Remember the days when buying a stereo system involved extensive research and construction? You had to build your system from the ground up. You had to choose your receiver, speakers, tape deck and CD player, and then figure out how to blend them all together to satisfy your musical listening needs (and wants).

Today, the non-audiophiles among us have an easier task. Just go online and pick up a micro system. Micro systems include all the components, and while it may not offer the "big sound" that you'd get in a full-featured stereo system for a large listening area, for smaller rooms it may be just the ticket. For an online shopping expedition, drop in at Bay Bloor Radio, The Brick, Future Shop and Sony Canada for a look at today's wide selection of micro stereos. Popular brand names include Sony, Sharp and Kenwood. But don't just take our word for it. Click away!

Size matters

Micro or mini system sound has become pretty good, and you can get one where you can add your own speakers to improve on the sound even more. Micro systems don't take up a lot of space and cost less than full size component systems. The receiver, which incorporates the pre-amp, power amp and radio tuner in one unit, is the heart of the system. Since this is usually an all-in-one configuration, you'll also get a CD player or multi-disc changer and a tape player built in.

"Some have 3 CDs, some have 1. Some have 1 tape machine and some have 2," says Michael Givens, senior buyer with Bay Bloor Radio in Toronto. In other words, think about what you really need, because there are a lot of choices out there.

Power

The key starting points are knowing how much space you want to fill with sound, how much sound you want to fill it with, and how much you want to spend. Consider power first. Power is measured by watts per channel, and with a micro system, the power rating is generally 15 watts per channel. But "power" can be misleading. Most of the smaller systems are 15 watts up to 30, but Givens says, "The small ones may say they're 70 watts of "music power," not RMS power, so you have to be careful." RMS is real power, as opposed to music power. Systems with a big music power rating may give you more distortion.

Distortion

Distortion is what you want to avoid at all costs. " Distortion kills speakers," says Barry Ogg, product manager at Canadian speaker manufacturer Audio Products International http://www.energy-speakers.com/. He says that's why it's important to make sure the power your system puts out matches the power the speakers can put out. An all-in-one micro system guarantees they'll match.

What's next?

What's on the horizon? Bay Bloor Radio's Givens says it will be the stereo system with a built-in recordable CD player, or CD burner. "You're going to see a lot of product on the market that will have 3 separate drawers for 3 CDs and, to the left, there will be 1 drawer that will be a CD burner." This will allow you to make copies of your CDs, or even create your own custom-designed CDs.

Glossary

Noise reduction system on the tape deck reduces tape hiss. The minimum would be Dolby B. The preferred would be Dolby C, the best is Dolby S, and the super-duper best is Dolby HX Pro.

Multi-disc players allow you to play several CDs. It is either a carousel system, which spins around and selects the CD you want to play at any given time, or a magazine format, which is a separate cartridge you fill with CDs and is compatible with most car audio CD changers, so you can trade magazines back and forth.

Graphic equalizers give you more control over your sound, with separate controls for the highs (treble), lows (bass) and midrange sounds.

Quirks

On the 'Net, you can check out http://www.hifichoice.co.uk/ for the latest from the U.K.