Poll for Aftermarket HUs

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imported_vr6

Platinum Member
Jul 6, 2001
2,740
0
0
Hey guys i am having a hard time trying to decide which brand i should get for an aftermarket Car head unit. So based on experience and preference, which brand whould you guys like?

and btw someone told me that Porsches uses Blaupunkt for they factory audio is that true?
 
W

wsking

Senior member
Jan 16, 2002
206
0
0
imo sony suck...not their quality, design, but the functions
i have m610 and it takes about 5min to find the "repeat" button
and when the cd plays, at the last track u can't skip it and go to first track, either u FF or back skip....sometimes it sucks, i got this cause it was about 75% off retail

i like alpine:)
 
A

Atrail

Diamond Member
Apr 20, 2001
4,326
0
0
I have a Pioneer that I have owned for ever.
All I want, is for it to die so I can get a new Alpine, but it won't die.
:|
 
P

psteng19

Diamond Member
Dec 9, 2000
5,953
0
0
If any of you are doubting Pioneers, just take a look at the DEH 8400 and 9400.

The OEL will make your eyes believe, the 50X4 amp will make your ears believe.
 
N

nightowl

Golden Member
Oct 12, 2000
1,935
0
0
My Clairon has never failed me. It has been a great stereo. On the same note, the Pioneer that is in my mom's car is nice to. I would take my Clairon over it though since it has more outputs and an input.
 
M

Migroo

Diamond Member
Jul 14, 2001
4,488
9
81
Bear in mind that my opinion has been formed after owning uite a few HUs:

Mid range - get a Sony, Pioneer, Alpine.

High end - get a Pioneer for AV applications or an Alpine for sound. :D
 
I

imported_vr6

Platinum Member
Jul 6, 2001
2,740
0
0
So no one knows if Blaupunkt is OEM porsche?

WEll anyway, I like sony's designs but i been hearing they are poorly built. If i compare just the stats, Blanupunkt and Alpine seems to be the best. When i ask people, most of them recommend Alpine or Pioneer.

I am leaning toward a Alpine right now, but IMO the newer styles are kinda ugly. I havn't decide what models yet, i just wanna know hich brand is dependable. Thanks Guys.
 
Ns1

Ns1

No Lifer
Jun 17, 2001
55,420
1,600
126
alpine = SQ

pioneer = eye candy


i've had both, and quite time correction OWNS once you get tc'ed you won't go back ;)

but pioneer makes the best graphical hu's ever
 
S

Spendthrift

Senior member
Oct 22, 2001
500
0
0
ive owned/regularly used clarion, panasonic, sony, alpine, and pioneer

clarion and panasonic are the best value for the dollar

sony is suck

pioneer is decent

alpine very nice but over priced
 
NutBucket

NutBucket

Lifer
Aug 30, 2000
27,151
635
126
Alpine. I have a Kenwood Excelon in my car and I like it but after using an Alpine that was half the price in another car I'm very impressed.

General consensus is that if you're not going for an Eclipse or Nakamichi HU Alpine is the next best thing.
 
S

Shockwave

Banned
Sep 16, 2000
9,059
0
0
Depends how much you wanna spend. The absolute best out there, Denon, but this is WAY outta most peoples price range (Yes, they make HU's) Next up is either Nakamichi or Eclipse, both are incredibly high quality. Then, after that you got Alpine and it goes down the list form there. I highly recommend an Eclipse or Nak, Denon is just too much.
In all honestly, this is really the wrong forum for this question, in the sense most people here PROBABLY know more about PC's the car audio, so, I shall steer you Here, which is a REALLY good car audio forum.
But, just so you know, I have a Eclipse 5443 and love it, theft warrenty n schtuff. Just bought a 12" Brahma, looking at the Sinfoni amp (150.1) to give it about 1100 watts, but since the Sinfoni is EXPENSIVE, I may get an Arc Audio or Helix. If you wanna rpice that stuff (And its considered as good as it gets) just go here.
 
M

MorphineChild

Senior member
Aug 10, 2001
880
0
0
Pioneer is by far the best for the budget.

[/b] Pioneers[/b] come loaded with features, eq's, dsp, display....... The pioneers I have owned are very difficult to skip. They are rock solid and have more features for the money than any other HU.

Currently I am running an [/b] Alpine[/b] 7949. Alpines top of the line deck a few years back. It is a great unit, simple, elegant looking... But it skips easier than my previous Pioneers, it also doesnt have any of the EQ's or anything like that, that the Pioneers had.

JVC = Garbage, don't even bother wasting your time. Unless you get the SH99 I have heard numerous compliments on this deck.
Panasonics are decent, but if you can stay away. There build quality isnt as high as pioneer or alpine.
Clarions used to be extremely good when they werent mainstreme. In the past year or so they started making a comeback with the HX-D10 and the 9675z (high end decks)
Sony and Blau are not a popular choice, if you go high end they both have some amazing stuff but for the average listener it isn't worth it.
Kenwoods in my opinion are too cluttered, good HU's but too busy looking
Denon, Nakamichi, McIntosh... Very good, very expensive............. You get what you pay for!
Eclipse , Good reputation, no detachable face, ESN Warranty (replaces stolen units for 1 year if dealer installed), expensive, boring display, face made of cheap plastic, similar to that of Aiwa (Aiwa are horrible units)

These are just my opinions, but I hope they help. Go to www.sounddomain.com and do some more research there in the forums. My name is Commissar over there.

And do NOT listen to the person who says amps are more important than the HU!! The amp can only amplify what it is given! If you buy a shotty HU and a really expensive amp, your amp will only amplify the crappy signal that it is given. The signal given to the amp is the most important part of a good sounding stereo.
 
G

gregshin

Diamond Member
Jul 13, 2000
3,273
0
0
Originally posted by: MorphineChild
Pioneer is by far the best for the budget.

[/b] Pioneers[/b] come loaded with features, eq's, dsp, display....... The pioneers I have owned are very difficult to skip. They are rock solid and have more features for the money than any other HU.

Currently I am running an [/b] Alpine[/b] 7949. Alpines top of the line deck a few years back. It is a great unit, simple, elegant looking... But it skips easier than my previous Pioneers, it also doesnt have any of the EQ's or anything like that, that the Pioneers had.

JVC = Garbage, don't even bother wasting your time. Unless you get the SH99 I have heard numerous compliments on this deck.
Panasonics are decent, but if you can stay away. There build quality isnt as high as pioneer or alpine.
Clarions used to be extremely good when they werent mainstreme. In the past year or so they started making a comeback with the HX-D10 and the 9675z (high end decks)
Sony and Blau are not a popular choice, if you go high end they both have some amazing stuff but for the average listener it isn't worth it.
Kenwoods in my opinion are too cluttered, good HU's but too busy looking
Denon, Nakamichi, McIntosh... Very good, very expensive............. You get what you pay for!
Eclipse , Good reputation, no detachable face, ESN Warranty (replaces stolen units for 1 year if dealer installed), expensive, boring display, face made of cheap plastic, similar to that of Aiwa (Aiwa are horrible units)

These are just my opinions, but I hope they help. Go to www.sounddomain.com and do some more research there in the forums. My name is Commissar over there.

And do NOT listen to the person who says amps are more important than the HU!! The amp can only amplify what it is given! If you buy a shotty HU and a really expensive amp, your amp will only amplify the crappy signal that it is given. The signal given to the amp is the most important part of a good sounding stereo.
Click to expand...

I dunno about that JVC comment....but this is my first JVC deck i ever owned i would say this is the best deck i've owned for the buck...i also personally know 2 owners with my same deck and so far they've had no complaints of the SH-99....and they've had it longer then i have.




 
M

MorphineChild

Senior member
Aug 10, 2001
880
0
0
Originally posted by: gregshin
Originally posted by: MorphineChild
Pioneer is by far the best for the budget.

[/b] Pioneers[/b] come loaded with features, eq's, dsp, display....... The pioneers I have owned are very difficult to skip. They are rock solid and have more features for the money than any other HU.

Currently I am running an [/b] Alpine[/b] 7949. Alpines top of the line deck a few years back. It is a great unit, simple, elegant looking... But it skips easier than my previous Pioneers, it also doesnt have any of the EQ's or anything like that, that the Pioneers had.

JVC = Garbage, don't even bother wasting your time. Unless you get the SH99 I have heard numerous compliments on this deck.
Panasonics are decent, but if you can stay away. There build quality isnt as high as pioneer or alpine.
Clarions used to be extremely good when they werent mainstreme. In the past year or so they started making a comeback with the HX-D10 and the 9675z (high end decks)
Sony and Blau are not a popular choice, if you go high end they both have some amazing stuff but for the average listener it isn't worth it.
Kenwoods in my opinion are too cluttered, good HU's but too busy looking
Denon, Nakamichi, McIntosh... Very good, very expensive............. You get what you pay for!
Eclipse , Good reputation, no detachable face, ESN Warranty (replaces stolen units for 1 year if dealer installed), expensive, boring display, face made of cheap plastic, similar to that of Aiwa (Aiwa are horrible units)

These are just my opinions, but I hope they help. Go to www.sounddomain.com and do some more research there in the forums. My name is Commissar over there.

And do NOT listen to the person who says amps are more important than the HU!! The amp can only amplify what it is given! If you buy a shotty HU and a really expensive amp, your amp will only amplify the crappy signal that it is given. The signal given to the amp is the most important part of a good sounding stereo.
Click to expand...

I dunno about that JVC comment....but this is my first JVC deck i ever owned i would say this is the best deck i've owned for the buck...i also personally know 2 owners with my same deck and so far they've had no complaints of the SH-99....and they've had it longer then i have.
Click to expand...


That is why they are just my opinions. In my experience my JVC did alright, but it was flaky, the rear channels stopped working, problems powering up, no sound.... And yes it was installed properly, this all happened after a year or two in my truck.
 
C

Carl Uman

Diamond Member
Jan 29, 2000
6,008
2
81
I picked Alpine (I have the CDA-7878) but I have to wonder if I would like Kenwood z828 better. Don't get me wrong I like the Alpine but there are a couple of things that I would like changed and don't know if the z828 has them or not.
 
T

Thegonagle

Diamond Member
Jun 8, 2000
9,773
0
71
Everything's important, but the speakers are where the sound's at. Give your speakers the most careful consideration of all your components, especially up front. You can feed the your speakers from the best deck and amp in the world, but sub-par speakers will still sound sub-par.
 
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