need help with specifications on head unit.

[ckarls2000 10+ year member]

I have a few questions:

1.) The RMS Power Bandwidth whats better? 20-20, 40-20, 30-20, 50-15

2.) Preamp voltage, Higher or Lower?

3.) FM Sensitivity, Higher or Lower? (dBf)

4.) CD Frequency Response? 10-20, 5-20, 20-20

5.) CD Signal-to-Noise, Higher or Lower? (db)

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[forbidden 10+ year member]

Ignore all of the above, this will tell you basically nothing since no two companies will compare their decks in the exact same manner. There are many things that make one deck more suitable than another but very few consumers actually know about the finer points of a cd player. They ask similar questions to what you have in the hopes of learning more, or you will also see alot of posts saying this brand is the best because it's all I've ever owned or because I had brand x and now I have brand y and it does this, this and this. What are you after in a cd player that makes you ask these questions? Are you after a good cd player, have you been led to believe that the spec is most important?

 

[ckarls2000 10+ year member]

im am after mostly a cool looking mp3 player, for a reasonable price

 

[ckarls2000 10+ year member]

i would still like these questions answered if possible

 

[forbidden 10+ year member]

A cool looking cd player usually has nothing to do with sound quality. There is a drastic difference between the two types of cd player. A light show has nothing to do with sq but it sure looks cool. There is a thread started in a couple places in the General Discussion forum about cd players, do some reading there where preout voltage is mentioned.

 

[Logikalliquid 10+ year member]

Ignore all of the above, this will tell you basically nothing since no two companies will compare their decks in the exact same manner. There are many things that make one deck more suitable than another but very few consumers actually know about the finer points of a cd player.

i'll admit i don't know what to look for besides my needs for fucntions and the specs. I know the specs are usaully under the optimum condition they found and that isnt the standard way i'll end up using it. so , what exactly are some of the finer points of comparing decks?

 

[forbidden 10+ year member]

First list your needs in order of importance, ie: fancy display, detach face, MP3, changer control, tape deck, radio etc.

Are you trying to build a system for yourself? The cd player is the first step in the start of a system and will make or break the capabilities down the road. Based on what you have posted already, Panasonic, Pioneer , Sony all make some basic flashy cd players. Eclipse does not make flash, they make sound quality and will sound drastically superior to the light show style cd players. Find a price range that you want to purchase in or close to and this will really narrow down the choices for you.