Home > Consumer Reviews > Aiwa XR-X7 Digital Audio CD Executive Microsystem

Aiwa has always had this problem where they make these amazing looking systems yet the sound of the system is horrible. I am very well trained when it comes to sound and have heard some of the best (Bose,Infinity,Jabo, Denon, etc.). Aiwa on the other hand, is more towards "I want something nice looking in my room." and it does a well job of doing that. The system is compact, easy to use, and looks just amazing. Its customizable in so many ways from the speaker grills to the color of the lcd screen. However, went it comes to sound, this product does not perform like an executive system should.
When I think of executive system, Im thinking of a top-quality hi-fi system in a small, convenient, and beautiful package. First of all, the speakers in this system are not even made of wood, they are made of plastic, which is the #1 enemy of sound. Also, there is NO bass at all. I put the bass all the way up on this system only to here a small "putt-putt" sound from the rear of the system. Not only is the bass too low, but the tweeters are too high. You can here EVERY SOUND, including the background hiss of the radio and the irritatingly high pitched vibrations of acoustic guitars.
If you want great sound, I would recommend any system by Panasonic. I have owned a panasonic micro system for 2 years now and I still love it. Talk about bass and treble, this thing is perfect. And its serious hi-fi too. Heres how you can tell: General electronic manufacturers such as JVC, Sony, RCA, Sharp, and so on always put some sort of cheap "EQ preset" into their system such as Rock or Jazz. Real systems only have treble and bass, the basic components of sound. If your executive system has this (some JVC systems do) I would say you made a good choice.

Looks great, runs great, easy on space, weak in the sound area. I haven't tried the separate bass speaker yet but it definitely needs help.

I like the EQ Surround sound which adds a lot of depth to the sound.

For my purposes I don't need a great sound so it fills my needs perfectly.

I am very impressed with the sound of the XR-X7. This unit offers contemporary styling, several features and crystal clear sound usually found on much more expensive systems. I would say if you are looking for a "kathump-kathump" sound then the XR-X7 is probably not for you. (There is a sub-woofer jack in the back of the unit if more bass is desired, I do not use it.) If you like clarity in your music with accurate bass, then you will love this unit. The unit sounds excellent with CD's but is most impressive with satellite radio. Corner placement really brings the subtleties and definition of the sound alive. I would have given the unit 5 stars except for one feature I felt was frivolous. I feel the screen color adjustment (12 of them) should be traded for a balance control.

My JVC finally [quit] on me and I thought I would try a new flavor. The Aiwa is pretty sharp looking, has lots of features and sounds excellent. I use it in my bedroom, and the sound more than fills the room. However, it comes with possibly the worst remote control in the world! It's about as big as a credit card (and about as thick). To get some of the functions to work, you have to press and hold down a shift button while picking the option (repeat, shuffle, sleep etc...). Pretty much impossible to do with one hand (unless you have six fingers). Because of the remotes rather diminutive size, there is a fear that it would break easily.
My only other gripe is that there isn't a dimmer on the display. You can change the colors, but you can't actually dim them. It may sound silly, but if you are using it in a bed room, the display can actually be pretty bright and somewhat of a pain in the [behind] when trying to sleep.
In summary. Excellent machine. [Terrible] remote control. If the remote were more thought out, I would have given the XR-X7 a 5 out of 5...

I found this little Aiwa Xr-X7 and figured it would be great. It has a crisp, clear sound and is great for a small room. I definitely recommend it to others. The surround sound is great because it brings out alot of unheard qualities in cd's.