Good Budget headunit

[SounDrive Pro Seller]

the kenwood unit will have a better preout voltage, better rca connections, better controls, better quality, better eq functions, easier to add on extra parts as they are easy to find, better overall looks....need i go into more detail?

I believe Jeff just went into more detail and proved you completely wrong.

 

---------- Post added at 10:52 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:51 AM ----------

 

Excuse me? have you even bothered looking at the clarion? Its not visually appealing but performance wise it'll wipe the floor with that Kenwood eXcelon KDC-X697 head unit.
that kenwood is a lower end head unit, 4 volt pre out, 3 band EQ, not active capable, Digital time alignment no where to be found. Cant even do bluetooth calling or audio.

compared to the cz702's 5 volt preout, 5 band parametric EQ, Active network capable with Adjustable slopes, Digital time alignment, Has everything a modern head unit has and can add satellight/ipod/sirius just as easy as the kenwood and the sound and build quality is great. Its THE 150$ budget SQ oriented head unit to get. Closest thing to an 80 PRS for half of the PRS's cost

Thank you for the educated post.

 

[BoomTaco64]

Excuse me? have you even bothered looking at the clarion? Its not visually appealing but performance wise it'll wipe the floor with that Kenwood eXcelon KDC-X697 head unit.
that kenwood is a lower end head unit, 4 volt pre out, 3 band EQ, not active capable, Digital time alignment no where to be found. Cant even do bluetooth calling or audio.

compared to the cz702's 5 volt preout, 5 band parametric EQ, Active network capable with Adjustable slopes, Digital time alignment, Has everything a modern head unit has and can add satellight/ipod/sirius just as easy as the kenwood and the sound and build quality is great. Its THE 150$ budget SQ oriented head unit to get. Closest thing to an 80 PRS for half of the PRS's cost

i would not buy a clarion radio. i have installed them and had so many issues with them over the last 7 years. they may have the things you say but i can speak on the reliability as they have been proven garbage units for the shop i have worked at for over 10 years and get replaced with a kenwood or a pioneer. this is all about opinions apparently. i have used clarion, installed clarion, removed clarion and set clarion products in the garbage where they belong. i personally reccommend getting a jensen before i ever recommended a clarion product to anyone. you may have better luck with the clarion units but its just that LUCK! OP get whatever radio you think is best for you.

 

[SounDrive Pro Seller]

i would not buy a clarion radio. i have installed them and had so many issues with them over the last 7 years. they may have the things you say but i can speak on the reliability as they have been proven garbage units for the shop i have worked at for over 10 years and get replaced with a kenwood or a pioneer. this is all about opinions apparently. i have used clarion, installed clarion, removed clarion and set clarion products in the garbage where they belong. i personally reccommend getting a jensen before i ever recommended a clarion product to anyone. you may have better luck with the clarion units but its just that LUCK! OP get whatever radio you think is best for you.

I love my clarion. My friend whom is a clarion dealer (and pioneer..) loves them and so does everyone who buys them. They may not be the most attractive, but at this point you're just talking out your ***.

And yes, I've used Alpine, Kenwood, and Pioneer as well. My business partner who runs a Panasonic bottlehead and has used everything from modified eclipse head units to a Macintosh head unit and everything in between also approves of the sound and functionality of the CZ702s... If he approves of something, it's good in my book.

 

[nismos14 5,000+ posts]

I've had more Kenwoods go bad then Clarions in 20 years or car audio. They will all potentially go bad.

 

[BoomTaco64]

I love my clarion. My friend whom is a clarion dealer loves them and so does everyone who buys them. They may not be the most attractive, but at this point you're just talking out your ***

and thats your opinion on the clarion units. everyone is entitled to their opinion and what they like. you choose clarion. i choose kenwood. two choices. saying i am talking our your A$$ is just plain stupid. if i have actual customers that do not like the units and have problems with them i am wrong? how can that be? am i dreaming each time i replace a clarion unit with kenwood. i believe the sales are not wrong as we sell them every day and replace the faulty clarion units with better working units. i am speaking on behalf on an installer that replaces more of them than i install them. so saying i am talking out my a$$ is just plain bogus.

 

[southport2014 10+ year member]

I had a kenwood x996 and it crapped on me within a year im going to look at the clarion

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

i would not buy a clarion radio. i have installed them and had so many issues with them over the last 7 years. they may have the things you say but i can speak on the reliability as they have been proven garbage units for the shop i have worked at for over 10 years and get replaced with a kenwood or a pioneer. this is all about opinions apparently. i have used clarion, installed clarion, removed clarion and set clarion products in the garbage where they belong. i personally reccommend getting a jensen before i ever recommended a clarion product to anyone. you may have better luck with the clarion units but its just that LUCK! OP get whatever radio you think is best for you.

with clarion, they only have two reliable and best bang for buck models, CZ702 and NX702, i agree most of their lower lines and random head units are pretty junky, just like cheaper end pioneers, alpines and kenwoods. You got the good, the bad and the ugly of all brands. If the op wants something different other then the clarion, a similar model would be the alpine 147bt for a little bit more which is NICE also but for 150 dollars, that particular clarion head unit is generally approved and well recieved by many SQ and SPL competitors i've seen.