Product Review ~

Denon - F107DAB

(£250)

When it comes to those more established names in the audio you can't usually go too wrong. Denon being a prime example of this, and for good reason. They may have taken a step or two away from the analogue side of the hifi world in recent years, to focus on all that is digital, but they still offer a nice array of products that still give you plenty of bang for your buck.
So, some years back I was searching for a compact system that could, in essence, do it all... but on a budget - queue the F107DAB. This was the first decent system I bought and admittedly it was a bit of an impulse buy as my 30 year old handed down Aiwa amp bit the dust. Despite that, it was certainly ranks as one of my best impromptu purchases ever.

Relatively inexpensive for a quality (albeit) little system, the F107 ticked all the right boxes on paper at least - CD player, DAB radio, USB input, a couple of aux inputs and most importantly of all, an earthed moving magnet phono input. Not only is that a bit of a rarity to find on a modern system nowadays but its also a hell of a blessing if you're trying to stick to a budget and don't really want to fork out yet more cash 

for a phono preamp. So on top of the well renowned Denon name and a pretty sound list of features what else can you expect from this mini system? Well cracking build quality for a start. Yeah this should go without saying, but shopping around I have been unpleasantly surprised in the past. But rest assured you won't find any cheap shoddy plastic here. In fact it's all solid aluminium, from the casing to the knobs - all quality. Thats doesn't sound like too much of a compliment but it really should be. When sticking to a budget it's easy to start straying into your local electrical superstore and perusing the shelves and contemplating the purchase of something shoddy and predominantly manufactured from cheap plastic, it's just a false economy. Fork out just a few bucks more for something far and away better made, sounding and longer lasting and you will never regret it.

Sadly I don't believe this particular model is available in the US, but if you live in the EU and are in the market for a top notch quality little system for a fantastic price don't even contemplate looking else where! I really can't recommend a better or more versatile mini system. Plenty of punch and clarity of bass and all for a price that won't break the bank!

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