32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
This is an amazing deal!
This is a very nice unit. And I'm very impressed by the quality of this system for the price. It looks/sounds like something that would cost at lest twice as much. What really sold me on this model was the front panel USB and line in mini jack ports . The USB function works flawlessly. What is a really nice feature is that when you plug in a USB flash drive (the manual...
14 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
Not what I expected from Denon
My wife and I purchased this Denon as a second system to complement a small Denon stereo system we purchased in 1996. Our original system has been bombproof over the years and delivers incredible sound...the newer system has the same look and feel (plenty of heft in the construction)but the speakers have delivered a crackling sound as soon as the volume is turned up to...
This review is from: Denon D-M37 - Micro system - radio / CD / MP3 / USB audio player - black
This is a very nice unit. And I'm very impressed by the quality of this system for the price. It looks/sounds like something that would cost at lest twice as much. What really sold me on this model was the front panel USB and line in mini jack ports . The USB function works flawlessly. What is a really nice feature is that when you plug in a USB flash drive (the manual says you can even use a powered HD if you want) the devise automatically switches over to USB. Same when you plug in headphones. The front display tells you that you just plugged in headphones and turns off the speakers.
The speakers are very well built and sound very good for their size. The whole unit just screams quality. I've had systems in this price range before and they where cheap looking and didn't sound good. But Denon knows what they're doing when it comes to making quality products.
The remote is laid out nicely, with the volume buttons nice and big so they're easy to find if you're in a dark room.
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This review is from: Denon D-M37 - Micro system - radio / CD / MP3 / USB audio player - black
I tested every single shelf system at Fry's, which included the yamahas, sonys, Onkyo, and Denon. The D-M37 beat every other hands down. Yes it's a bit expensive, but it sounds fantastic and it isn't something you'll just easily replace. Don't think of it as some cheap version of something better, it really is an outstanding unit. Anyone who is looking for a shelf system, I'd recommend buying this over any other. The Onkyos especially didn't sound as good.
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This review is from: Denon D-M37 - Micro system - radio / CD / MP3 / USB audio player - black
Oh boy, the last time I had a bookshelf size stereo was in college roughly 40 years ago. I've had a large , I do mean large, stereo since since...several in fact with the huge speakers etc. It's nice to still be able to buy a "stereo". I bought this one for my study. Yes, I really have a separate room set up filled with books, CDs, DVDs, more books, and my microscope. It's an average size bedroom. Looks kinda like my bedroom when I was 19 except the music was on vinyl, there was no computer but you'd have found coding forms and punched card decks, and a few of the same books I still own.
This unit is just perfect for the room. It appears very well made. For the money it's amazing. I don't have a MP3 portable yet.....just a lot of CDs. I'm old....60 this fall. What do I listen to? Well, I tested it out with some Cheap Trick, Green Day, and Beethoven and then added a dash of Alice Cooper. Yah, I know, incomprehensible to some of you much younger. The reason I don't have an MP3 player is that I tried the technology out way early ( one of the first users like I was with CDs.) Problem is that while the first CDs were fantastic the first MP3s were not due to sampling deficiencies. I am sure when I finally get some kind of player the USB on this small Denon will work just fine.
( Yes, I know MP3s are supposedly as good as Cds now. That's certainly true given my chopped hearing range LOL. )
Now, this is a small unit that performs very well even at high volume. I have a few small gripes but gave this 5 stars anyway. Why? Uh, price. I mean....it's very low for what you get.
It would be nice if there was a bit more adjustability in bass and treble. ( I'm so old I actually looked for "knobs" LOL ha ha .) I can't find a balance control and that would be nice but is not absolutely necessary. The stamped and formed metal case looks a bit cheap if you put the unit somewhere it will be in view. So what? The front panel is nice.
The speakers are about what I was buying 30 years ago.....back then they were brand new technology. They have the high freq dome tweeter and rubber mounted woofers....nice. plus the air escape in the back...compensation or something like that. Nice. The speakers appear to be wrapped in wood grain black vinyl. I would wish for painted wood but so what? It does not matter.
The AM/FM work just fine as well. So there you go....it's still possible to buy something called a stereo....an old guy like me would be more comfortable with base , treble , and balance knobs but so what......I'm going to try to patch in a graphic equalizer using the analog I/O....not sure if it will work. I would like more control over freq spectrum....but.....fact is my hearing is probably about 500-12000 now if I'm lucky ( all those loud concerts etc not to mention a 396 or two or three....us boomers are such a trip ). Eh? what's that? Don't know what a "396" is? Well, it wasted a lot of gasoline but we loved em.
Do I think you should buy one of these? Uh, yah, it will probably sound even better to you esp . if you're younger. Remember....that old white haired guy in the checkout line in front of you....he's not listening to Frank Sinatra on his headphones......I'm gonna rock till I drop. ( total loss of hearing is not a problem cause then I'll just turn it up really loud and apply the fingertips to the speaker enclosure.......well, think I'll go back and listen to "House Of Fire" again.....
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This review is from: Denon D-M37 - Micro system - radio / CD / MP3 / USB audio player - black
Let me tell you, finding a good unit to play your favorite records is not easy. I started my search with a trip to BestBuy. Pretty disappointing considering the fact that they don't carry any moderately or high priced units anymore. I had to choose between Insignia (plays dvd) and Sony CMTBX-20i micro systems. 20 min of tests gave me enough to make up my mind, and I left the store with the Sony. The sound is quite pleasant however I was not getting as much as from previously owned $500 Aiwa. The suitable candidaes for an upgrade were Onkyo 325, Denon m37 and Yamaha MCR-730. I had a chance to test all of them except Yamaha. So here is some thoughts from listening same records with CMTBX-20i, Denon M37 and Onkyo. In my opinion, all of the included speakers are poor compared to what the systems are capable of, so the tests where run using a pair of Sony SS-B1000 speakers.
Sony - nice pleasant sound, a bit noisy on the high freq end, a slight touch of bass, very pleasant, relaxing sound. Some mid range is missing, and there is very slight distortion in sound, not enough though to turn your back o this unit. I'd probably choose Sony over Denon when Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker is on for the musicality even if clarity is not there.
Onkyo CS-325 - sound is great in the high range, but the absence of low freqs and mid freqs was very disappointing. The high range though is very good, Some songs from Metallica reminded of those days when I has high end receiver. Classical music is smooth but absolutely non-realistic due to lack of mids and lows. The available adjustment for bass can not correct the problem, treble could be adjusted slightly, however +2 and +3 adds also noise, so this settings would not be practical. After listening to it for 4 hrs I packed it. Onkyo goes back to the store.
Denon M37 - sound is exceptionally pure. However, mid range is overwhelming. You can't hear as much polishing with high tsk sound and low booms as from Sony. As a consequence, jazz, disco, heavy metal sounds similar - unlike you expectation that different parts of sound spectra would be accentuated. The highs sound a bit metallic. I have a feeling that the designers simply decided to eliminate "difficult" parts of spectra where they could not meet specs. All the sound which is present is very very clear. Crank up the volume, and the quality of sound does not change a bit! FM Radio, AUX1 line from iPod and CDs play very nice, no noticeable noise. No equalizer is available, otherwise I'd just try to subdue the overpowering mid range, and would give the system 5 star rating. Tremble and bass adjustment does little and also affects the low and high sides of the mids, so not very helpful. Plenty of power, from what others mention, you can crank volume to 45 units. and I never turned it to more than 15. And this is with 8Ohm external speakers, which are not as loud as native 6Ohm speakers. It will certainly fill your room with good sound. I also enjoy the remote. You can point it any direction and it does the job. There is a numeric pad, so you can choose the track you like, or FM station (you don't have this in Sony stereo, where the presets are selected only with 'next' or 'prev' button). One of the reviewers noticed the mechanical noise from Denon when the CD is playing. I can assure you that absolutely same amount comes from the Onkyo system. I didn't noticed any troubling high pitch sound from Denon when SDB boost is on. Overall very consistent unit for what it is.
Build quality was was not a key factor in my evaluation, however I would rate 5+ the Denon, 4 Onkyo and 4-4- for Sony. Denon's brushed aluminum front panel looks truly attractive, Onkyo looked a bit toyish with the blue light on the volume control and somewhat too bright display (though I am sure some will like it!), the biggest disadvantage of Sony is the button (+ -) control of the volume.
For now, I decided to keep Sony for casual listening at late evenings and integrated iPod dock, and Denon for clear undestorted sound and good looks. I hope some day I will be able to replace them both with s single great sounding unit (Yamaha MCR-730 ???). If this happens, I'll let you know!
P.S. My brother visited me recently and was quite impressed by my M37 system. At home he listens to audio system which is worth more than $3K, so the compliment probably means something. I also tested USB port, the sound is way better compared to Ipod dock connection (I use Kensington docking station). After almost 1 month of tests, I say buy this stereo, it's very well worth the money!
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This review is from: Denon D-M37 - Micro system - radio / CD / MP3 / USB audio player - black
I purchased this product along with the Denon i-Pod docking station. The good part is that I am VERY pleased with the sound quality, the simplicity and the look of this compact but powerful unit. It fits great on my small bookshelf. I saw one review discussing crackling sound but I have not had any such problems with my Denon. I have had the stereo for 2 weeks now. I had originally purchased a Sony shelf system that was a touch too big for the space I had. I returned the Sony and bought the Denon. The Sony was half the price and had the i-Pod docking station in the actual unit which was all nice, but the sound quality and power was nothing close to Denon's. I am glad I was forced to return the Sony. The only thing I don't like about the Denon system is the additional i-pod docking station I purchased. It is cumbersome on the remote to control the ipod. I find it easier to go up to the i-pod and choose my desired song/album directly from the ipod rather than using the remote. Because I primarily listen to my ipod on the Denon this is a bit of a drag. Otherwise I am very satisfied!
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This review is from: Denon D-M37 - Micro system - radio / CD / MP3 / USB audio player - black
This is a wonderful system . Quality in every way . I don't know much , but,at the age of 62 I know quality when I hear it , see it and feel it. This is a terrific buy at twice the price . I'm not a tech type nor an audiophile . I set this up in less than ten minutes and the sound is wonderful . All that remains for me to do is connect a stand alone multi disc cd player . I think I can do that , but never the less the cd player in this unit is just great too. I highly recomend this product .
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This review is from: Denon D-M37 - Micro system - radio / CD / MP3 / USB audio player - black
I bought this system for my wife last year for Christmas and we both love it. The first thing she did after I set it up was put in a Metallica cd and crank it up! We were both amazed at how well it sounded! No subwoofer and stock speaker wires and the system sounded great!!
We play mostly cds and cdrs and listen to the radio and have never had a problem with the system. I've used the usb port too and that works great also. The only drawback that I see is that it's not compatable with wav and flac files.
Bottom line: if you're looking for a compact stereo system, this is the one to go with! Ignore the 2 and 3 star reviews those people are clueless!! The 5 star reviews are much more accurate!!
Our Denon D-M37 rocks and we love it!!!
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This review is from: Denon D-M37 - Micro system - radio / CD / MP3 / USB audio player - black
I think that your enjoyment of this system will depend largely on your expectations, and mine were too high. However, my initial disappointment has faded considerably.
The Denon D-M37 is a unique system - it has features and functions generally not found on micro stereos. This coupled with the good reviews I read here and elsewhere, and my positive experience with other Denon products led me to pull the trigger on this purchase. I was looking to replace an old friend - a JVC "boom box" that lived in my garage-turned-workshop where I spend a lot of time listening to music and NPR radio while I tinker around with home handyman projects. The JVC finally gave out after many years of use and abuse. The "abuse" part refers to cranking up the volume to it's tolerable limit on a frequent basis - something apparently some of us never grow out of. And my relatively cheapo JVC served this purpose surprisingly well. So when it came time to replace it I figured I would kick it up a notch and the Denon D-M37 seemed to fit the bill nicely. In fact it was the only system that I seriously considered. The available boom boxes that I auditioned at the local retailers were not up to the quality of my old JVC. They might have had larger speakers than than a micro stereo, but they seemed more geared towards making a visual impression on teenagers than a listening impression on a discerning adult. None of them packed any real punch. And most other micro or "bookshelf" systems were better quality than the boom boxes but clearly never intended to be cranked up. The Yamaha micro receivers are fairly well reviewed but I was turned off either by price, size or feature set. The Denon D-M37 appeared to be just what I was looking for. When it arrived I was excited to see how it would sound. It was a huge disappointment.
Another reviewer (not on Amazon) summed it up perfectly for me... "No depth or feeling of involvement with the music". To my ear it was harsh and fatiguing at anything over background listening volume. Not distorted so much as kind of shrill, thin and generally unpleasant. I figured, maybe Denon makes good amps but they are behind the curve when it comes to speakers. Or maybe this was simply a misstep by them.
I wrote a "thumbs down" review here and considered returning the system. I deleted the review the next day. It occurred to me that to be fair I needed to let the speakers break in. High quality speakers are supposed to be a little "stiff" out of the box and loosen up over time. The sound generally becomes more pleasing or "warm" as they break in. So I kept the system thinking if the speakers didn't improve substantially I would buy better speakers or maybe a subwoofer. I still liked the amp very much and doubted it was the weak link. Denon makes good amps.
I'm happy to say that the sound did improve remarkably over the next few weeks. The bottom started to fill in and the top became less shrill. Based on this I think most listeners would be pleased with this purchase so long as you don't have the desire to push the volume as I do. Because at higher volumes the Denon D-M37 continued to be fatiguing to the ear in my experience. Not nearly as bad as before, but still not satisfying - and ultimately annoying - at least to me. While the Denon unmistakably has more clarity than my old JVC, it still lacked the overall warmth and balance that I had become accustomed to. A trade-off, perhaps, by Denon's engineers to favor crispness and clarity over wall-of-sound immersion - a trade-off that would be appreciated by a more sophisticated ear than mine listening at more sensible volumes.
So after much hand-wringing I took the plunge and purchased a small subwoofer. Velodyne MicroVee 6.5-Inch Powered Subwoofer (Black) is the one I wanted :-). Velodyne ImpactMini Powered Subwoofer - Small (Black) is the one I purchased. The Denon D-M37 has a line-level sub-out. Or, if you prefer, it has "real" speaker wire posts that would allow you to connect the system to a subwoofer using the speaker-level option. My JVC boom box couldn't do that either way. (BTW -The sub cost me 200 bucks. At the time of this writing you can buy it "used" on Amazon from an outside retailer. It's under full warranty. And it shipped fast and for free. And here's a secret - it's not used. They have to say that to price it so cheap. It says one available but this didn't change when I bought mine!)
I wasn't sure if adding a sub would give me the result I was hoping for but it actually exceeded my expectations. I flattened the bass setting on the amp and set the low-pass filter on the sub fairly high - about 120 - so the subwoofer would help fill out the middle as well as the bottom. Simply put - it sounds amazing. Now I have it all - clarity, warmth, tight bass, and all in balance at the volume I desire. With the subwoofer you could easily party with this set-up in an average-sized living room. And with the subwoofer it gets 5/5 stars. Total cost of 500 bucks, but worth it in my estimation. Three times the cost of my old boom box and easily twice the sound and features (there is, after all, a law of diminishing returns when spending money on audio equipment). Plus it looks cool. In addition to being a good sonic match, the Velodyne Imact Mini is a perfect aesthetic match to the D-M37.
I rarely use the included remote but agree with the other reviewers that it's less than intuitive. The remote is handy for the volume and mute functions and, of course, it works well for that. And I have my iPod connected to the aux inputs as opposed to the optional Ipod controller that Denon sells. Some reviewers have poo-pooed the remote with respect to accessing the iPod functions, which is the whole point of having the iPod controller. I would suggest if you are considering this system skip the iPod integration and spring for a subwoofer instead. More bang for the buck.
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This review is from: Denon D-M37 - Micro system - radio / CD / MP3 / USB audio player - black
The wife wanted a stereo system for the living room- She got an IPOD for Christmas and wanted a system for her new IPOD. She had heard the Bose Wave system at a friends house and was convinced the the Bose was the way to go. Before shelling out those big bucks, we went to Frys to hear what other systems they had. The geeky salesman showed us the Denon and we liked it and bought it, thinking if it didn't sound as good at home, or wasn't loud enough for the living room, we could return it and get the Bose.
Well, quite simply, we love it. we spent the extra dough for the IPOD dock, set it up in minutes, and she has played it every day. I would say the system is plenty loud enough for just about any room in your home, and the quality of the sound is great. We have the smallish looking speakers set atop a full height cabinet, and still the base sounds powerful. Clear, clean tone all around.
Easy setup, great sound, plenty of volume, easy to use, highly recommended.
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This review is from: Denon D-M37 - Micro system - radio / CD / MP3 / USB audio player - black
My wife and I purchased this Denon as a second system to complement a small Denon stereo system we purchased in 1996. Our original system has been bombproof over the years and delivers incredible sound...the newer system has the same look and feel (plenty of heft in the construction)but the speakers have delivered a crackling sound as soon as the volume is turned up to anything above volume #15 on the receiver which isn't very loud at all. We've never "cranked" this stereo ourselves so we'll be in contact with the seller soon. I'm just glad we saved our original packaging.
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