HU Advice

[phatcivic]

Hello,

While I am a noob here I am not totally a noob to the audio scene. I currently run a dual din HU and want to replace it with a sigle din. While I thought replacing it would be easy, I was wrong! Last time I picked a hu the only option was HD and iPod connections. In any event looking for some guidance on what I should get. The needs are:

single din

good RMS (std 18 correct to meet compliance?)

sub output - would like a good output 2v for example

ipod connection - has to work with a mini...ouch

iphone connection

CD would be cool

Radio - iffy as the civic never gets great reception

Max price $250 + or -

currently have

single JL 10"

JL 500/1

JL 6.5"

Pioneer 6.5" as well (on sale) //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

stock tweeters

If you want to know my current HU let me know but not sure if that will help decide on a replacement.

Thanks for the help anyone can provide. I really remember Alpine and Eclipse being the top 2 competitors on the market for quality, but it seems eclipse just doesn't do what I am looking for anymore.

Click to read more...

 

[murph 10+ year member]

2v pre outs good my *** look into the kenwood excelon line of single dims they are nice and at a good price (they also have 4v pre outs)

 

[hispls 5,000+ posts]

Best bet is to go check some out in person. Very important if you care about how well it'll read USB sticks or iPod navigate. Kenwood, Alpine, Pioneer are pretty much the front runners as far as being common and having a more or less reliable product, but there's a half dozen others that can be pretty good.

Pretty much anything above pure crap tier will have about the same speaker level outs, and I'd be willing to bet very few "4V" pre out decks really do 4V clean, so while in theory it's a nice feature, that shouldn't be a deal breaker if you find one that you find easy to navigate with a user friendly interface. IMO easy navigation and ease of use is the first thing I go for which you will only get a feel for by playing with one in person... From there, most respectable brands have 8 or 10 models with pretty much the same additional features added as you step up in price.

 

[VWBobby 10+ year member]

^^ Very good advice. I would also recommend shopping locally, checking out as many decks as you can at local car stereo shops, car toys, etc. Once you find one you like, either buy it there or shop online at Car Audio Stereo - Car Subwoofers - Car Amplifiers and Speakers, woofersetc.com, ebay, etc. I like Pioneer and Kenwood myself. Never cared for the looks or feel of Alpine, but like the SQ of Alpine and Eclipse decks... Kenwood decks seem to have more features than Pioneer decks these days.

 

[phatcivic]

Is it safe to say they decks from 3-5 years ago are the same today, just with more features, ie bluetooth, XM radio, etc? The basic RMS, preout, etc are all the same, no better technology enhancements on those sides.

 

[VWBobby 10+ year member]

Yeah, they are pretty much the same as 3-5 years ago. Alpine played some tricks and deleted features that you have to gain back by using an external processor or other gizmo. Eclipse is pretty much only sold in Japan unless you get one on ebay. Pay close attention to the specs in the audio section, some have dual 24-bit A/D burr-brown converters, higher signal to noise ratio, etc. if you are looking for a more SQ oriented deck. Since you need the iPod/iPoop connection, I would go for one with a rear connection for a stealth install with no wires in the front... //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif