POLL: Car Audiophiles & others - need ur opinion on what to buy!

[Vonkhan]

I need to buy some car audio stuff to put into my '92 Toyota Paseo.

I need to buy a CD player & speakers. I already have a Bazooka 8-inch Powered Subwoofer Tube

My choices for the CD plater are:

Sony Xplod® CD Receiver SON CDXL510X Link
Alpine CD Player APN CDM9801 Link
Pioneer XM Radio-Ready CD Receiver PIO DEHP2500 Link
JVC CD Receiver JVC KDS790 Link
Panasonic 50 Watt CD Player PAN CQDF203U Link

I'll also need suggestions on what type/brand of speakers to get!

THANKS!!!

 

[JammingJay]

(Between the decks you listed only) Generally Alpine is regarded as a superior CD deck in terms of CD playback quality compared to the other brands that are listed. The next tier would be Pioneer & Sony, followed finally by JVC and Panasonic. I'm not sure what type of additonal bass you are looking for, however to be honest, the EL8 Bazooka subwoofer doesn't do a great job reproducing low end bass at all. In fact, a good set of rear 6x9s with a good amp will generally produce even more accurate low end bass than the EL8 but as mentioned, but it really depends what you are looking to do with your system.

Interior speakers-wise, something higher end such as a JL audio component set, Diamond Audio, MB Quart, Focal, etc... are of course some of the best. If you're on a budget, Polk Audio, Kenwood, etc.. do a decent job for the entry level market. (Or some cheap Bostons / Infinity will work as well)

I guess the best question is, how much are you looking to spend on each component, and what are you trying to achieve? Just a bit of extra bass? I want others to hear the beat I have? Etc... I used to be quite a car audio whore so I've tried just about every product out there.

 

[isekii]

Eclipse or Nakamichi headunit

 

[JammingJay]

Originally posted by: isekii
Eclipse or Nakamichi headunit

I don't think he's looking to spend $300-$600 on a deck though considering all the decks he's listed are sub $200.


Isekii makes a nice point if you want to spend a little extra. Nakamichi Z45 is a killer deck (although the deck looks like a plain vanilla stock deck) & Eclipse makes great decks as well (although they don't have detachable faces and have ESN instead)

 

[Nebor]

WTF, your computer is worth more than your car!

 

[Shockwave]

Eclipse. Hands down. Entry level models run 250 - 300. The high end units run 5-550.
CDT makes good components. I myself am probably going to go custom, buy the raw drivers and make the crossover. Alot more choices, alot more control, potentially better price. Infinity also have good components, as does JL audio.

 

[mrchan]

Originally posted by: JammingJay
(Between the decks you listed only) Generally Alpine is regarded as a superior CD deck in terms of CD playback quality compared to the other brands that are listed. The next tier would be Pioneer & Sony, followed finally by JVC and Panasonic. I'm not sure what type of additonal bass you are looking for, however to be honest, the EL8 Bazooka subwoofer doesn't do a great job reproducing low end bass at all. In fact, a good set of rear 6x9s with a good amp will generally produce even more accurate low end bass than the EL8 but as mentioned, but it really depends what you are looking to do with your system.

Interior speakers-wise, something higher end such as a JL audio component set, Diamond Audio, MB Quart, Focal, etc... are of course some of the best. If you're on a budget, Polk Audio, Kenwood, etc.. do a decent job for the entry level market. (Or some cheap Bostons / Infinity will work as well)

I guess the best question is, how much are you looking to spend on each component, and what are you trying to achieve? Just a bit of extra bass? I want others to hear the beat I have? Etc... I used to be quite a car audio whore so I've tried just about every product out there.

this is mostly right, except pionneer is up there with alpine , both very good decks, panasonic is good, jvc is decent, and sony is pure crap. do not buy sony anything for car audio.

 

[mrchan]

with those HU choices, i imagine a set of infinity references would suit you nicely.

 

[LS20]

i like my alpine but wouldnt hesitate to get a jvc. dont like sony for the price...dont like their styling, etc. panasonics, ive found, lack in feature compared to others but are easy to use and look nice. pioneers are okay, i suppose, but controls not as intuitive as others.

1. alpine
2. jvc
3. pioneer
4. dont bother

 

[Aimster]

none of these.

Go on ebay and buy a clarion dxz715 or a dxz815

 

[Siddhartha]

I had an Alpine head unit. I chose it because it could play MP3 files and had aux input capacity. It sounded great but the buttons were small and the FM and AM reception was not as good as the OEM unit.

 

[JammingJay]

You guys realize Sony did produce the C90 right? :beer:

 

[jamautosound]

Fill your hole.

. . . and I agree with JammingJay, except for the Sony reference. I've never been a huge fan of Sony car audio, of all the install's I've done with Sony HU's, they all seem to sound like $hiat when turned up loud.

Alpine
Pioneer
JVC

 

[Vonkhan]

I'm looking to spend no more than $400 on getting the CD player, speakers and the sub installed w/ another $800 going towards a car-puter

My car-puter in progress:

14/14.1"LCD
Celeron 1GHz
ECS mobo
512 mb pc133
WD 160gb hardrive
ATI 8500 64mb
NEC 16x DVD player
Wireless PCI card
150w SFX DC-DC

I'll miss the ol' glove compartment tho I :heart: my lil' Paseo, it has 41k miles on it - I bought it from my uncle who had initially bought it as a commuter vehicle ('cuz of the awesome gas mileage) but he ended up falling in love w/ SUVs

Other than the above mentioned stuff, I'm also looking at some after-market parts for it to squeeze out a few extra horses out of it - suggestions welcome

Any1 have any thoughts to share about the Nitrous Express Stage I Shark?

 

[MazerRackham]

Originally posted by: Aimster
none of these.

Go on ebay and buy a clarion dxz715 or a dxz815

I concur. I have a Clarion DXZ735MP and it's REALLY nice... great deck. Got it from Crutchfield when they had it on sale for $220 (no tax and free shipping too).

Sounds much better (with the same speakers) than the crap Sony deck that I replaced it with. Second on my list was a JVC, however...

 

[mikeford]

For a generally tech saavy bunch you all sure believe too much of what car stereo salesmen tell you. Here are a few points;

All the major brands make about the same quality, lie like hell about power, and differ mostly only in features and warranty.

Most car stereo speakers stink, up about $50 a pair the factory speakers will be about the same. Factory head units and amps stink, so many cheap aftermarket head units and amps will sound much better, even if they aren't nearly as high quality.

Bazooka knows how to make decent bass in a car and they do it cheaper and better than anybody else, so naturally all salesmen will try and step you up to a worse product and higher price.

 

[SynthesisI]

Alpine > Pioneer > Sony

 

[orion7144]

Look at the Eclipse stuff. Supperier to all others you mentioned with the exception of maybe Alpine.

 

[JImmyK]

your attacking this all wrong focus more on your
amps/speakers/ installation

THen with that hardware you can be pointed at what HU to get, if you have boss amps and xplod subs might as well get a JVC 2 volt- preamp outs for a headunit. But if your gonna have some nice components with a quality sub IE 12A from ED, and good quality AB amps for your fronts (sub amps are all the same pretty much as long as they deliver quoted power, get amono D not AB) just make sure you get a headunit that can supply at least a 4v preamp out and has a knob instead of all digital buttons.

All manufacturers have good models and bad, but with your choices they all are pretty crappy (no offense). Stick with Pioneer/Alpine/Eclipse/Naka/clarion/higher end Kenwoods and higher end Sonys IE CD90

they all pretty much the same to a certain extent, more will be dependent on your choice of

 

[OldOneEye]

I sell 4 of the five brands, and at this point I think its like chosing between a Toyota, a Nissan and a Honda. Pretty much very similar quality, just different styling and approaches. Of the ones you mentioned, I would take the Panasonic or Alpine (don't sell Alpine, but nice stuff). I would rank the Pioneer and the Sony below that and the JVC right in the middle.

A $400 budget might not be realistic at this point since at least $100 is going to installation, maybe more because of the tube and other speakers.

I would spend my dough on the front speakers, leave the stock rear ones in and be done with it for now if you want to stick with your budget.

$200 for a deck and harness
$100 for front speakers
$100 for install.

The Bazooka is fine, will do the job but keep in mind that it will outrun the rest of the speakers in your system.

I would also consider shopping around for better pricing online. Someone mentioned Etronics.com, I would look at Sounddomain.com as well (I work there BTW, but they are offering a free dash kit and wiring harness with purchase so that might save you a few bucks). Panasonic, Pioneer, JVC and Sony are pretty liberal about their repair policy, Alpine is pretty picky about not wanting to warranty stuff bought online (except for Crutchfield).

I would also keep in mind that you might want to upgrade later, and if you buy a cheap head unit now and want to do something else, you might not be able to later (like if you want 4 preouts, sub control, 4 volt output). Crutchfield has a great deal on a $300 Alpine right now:

http://www.crutchfield.com/cgi-bin/...&c=3&g=62700&I=500CDA7995&o=m&a=0&cc=01&avf=N

I would blow my budget on something like this and even keep the stock speakers for now and save up another $100 for the front ones later, because this thing does it all and a bag of chips. No built in amp so probably not going to fit your needs, but there are similar deals out there right now that will give you a full featured deck for about $250 that would be much better than what you are considering.

Juan

Originally posted by: Vonkhan
I need to buy some car audio stuff to put into my '92 Toyota Paseo.

I need to buy a CD player & speakers. I already have a Bazooka 8-inch Powered Subwoofer Tube

My choices for the CD plater are:

Sony Xplod® CD Receiver SON CDXL510X Link
Alpine CD Player APN CDM9801 Link
Pioneer XM Radio-Ready CD Receiver PIO DEHP2500 Link
JVC CD Receiver JVC KDS790 Link
Panasonic 50 Watt CD Player PAN CQDF203U Link

I'll also need suggestions on what type/brand of speakers to get!

THANKS!!!

 

[Slickone]

To me, Alpine, Pioneer, and Panasonic are all good, with Alpine and Pioneer at the top. I'd rate Kenwood just under these. I've never been a big JVC fan. I'd never buy a Sony. Clarion is supposed to be high quality, but I've never liked the looks and functionality.

 

[Vonkhan]

Prolly gonna with Alppnie ...

amd bump up my budget to $500 and invest in a good set of speakers

any reccomendations on the speakers?

 

[Doodoo]

I got a Clarion 9675Z for sale if your interested. As for speakers...check into Infinity...or Focals if you want to spend a little more.

 

[Shockwave]

Originally posted by: mikeford
For a generally tech saavy bunch you all sure believe too much of what car stereo salesmen tell you. Here are a few points;

All the major brands make about the same quality, lie like hell about power, and differ mostly only in features and warranty.

Most car stereo speakers stink, up about $50 a pair the factory speakers will be about the same. Factory head units and amps stink, so many cheap aftermarket head units and amps will sound much better, even if they aren't nearly as high quality.

Bazooka knows how to make decent bass in a car and they do it cheaper and better than anybody else, so naturally all salesmen will try and step you up to a worse product and higher price.

I'll throw in a another point. Mikeford has not a damned clue what he is talking about.

 

[kt]

Originally posted by: Shockwave

Originally posted by: mikeford
For a generally tech saavy bunch you all sure believe too much of what car stereo salesmen tell you. Here are a few points;

All the major brands make about the same quality, lie like hell about power, and differ mostly only in features and warranty.

Most car stereo speakers stink, up about $50 a pair the factory speakers will be about the same. Factory head units and amps stink, so many cheap aftermarket head units and amps will sound much better, even if they aren't nearly as high quality.

Bazooka knows how to make decent bass in a car and they do it cheaper and better than anybody else, so naturally all salesmen will try and step you up to a worse product and higher price.

I'll throw in a another point. Mikeford has not a damned clue what he is talking about.

Just using the word "bass" in the same sentence with Bazooka already showed his ignorance.