I bought this wonderful Marantz from ebay! This is the greatest cd changer + cassette deck I have ever had in my life! It is made so nice! If you buy one like this you won't feel sorry!

~ Mic inputs. ~ Combo unit saves space/inputs ~ Has option for XLR inputs and remote control, but I never got around to getting them. ~ Pitch control. ~ Reliable.

~ Not the last word in SQ, but very acceptable.

This has been a very reliable and good sounding unit for my purposes. I bought it for the mic inputs as a recording/playback deck for band practice, (I'm a drummer). I use an Audio Techica AT822 stereo mic and it works great with the PMD-350. (Hint: if you record live from the mic inputs, use metal tapes if possible - the sound is much more dynamic and clean with wider frequency response.) The combined tape+CD outputs are handy, because it saves an input on your pre-amp, and keeps you from having to switch between the two sources at the pre-amp. Also the CD pitch control is nice when you want to change the speed or pitch when learning a song. Sound quality overall is good, though I wouldn't say it equals my Rotel RCD-865BX CD player or Sony TC-K679ES cassette in audiophile terms. The Rotel is more weighty in the bass with more extention, and is not as grainy in the mids/highs. The Sony ES deck just sounds more accurate and more like the source you recorded from than the Marantz, but the Sony is a 3-head/3-motor unit with bias calibration, so I would expect it to sound better. The rest of the features all worked well, so I can't complain there. Overall, a very flexible and dependable unit with good (not great) sonics. *3.5 Overall Rating (right between 'average" to "very good" product. *3.85 Value Rating, (pretty "fair", but not "great" deal).