great sound - clean, simple design

Irritating flaw in the CD function

BE WARNED!. . .The aiwa xr-m55 has a flaw in the CD function. When using Direct Play (going directly to a specific song, instead of starting with song #1 and letting the CD play through to the end) the first half second of a track gets cut off. This was a painful discovery. I was careful to check this problem with multiple CD's and different songs whose beginnings I knew well. Each time the first half second or so was cut off. The fact that the xr-m55 sounds great and has a cool, clean design just makes the problem more frustrating.
Hoping that perhaps this was a unique imperfection, I returned the first unit for a new one. The same irritating problem occurred with the second unit. I returned that for a refund - my faith in Aiwa badly shaken.(I did my purchasing on-line.)
For you purists out there, I recommend avoiding the xr-m55 altogether. But if you're not bothered by having the familiar, pleasing start of a favorite song cut off - enjoy! The rest of the xr-m55 is great.

Similar Products Used:

none

Great sound, great radio reception, tape player, low distortion, can time-record from radio, and price

big, flashy, no snooze button, silver plastic horn on speaker

This is a great ultra-mini system. I originally purchased the RCA RP9150 because it was elegant, small, could play CD's when going off in the morning, and a nice replacement for the bedroom clock radio. However the sound was poor. I replaced it with the Aiwa and was quickly impressed. The Aiwa is quite a bit bigger than other ultra-mini systems, but that's where the great sound comes from. The speakers are 9 lbs each because they packed in three(!) speakers in the enclosure of a 2-way. It also contains a tape player, an excellent feature.

I thought the unit was too flashy for my tastes at first, but I gradually appreciated the selections. For instance the graphics that show up when selecting equalizations (ie Rock, Jazz, etc) are the frequency curves (no mention of this in the catalog).

The radio reception is phenomenal compared to other radios. I found the FM reception better without the antenna. The system's wires are typical thin mini-system wires and after moving it around to try out in different locations, one time there was a moderate buzz. The wires had to be readjusted to reduce interference and eliminate the buzz.

The distortion is rated at 1%, which means you can crank it to the limit and still get great sound, not bad especially considering the price of about $200. The CD player does cut off the first 1/2 second, though only when in program mode, so for anyone doing serious recording of songs not in sequential order, that's the systems one fault. Other than that, this system is an overachiever.

Similar Products Used:

RCA RP9150, Sony Minisystems

Sleek Design, Killer Sound, Good Radio Reception

I think that the AIWA XR-M55 is a great buy! It combines a sleek look like no other with great sound. The AIWA XR-M55 is about the best i've seen in a digital system so small... I have seen the prices for the system ranging from $177 up to $226... I would recommend this system to anyone who is looking for a stylish and good sounding system...

Similar Products Used:

SONY CFD-550, AIWA XR-M33

asthetics, ease of use

I am very pleased with this unit. An audiphile friend recomonded it and since it was the only affordable mini/micro system that didn't look like a Terry-Gilliam (sp?) creation (too many tacky flashing lights, displays etc.) I bought it. It has a classy look that one doesn't tire of. The sound quality is superb for the price.

Nice and small, Excelent sound, Kinda classy. Is simple to use one you get used to it, and It doesn't have a major light show every time you press a button, like some other systems. This product also has Analog and optical digital outputs for my MiniDisc, which I was very happy about.

If you skip songs on CD's, It cuts off the first second or two, which is kind of annoying if you know all the starts to the songs.

When I first saw this item, I thought it was kind of plain and ugly, but it grew on me, and now I really like the chrome, grey and wood combination, along with it's small size and classy look.
I Really like the optical and analog outputs for recording to Mini Disc. The look of the XR-M55 is simple and the remote also simple (It does't have a million buttons) Plus the display is small enough and can be dimmed so my room feel like a light show at night.
When I purchased the product, and then did a search on the web and saw that people bought this item at prices ranging from $99.00 to $200.00, I practally had a heart attack and returned the item, as I had paid (after taxes and warrenty) $400. But, when I calmed down enough and figured out the american amount, plus took off the amount for a 5 year warrenty and the 14% tax (awful amount, isn't it?)I paid about $174 american base price.

I bought the Xr-M55 thinking of two major characteristics: Lots of power in an ultra mini, and inexpensive(I knew that most AIWA systems had incredible sound quality, and so the search for the best sound was not a factor in my judgement). Being the college student that I am in need of a good system for everyday listening and an occasional "bumping" for a party, I was impressed at the amount of punch I got from the compact Xr-M55 by AIWA. The built-in subwoofer was more than enough to wake your neighbors. It looked good on my dresser too. haha. But the only criticism I can really make of it, is the lack of support for surround speakers. So if in fact you wanted to hook two more speakers into the XR-M55, you'd just have to do that via a receiver through TV/Video. But anyhow, for $189, it's a pretty good deal so I guess you can't expect too much.

Strikingly good looks, Good sound for its size.
Has a handful of useful, extra features.
VERY well built overall; system weighs 30 lbs.

The bass is not what I thought it would be, considering it has a seperate amp for the subwoofers.

What originally caught my attention was how attractive it was. Almost all the mini/ultra mini systems I have seen are just plain ugly (lots of silver plastic and oversized black fabric speaker covers, not to mention the displays that look more like video games than a stereo system).
Once out of the box and conneted, this little system started to impress me even more. The sound is excellent, although the bass won't rattle the windows. I was a bit let down by this. I expected the bass to be a bit more "prolific" given the fact that each speaker has 2 connection points on the back on the main unit; one for the midrange and tweeter, and one for the woofer/sub-woofer (each connection has a seperate amplifier).
The front panel is well designed and simple. The display isn't cluttered with useless gamelike "animation" like I have seen on so many other units. I might also add that the cassette player/recorder has full logic controls.
One feature that I really find useful is the alarm clock.
You can set it to play any particular radio station you'd like, or a CD. You can also set it to record from the radio to cassette at a preset time, then turn off. There is another feature that will calculate the length of a CD then rearrange the tracks so they will all fit onto a cassette ( you have to tell the unit the time-length of the cassette though).
Overall, this is an excellent "little" system. The price is also another strong selling point. I have seen a price range of $169 to $199.

Nice sound, typical of the other reviews.

Terrible buzzing sound from transformer/power supply.

Very similar to the others. Nice sound looks nice. Terrible buzzing sound from power supply.
Another weakness: difficulty in changing tracks/radio stations without the remote.

Similar Products Used:

sanyo, sony, technics

Relatively small - good remote - many features

no noise reduction on tape player

Got this unit to stick in the corner of computer room, and hooked the computer output to it through one of two input jacks. Excellent way to listen to MP3's, etc. Find the remote to be small and useful. Can access and change most features from it. Good sound quality at all volumes. Modest but adequate bass for a unit this size. Speaker connection seems unduly detailed, and the effect of having seperate subwoofer system not clear. Does not appear to play computer recorded .wav files, or other CD-R formats. Good radion reception in both AM and FM modes, and easy to change bands and channels from the remote. Have not been bothered by the delay in the playback when shifting CD tracks with direct mode that some other reviewers have reported. I am either not attuned to it, or my unit does not do this.

Similar Products Used:

Panasonic PM03

good looks, fair price, features

lack of expansion options

the AIWA M55 is a great system if you're
looking for a small system to put on
your study desk or bedshelf. the sound
quality is very good for its price,
although it lacks expansion options.
but hey, if you're after expansions
you should be looking at rack systems
to begin with! ;)
not to mention that it looks great with
my wooden study desk.