Clarion DRZ 9255 users

[Greg200SE-R 10+ year member]

I am just about sold on this head unit, but have a few questions about it before taking the plunge:

-- When setting the time alignment, are you able to hear the "steps" as you adjust it? Or do you need to make your adjustment and then hit the pause/enter button to hear the new setting? For example, if you are adjusting for a certain speaker, can you hear each change immediately as you repeatedly hit the up/down buttons?

-- Same question as above, but for crossover frequency adjustment and level adjustment

-- For an active 2-way front stage and sub (no rear speakers) can you use standard mode and still have a bandpass filter for the front midbass speakers? It sounds like there is no high pass filter, forcing the midbass to play the subbass frequencies... If this is true, then can the unit be used in 4-way (multi) mode and use the "low" outputs for my midbass and the "high" for the tweeters (ignoring the "mid" outputs) and have a seamless transition between mid/tweets?

Basically I have 6 1/2" comps, and through lots of listening, have already determined that the best-sounding XO points in my car are:

Sub: 63Hz/18dB, Midbass: 63Hz/12dB to 800Hz/6dB, Tweeters 1600Hz/6dB and up (tweeters also have an on-amp 12dB HP filter@900Hz as a fail-safe).

Which mode (standard or multi) will best accomodate these settings? Thank you for taking the time to read through this post. The 9255 sounds like an amazing HU. I wish the convenience of mp3s were available tho...

Click to read more...

 

[99StangGt 10+ year member]

have you looked at the manual? you can look at it on the clarion website.

Clarion Manuals

I am sold on them, bought one yesterday.

 

[Greg200SE-R 10+ year member]

have you looked at the manual? you can look at it on the clarion website.
Clarion Manuals

I am sold on them, bought one yesterday.

Thank you for the link 99StangGt, but I've already checked that out. It doesn't state specifically if you can hear each time-correction "step" immediately when you press the up/down buttons... or if the changes aren't audible until the enter/pause button is pressed.

This is absolutely crucial to setting time alignment by ear... to continuously listen to the time steps until a sweet spot is reached... Can an owner please verify this when you get the chance? Much appreciated!

 

[cjjackson85 5,000+ posts]

Everything is adjusted in realtime...

 

[Greg200SE-R 10+ year member]

Everything is adjusted in realtime...

Perfect, thanks for the clear, concise response. Clarion will soon have another customer! Upgrading to the 'DRZ from 2 defective Eclipse CD8455s...

 

[cjjackson85 5,000+ posts]

I upgraded from the 8454, you'll be impressed...

 

[99StangGt 10+ year member]

Funny im upgrading from a 8454 too.

 

[Greg200SE-R 10+ year member]

I upgraded from the 8454, you'll be impressed...

Funny im upgrading from a 8454 too.

Hmmm I seem to be part of a trend! Eclipse to Clarion. Honestly, a couple of weeks ago, I would have never considered buying a Clarion because I thought of them as being second-rate... Until the 9255 blew that opinion out of the water.

Although the Eclipse CD8455 worked incredibly well for me, the right-hand knob went bad within 2 weeks on both of the units I tried.

The features and DSP of the Clarion caught my eye, but the turning point was when I figured out the Clarion has FIVE TIMES the precision between time-delay steps than the Eclipse and Alpine PXA-H701 processor.. 2.5 times the precision of Pioneer P9 combo... I was impressed.

Great DACs and DSP will deliver a cleaner and more detailed signal, but I think the key to getting the best imaging and soundstaging out of active components is time alignment (and careful crossover settings). I can't wait to hear the Clarion in my car!

 

[99StangGt 10+ year member]

I always thought of clarion as second best also. Then i found out that clarion bought Mcintosh and that the 9255 has alot of Mcintosh in it. And I love the 4-way crossover with level adjustments. That was one thing i didnt like about the Eclipse.

 

[OnYrMrk 10+ year member]

I always thought of clarion as second best also. Then i found out that clarion bought Mcintosh and that the 9255 has alot of Mcintosh in it. And I love the 4-way crossover with level adjustments. That was one thing i didnt like about the Eclipse.

Not just alot, every internal from that HU is McIntosh. That HU is the next best thing to the McIntosh MC406 HU.

DAC's are in-chassis on the Clarion, DAC's are on umbilical chassis on McIntosh

 

[BodegaBay 10+ year member]

Funny you guys mentioned it but I actually tried the DRZ9255 for ~8 mos. and eventually returned to Eclipse. The latest Eclipse 8455 gave me all the DSP flexibility (including 24db slope) that I didn't have in the Clarion.

To my ears, the 9255 sounded a tad warm. It is undoubtedly the best looking H/U with perfect tactile feel and top notch build quality [copper chassis, machine metal faceplate, REAL glass LCD window (not polycarbonate crap), and a volume knob(!) to die for]. Alas my first unit's LCD died on me but Clarion USA replaced it with a completly new unit. I sold the new unit to to a lucky owner here.

If you buy the Clarion, I highly recommend buying it from an authorized dealer. I confirmed with Clarion sales that CarDomain.com was an auth. dealer and bought it from them for ~ $775 through a price match. Search Froogle.com for the lowest price then ask CarDomain.com to match. They came close by $30 but worth it for the 2 (or was it 3?) year mfg. warranty.

In the past 2.5 years I have tried most flagship models with the exception of Alpine's F1 and Pioneer P9 combo.

I lived with the Alpine 9815 (too thin), revisited Sony C90 (way too warm), compared Eclipse 8053 vs. 8443 (pratically the same SQ), lived Eclipse 8443 (great SQ, limited x-over flexibility, no satellite, no MP3), switched to Clarion 9255 (a touch warm, limited x-over slope), in-car demoed the Alpine 9855 (iGlide novelty at best, still strained and thin) and now decided to rest with the Eclipse 8455 because they finally made made it much more flexible to tune. However, one will not mistake the 8455's looks with the luscious DRZ!

Good luck with yours.

 

[Bake 10+ year member]

So did you sell your 9255? Might it be for sale?

 

[Kali77 10+ year member]

Yep he sold it. To me //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/veryhappy.gif.fec4fed33b4a1279cf10bdd45a039dae.gif Thanks Bodega //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[Bake 10+ year member]

Figured that, but had to ask. lol

 

[JLCivic 10+ year member]

Hmmm I seem to be part of a trend! Eclipse to Clarion. Honestly, a couple of weeks ago, I would have never considered buying a Clarion because I thought of them as being second-rate... Until the 9255 blew that opinion out of the water.
Although the Eclipse CD8455 worked incredibly well for me, the right-hand knob went bad within 2 weeks on both of the units I tried.

The features and DSP of the Clarion caught my eye, but the turning point was when I figured out the Clarion has FIVE TIMES the precision between time-delay steps than the Eclipse and Alpine PXA-H701 processor.. 2.5 times the precision of Pioneer P9 combo... I was impressed.

Great DACs and DSP will deliver a cleaner and more detailed signal, but I think the key to getting the best imaging and soundstaging out of active components is time alignment (and careful crossover settings). I can't wait to hear the Clarion in my car!

I love eclipse decks, but for the price difference between an eclipse and a 9255, it certainly should be an upgrade.