alpine VS eclipse VS sony???need help?

[bri487 5,000+ posts]

Everybody's ears are different, but from what I have seen on the forums over the years(and my personal experience), eclipse is usually preferred to alpine when it comes to sq.

i understand that, but i personally dont like eclipse much these days. i feel let down by the quality. anyone i know who has been running their decks for the past 5,6,7...years or so has seen a drop off in quality over the past year or so.

for the ipod connector. the only deck it is worth using it on is the 9853 or the 9855. because the way the displays are setup on them, they are easier to use. you can view more info about what playlists you are in and what not. usually i just use the rca input feature through the changer input.

 

[JoseMCeee 10+ year member]

I might just switch back to the RCA aux method cuz its starting to get annoying.... But then I will lose the recharging feature.... bah I dont know what to do no more. I should just buy a DVD deck and plug the KCA-420 on that. Lets see a full screen be stubborn.

 

[JLCivic 10+ year member]

i understand that, but i personally dont like eclipse much these days. i feel let down by the quality. anyone i know who has been running their decks for the past 5,6,7...years or so has seen a drop off in quality over the past year or so.
for the ipod connector. the only deck it is worth using it on is the 9853 or the 9855. because the way the displays are setup on them, they are easier to use. you can view more info about what playlists you are in and what not. usually i just use the rca input feature through the changer input.

I ran eclipse decks for a decade. The overall quality was top notch. I remember a guy coming into the local shop a year ago. He picked up an Eclipse and took his alpine back because he thought the thing was incredibly junky feeling.

You mention "drop off in quality over the past year" in regard to eclipse and then mention a 9853/9855....now those have had legendary reliability //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/eek.gif.771b7a90cf45cabdc554ff1121c21c4a.gif

 

[FOSGATE JOE 10+ year member]

ok to day i played with so eclipse h.u's and well i guess i'm goin to stay with sony?? yes i know i'm a dumbass for goin with sony but when i played with both h.u's the sony had a better sq thats me thoe but you guys we're right about the price been to much so today i went to the same car audio place and told them that sony 7815 h.u was to much$$$$$$$ so thay gave me the cooler one which is the m8815 for the same price

 

[gentlejax 10+ year member]

Fosgate Joe:

I am going to say something that may ease your mind a little and get me flamed.

I HAD a Alpine 9815 but well I am not a stereo fanatic. I am old school and behind the technology so I sold it . WHY? I needed something easier to figure out and use so I could keep my eyes on the road....

Then, cause I always heard how great Eclipse is, I bought a 8454....mainly cause of 8 volt. nothing else really other than that and the "rep". Guess what ? I sold it. why? well , it wasnt that impressive with the crappy remote and the no face remove thing. Also a complicated deck and more than I was going to use. I also didnt want to spend $400 on a alarm system that might work or might not in keeping someone from stealing the deck. so , I sold it too.

Next was the Kenwood Excelon 889 2005 model. Very nice deck and loaded out. I knew it was going to be a complicated deck FOR ME to use but price was good and deck was loaded and had good reviews. ,,,WEll..... I am selling it too after less than 4 hrs use I have decided to sell it. Very nice deck if you know what the hell you are doing.....

What made me change again? well I bought my wife a new Sony Specialty Series 7715 . Model below yours I think but has black metal face with blue lights...I had the thing set in my wifes truck in less than 5 MINUTES and sounding better than my Kenwood...

That was all it took for me. 5 minutes and I had it sound ing great and I never opened the manual. EXACTLY WHAT I NEEDED.

Now Sony has produced some crap over the years and I have never thought about it till I bought the wifes deck. It was pretty for her and she liked it. The specs on it arent bad at all. When I saw it in person it looked better than I thought it would.

Cost me less than $200 for it and I ordered myself one last night to replace the Kenwood.

Now before I get flamed.

My point that matters most is that all the expensive equipment in the world is useless to me if I cant operate it correctly. I dont know anyone that really knows about car audio so I really cant get help with the system. I do keep up with the stuff but never a practicing stereo fanatic or anything.

So I have taken a chance on the new SPECIALTY SERIES 7715 for the fact that it sounded great with little hassle even for a novice like me. I also bought the 3 yr warranty on it just to be safe.

For all you haters. just take a look at it in person. Its a nicely laid out deck and easy to use.

I wanted an older Alpine, Eclipse, or Sony ES before I started all this crap but it was hard for me to risk buying an old deck that already had thousands of hours time on it and might die the minute I got it.

For simple stereo user like me options are slim cause easy decks arent made or they are just crap. I didnt need crossovers and time alignment or time delay etc etc.

if it sounds good to you then that is the biggest factor in making you happy not everyones opinion.

you can go to any forum and get haters for various brands depending on the board.

sorry to go long but your situation reminded me of my choices.

good luck

Mike

I MUST SAY THIS. I am sure that all of the other deck I had would sound better than the Sony if I knew what I was doing and had the patience to keep trying to get it set up. BUT I didnt so they sounded bad to me. ...NOt there fault but mine.

Sony may be cheap to most people but they made a deck that was easy enough to figure out for a idiot like me. my wife is happy and I will soon be happy.

The Sony will be the cheapest part of my system if I ever get it put in.

 

[x0n22s 10+ year member]

the new alpines are horrible. its sad.
in the last two years quality has gone down tremendously.

why the HELL did you pick up that shitty ass sony deck for 300 bucks.

idiot.

well best buy just picked up their whole line xcept f1

 

[x0n22s 10+ year member]

why wouldnt i drive? im a freshman in college. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/rolleyes.gif.c1fef805e9d1464d377451cd5bc18bfb.gif
i think the new high end kenwoods sound way better than any of alpine's offerings, in the sound board anyways.

and god do i hate kenwood.

oh, and the "4v" preouts are more like 2, 2.5, even on the flagship models.

2,2.5 on good day

 

[Slaugh 10+ year member]

gentlejax, i junderstand your words, but i think you should try and persist on taking time to learn and adjusting the sound... alpines, eclipses, etc... are awesome hus with awesome sound quality and great adjusts and these adjusts are there only to help you, and not make your life more complicated

i advize you getting one and taking more of your time to learn how to set the sound the way you want... Sony may even sound good, but what's the point if like 50% of it's users go to pioneer or alpine after months of use because the **** hu broke?

take your time to learn, it's worth the time... i used to think all you needed in a hu was bass and treble plus or minus adjustments and loudness, but now i see these are all gimmicks compared to a good equalizer for example...

 

[bjfish11 5,000+ posts]

where can you buy eclipse hu online at for decent prices?

 

[bri487 5,000+ posts]

where can you buy eclipse hu online at for decent prices?

you can't.

 

[JLCivic 10+ year member]

you can't.

IMO, retail on Eclipses isn't that bad for what you get. Cartoys is apparently shipping some Eclipse stuff.

 

[bri487 5,000+ posts]

IMO, retail on Eclipses isn't that bad for what you get. Cartoys is apparently shipping some Eclipse stuff.

i wasnt disputing the retail prices, i was just saying you cant get them online.

 

[JoseMCeee 10+ year member]

probably the only way to get an eclipse online is ebay. They are on there sometimes. Other than that u can go to a local good guys. Maybe even get a good deal on the old decks.

 

[JoseMCeee 10+ year member]

actually i just looked at that cartoys website and I guess they do have them. I would still get them from a good guys store though because it would probably be the same price and u can get a warranty.

 

[bjfish11 5,000+ posts]

my only local dealer will charge out the ass for an ecplise hu, thats why i was asking. maybe i could have one of you guys pick me one up, and ship out to me....????? lol