There is a wide variety of mini-systems available in the market. When you shop for a music system, the choices among features can seem overwhelming. We’ve summarised the most important ones here. You’ll save time and money by spending a few minutes here before you make your choice. Now select your music system according to criteria which you think is most important according to you and your needs. Click on any label below to learn more.

Type and Number of Speakers

All mini systems are equipped with at least two main speakers. Mini systems may include four, five, or seven separate speakers. The speaker system refers to the number of cones used in each of the two main speakers. Full-range speakers use one cone.  Two-way speaker's crossover splits the frequency band into two ranges using a wide range woofer for low and middle frequencies. Bass frequencies go to the woofer, and treble frequencies go to the tweeter. In a three-way speaker system, the frequency band is divided into three ranges, here a separate midrange driver is added. The middle frequencies are sent  the midrange.
 

Sound Output Power (in watts per channel)

The power, in watts per channel, is a measure of how much energy per second a mini system is capable of sending to each speaker.  Many manufacturers in India state the PMPO power output rather than the RMS output which is a more realistic measure. Choose a system with a high power output if you intend to use it for parties. Also near the peak power output the sound tends to get distorted.
 

Disc Capacity

The number of discs a mini system is capable of holding at one time.
Most mini systems can hold 1, 3, or 5 discs. A multi-disc changer allows you to keep all your favourite CDs loaded and keeps your music flowing non-stop. Most movies span more than one VCD, so having a multi disc changer means you can watch the movie uninterrupted. For parties you can also program a selection of "greatest hits" from your collection. : If you're the type of person who rarely listens to more than a single CD or a few songs at time, a single-CD player may be all you need. But we've found that most people opt for changers. They provide hours of uninterrupted music, and make it easy to program music for parties, or to record custom "greatest hits" MDs, CD-R's or tapes with songs from several CDs.
 

Video Compact Disc (VCD)

A Video Compact Disc or VCD is a compact disc that plays movies instead of music it is in multi-platform format which means you can use many different kinds of equipment to play them VCD's look exactly like a CD or CD-ROM except that it stores video/audio clips. A single disc can only hold 74 minutes of video. So a typical movie will be held in two compact discs. VCD has gained a lot of popularity since

• The picture and sound does not deteriorate with time,
• VCD's and VCD players are more affordable as compared to DVD's and Laser Discs.
• Allow Random Access for quick search
• VCD's are multi-platform,
• Multiple audio/voice tracks for multilingual support.
• Its the exact size of your regular CDs and its so much easier to store compared to VHS.

Dolby Pro Logic/Surround Sound

A mini system with Dolby pro logic surround sound uses four channels to send sound to the left, right, and centre speakers along with two surround sound speakers that share a single channel. Dolby pro logic produces superb surround sound and ambient effects. Other systems with surround sound

 

Number of Cassette Decks

Most mini systems are equipped with at least one cassette deck. If you are interested in dubbing cassettes, look for a mini system with  two cassette decks.