Panasonic CQ-RX200N

CD Tuner with FM radio and high specification versus price. Equipped with a removable faceplate (no hard case supplied) and bearing the new Panasonic 2008 Arc Evolution design, the device is the latest in a long line of very design-conscious product. Panasonic are very good at being able to be dated by vintage when you see machines from different years. The single RCA output is chassis mounted, rather than being made with trailing cords, which helps maintain sound quality. The unit can read Windows Media Audio and MP3 compressed digital audio files, although you will need the next unit up if you wish to use AAC files. Home recorded CD discs may be used. There is a 3.5mm microjack audio auxiliary input socket on the front. It may be used with Bluetooth connectivity by adding an extra CY-BT200N unit. There is no remote control supplied. With a single extra source attached to the ‘System-Up’ connector to the rear of the unit you can select from radio, CD output (be it PCM audio or MP3/WMA), your aux input and say, a changer. With addition of the CY-EM100N Expansion Module unit you can then append up to four things such as the Bluetooth unit, an iPod and more, such as a second iPod.
– New Arc Evolution design detachable faceplate; red button illumination
– 4 x 50w high-power amp
– SQ3 (3-band Sound Quality Equaliser) Low/Bass +/-12dB @ 60Hz, 80Hz, 100Hz or 200Hz
– SQ3 (3-band Sound Quality Equaliser) Mid +/-12dB @ 500Hz, 1kHz, 2kHz or 3kHz
– SQ3 (3-band Sound Quality Equaliser) High/Treble +/-12dB @ 10kHz, 12kHz, 15kHz or 18kHz
– 2V/200 Ohms chassis mounted preamp-out (rear)
– iPod ready with CA-DC300N direct cable
– Bluetooth ready (with Bluetooth unit CY-BT200N)
– CD changer control
– CD Text
– System Up connector on rear for addition of single unit or CY-EM100N expansion module for up to four
– WMA/MP3 playback from CD-R/RW discs
– Front AUX input 3.5mm (music port)
– 18 FM and 6 AM presets
– Signal to Noise Ratio 96dB
Review by Adam Rayner
The CQ-RX200N is a sensible first purchase deck and truly benefits from the ‘whole range economies of production’ issue. The one specification that should be important to you if you care about sound quality is the signal to noise ratio. (With digital audio, the other is dynamic range or loudest to quietest ratio) This is all about noise floor- or how much crisp music you get versus background noise. The worst product I ever tested was a Koac ‘amplifier’ that was hissier than a bag of snakes even when no signal was flowing. This deck has a creditable 96dB Signal to Noise Ratio which puts it firmly in the ‘good’ bracket if not ‘excellent’ or ‘awesome’. for ‘awesome’ – £1,000 worth of awesome) Thing is though, when you specify a range of CD tuners, with ascending orders of cunning and brilliance in playing different digital compression files and how you can connect up to it, you still use the one CD mechanism. So, in other words, I can tell you that if sound is all, then you already have the best CD player in the range as it is the same mechanism in the �140 deck as in this �100 job! (Once I investigated this as a whole review direction for Fast Car and found to the horror of the seriously huge brand involved, that their midprice decks had better mechanisms in them than their all new and shiny top end range. Embarrassing)
However, as we know sound is not all, it’s also about features and benefits. The display is a big part of the perceived sexiness of these sorts of things and this is now a Plain Vanilla flavour of multi part FL glow. Although it does scroll some cool stuff across it, like how it is Bluetooth audio and handsfree ready and how you can play different files in it. When you throw a CD into the slot, it comes up with CD-DA which stands for Compact Disc Digital Audio as against MP3, say. The illumination on mine is red to the buttons and the fascia is smart looking if a little less than pricey in appearance from close up. A bit like the silvery look of high street consumer hifi. I liked the simple and straightforward control and was impressed by the three band EQ system, which was a seriously costly extra a few years back. Now it’s a turbo charged bass/mid/treble system, evolved from the old bass and treble knobs with fixed points. It’s called the SQ3 system and is a keen value added feature.
One really cool thing I can confess to you, now that you are deep into the copy is that this is the very deck I tested a fabulously expensive set of Hybrid Audio Technologies speakers with. Maybe perversely, I refrained from plugging in the Alpine F#1 Status first generation deck I have here for reference use to the test rig. This has a monster price tag on it and has an incredible output. However, you have to pay logarithmically more for such an incremental improvement in sound quality and the mechanism in this deck, coupled with the fact that, like Kenwood, this deck has its RCA outputs chassis mounted, rather than hanging out of the back on cheap RCA wire that lets noise into it, meant that the sound sent to the Hybrids through the lovely Genesis Stereo 100 amplifier was just peachy.
So, amazing value for money and Plain Vanilla for 2008 was 2006’s Pralines & Cream in other words, you lucky pups, buying a 2008 Panasonic CQ-RX200N for £100 is like getting a CD deck two years ago at something like twice that. Good sound, Good value.
Sound Quality 8.0
Appearance/Display 7.0
Ease Of Use/HMI 9.0
Features 7.0
Value For Money 9.0
Overall rating 8.0