.
We were traveling across Europe when I did the reviews, so I hoped that the white noise machine would mask the random noises coming from TVs and doors opening and closing in the night. I would use a fan for white noise before, which worked well for a while but would cause me to wake up cold in the winter months. I also tripped over the box a few times in the dark. So, I was happy and excited to get the chance to try something new.
My first impressions of the Avantek were good; the sound quality from the machine was rich and it sounded far better than anticipated. The machine is small but packs quite a punch in the volume department. I later discovered it has around 20 different sounds including nature sounds, birds, ocean waves, crickets, and general fan and white noises. There’s a lot to choose from. I thought I would prefer the sounds of rain, and the machine has two settings for rain; a more gentle rain or a hard surging rain with lots of volume variation. Then I discovered there was a hybrid sound that resembled the sound of soft rain in the distance coming through a window next to a quiet fan. This was the magic formula that I needed. I focused on the sound from the machine instead of all the things that I hadn’t gotten done at work. Before I knew it I opened my eyes and it was morning.
The white noise sounds are non-looping, so there are no breaks in sounds during use. Some machines have five- to ten-minute recordings that are broken by a silence or a click before replaying the sound. That’s not how the Avantek works. Instead, it plays the sound continuously with no indication that it has restarted a track.
There is a timer built into the Avantek, next to the speaker. From here you can choose a setting of 1, 2, or 4 hours. If you don’t set the time then the white noise machine will run until you turn it off. Since I would listen to it at night I just turned it off in the morning. The machine remembered the track setting and volume I used last, so I was able to just turn it back on to where I was the next night.
Nothing is perfect though, so what about this machine didn’t I like?
One thing is that I wish the volume settings were done with smaller increments. White noise is specific to the purpose and use after all. Though it is possible to make slight adjustments to the volume by changing the angle of the speaker.
I also wish that the manual listed all of the different noises. Instead, the machine has a track setting that lets you find the noise you want. I suppose that listing all the noises and making them easier to find would mean the unit cost more though.
Finally, the machine plays sonic repetitive “notes” under white noise. My husband comes from a musical background and was annoyed by this. I couldn’t tell it was there at all though and had no problem sleeping. If you don’t have a musical ear, you might not even notice it.
The Avantek comes equipped with a USB plug that can be plugged into an AC outlet. I reviewed the machine while traveling in Europe and had no problem using it with an adaptor (110-240v). That was great for me because I likely wouldn’t have been able to take it with me if I also had to take a heavy transformer. Please note that some machines do need a transformer! They can explode without them. (As happened to my poor defenseless tea making machine. A tragic loss I still mourn to this day.)
The machine has a modern design and it looked great on my nightstand. It doesn’t have an overly bright light that you need to tape over like other machines. The cord was plenty long enough to reach the high shelves on a bookshelf too.
The Bottom Line: My husband would sometimes wake up while using the machine, but he was able to fall back to sleep quickly without having to toss and turn. It helped me fall asleep faster and I noticed I had far more restful sleep. I’m definitely happy with the Avantek and would happily recommend it to others.
04/16/19Avantek White Noise Sound Machine ($37)
