Yamaha MCR-B020BL Micro Component System,Black

The Yamaha MCR-B020BL Micro Component System lives up to its name. It’s so compact and light enough that it can sit on top a dresser with space to spare. The MCR-B020BL is very simple to use. Bluetooth connects well with my iPhone; the CD plays wonderfully, and AM/FM is clear and clean music and vocals. The layout and design portray simple elegant functionality: Play/Pause, Stop, FFWD, RWD, Eject, Power, and Source (CD, radio, AUX, USB, or Bluetooth). There is a USB port on top (with tab cover when not in use) for Flash Drives and a headphone jack. The large dial in front is for Volume Control. Hookup is easy with black and red insert tabs for the wires in the back from the center stereo unit to the speakers and the AM and FM antennas. Keep the twist ties in place to prevent a tangle of wires. Power startup and play is fast…there is no noticeable delay. The bright blue LED is clear, clean, bright, simple, fast, and can be seen from across a small room. It displays and pertinent information immediately or in scrolling form from left to right. The remote has all the needed buttons and functionality for ease of use. It’s very slim, light, and ergonomically feeling and takes a circular watch battery for longer lasting shelf life. Pressing the buttons gave immediate stereo function response and one doesn’t even need to point the remote at the Yamaha if in a small room. There is also an Alarm and Snooze/Sleep button, but I didn’t try that feature. The mini speakers are smaller than competitors so one might have to angle them to produce the best sound quality. These aren’t your powerhouse speakers so one shouldn’t judge them as such. Vocals are clear and concise and allows for mono or stereo play. I heard no static and no electronic hum or background buzz from the speakers when playing music or when the unit is turned off. Overall, this is an excellent micro stereo system with all the necessary components included. Setup is simple and fast and music quality matches the small size. Everything works and response time is quick with no interference. Remote control and Bluetooth connectivity was solid for me, working as advertised. I have experienced no poor quality issues so far.

**Update** December 2017, So it has been around two months or better that I been using the MCR-B020BL and my thoughts and taste in listening has changed quite a bit. In the past I listened to music loud with this shelf sized system that's just not possible but I'll tell you in this update review you don't need loud decibels to enjoy music. Being this system found it's home in the bedroom I been playing it at soft volume and falling asleep to both radio and CD which both sound fantastic. I live upstate New York and FM radio comes in really clear and strong. Playing around with the equalizer I set the sound to be stronger in the mid range and bass at soft to moderate listening the system sounds warm and rich and doesn't make me miss any of higher frequencies which I stated in an earlier review would be an issue to my listening taste. Don't let the 4 inch full range speakers fool you there is plenty treble vocals and instruments sound natural and clear. Also the bass is strong at soft and moderate volume which to me is the best way to test a speakers ability to reproduce bass, because the speaker cone isn't moving large volumes of air and still has the ability to sound full and rich. The speakers sound excellent close to the unit and spaced apart, I prefer them spaced apart because you do get better stereo imaging but the wife says differently. Happy wife happy life :) The Bluetooth is another great feature also. My original review was a 4 star, I'm now changing that to a 5 everyday this system performs well and sounds absolutely beautiful. Had to part with my four large Yamaha speakers and Polk sub for this micro system. I can't yet love this system granted it has the added feature of Bluetooth. I haven't found anything not to like about this micro system other than me personally missing the power and sound quality of larger components. Starting out with the amplifier receiver its got all the features one should need.. Bass mid and treble adjustments clock alarm and sleep function. Its Yamaha so sound quality is what Yamaha is known for clean and natural sound, the speakers sound good though I am surprised Yamaha went with a full range and didn't use some sort of a coaxial drive unit for better highs. Bass- respectable for the size of the speaker cabinets not booming or artificial sounding its just right for the system. Mid range- full range speakers sound good in this area and the driver Yamaha is using does the mid range real good vocals and instruments sound warm and natural. Treble- its present and plays clear but doesn't shine. I didn't tweak out the treble setting I am sure there's more highs that this full range can dish out and I'll most likely try it at some point. Overall I'm happy with this micro system. It performs exactly how it was intended to. Can there be a bit more volume yes but perhaps the unit wouldn't sound as clean and natural as it does. The 1 star shy of 5 is for not going the extra mile and designing a high performance coaxial speaker for fuller and more detailed highs. Come on Yamaha I know you can do it.

I'm happy with this purchase, it was really easy to set up right out of the box and the sound is excellent for the price point. Its footprint is pretty small, so perfect for small spaces. The remote is not very stylish, but the unit itself is sleek, yet discreet and not too ostentatious, it would fit in any decor without becoming a focal point (tech, in my opinion, should blend in and not distract from your overall decor). The buttons are easy to understand and well laid out, this unit would be a good fit for those who are a little less tech-savvy, but still want to enjoy clear sounds, without too many complicated bells and whistles to adapt to. This one has a good balance of features, quality and price point.

Well, this is one component system which is much better in sound than bose, and is fairly priced. If you are looking for something with a punch in bass, this is not for you. This has a very crystal clear sound, fairly balanced treble and base, in all, an excellent purchase. Go for it if you are looking for something in mid range for a small / medium sized room. Please note that this is not a home theater system, so, do not try to compare with them. Yamaha lives up to the expectation with the sound quality delivered, seamless connectivity through bluetooth. FM reception is very clear.

Pros- Good built with aesthetics/Good mid range with fair highs/Room filling sound/Moderately good BT connectivity/Good for bedroom or a 150-200 sqft/VFM Cons- Sometimes bass is a little boomy/FM reception is not smooth(may be due to the fact that we live in a bungalow with multi storied all around)/Connectivity with wires is definitely better than bluetooth 4.0.

I really do like this unit. The sound is wonderful and I find the options for input and output are very good. It has an AUX port where I can connect my TV output. It has a Headphone output so I can connect a bluetooth transmitter and play audio to my JBL Bluetooth speaker out in the back yard. It also has a USB port where I've placed about 24GB of music MP3s that I can play from there and also broadcast to an external speaker. It has the Bluetooth receiver so I can play music and audio from my phone or tablet. The AM FM audio is excellent and you can have up to 30 presets for each of the 2 radio bands. The one hiccup that the unit has is that it loses its preset stations every three days. It's not difficult to re-program and that can be done automatically but it is annoying to have to do that over and over again . Overall the preset issue is the only downside to this unit. It's very good, excellent audio, great connectivity. A great brand!

Un bon petit appareil, qui ne prends pas trop de place et est esthétique. J’ai réussi à le programmer sans manuel d’instruction. Le son est bon et il est simple à comprendre et la manette encore plus. Ce que j’ai moins aimé, c’est qu’il faut programmer les postes de radio seulement à partir de la manette, il n’est pas possible via l’appareil direct. Alors si un jour la manette se perd ou se brise et qu’il faut reprogrammer, ce sera moins amusant. Sinon, je suis satisfaite du produit dans l’ensemble.