Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

This is an amazing piece of gear. The sound is excellent and it can manage an incredible number of sound sources, truly remarkable for such a small thing. I'm a tinkerer, so after spending most of the first day of ownership connecting, reconnecting, jiggering, testing out, and sometimes cussing, I'm now sitting at my laptop LISTENING with my Bluetooth headphones to a vinyl LP recording of Mozart's Clarinet Chamber Music sourced by my AUDIO-TECHNICA TURNTABLE. I capitalize these items because the experts on this site have said that neither of these things could be done...or that they "might be able to be done" but how to do it is another question. Well, I'm doing it right now. So here is how it is done. It is NOT difficult once you know the tricks. First, though, a really easy one. You've probably noticed that the included FM wire antenna isn't the greatest. At least the one they sent me isn't. The automatic station finder found 40 signals, which isn't too bad, but the closest one and the one I like to listen to has static, no matter how I position the wire antenna. Soooo, during my tinkering and jiggering, I connected the FM input connector on the back of the MouKey to a cable outlet in the nearby wall. I used the same sort of coaxial cable connector that you use to connect your router to your coaxial cable feed, It worked! I now have 65 stations from all over the country and every one crystal clear. Next another easy job - the turntable. I'm using an Audio-Technica turntable that gives me a choice of using it's pre-amp or it's unamplified output. You want to use the unamplified output because the MouKey is an amplifier. If your cord out from the turntable has RCA connectors, just plug them right into the DVD RCA receptacles in the back of the MouKey. If you don't have RCA connectors, simply purchase a jack to RCA connector somewhere and turn the cord into one you can use. You may also need a short connector that has two female ends. Connect them up, then connect your speakers if you haven't already. I'm using the RCA connections just to the right of the DVD RCA connectors, and have the amplifier connected to 8 Bose ceiling speakers. They sound fabulous. I haven't even connected speakers with the wire connections on the back left of the amplifier. I probably won't. But...if you want to be adventuresome, read the rest of this. If you want to connect other things via Bluetooth, and/or if you want to be able to send music (say) or more FM station connections to the MouKey AND transmit the same to another device - Yes... it can be done. Read on. Now first make sure that are no jacks plugged all the way into the receptacles for the microphones or the headphones on the lower front left side of the MouKey. They cut out all other outlets, and you don't want to do that right now. Now it's time to buy a Bluetooth transmitter. I don't think it has to be a fancy, expensive one. Depends on how much of an audiophile you are. I have an inexpensive little square transmitter/ receiver that is very, very touchy, and if it works, anything you buy will probably be better than what I've got. And my cheap little thing sounds devine. Teaching moment: The more work it takes to connect, the more valuable and appreciated the experience. So cheap and hard is good. (Up to a point.) I digress. OK. Using a cord with a double-band jack connector (for stereo) on each end, plug one end into the female headphone receptacle on the lower front of the MouKey. Push the connector all the way in until it clicks. Connect the other end to your Bluetooth transmitter. Now, turn the MouKey power off. You need to do this so your headphones, or whatever, do not connect to the Bluetooth receiver of the MouKey or to your speakers or some other device and sabotage your project .I use my smartphone's Bluetooth to check, and then turn off any interfering devices. There's also some apps on Google Play that find errant Bluetooth devices. Everything off? Now do whatever your Bluetooth transmitter requires to connect to whatever Bluetooth receiver you want to transmit to. (This is where my cheap transmitter and my headphones argue for a while.) When they are connected, power on the MouKey. Set the input selector to whatever you want your source to be. Turn on the source (say turntable) if you have not already done so. Right now mine is pointing at the DVD and my turntable is on, so I can listen to Mozart. The little LED display shows our local NPR station, but I don't think that is really important. What's transmitted is what you have chose with the input selector. You are now listening to sound TRANSMITTED from your MouKey - which is supposedly impossible. Is that really cool or what? Now here is a trick. Your speakers or headphones are picking up a signal sent by your external Bluetooth transmitter that's connected to the headphone jack of your MouKey amplifier that's connected to your MouKey that's connected to your sound source via the RCA connectors on the back. But your MouKey has a Bluetooth receiver that isn't being used. Hmmmmm. You can now connect your smartphone, or something else (I'll call it device #2), to your MouKey's unused Bluetooth receiver and listen via your headphones or speakers to another sound source (device #2) that you may not even thought of. True, you could connect your speakers or headphones directly to this device #2, say your smartphone, but what's the fun in that? Besides, then you would miss out on the great sound of the MouKey. Soooo, set your MouKey so the display reads "Blue." Then use your #2 device's Bluetooth and connect to "MouKey MAMP1," which in my case happened immediately and makes me want to replace my cheap Bluetooth transmitter. However, staying on task, turn your "Input Selector" on the right side of the the MouKey all the way to the right, to "MP3;W" and there you are...your smartphone (or whatever - device #2) is now transmitting to your MouKey, and your Moukey is transmitting to your headphones or speakers or whatever you connect via the new Bluetooth transmitter that's connected to the MouKey. And if you want even more FM options, download free from Google Play, "Radio-FM Radio Station App. Local Radio Free" (FM Radio App & Photo Gallery and Notes). Your phone will be connected to crystal clear FM stations all over the world. I suspect there are 250 stations. Send your chosen station's output to the MouKey Bluetooth receiver and let the Bluetooth transmitter fill your linked headphones or speakers with FM music from all over the world. Enjoy.