It consists of 1MD and 1CD and world tuner with an optional Tape deck. Features wise it doesnt compare to the MD515 or the MD555 with 5MD's and 5CD's but it does the job nicely. One of the big ups of this unit and any other Sony current Hi-fi is that you can edit and title and so on, on the fly without pausing or stopping. Titling is a no fuss job. Which gives people like me extra incentive to title for once. The sound is superb and the speaker enclosure design is beautiful in wood finish.

It doesnt have a Optical out but it does have a audio in and out which means you can hook up the computer to it. For recordings or playing games of it. Which of course would blow your std speakers away. Value wise it's the cheapest of all the current Sony units. Design and sound wise it's better than alot of other units my friends own or shops sell in it's price range. If I were you I would go out and buy one NOW!! Bought the Sony DHC-MD333 a month ago while in Hong Kong. I paid about $400 US, and am thrilled with the unit.

One of the main reasons I bought it was the SW radio feature which is not available on the European models. Living in France I listen to the BBC and VOA a lot, and this little unit pulls in these stations beautifully, even with the supplied antenna, which is small but adequate.

The sound quality from this little stereo is superb, and it is hands down one of the chicest units available. My girlfriend says its very cute, and I'd have to agree.

Buy one, you'll love it... The Sony DHC-MD333 (aka DHC-MD373 in the Asia Pacific) is a class of its own. It is part of the Sony Mezzo series and therefore inherits the series' designs - the silver/alluminium casing with a glass panel to enhance the looks; the wooden speakers which blend into most furnitures at home; the very simple (therefore stylish) LED that display only the neccessary information - unlike some other models that have multi colours, bars and animation that just serve as eye candy without any real purpose.

The fact that it has a front loading CD adds a few more points to this model. I don't like those top loading CD nor those multi-CD with carousel - they tend to break easily after a while.

Operating the system is a no-brainer. I am no audio/hifi expert but I can appreciate the simplicity in recording to MD - all it takes is one button. There are more advanced MD editing, mixing... the manual has like 10-20 pages describing them. I don't really know how well it is compared to other models so I won't comment.

However, I would prefer if there is a one-button record for one track. Today, if I want to record one track from the CD, I will have to "program" that one track and then record. The program feature will be useful if I need to record multiple tracks from the same CD but it will be a hassle if I want to record one track only.

There are 5 preset equalizers (Rock, Pop, Classic, Dance (Surround) and Jazz (Surround)). I don't use any of them myself. I prefer Flat... that means listening to my music as it was meant to be.

I am no music expert so I don't want to comment much on the sound. All I can say is that the sound is very clear and crisp. The bass is strong but not so strong that it shadows the treble.

The remote is a typical Sony remote. Simple, easy to understand and easy to use. One thing I don't like is the Character button. When I want to label my track, I need to press this Character button to change from upper case to lower case. The Character button is located at the top of the remote while the >> or << button (used to scroll the characters) are at the bottom. Therefore, naming a track is now a two handed chore instead of one.

All in all, this is a great box for its value. You get classy design, simple operation, great sound and MD recording... all for US$260! WOW.