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This review has been independently written to provide some in-depth advice for consumers considering buying this product. It was originally published in the Buyer's Guide to DAB digital radio.
Panasonic is one of the world's leading consumer electronics companies, and the brand name and reputation for quality should give added confidence to potential buyers of this system.
Panasonic has played a significant role in the development of DAB digital radio over the years, but it wasn't until 2004 that it launched its first mass-market DAB digital radio products, led by this micro system and the RF-D1 mains and battery radio.
The first thing you notice about the Panasonic SC-EN9 micro system is the CD player, with its unusual 'Open/Close' mechanism which dominates the front panel.
The doors slide up and down in a suitably Star Trek manner to reveal the CD housing. This dramatic feature is in keeping with the design of this unit which some people in our office felt mixes 1980's retro with futuristic features.
This theme continues through to the top panel with its control buttons, red and blue function indicators, and LCD screen.
This micro system comes with three aerials, one each for digital radio, FM and medium wave. The digital radio aerial is a simple length of wire which, on the sample we were sent by Panasonic, worked remarkably well and picked up the full range of stations, all with crystal clear reception.
If you live in an area where reception is problematic it would be possible to add a more sophisticated aerial to improve the signal quality.
When the hi-fi system is first switched to digital radio it automatically scans for the available stations.
Once the scan is complete, you change stations either by pressing the double-arrow keys on the control panel at the top of the hi-fi unit itself or by using the equivalent controls on the system's remote control. The remote allows you to programme 20 presets for digital radio plus a further 20 FM channels and up to 12 medium wave stations.
The screen displays the name of the station, plus scrolling radio text. Using the 'Display' button on the remote control you can also access the traditional mix of technical information.
When the unit is switched off, the screen will continue to display a digital clock.
The hi-fi system can automatically update its time setting using information from the digital radio signal, but this function needs to be selected by using the remote to enter the menu and set the 'Auto Clock Adj' to 'Adjust On'.
The CD player has all the usual features and can play CDs and also MP3 files on CD-Rs and CD-RWs.
The Panasonic system comes with two speakers and, although these are shown adjacent to the main unit, they will provide a better stereo effect for CDs and radio if they're positioned with more space between them.
We had fun using the Panasonic hi-fi system. It's an assured debut from one of the world's biggest consumer electronics brands and, considering the size and price of the unit, the sound quality is impressive.
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| LIST OF FEATURES |
| CD Player |  |
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| Stereo speakers | |
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| Remote control | |
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| Headphones output | |
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| Audio out | |
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| Digital optical out | |
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| Pause | |
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| Alarm | |
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| Sleep timer | |
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| Displays time | |
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| EQ (equalisation) | |
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| Tone control | |
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| Presets | 52 |
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SWITCHED ON COMMENTS
"I was excited about seeing this micro system as I'm such a Panasonic fan. I've just had to throw away a really old Panasonic kitchen radio that's lasted me a very long time, and I would certainly be interested in replacing it. Having said that, I don't think I'd necessarily buy this particular product, as you have to wire the speakers in yourself. I can only imagine going to the trouble of doing something like that if the product was absolutely phenomenal. I think the display screen on this radio is quite good. I can just about read it without my glasses. The way the CD player opens scares me a bit - it's almost like entering the jaws of hell. Tuning is relatively simple once you know what you're doing and I like the fact that as soon as you've pushed the button the station tunes automatically, without you having to press an unnecessary 'Select' button. The look of the radio is OK, but unfortunately it's a bit of a dust trap, so all in all I'm not sure I'd be inclined to persevere with this one."
Gillian Reynolds, Radio Critic, Daily Telegraph
"The screen at the top of the Panasonic SC-EN9 is quite cool and I think the MP3 capability is a definite plus. The sound quality on this radio is also very good. You're provided with decent speakers and a fair amount of clout for the size. The radio has reasonable separation and a good depth of sound as well as a decent range of EQ settings. At first glance the radio looked quite straightforward, so I expected setting the presets to be a simple and straightforward process but it's not as intuitive as it could be. However, that's a minor moan as apart from that it's fairly easy to operate."
Quentin Cooper, Radio and TV science presenter
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