Hi-fi micro systems dominated the ’90s – and I’m all for Philips’ modern take on them

Ah, the humble micro system. Yes, they’re not as swish-looking as a modern speaker system, such as the five-star KEF LSX II LT.

And yes, there is an argument that they peaked in the ’90s, when every household usually had at least one kicking around (sometimes with a MiniDisc as well as a CD drive, if you were from a bourgeois family).

But, there’s still undeniably something magical about them, especially for elder millennials like me, who grew up with one. A Panasonic SA-PM37MD powered many a listening session during my teenage years.

In fact, if you walked past my room between the ages of 13-16, there was a very good chance you'd hear one booming Faith No More, Ozzy Osbourne and Pearl Jam on repeat, while my mum optimistically repeated “it’s just a phase” in the lounge.

Ah, the times we had. I still owe whatever deity stopped her ever checking what was in my sock drawer or why my room always had that “funny smell” over those happy, angst-filled years…

Which is why, when Philips unveiled a new FA7 micro hi-fi system complete with modern Apple AirPlay 2, Google Chromecast, Spotify and Tidal Connect streaming smarts, I felt a familiar wave of nostalgia come over me.

The idea’s a simple one. Deliver a tiny, multifaceted stereo system that doesn’t require any knowledge of hi-fi or matching to work, that can play CDs and stream music in hi-res over wi-fi.

And while I’m slightly concerned about the FA7's €600 (roughly £520 / $695) price, the more I thought about it, the more I’m sold on the idea and feel micro systems are due for a proper resurgence. There are three main reasons why.

First, the What Hi-Fi? team has long called for more small, but great-sounding, affordable hi-fi, and micro systems fit that bill – especially the Award-winning Denon D-M41DAB, which is still on sale, floating around the £269 mark at most stores.

As we said in our Denon review, it’s a convenient hi-fi solution for people short on space, that delivers effortless versatility and “a character of performance that could hold its own against groups of separates at a greater cost”.

This brings me on to my second point. Micro systems, like Philips' and Denon's, have a key advantage over most wireless speaker systems: a CD player.

Now, we’ve been promised a CD revival, akin to vinyl’s for some time. In fact, one of my first interview pieces for What Hi-Fi?, three years ago, saw Cambridge Audio’s then CEO saying “it was coming”.

But, according to sales figures for 2025, there’s now some solid evidence to back that claim. Numerous stores, as reported by The Guardian, saw a huge increase in sales at the end of last year, to the tune of a 74 per cent spike in demand for players at John Lewis.

So there’s a demand. But the truth is, players are still quite expensive, at least the good ones. The budget pick in our best CD players guide, the Marantz CD6007, costs £349 at most stores, for example. That's a lot more than our recommended Denon micro system, even before you add the cost of an amp and speakers. So, cheaper micro systems staging a comeback to meet the new demand for CD players makes sense.

And that leads me to my third point. According to these stats, it’s not just oldies like me fuelling the revival. Like the recent spike in wired headphone sales, it’s Gen-fudging-Z pouring gasoline on the fire.

Yes, apparently the kids are getting back into spinning CDs.

To be fair, I shouldn’t be surprised by this. When I interviewed numerous record store owners a couple of years ago, they all said they’d seen a gradual increase in interest in CDs with younger shoppers.

Given the current price of vinyl, I can understand why. The last one I bought, Princess Mononoke Symphonic Suite by Joe Hisaishi, set me back nearly £50 (annoyingly, it seems to have gone down in price since then). Even now, that would get me at least two or three CDs, more if I bought second-hand.

So, to me, a resurgence in micro systems, an affordable, no fuss, convenient solution that will meet their interest in spinning shiny plastic discs, and let them stream as they’re used to, makes perfect sense.

Here’s hoping it happens.

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