Denon DM30S Executive Microsystem

Rating:
Summary: Excellent sound from a small unit
Review: I was choosing between Panasonic, JBL and Sony bookshelf units, each of which sounded good, and was doing a "pro and con" discussion with myself regarding those units when I heard another customer testing the Denon DM30S at the end of the aisle... It caught my attention because of its extremely clear, crisp well balanced sound from the excellent Mission speakers. I had never heard much about Denon, and it was about 50 bucks more than the units I was considering, but the sound was so much better that I could no longer consider the other units. I did some web research and found it to be a very well thought of unit, so plunked down the money and took it home. Unpacking it, I found an excellent instruction manual, and with the champagne colored chassis and natural wood colored speakers, I find it very attractive. The overall "look and feel" is high quality with excellent construction in both the receiver and the speakers. While it will not blast the walls out of a large room, it retains its clarity up to rock concert sound levels in a 15 x 15 office, frequent testing of which might be a problem with coworkers :)

The only thing I would suggest to Denon is that they send someone to Remote Control Design school. The remote is an attractive, finely crafted unit, but the controls are not particularly intuitive, and it does not have a mute button... Not that this was a deal breaker, just an annoyance. (I later purchased a Denon A/V receiver and its remote's design is equally befuddling).

Rating:
Summary: Excellent sound from a small unit
Review: I was choosing between Panasonic, JBL and Sony bookshelf units, each of which sounded good, and was doing a "pro and con" discussion with myself regarding those units when I heard another customer testing the Denon DM30S at the end of the aisle... It caught my attention because of its extremely clear, crisp well balanced sound from the excellent Mission speakers. I had never heard much about Denon, and it was about 50 bucks more than the units I was considering, but the sound was so much better that I could no longer consider the other units. I did some web research and found it to be a very well thought of unit, so plunked down the money and took it home. Unpacking it, I found an excellent instruction manual, and with the champagne colored chassis and natural wood colored speakers, I find it very attractive. The overall "look and feel" is high quality with excellent construction in both the receiver and the speakers. While it will not blast the walls out of a large room, it retains its clarity up to rock concert sound levels in a 15 x 15 office, frequent testing of which might be a problem with coworkers :)

The only thing I would suggest to Denon is that they send someone to Remote Control Design school. The remote is an attractive, finely crafted unit, but the controls are not particularly intuitive, and it does not have a mute button... Not that this was a deal breaker, just an annoyance. (I later purchased a Denon A/V receiver and its remote's design is equally befuddling).