Panasonic SC-PM27 Review

Overall Rating

5 CD changer, wonderful sound for the money, quality construction

No single track repeat, rather have a ferrite rod aerial for AM (loop antenna supplied), can't record to type II (metal) tapes

I listened to a dozen or more systems before getting the Panasonic SC-PM 27, which I chose for the unusual speaker design, after NOT being able to find anything I liked.

It was bought to replace a two-year-old, un-repairable Sony that cost twice as much. It's for a workroom, and the two sat side-by-side for a week or so. It took a few days to realize that the Panasonic sounded better than the Sony.

The speaker specs are 55 to 25K Hz, which explains it. That is really good for such small speakers, almost defying the laws of physics. To my ears the sound is even, without too much high or low bias. I heard things on familiar CDs that I hadn't heard before.

Supersound is a glorified loudness control - like loudness on steroids. I rarely use it, but it's good for recordings made from old LPs and the like, played at low volume level. There's a normal loudness setting, too (it's the closest to what I would set on a "real" stereo at low volume); there's also a setting with the highs reduced (which I never use), and one with both highs and lows reduced, which I use when I don't want to disturb anybody upstairs.

Who wouldn't set the clock? Takes 10 seconds; 1st thing one would do after plugging in - so I never found out that it wouldn't turn off without the clock being set. Not a real issue. Not sure that's right, either; I've used mine after a power cut with no problem.

Mine has been used all day, every day, since I got it last December, and it not only hasn't done anything odd, ever, (I haven't blocked off any vents), it plays my own and several other peoples' CD-Rs and CD-RWs just fine.

There's no extraneous noise on tape playback at all. Beats the Sony hands down there.

The radio pulls in a few more distant FM stations than the Sony.

The volume control reads in minus Db's, reading down from max volume. This is standard Panasonic; my son's older one is the same. They're just numbers. Not worth thinking about.

Compared the sound to big Altec-Lansings at brother-in-laws, and nice studio monitors at sister's. Beats the big speakers when they're badly placed.

I have one of my speakers on its side. They're 1/3 of the way in from the side walls of the room. Having the one on its side distributes the sound better; there's no concentrated stereo "sweet spot" - I can hear everything well as I move around my large workshop table.

Close one's eyes and this is very close to real Hi-Fi.