Car audio recommendations

[themadscientist]

It finally happened. The POS Kenwood CD player in Igor finally s*** the bed this morning on the ride in to work. For over a year I have suffered with this flip-faced menace to my state of mind. The display crapped out a long time ago so I have to futz with it blind. No idea what settings it was on, no ability to grab weak radio stations because I could'nt see where the hell it was. It's finally dead now. Like some intolerable spouse you can't get rid of unless they cheat on you finally getting caught red-handed with OPP, the amp died.

I'll beat it flat with a sledgehammer later.

So, I come to one of those times when I must choose electronics. I usually do very well in selecting equipment that is high-quality with features I care about at a price point that is acceptable. With car stereos, however, I am cursed. Every time I buy one it starts giving me trouble very quickly. I have bit the bullet and sent two in before for service only to have them start acting up again in short order. I still remember that double din Kenwood I punched. The whole face shattered and I had to take it apart to get my CD out.

I've tried Kenwood, Sony, JVC, and Alpine in the past; they all failed pretty much at the same rate. Take a moment if you would to sing the praises of a manufacturer who has pleased you as a consumer. If they treated you right, I'll give thenm a try and cross my fingers.

[orangeNblue]

I currently have the Alpine CDA-117 and really like it. Bought it from the audio expert on here Broadfield. I wanted the Alpine iXA-W404 but was too broke at the time to dish out the cash. In retrospect I'd have prolly waited it out and gotten the one I wanted. In any case, I'd give him a shout, tell him what you're looking for and he can hook you up. Good luck!

[AZ89two4Tsx]

I had an Alpine CDA-105 in my 240. Always worked great, no problems. Didn't feel "cheap" either, their built the best in my opinion and look the cleanest. Kinda wish I would have kept the deck once I sold the car.

Have a Kenwood Excelon something in my BMW. Not impressed. It just feels cheap and low end even though it was the same price ($200).

I know Pioneer makes decent stuff too, expensive and low-end. My friend's low end $70 Pioneer WalMart deck has been working in his truck for 2 years. Has subs run to it and has always worked great, no problems.

[Razi]

Panasonic shouldn't even be a choice. :P
I had one and it felt and sounded cheap.

Replaced it for an Alpine and glad I did.

[Jesda]

The JVC in the Saab has enough power to blast Wham at 75mph with the top down without sounding like its being over driven, and the car is parked outside with the top down for most of the year. I call that durability. Despite the harsh operating conditions, the CD mechanism still works great. I had to clean the metal contacts behind the face plate with a Q-tip after one year.

The controls are a pain.

http://jesda.com/2011/02/11/review-hd-r ... -kdhdr-20/


I'm a Nakamichi fan, but that's too expensive to put in a convertible.

[AppleBonker]

I'm on my third Alpine head unit in the past about 5 years. No, that has nothing to do with failure rate. My first one was stolen (along with the civic it was installed in) and the second one was replaced because I simply felt like upgrading. I tend to go to the upper limit on price in these things, but I installed an entry-level Alpine HU in my sister's car and she's been very happy with it. While I don't think she is as understanding of audio quality, she certainly puts her electronics through far more abuse than I do. I can't really dog any of the other brands, as I haven't really used them personally. Just offering my opinion on the Alpine units I have had experience with. If you have questions on a particular unit from Alpine, hit me up and I'll let you know anything I've seen. Good luck.

[Jookmasta]

i'm a fan of pioneer headunits. at the turn of the century, their best stuff came out IMO. still rocking a deh-7300 for the past 11 years lol. for amps, i'd stick with mtx or JL. they make the best 5 channel amps IMO

[breadbox]

I got the same one Razi now has(alpine), specifically because it had front aux in.

I got it from Toby with speakers he recommended for me, only did 6.5" in the front doors and it sounded so good I didnt finish the rear, I'm just deciding what sub I want now.

I have a 10 w6 but the band pass doesnt fit in the coupe's trunk. Fits in a civic perfect but my trunk now is shallow as crap.

[Kompresshun]

I haven't bought an aftermarket head unit in a few years, but i've always had good luck with mid-high range Sony headunits. Every one I had never quit working and never gave me any issues at all, in fact I ran the same one for about 5-6 years in different vehicles. I've also had good luck with JVC as well, although I didn't really care for their interface and styling as much. The nicer one I had though offered customizable colors, so you could change it to match your interior lighting.

I've always heard that Alpine is excellent, but I never have liked them for some reason. The overall quality is great, but most of them have always seemed really bland to me.

[r34 gtr]

I am a huge fan of Alpine. My buddy has one that uses hot-swappable USB flash drives, and it is a great thing. You really can't go wrong with them.

That being said I think I will be resurrecting my Sony MEX-5DI next time around, provided I can find a good place to have it repaired. Its just so darn awesome.

[Kompresshun]

This was the Sony that I used for years, I got it in 2001 and sold it in 2007, still was working great when I sold it too

[themadscientist]

I've always like Alpine styling and now that I think about, it was a minidisc player I had the problem wih. The Sony was too. Perhaps the format was problematic and not the head units. The Kenwoods have all been CD players and sucked hard. They look great, but are not reliable. Crutchfield has some good deals on Alpine and I saw a USB deck and thought that was a damned good idea right thar.

[PapaSmurf2k3]

I had a kenwood in the 240 that sounded like crap. I recently replaced it with a Pioneer and am pretty happy.
The other head unit I had and really liked (that really came out of left field) was a Clarion I put in my old Accord. That thing pounded (surprisingly), sounded great, and had super easy to use controls.
I still get "thank you"s from the girl I sold the car to every now and then.

[Jesda]

Pioneer really is the best all-around bang for the buck for 90% of people, and the controls are reasonably easy to use. My first CD player was a Clarion, and I liked it too. Not too many retailers carry them, but Crutchfield does.

Sony has come a long way over the last couple years. There was a time when I wouldn't touch their car audio, but they've improved build quality quite a bit.


If I had a classic Japanese car, I'd get this:

[NissanNYer]

I'm not sure if your contemplating Navigation option, but i just had the Pioneer AVIC x920BT .... i absolutely love it ! bluetooth...syncs with my iPhone 4 seamlessly plays audio over bluetooth and the Navi is extremely accurate

[Broadfield]

In my 19 years in business, I have sold every single brand on your list and then some... along with Nakamichi, Clarion, Clarion Pro Audio, Rockford Fosgate, Sony Mobile ES and some others. Alpine has easily been the best "overall". In fact, it's the only head unit manufacturer I carry now.... I don't even mess with anything else. Some of your choices aren't even in business(Eclipse) or make head units anymore(Denon) just so you know. Give me a shout if you have any in depth questions on Alpine product.

Toby

[Jesda]

Hell, Nakamichi is barely breathing, but the some of the best head sounding units out there are used.

[asoomal]

While we're on topic.....I'm looking for a new deck as well, how are the OEM 2010 Sentra/Versa Units?


Looking for something that isn't flashy...


Edit:

Panasonic shouldn't even be a choice. :P
I had one and it felt and sounded cheap.

Replaced it for an Alpine and glad I did.

My Panasonic CQDFX700u still works fine, it was installed in 2000 by the previous owner, swapped it out last week for an OEM I had laying around cause I couldn't stand this:



*Shudders*

[Jesda]

Plastichrome AND a non-dimming light show, so you're blinded day or night.


I had this in the Maxima, and it actually worked well and sounded decent, but at night I wanted to cover it with a piece of tape.

[GrilledCheese33]

Alpine FTW. I've had a CDE-9881 for 5 years now in 4 of my vehicles. The writing on the buttons had just started to wear off but it still works amazingly. I think i'm gonna let it go when I sell the 240 and get a newer model for the next car when the time comes. You honestly can't beat the sound quality on Alpine units. Plus, I like the fact that they are simple and clean looking.

[Jesda]

You guys should post some classic head units. I remember 90s Mitsus having a 10-band EQ with sliders.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sREz19-tXPw[/youtube]


There's a few Alpine, Pioneer, and Clarion sub-$100 deals at Crutchfield:
http://www.crutchfield.com/g_300/Car-Re ... ml?tp=5684

I'm not crazy about front-mounted USB ports.