As someone who has never had an elite system (and probably never will), I do not know what 'active mode' or 'active capabilities' are....at least not by that name.
Could you offer a bit of clarification of what that is?
At minimum, I want a deck made by a quality company. I want built-in BT, and I want to run an amp on 6X9s with as many EQ bands as possible so I can adjust my music.
It sounds like this isn't active mode, but I guess I don't want to get stuck with a sucky deck.
Also - is there one in the $500 or less category that is better than this one?