above average sound quality for a mini and good volume without distortion

Horrendous cd changer design, which ultimately failed.

Take this with a grain of salt, as I'm only posting now because this is the first problem I've had with my DM50 which I've had for nearly 4 years. For a mini system it sounds fine, the cd playback and radio are good. I've also got the Mini-disc recorder which works well. I would recommend using a subwoofer with it. I would not buy this product again though. The cd changer is the main problem. It is a very bad design, makes an awful racket(the marbles description is entirely accurate)and takes a long time to switch discs. From the day I received it I've been worried the the mechanism would break and it finally has. About a year after I bought it the machine seemed to develop a mind of its own and saw fit to eject the cd tray whenever it was powered down. It would close again after it was turned on and then off. Now it has completely given up and jammed. It won't open or change discs. I'll be sending it in for repair if the cost is not prohibitive. The other drawback is that the remote control and functions of the display are not very intuitive. In conclusion, the sound quality is good, but the mechanical design is poor, in general I think cd-changers are delicate contraptions, this design being exceptionally poor, I think you are better off with a single disc player and I won't ever purchase another changer.

Unit looks great and, for the size, sounds great. Possibly the best small system in its range.

Would prefer simpler remote. Had to have unit serviced several times under warranty despite not using it often (not main system). Unit deep enough it can be hard to position,

Great sound for a small package. Main unit is rather long with protruding power supply. Reliability and warranty service a problem. CD player noisy and slow.

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Proton and Nakamichi for small stereo systems.

Good sound quality for the size. Compact.

Would prefer slightly better speakers. Reliability and warranty service is terrible.

I purchased this for my kitchen, because of its small size and sound quality. I use Mission 731i speakers in my study, but have never owned Denon equipment before. Unfortunately, when the unit arrived, the cd player did not work. I returned the unit for servicing, under warranty, but the cd player broke after one week. I am returning for further warranty service, but am not optimistic. My one star review reflects the fact that the unit does not work after warranty service.

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No mini systems - my living room, bedroom and study systems include Adcom, proton, Yamaha, Spica, Mission, Monitor Audio, Kyocera, Thorens, Sony and Nakamichi equipment, with mostly tributaries cable.

Clean, open, well defined and articulated sound. Looks nice and is very small. Good RDS features too.

Noisy CD changer, little buttons feel a bit flimsy.

I'm very impressed with this unit so far (bought today and spent all evening listening to it!). I agree about the noisy CD changer, which is a pity, but as long as it works properly I don't mind. I haven't noticed the hum that some people have criticised the M30 for, and I guess it could be true what one guy mentioned, about filtered sockets and being sensible about the power supply. I'm using a pair of Eltax Liberty 5+ speakers, and the sound absolutely beats the pants of a Sony SP55MD - no comparison whatsoever. This combination gives a clean, open sound which is really well balanced and very well articulated, certainly in comparison with the Sony, which (particularly with the supplied speakers) is absurdly bass/vocal tuned, to such a degree that a lot of midrange detail is almost inaudible. I got the Sony for its MiniDisc player; now I'm going to have to look out for a bargain matching Denon player for this! The Sony was at least a bargain (£350 including MD and cassette), but the sound of it irritated me, whereas this Denon setup is more comparable to my Cyrus SL/Cambridge Audio D500/TDL RTL 3. Highly recommended if you want decent audio in a tiny and quite stylish box, though the power supply at the back looks like they forgot they had to put it on! Those little buttons look like they might break off one day, too ...

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Sony SP55MD

Superb sound for a unit this size and price. Looks and feels classy too!

Noisy disc changer.

A beautiful little system, great if space is at a premium. I've got it driving B&W DM303 speakers through decent Kef cable and am delighted with the result. Although it's never going to match a decent set of quality seperates it puts on a fast and cohesive performance and you do get a real taste of high fidelity sound - as you'd expect from a manufacturer like Denon. The 3 disc changer is a little clanky when loading and swapping discs owing to the unusual one-draw-does-it-all design, but it seems a small price to pay for such a great value system which oozes great build quality in every other respect. I can't recommend this product enough, so it gets full marks from me!

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Panasonic, Sony systems

Elegant,clean shoebox shaped design with brushed aluminum finish. Rich, warm sound. Not too harsh, or bright. Nice display that lets you label the stations with alpha-numeric descriptors.

Very loud and noisy CD changer...sounds like a bunch of marbles rattling around in there. No balance control that I've been able to figure out. Complex remote. Would like to see more mini-systems available in more traditional dimensions such as the NAD L40.

Overall a nice unit that really gives the living room a full rich sound with tone controls set flat. This unit will produce very loud listening levels, without audible distortion, and I have not had it "wide open" yet. These systems do not come with speakers in Canada and I paid $424 CDN for it. I put a set of Mirage FRX1 and a Mirage FRXs-8 subwoofer with it. These speakers sounded much better than the Polk Audio speakers the system was initially displayed with (forget the model #). This system/speaker combination will give more than enough bass if you want it. I have the crossover set at about 60 HZ and the level control to about 7...just enough to fill out the low end. The speakers by thenmselves have really good bass response for a 5.25" driver. If you want good sound from a small unit and are willing to spend a little more I recommend this package. The first time we fired this system up it we played "Midnight Hour" by The Committments and it sent chills down my spine it sounded so good. I recommend it.

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Listened to NAD L40 (would hve preferred that but they retail for $800 in high end audio stores). Yamaha Pianocraft system...very harsh sounding.

Beautiful Looks; seems very durable; very strong bass; simplistic design, minimalist; nice speakers; great sounding headphone jack; overall beautiful sound (full, rich); plenty of outputs/inputs for future expansion

Remote is a bit overkill for features on basic DM-50S if you don't have the extra components; loud CD changer

This is a GREAT little system! I have no complaints about the sound at all, but rather praise. It is clear, precise, and very full. Huge sound in a small package! Even a full bass end; there is no reason to have a subwoofer unless you like LOUD bass.
Takes a while to get the speaker positions worked out to get the most out of the unit, although they'll sound good wherever you put them. This system can get VERY loud and will easily fill any sized room with quality sound-- so don't let the 60Watt rating fool you.
The looks are pretty classy. The new mission speakers are really nice looking and great to display. The minimalist design is truly more, without the gaudy and tacky graphics on systems that haven't half the sound as this unit. Even a huge Sony system, for the same price, that had 5 or 6 speakers with it didn't sound near as nice as this unit.
The remote has been modified since past years and now includes a pause button. It also has buttons to control every possible function of the compatible cassette player, minidisc recorder, and cd recorder, which is only nice if you are using these components. Otherwise, it is a bit much and only makes the remote oversized. The remote is very light, however.
I got a good price on mine, but being a college student it was still quite expensive for me. But i'm glad I made the purchase, as this is a great system. But definitely shop around.. there is no reason to pay the 599 dollar retail!
I also find Yamaha's Pianocraft systems to be comparable as far as sound quality. It was the looks of a system that made me choose Denon-- but both sound great, though! If you are looking for quality sound in a small, economical package, I suggest looking at either.
In my opinion, it deserves 5 stars in both value and overall!

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tested Yamaha Pianocraft, and many other shelf systems.