Price Paid:  $279.00 from circuit city

Summary:
Being obsessed with the quality of my music, but not having much money, this stereo system is perfect!! The equalizer settings the stereo has are great. If youre lazy there are many preset equalizers that range for any music taste, and if youre very picky, the manual equalizer settings allow for the best sound possible. The built in subwoofer can either add a subtle hint of bass, or a lot! The only problem is that the bass on high shakes the walls and floor. So live with people who enjoy bass and dont live in an apartment. I personally sat in the electronics store for over an hour with my cds and this one was definately the best quality I could find among its price range.

Strengths:
Lots of equalizer options, including manual setting of the equalizer.

Lots of oh so good bass quality. doesnt drown out music.

holds plenty of cd's (five to be exact)

sound doesnt distort at loud volumes, maintains high quality.

Perfect no matter how you enjoy your music.

Remote does everything but set the alarm for you.

Weaknesses:
The oh-so-good bass. People complain. If you can hear them.

fine tweaking the equalizer may require a college degree. or some intelligence.

doesnt have area where you can hook up another external subwoofer. if you required more bass that is.

remote doesnt set the alarm for you. you have to get off your butt and do it.

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
There are some systems for bass freaks and others for those who prefer picking out the subleties of a symphony -- this system is great for both uses, so it's ideal for someone who has eclectic musical tastes. There's a button just for boosting the base (three choices: OFF, MID, and MAX -- even at off, bass response is just fine). My favorite feature is the manual equalizer -- while not the absolute easiest in the world to use, it pays to fiddle around with it until you get the sound you want. Some have complained about the noisy disc changer (but it's only noisy when the discs are changing, so what's the big deal?). Overall, this is the perfect system if you like good sound, but you don't have enough room for a big setup.

Strengths:
Clear sound and strong bass (even with bass boost at off).
Manual equalizer lets you customize the sound.

Weaknesses:
Noisy disc changer.
Controls not the easiest to figure out for the more complex functions.