Customer Reviews

Panasonic SC-PM53 180-Watt 5-CD Executive Micro System

5 star:		(49)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I purchased this for my home office recently. The selling points for me over other microsystems were the brand name, appearance, the 5 CD-changer, and the 180 watts. I listen almost exclusively to classical music, but I wanted a system that would provide as much volume and nuance as I could get in this size system at an affordable price. This unit absolutely does not disappoint. It is quite attractive, with the speakers clad in realistic cherrywood laminate, and a sleek console. (The LED display is readable and it has no annoying flashing lights to distract. It is also dimmable to near-invisibility, which would be convenient for bedroom use.) The sound is far above my expectations for this price range. The system is capable of an ear-splitting, window-rattling volume without distortion or "clipping". In fact, it is superior to an older midrange component system in my living room, with greater clarity and an enhanced bass response. I am thinking of replacing my living room stereo with another of these. For a small to medium-sized, room, it is hard to imagine a better system for the price. The FM reception of my local stations is flawless with the provided wire antenna. The AM is just adequate, but who listens to AM radio except for the traffic report these days? Because there are so many different functions built into one small unit, many of the controls on the console and the included remote control are not especially intuitive; I am able to do everything I want to do without fumbling around, but it takes a little getting used to. In brief, for the price and the size, Panasonic delivers an excellent value with this product.

*Use Play Mode on remote to select how you want to play the disks (one disk, all disk, 1 track, 1 album, 1 disk random, all disk random, 1 album random), then you just press the REPEAT button on the remote.

*You have two audio controls (bass and treble), and 3 settings for each one, an extra bass (H. Bass) button with 3 settings (off, 1, 2) and 5 preset equalizer settings, and there is also a surround sound feature that adds a lot of depth to certain kinds of music.

*Speakers sound best when about 5 or 6 inches away from a wall, and separated from each other by several feet.

*The FM antenna works well, for something so cheaply designed, and it is made to easily add an exterior aerial if needed. The AM antenna is one of the best I've seen, if it were built in, you would have to turn the unit to find the best reception, but this handy little exterior antenna can be raised, lowered or turned. Also included is a brief description of how to add on to both antennae to increase reception.

*Instruction manual is succinct and to the point, and gives extra pointers as it goes along such as explaining how to get the best sound by adding to your antenna. It has a good table of contents, clear pictures, and as I read it cover to cover, I found features that were not in the specs or advertised.(clock, timer for set recording, etc.)

Here are some extra features not mentioned in the specs:

*A clock with both a sleep and wake up feature--however, you must press a button on the remote to see the time. You can also set the clock to record on the tape at a certain time.

*A re-master button to correct frequencies lost when you created an MP3 or WPA recording.

*Music Port to connect your iPod (with inline cable) or MP3, CD, or tape player to either play or record to tape.

*Mute on remote

*A dimmer switch.

*Wonderful knob for volume on the unit (not digital volume button)

*Auto Off

*You can start recording from the remote

*You can change other disks while still listening to a disk

*You can do your basic playing and adjusting from the unit itself, without the remote

*Can search song to song on tapes

*It has an automatic preset function that will find and save up to 15 stations each on FM/AM or you can set manually. Important: To change radio stations (without using preset) you must make sure the Play mode is set to manual.

*FM allocation setting, this system can also receive FM broadcast allocated in 0.1 MHz steps

This is a great sounding unit and I would buy it again! I paid $134 for it.

NOW FOR THE (minor) COMPLAINTS:

*The Speakers are NOT magnetically shielded, so use caution if trying to run around a television. There are magnets in the speakers so keep away from computers, TVs and magnetically based media. Read manual for details.

*There is no auto-reverse on cassette, that would have been the icing on the cake for me.

*Noisy startup and shut down presumably due to mechanical parts, but does not affect performance in any way.

*The mechanical disk drawers feel very delicate and flimsy. I don't know how long this unit will last I bought a two year warranty for $20.00.

*Blasted red light is on 24/7 to tell you that the unit is plugged in. Annoying! Our DVD player has this too. Why? I think we can figure out that it is not plugged in when it does not turn on!

*A button on the unit is wasted on a demo feature. It is also the stop button still, the demo is useless. It would have been better used as a Play Mode button because Play Mode is very important and only found on the remote.

I've really been enjoying the great sound, one of the best sounds you can get in this price range!!

We purchased this unit for background music at our store about 800 square feet. It comes with a music port or mini jack that could connect to one of our computer for internet broadcast. The sound quality is satisfactory. It has all the features we are looking for, like MP3, music port and separated speakers. For the price, it worths every penny.

It was very easy to put together and takes up minimum space. However, the sound is not minimal and is great for my needs. I particularly like the equalizer for both my pop and classical music. The radio, with the antenna, has great sound with little static. The cd player is great for my needs; easy to play just one cd or the entire deck.

My only quibble is that it has a single cassette deck and is not auto reversible. But that's a small price for having a system with great sound.

Instruction book, as most books are, could use a little ironing out but I was able to get started and if you have set up a shelf system before, this should be a breeze. If you haven't set one up before, you should have no trouble.

Pros: Great sound from both CD's and tuner. This system plays both MP3 and WMA recorded discs. Has re-mastering for MP3 and WMA.

Cons: disc mechanism turns on every time you turn the stereo on, even if FM is pre-selected. Also You can only view the clock for a few seconds.

First, you cannot get a better sounding system for the price... especially at the price I got it for ($111.95 on November 15th, 2006 on Amazon). The tuner sounds especially good. Plenty of power. Keep in mind that speaker placement is ALWAYS of utmost importance to get the best sound reproduction. I have mine placed about six inches from the rear wall and 5 1/2 feet apart on top of my bedroom dresser. The speakers are Bass-Reflex design with ports in the rear... and are bi-amped. (seperate amplifiers for the woofers and the tweeters in this case).

The reason I chose this particular model is that it plays both MP3 and WMA discs burned on our computer. WMA gives much better sound quality than MP3 at 64 Kbps and therefore allows me to place more high quality musical recordings on ONE disc... enough for over 20 hours of music. Multiply that by five!

The only concern I have is that every time I turn the unit on, I can hear the CD mechanism engage, even though the FM tuner is what comes on. And when you turn it off, again you can hear the CD mechanism disengage. Aside from that minor concern, I wholeheartedly recommend this system!!

I recently bought this stereo for my living room. I'm very very satisfied. It was pretty easy to set up. The sound is also very wonderful. The bass and treble features are great too. 5 disc changer is a plus. I recommend this product to anyone who's looking for a good stereo.

*note- iPod users need to buy a line-in in order to plug their iPod into the
music port.

I looked at quite a few micro stereo systems before purchasing this one, and one of the overriding factors in my decision was the excellent reviews given it by other Amazon customers. I live in a studio apartment and this stereo fits perfectly on a bookshelf near my couch. It was very easy to set up. The sound is impeccable; I was able to tune in my favorite radio stations without even adjusting the antenna. It has all the power I need but sounds equally good with the volume turned low. When listening to an often-played CD by a jazz quartet, I heard for the first time one of the musicians humming softly to himself along with the music. I recommend the Panasonic SC-PM53 without reservation.

As a musician and avid audio enthusiast, I am quite particular about sound. I bought the Panasonic SC-PM53 as a nice upgrade for our master bedroom stereo but it really exceeded my expectations. The sound is far bigger and cleaner than most mini systems. The clarity is outstanding and the bass is better than most small speakers produce. Plenty of power for room filling sound if desired. The multi-disc CD player works efficiently and everything is controlled with a nicely designed remote. I listened to several other systems at local stores and nothing else came close in my opinion. Buy and enjoy!

I've had it for about 2 months already, and it has worked without any flaws. The only thing you have to be aware is to use good media to burn audio cds and MP3, because if not it will skip seconds while playing.

But other than that, sound is perfect and it has lots of power for it's size. You won't go wrong with Panasonic.

This system is being used in a small living room. The speakers are placed on a bookshelf and the unit itself is in a cabinet below, so I had to add some speaker wire. I am not a huge music critic, but friends have been impressed witih the sound from such an inexpensive unit.I am also very pleased about the great radio reception. (I am a fan of NPR). I had another system that I payed a little more for, and it didn't have near the quality of sound that this system has.