Pioneer Premier P780, P880 PRS, or Eclipse 8445

[psk1018dc 10+ year member]

I am racking my brain right now trying to decide between these three. I know the Eclipse will have significantly better sound quality, and I thought I had made up my mind to buy it, but I just noticed it only has 14 watts RMS/channel, whereas the Pioneers have 22. I also like the looks of the Pioneers better. I will be hooking it up (at least initially) to a set of Diamond D361s in front, with no rear speakers as of yet (new car), and a JL Audio 10W0-8 in the back (no amp yet for speakers or sub). Also, maybe I should start a new thread, but I didn't realize that the sub was an 8-ohm when I bought it, so will that be difficult to power if I just have one and not bridged to a 4-ohm amp? Thanks for the help

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[Prowler573 5,000+ posts]

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wave.gif.002382ce7d7c19757ab945cc69819de1.gif Welcome to the forum. Hope you enjoy your stay here in our little corner of the car audio world.

RMS output figures on head units should only be used a reference guide and not truly a deciding factor in the purchase decision-making process. Most modern HUs will give you 15~18 watts of clean power per channel before some pretty serious distortion sets in regardless of the ratings to the contrary.

Good choice on the Diamonds...I'm more than a bit of a fan of DAT gear //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

No, an 8 Ohm sub isn't inherently difficult to power - just realize that whatever the amp used to power it is rated to output at 4 Ohms will give you about half that figure when presented with an 8 Ohm load. a 10W0 doesn't need gobs of power to work at its best so you should be fine there.

As far as final decisions on the HU goes get whichever one has the feature set that best suits your needs or whichever one you can acquire at the best price. All 3 are solid units and I do not think you'd be disappointed with any of them.

 

[zachzchw 5,000+ posts]

Might want to research the thing about the eclipse having such better sq.

Anyway, the sq in your given setup will depend on a whole hell of a lot more than your deck.

 

[skierxx5556 10+ year member]

What about a CD7000 //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[psk1018dc 10+ year member]

The reason I say that the Eclipse has better SQ is from what seems to be the general consensus on these boards. Most people say that Pioneer is more for looks and not necessarily if you are looking for SQ. The Eclipse seems to have a ton of features as well, which is intriguing. Basically it seems to me that Eclipse is more of a company focused on high quality sound, whereas Pioneer is more a marketing company trying to sell you flash. That being said, I am a bit of a sucker for the looks of a HU, but I still want the best sound I can get. I'm torn...

 

[psk1018dc 10+ year member]

The CD7000 is a little more than I'm looking to spend. I also have looked at the 5000, but honestly I like the looks of the 8445 better and it seems to be all but identical to the 5000 (not to mention the 8445 is significantly cheaper being last year's model). I also like the fact that the Eclipse is HD Radio ready. I contacted Pioneer about that and they said they had no info on when or if it would be available on their HUs.

 

[alphakenny1 10+ year member]

i'd get the 880 for the simple of fact of its flexbility of going active possibly in the future. those other HUs won't have that option.

 

[psk1018dc 10+ year member]

What do you mean by active?

 

[alphakenny1 10+ year member]

http://www.caraudio.com/forum/showthread.php?t=146726&highlight=active+passive

 

[adam71 5,000+ posts]

The reason I say that the Eclipse has better SQ is from what seems to be the general consensus on these boards. Most people say that Pioneer is more for looks and not necessarily if you are looking for SQ.

While I will agree that Pioneer is a HUGE company based on selling as many units as they can that doesn't mean they do NOT make a quality head unit. And while their head units may have a lot of flash and pretty colors it doesn't mean they can't perform with anything that Eclipse puts out. Eclipse is trying to stay low key on their displays because that has worked for them in the past and why change it now. Also keep in mind while an Eclipse deck has a simple "all business" look doesn't automatically mean it is an "all business" top performing deck. Decks with all kinds of bling can be HIGH performing decks as well. Not knocking Eclipse in any way but don't buy a deck based on opinion and looks.

The Eclipse seems to have a ton of features as well, which is intriguing. Basically it seems to me that Eclipse is more of a company focused on high quality sound, whereas Pioneer is more a marketing company trying to sell you flash. That being said, I am a bit of a sucker for the looks of a HU, but I still want the best sound I can get. I'm torn..

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I think you'll find (as alphakenny) pointed out that the 880 has a ton of features and is very HIGH in the SQ dept as well. It also has a no nonsense look if you like that sort of thing. I've always been a fan of the "non bling" head units but they're usually more expensive. Judge for yourself and try to ignore the hype.

 

[Kickerkitty 10+ year member]

I am racking my brain right now trying to decide between these three. I know the Eclipse will have significantly better sound quality, and I thought I had made up my mind to buy it, but I just noticed it only has 14 watts RMS/channel, whereas the Pioneers have 22. I also like the looks of the Pioneers better. I will be hooking it up (at least initially) to a set of Diamond D361s in front, with no rear speakers as of yet (new car), and a JL Audio 10W0-8 in the back (no amp yet for speakers or sub). Also, maybe I should start a new thread, but I didn't realize that the sub was an 8-ohm when I bought it, so will that be difficult to power if I just have one and not bridged to a 4-ohm amp? Thanks for the help

880 880 880 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 880!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[99StangGt 10+ year member]

I am going to have to go with the 880. I havent got mine installed, its on the way. It will be replacing a 860 so the Sq should be the same. Great SQ with alot of processing

 

[NJAV1 10+ year member]

Have you considered looking at the Naks from what I understand they are also a good quality deck, not too much in the way of 'bling' so to speak but they seem to do the job well from the feedback I've read. Just an fyi.

I run a 740mp..and up until now it's been fine, I don't think you can go wrong with Pio or Eclipse.

 

[psk1018dc 10+ year member]

Thanks for the help everyone. I am really liking the styling of the 880 more and more. My only question is if the Eclipse would make a noticeable difference in SQ vs. the Pioneers. If yes, then at this point that is the reason I would buy the Eclipse. I also like the E-iserv option, which seems to allow an extra amount of customization. Has anyone ever used this before? Sorry about the indecisiveness, I just don't want to regret my decision once i make my purchase.

 

[adam71 5,000+ posts]

Thanks for the help everyone. I am really liking the styling of the 880 more and more. My only question is if the Eclipse would make a noticeable difference in SQ vs. the Pioneers. If yes, then at this point that is the reason I would buy the Eclipse. I also like the E-iserv option, which seems to allow an extra amount of customization. Has anyone ever used this before? Sorry about the indecisiveness, I just don't want to regret my decision once i make my purchase.

Between the Eclipse you have listed and the 880................the 880 hands down.//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif