Sony MHC-GX9000 Compact Stereo with 3-CD Changer and Game Sync Review

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(More customer reviews)I just received this stereo in the post office and took a 2 hour lunch break just to hook it up and play with it! This thing is way too big for my dorm room so i'm going to have to make some room the best I can. After hearing everyone elses systems pound I thought I would get something that could beat the competition and it absolutely blows it away. This 4 speaker setup is awesome. The only thing that would make it even better would be a center channel speaker. Unfortunately 1 is not included so there isnt full 5.1 but the 2 main speakers and 2 rear speakers are so loud that it doesn't matter. Halo 2 sounds unbelievable as well as other games. I'm gonig to replay Halo 2 on Legendary just so I can hear what it really sounds like! So long to the crappy tv speakers!

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Technics SC-HD505 Executive Microsystem Review

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(More customer reviews)Although there are four separate components and plenty of dials, toggles, and buttons, this is not the set for tinkerers who demand control of the sound. There's a button that gives you enhanced bass and a dial that supplies fine tuning of the tweeter, and that's it! Not even the ability to balance the speakers. The flip side of course is simplicity, and simplicity is the name of the game from assembly to operation of these handsome components and speakers. Just link everything together, plug it in, and enjoy impressive sound. Impressive, that is, for everyone but those who want to rattle the walls with amplified rock and loud orchestral compositions. They should look elsewhere. But for those who, like my wife and I, live in snug apartments and whose tastes run to small-group jazz and classical chamber music with emphasis on solo piano, violin, guitar, sax, and trumpet, Technics has put together a terrific audio system. Just squeeze it in wherever there's room and let it fill your space with warm, balanced sound.

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This Technics microsystem has many features normally found only in high-end separate components. The horizontal-loading cassette deck loads tapes easily and smoothly, and a microprocessor helps protect your valuable tapes by automatically detecting the end of a cassette. In addition, high-efficiency speakers extend the frequency response into the midrange, reproducing guitar and vocal tones clearly with minimal distortion. The CD Text feature displays artist and song titles so you know what you're listening to, and the BLFS (Brisk Low-Frequency Sound) circuit delivers crisply defined bass without detracting from vocal clarity.

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jWIN JXCD8700 4-CD/MP3 CD Vertical-Loading Hi-Fi System Review

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(More customer reviews)While the look of the system is stylish, and does offer the feature of being wall-mounted I found the operation less than satisfactory. It is very easy to assemble. I was shocked at how loud the motor sounds when opening and closing the disk covers. Though, initially I figured I might as well get use to that. One of my first issues was sorting through MP3 albums. I have several disks of MP3's that have many artists as well as sub albums for each artist. The display of the system would only tell me the name of the album once I started playing the songs, not the artist. On other systems you can see the name of the album before actually having to play the album, and once playing it displays the artist information/track information as well. Hence the menu options were not exactly "user friendly." When selecting the next album there was a sort of lapse where the system would play a second or two of the previous track, from the previous album which was a sort of disturbing sound. Followed by this was silence and then the first track of the selected album would play. I thought this was peculiar but could over look it. What I could not over look was the fact that it skipped way too easily on disks. (MP3 and CD disks alike). On one of my CD's, bought from a store even, skipped awfully on a certain track. This disk was not scratched badly and seemed to have played fine in the past. When I played the same song from the same album in my portable CD/MP3 player, it played perfectly! So in my humble opinion, if this system is about three times as expensive then it should also play so well.
In troubleshooting I made sure the system was level and cleaned the laser heads to make sure it wasn't due to dust from shipping. The remote doesn't work at a distance of more than a few feet.
Ultimately, I did return the system. Thankfully Amazon.com is good about issuing returns in a timely manner! Buyer beware, although you may like this system more than I did.

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Sony LBT-GTZ4i 3-Disc CD Changer Mini Shelf System with Play Exchange Review

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(More customer reviews)Not much to say except this system is beautiful. I just set it up and turned it two half volume and it got my floors (literally) shaking. The bass is absolutely tremendous. It's really rich and deep. Definitely good for my techno.
I turned on some rock too and the other speakers pick up just as well. I'm am 100% satisfied.
The seller also shipped it to me within 3 business days. I was surprised it came today. I was expecting it later this week.

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Yamaha MCR-140WH Micro Component System (White) Review

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(More customer reviews)I originally chose this product for someone else, who tasked me to find a great bookcase stereo to give as a gift. I ordered it and received it within two days via Amazon Prime. I installed and tested it on Christmas Day. It truly exceeded my expectations in every way. Very attractive layout and veneer, intuitive controls, solid feel, great sound quality. I tested the radio first, then the CD player, then the iPod dock. In all three cases, the performance was very impressive for such a small system. I would compare this very favorably to the Bose system that gets so much advertising. I've listened to that system in several peoples' homes and although it's a good system, I feel the sound quality and appearance of this Yamaha system is superior.
I liked it so much that I immediately ordered a system for our home. I ordered the green color for my friend, but I went with red for our home. It's beautiful and looks very sharp. My wife and I both have iPhones, and we use this system to play our music libraries. It comes with a remote control, which is in itself a very nice little unit. Flawless performance and function. I really have nothing negative to say about this system. It is priced very fairly for its performance, build quality, and appearance. I see another reviewer commented that the speakers cannot be placed adjacent to the unit due to heat buildup. I don't get this at all. The unit never gets hot, and the speakers are placed exactly as shown in the product photographs, that is to say "attached" to the main unit. There are zero issues with heat. I love this little system and I'm sure anyone who takes the chance on one without physically seeing one in the store will be delighted. Anyone have any comments on their experiences or questions, feel free to leave a comment.

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Yamaha MCR-140WH Micro Component System In White

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Onkyo CS-445 CD Receiver System Review

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(More customer reviews)The key to being truly satisfied with this stereo is first knowing what you want from it. If you're looking for a full surround solution, this isn't it. If you're looking for a simple stereo with wall-trembling bass, keep moving. If, however, you're looking for a clean sound to enjoy in a single room, you're in the right product page.
I bought this strictly for music listening; not as part of a home theatre set up. As you know by know, all decent speakers should be allowed a burn-in period before being judged for their merit. And the included speakers on this unit are no exception. That said, though, these sound crisp (not sharp) and deep (not boomy), which fits the receiver's output optimally.
I loved the sound straight away. And after about 10 minutes using the stereo, I was reminded again why Onkyo doesn't run in the same circles as Sony, Panasonic, Sharp, and many of the other disposable consumer electronics manufacturers. It's all better here.
I bought a Polk Audio subwoofer to complete the low frequencies that this one just isn't made to provide, and already I've taken a great compact system and elevated it to a class that should be considered outstanding (especially once I adjusted the Onkyo's tone, increasing the treble to full throttle, and reducing the bass output to about 30%).
I'm looking at a pair of BIC bookshelf speakers to upgrade from the "free" set that came with this stereo, but I want to let these burn-in first and see how badly I want an upgrade. Already, though, this is a very good sounding set up.
A few other noteworthy things:
-subwoofer hookup is stupid simple with the pre-out on the back of the receiver
-though Onkyo has been careful not to make any promises regarding the receiver's compatibility with the new iPhone4, I have one and it plays/operates seamlessly via the built in dock
-the remote is well above par for intuitive layout and reception range
-it would have been nice to have an integrated USB port, and given the growing adoption of this feature on even lesser compacts, its absence is peculiar
All in all, you won't have any buyer's remorse about this stereo as long as your expectations are realistic. That is, the customers most likely to regret this purchase are those who have eaten up the propaganda that bass dBs and watts are the real measurement of sound quality.
The rest of you will enjoy this little powerhouse.

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Sony LBT-ZX99i 5-Disc CD Changer Mini Shelf System with Play Exchange Review

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(More customer reviews)When looking at the stereos that you had I saw this stereo I said why not, it looks good, the ratings from cusomrs wer good and the discription of the stereo sounded good. When it arrived we hooked it up and we give it a 5 star because its great. Easy to hook up, easy to program, and the ipod hookup is great. It was a great buy for the money. The sound has great clarity.

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Cambridge Audio NP30 Network Music Player, Black Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a fantastic bit of kit and a great way to listen to all your digital music via one simple device. It looks great and sounds excellent, it's also very forgiving to low quality digital files. It has a really straightforward interface with a clear display and feels really solid like it's been built to last.
It's also well worth downloading the UuVol Remote App so you can control the player using your iPhone.
Thoroughly satisfied with my purchase, went above and beyond my expectations.

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Denon DM38S Micro AM/FM, CD System Featuring USB Input and iPod/iPhone Connectivity Review

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(More customer reviews)I wanted a bookshelf system for my kitchen with CD player, decent radio, and iPod and auxiliary inputs. The DM-38 delivers all this with a striking elegance of design that makes my engineer heart happy just to look at it. I like it so much that I'm ordering a second unit for my office.
There's no need to buy an iPod dock. I connect my iPod Touch 32G (third generation) to the USB port. I can operate the iPod in either of two modes. Normally I control it by tapping on its screen as usual, calling up apps and playing music. I can, for example, run the NPR News app, sending the audio over the USB cable. That's a win because the digital signal is converted to analog inside the DM-38, which does a much better job than the iPod.
Or I can press the "browser" button on the DM-38 remote. Now the iPod goes into "accessory connected" mode and I can control the music player with the remote -- start/stop/pause and forward/reverse work. The two-line display on the DM-38 shows the song info.
Here's why I didn't go all the way to five stars:
*) No HD radio. None of the competition has HD either, but still ... the British version of this product handles digital radio, why doesn't the American?
*) No support for RDS, the metadata in the radio signal. My car radio can tell me what station I'm listening to and the name of the current track, but the DM-38 cannot. There's a "DAB/RDS" button on the remote that does nothing.
*) When playing MP3 files from a USB storage device (like a flash drive), the DM-38 doesn't sort by the track number meta-information in the files. Instead, it uses the order in which the files appear in the directory. This means that the only way to get the correct playlist order is to format the USB device and then carefully copy in the files in track order. Portable MP3 players don't have this silly limitation.
*) No option to leave the USB port hot when the stereo is turned off. This means I have to unplug the iPod from the stereo and connect it to a separate charger to keep the battery full. And no, you can't put a self-powered USB hub in the circuit; the DM-38 doesn't work with hubs.


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Sony LBT-ZX66i iPod Ready Mini Shelf System Review

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(More customer reviews)I've been listening to my new Sony LBT-ZX66i for the past 3 hours. It does everything it claims to do and does it well. Unlike last year's equivalent model which had a (now obsolete) cassette deck, this year's model gives you a much more useful iPOD dock.(for most full-sized iPODs, such as my iPOD Classic, you can insert your iPOD directly into the LBT-ZX66i's dock. Some older or smaller iPOD's may require an adaptor)
The Sony features a 5-disc carousel-type CD changer, an iPOD dock & AM/FM radio, plus the ability to do Karaoke(there's two microphone inputs via quarter inch plug) and a headphone output which uses full sized quarter inch headphone plug.
This system is powerful and clean, and the "X-Groove" button will provide the outrageous thumping that your disco,rap, hip-hop & Dance music enthusiast craves. But here an important difference: unlike many similar systems from other manufacturers, when the thumping mode("X-Groove") is switched off, the LBT-ZX-66i can provide clear,natural sound, with crisp midrange and highs for those of us who prefer rock, pop,jazz and other types of music. Believe me: even without the added thumping, the LBT-ZX-66i is no slouch in the bass department. The 3-way speakers(with horn-loaded tweeters) are better than you would normally get in a system of this type.
There are number of effects modes optimized for various types of music(Rock,Pop, Salsa,Reggae,Dance,Jazz,Samba,Tango). "Rock" seems to yield the clearest and most natural sound. There's also a simulated surround mode(which I have yet to try), and a 3-band digital equalizer(you can create your own custom E.Q. settings in the unit's memory). I'll eventually experiment with these features. And if you have a turntable, there's a phono input. Programming the FM/AM tuner was easy and the reception and sound quality was fine.
My only complaint is this: the remote control is a bit too basic. There are too many features of the LBT-ZX66i which can't be controlled from the remote control. These features(including the effects modes) can only be selected from the main unit's front panel.
I normally wouldn't comment on the merchant here in a product review,but I'll say this:I've had a great experience buying from "J&R Music World" for the past 29 years, whether directly, or more recently through Amazon. After buying a Plasma T.V. from J&R(via Amazon) and seeing J&R drop the price $200 lower ten days later, I contacted J&R, who gave me a $200 store credit, which I used towards this Sony compact stereo system.
One other thing:this system is fairly large. It is not exactly a shelf system, but if you've got room for it, then go for it. You won't be disappointed. Not that many companies are making this sort of system anymore(JVC doesn't make systems of this size & power any more), but Sony can make this sort of system better. The manufacturing quality is excellent, and it's got enough features that can either be used or not used, so it can be tailored to produce good sound no matter what your musical tastes are.
AS AN UPDATE TO THE ABOVE:The effects modes CAN be selected on the remote control, via a button called "EQ".
Important additional note: if you are planning on playing CD-R's on this unit, I would advise you to try a few of your CD-R's on this unit before buying. While the LBT-ZX66i had no problem playing CD-R's that I recorded on my rack mount pro audio CD recorder or CD's that I recorded on my iMAC computer, I have hundreds of CD's that were recorded by my friend on several PC's that he's owned over the past 5 years. None of these discs can be played on the LBT-ZX66i(which cannot read the table of contents on these discs). The LBT-ZX66i is one of 14 pieces of equipment(and one of four Sony products) in my home which can play CD's, and the only one that can't play these PC-burned CD-R's. All of these CD-R's feature standard CD Audio.

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Sharp CD-DH790N - Mini system with iPod cradle - radio / CD / MP3 / cassette / USB flash player Review

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(More customer reviews)This unit replaced a Coby unit that took a hit during a thunderstorm. I looked at several different units. One of the features I needed was a cassette as I still have many of them and of course a CD player. Based on reviews of the other brands I chose this one even though there were not reviews at the time. The other unit that was considered was the Sony. The reviews said that the power / sound was on the light side so I took a chance on this one and I am very glad I did. I like everything about it. Simple and useful features, great remote, exceptional sound quality and plenty of power. I am an old rock'n roller and am pretty particular when it's comes to my sound quality and "loudness". Everything from Jimi Hendrix, the Jefferson Airplane, the Rolling Stones, the Who to Black Sabbath, Ozzy, Pink Floyd, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Pink Floyd, AC/DC and even Hawkwind all sounded good. The bass is particularly good and there is not a hint of that "treblely sound" we have all experienced over the years. In my opinion, in the area that I am using it in, the 300 watt unit might be overkill, but had I to do it over again, for $30 more I may have purchased the 300 watt unit. At the time, I was just looking to replace my Coby which was around $50.00. That just depends on how loud you like and how much "air space" you need to fill. The owner's manual is well organized and written with diagrams and illustrations. One of the neat features is you can use a USB mass storage device. I can copy my entire music library to a 32GB USB memory stick I have and not have to play the CDs. I would purchase this unit again and again...

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