Laurence Payne wrote:

Good audio doesn't come in such small packages, I'm afraid :-)
...
Get a cheap clock-radio. You can survive listening to the content,
not the hi-fi, particularly when your head is buried in a pillow.

Let me frame the question as follows: We need a cd clock radio. Because
of the space limitation, it needs to be of the size of a clock radio,
not boombox or mini-systems. Who offers the best audio quality within
those limitations?

Bose is too expensive (500) for what it sounds like. I am intrigued by
Cambridge Audio unit (250?) but haven't heard it. Sony is an ok option
at 100 but not great.

Tivoli has a good radio, Boston a good clock radio, but neither has a
decent CD clock radio.