Double-din GPS head unit. Which one?

[spiroh 10+ year member]

Hello, I am looking for a Double-din GPS head unit. The top of the line kenwoods as of right now seem to be out of my budget so I am considering the Eclipse AVN6620BT or the IVA-W505. What are your thoughts on these decks? I am also open to other possibilities. I've heard the new Eclipse isn't that good. My main focus is good quality outputs for sound quality and a decent GPS.

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[bones22 5,000+ posts]

Jvc Kw-nx7000bt

 

[spiroh 10+ year member]

That looks pretty nice. Does it come with 24bit dac's like some of the other units?

 

[bones22 5,000+ posts]

That looks pretty nice. Does it come with 24bit dac's like some of the other units?

http://mobile.jvc.com/product.jsp?modelId=MODL028539&pathId=126&page=1

 

[TerryMorgan 10+ year member]

The Eclipse is a great piece, two of my friends have it and they love it. Has a great EQ built in too.

 

[spiroh 10+ year member]

The Eclipse is a great piece, two of my friends have it and they love it. Has a great EQ built in too.

The new one?

 

[forbidden 10+ year member]

The Eclipse is definitely a great unit.

 

[SRim23 5,000+ posts]

I had an Eclipse AVN5435 and THOUGHT I loved it. I sold it and bought a Kenwood DNX8120...... AMAZING 100000x's better than the Eclipse.

And I hope you arent referring to the newer Eclipse units as having an awesome EQ. that was one of the reasons i switched because the DNX's are so much better.

Kenwood DNX8120 or if you have the funds DNX9140 is the way to go.

whats your budget? I got my DNX on ebay for 780, used but its in almost brand new condition. if i told you i bought it new you wouldnt know that i didnt.

 

[PioneerSPL1990 10+ year member]

Pioneer AVIC-D3 i love mine.

 

[chereck04 10+ year member]

If you want a kenwood unit but can't afford it right now, consider purchasing the DDX812 double din unit, then getting the KNA-G510 navigation module to go with it sometime down the road. That way you get the performance you know you want, without dropping all the cash at once. The best part about doing things this way is that you can upgrade receivers and keep using the same navigation module.

 

[SRim23 5,000+ posts]

Be careful with the bluetooth on the Eclipse 6620. if you are running all amps i was told it wont work. youll only get sound out of it if you have speakers hooked up to the HU.... I cant confirm that is true but thats what I was told.

 

[forbidden 10+ year member]

Be careful with the bluetooth on the Eclipse 6620. if you are running all amps i was told it wont work. youll only get sound out of it if you have speakers hooked up to the HU.... I cant confirm that is true but thats what I was told.

There is most certainly a way to defeat this, I have the link down at my shop actually.

 

[SRim23 5,000+ posts]

There is most certainly a way to defeat this, I have the link down at my shop actually.

yeah the guy over at diy that told me that said there was but his method required opening up the parrot unit and soldering something to it and a bunch of stuff that even though i can install all my own stuff i wouldnt feel comfortable doing. just giving the OP a heads up because after i searched it i found alot of threads about people being disappointed that no one told them that until after they purchased the unit.

i love eclipse for a long time and after having this kenwood for just 3 weeks ill never go back. i was considering the new 726 as opposed to the DNX but only 3 band EQ and that cheap TA they have i chose the DNX and couldnt be happier.

 

[XTRProBoy 10+ year member]

If you want a kenwood unit but can't afford it right now, consider purchasing the DDX812 double din unit, then getting the KNA-G510 navigation module to go with it sometime down the road. That way you get the performance you know you want, without dropping all the cash at once. The best part about doing things this way is that you can upgrade receivers and keep using the same navigation module.

This is a good idea and I actually have a DDX812 + KNA-G510 myself, but the final thought of upgrading the receiver and keeping the nav has some disadvantages now that the DNX9140 is out...

Speaking of "unauthorised" prices (e.g. eBay, online, etc.), you will save about $100 over the price of the same unathorised DNX8120, going with the separate DDX812 and KNA-G510 units, so that's a plus. (I actually saved about $200 because I got my DDX used in like-new cond'n for a very good price.)

Note that no matter if you get the DDX authorised or unauthorised, if you add the KNA-G510 to a DDX unit you will have to buy it unauthorised otherwise it is big money and that will just be pointless.

Another positive I thought of is if you have the G510 installed somewhere away from the HU, and someone steals your HU, at least you still have the nav so it's less money to replace.

The little hitch about upgrading the HU and keeping the nav happens now because the DNX9140 has an all new nav interface, much like the newer Nuvis have. That's why it's a DNX9140 not DNX8140. Using a DDX814 (there is no DDX914) plus the KNA-G510 will therefore not net you the same thing as a DNX9140. Instead it will net you something similar but with a lesser nav package. Unfortunately I don't think Garmin or Kenwood is updating the G510 (or older Kenwood DNXs) to have the newer interface (it probably isn't even possible). In the end, though it sounds good in theory, there's little to be gained in upgrading a DDX812 to a DDX814.

Of course the DNX9140 is not cheap right now anyway, so if the newer features it has aren't necessary it's nothing to bother about.