which head units would you say have the best ipod interface?

[wehtx 10+ year member]

I'm thinking about replacing my Alpine 9807 just to have a better interface with my new ipod.

Is it worth it? I mean, is there anything that much better out there now?

If so, which companies or head units would you check out?

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[rider 10+ year member]

I personally think Pioneer so far hast the best I Pod interface. I have Pioneer DEH-7800 w/ the Pioneer IPOd II Interface (only costs $50). When you scroll through your playlists or artists on the head unit it goes pretty fast. i used to have an Alpine and it took forever to get to a certain artist. (that also depends how many songs you have on your Ipod.

 

[Abneriel 10+ year member]

the new Alpines that are iPod ready are supposed to be a whole lot faster than the ones that require the KCA-420i adaptor

I haven't seen them in action though

 

[Spud2388 10+ year member]

I'll tell ya tomorrow. I have a cda-9857 with the new iPod interface coming from crutchfield, just to test it out. I mean, whats there to lose, I can send it back in 30 days for a full refund. I actually was wondering how fast the new alpine interface was, so I searched for a video of someone using it, and it seemed pretty fast. The two complaints that i read about most is 1) the faster you turn the knob on the HU, the songs don't scroll any faster, its at a constant speed, unlike on an iPod. 2) When you want to go back to a previous 'page', it starts from the top of the list, instead of where you were previously. Alpine has helped us out with both of these problems by the 'percentage skip', or whatever its called. Pretty much, the 1-6 buttons on the bottom advance you a certain percentage of the list, so you don't have to scroll all the way through. So, if you're wanting to go to Three 6 Mafia, depending on how your list is set up, you could hit the '4' button, which might take you to 'Scarface', then you can scroll untill you reach the wanted artist. I think a lot of people forget/don't know about that skip feature alpine has included, and thats why there are mixed reviews on some internet sites.

As for the other manufacturers, I don't know much. If I can remember correctly, Pioneer's is decent, except it goes to the top when returning to previous 'pages' just like the alpine, and I think the Alpine interface it a touch faster. Thats just from what I've read.

 

[wehtx 10+ year member]

I'll tell ya tomorrow. I have a cda-9857 with the new iPod interface coming from crutchfield, just to test it out.

That's the one I'm considering too, so I'll keep an eye out if you do a review...

 

[pik 10+ year member]

I have used Kenwood's on a Excelon 589 and 789

I have used Alpine's on a 9855

And Eclipse's new one on a CD7000

The eclipse works the best IMO

havent seen the new alpine hispeed in action tho

 

[bri487 5,000+ posts]

i am not a fan of controlling the ipod through the deck, so i use a perihperal interface for my alpine 9855 and my 9853. i love it. it charges it and defeats the ipods volume so you dont have to worry about that, and it sounds good and best yet i can navigate the menus through my ipod and find it right where i am used to it.

 

[wesl56 10+ year member]

I'll tell ya tomorrow. I have a cda-9857 with the new iPod interface coming from crutchfield, just to test it out. I mean, whats there to lose, I can send it back in 30 days for a full refund. I actually was wondering how fast the new alpine interface was, so I searched for a video of someone using it, and it seemed pretty fast. The two complaints that i read about most is 1) the faster you turn the knob on the HU, the songs don't scroll any faster, its at a constant speed, unlike on an iPod. 2) When you want to go back to a previous 'page', it starts from the top of the list, instead of where you were previously. Alpine has helped us out with both of these problems by the 'percentage skip', or whatever its called. Pretty much, the 1-6 buttons on the bottom advance you a certain percentage of the list, so you don't have to scroll all the way through. So, if you're wanting to go to Three 6 Mafia, depending on how your list is set up, you could hit the '4' button, which might take you to 'Scarface', then you can scroll untill you reach the wanted artist. I think a lot of people forget/don't know about that skip feature alpine has included, and thats why there are mixed reviews on some internet sites.
As for the other manufacturers, I don't know much. If I can remember correctly, Pioneer's is decent, except it goes to the top when returning to previous 'pages' just like the alpine, and I think the Alpine interface it a touch faster. Thats just from what I've read.

kool u decided to go w/ it... let us know how you like it... im waiting on mine to get repaired //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/crap.gif.7f4dd41e3e9b23fbd170a1ee6f65cecc.gif

but yes, just to confirm it is very fast, and once you get the hang of using it, you will be able to get to any song you want pretty quickly... the percentage skip feature is nice

 

[Abneriel 10+ year member]

I have used Kenwood's on a Excelon 589 and 789I have used Alpine's on a 9855

And Eclipse's new one on a CD7000

The eclipse works the best IMO

havent seen the new alpine hispeed in action tho

I just installed my CD7000 today with the iPod adaptor

works a WHOLE lot better than the KCA-420i Alpine adaptor

scrolls faster, and is WAY more user friendly.

don't know how it compares to the 06 Alpine full speed iPod compatable decks or the Pioneer interface though...

 

[Certified_Audio 10+ year member]

Alpines, and Clarions are the best for Ipods right now.

 

[joek86 10+ year member]

I just installed my CD7000 today with the iPod adaptor
works a WHOLE lot better than the KCA-420i Alpine adaptor

scrolls faster, and is WAY more user friendly.

don't know how it compares to the 06 Alpine full speed iPod compatable decks or the Pioneer interface though...

+1 on the CD7000 very good interface. I don't use it very much, but it is fast and easy to use!

Joe