I bought a new Kenwood receiver DDX492 from Crutchfield and it just is'nt working out. Rear Sub not working and FM reception does'nt seem as good. Can anyone recommend a receiver that is a good replacement? Hopefully Crutchfield will let me return

 

I believe crutchfield allows 90 day returns or something of that sort, as long as you have all of the original contents they shipped to you. I've always had good luck with all of the Pioneer 6-7" screen double din units (ex: avh 4300 and up).

 

I read that the power antenna wire needs power or you will have lousy FM reception. Make sure it's connected up to the constant power feed.

 

Or you can download an app to listen to fm radio thru AUX or bluetooth whats on the fm.dial nowadays anyway?

Do a search on the sub-bose cut out fix? Replace the relay inside the speaker and should be good to go.

 

+1 to that, I had a Pioneer 7in DVD player in my 03 Max. It played my ipod, was XM radio ready, had 2 aux inputs and was touchscreen. I even had the control unit installed so I could still use my steering wheel controls. Oh and with the flip of a switch I could play my DVD's while driving, (for the passenger of course).

 

I initially bought a kenwood dvd when I replaced my bose unit....the features or a lack thereof was appalling. Bluetooth not recognizing my subwoofers was the worst. Replaced it with pioneer 7in double din, and was thoroughly satisfied...the compatibility and sound left kenwood in the dust!

 

i have an avhp 3200 pioneer and it works fine except the frickin satellite has lost the signal 3 times and luckily the install guy just torn it apart and rebooted the sirius box. love the picture of my max on the face of the h/u and pioneer sounds pretty decent. of course i have a rockford/fosgate 12 inch 4ohm sub with a alpine 5 channel 600 watt amp and jl's all around.

 

So, are you saying that you are happy, or perhaps very happy, with your Pioneer unit?

My Bose head unit also failed, about two months ago. First, the CD failed, a year or two ago; then the entire unit failed (no power, etc.). I first tried to fix it myself; then I ran out of patience and had it replaced at a local shop which specializes in Alpine units. They installed an Alpine CDE-SXM145BT unit with all kinds of bells & whistles that I don't care about all that much. The sound is fine, and perhaps even great. However, what bothers me is the lighting/LED - it's a sharp blue, very "loud", and you can't dim it. In comparison, the Bose lighting was well integrated into its surroundings, and I would say "classy" as opposed to cheap/cheesy adjective I would use for the external appearance of the Alpine unit (btw, all the new units - Kenwood, Pioneer, etc.- look the same, and have the same type of lighting. BTW, I considered buying Kenwood but did not do it).

I paid $370 for the job: $135 for the unit itself, then three adapters (power, antenna, speakers - all of them to adapt to Bose externals) plus labor. Next time, I would do it myself; also, I would not buy Bose again; it's not worth the money, it does not last, and when you have to replace it's a hassle.

 

I'm currently using a Jensen VX4010. I wanted the Pioneer, but I decided on a single din that folded out since it lowered the odds of someone trying to jack my stereo again, especially since I set it up with my amps and subs. It can be low profile, and it allows you to set the colors to any RGB combo you want, so you can match the interior lighting if you so desire. The moving parts make it a bit annoying with the install, but it works with a bit of customization and improvising. It has many features, but it lacks real customization - also the track ordering doesn't make a lot of sense when it reads USB or SD cards. Reception on it with the antenna is not great, but I only use CDs/USB/Aux.

I thought I'd share as the fold out screen is an alternative that I don't think is usually talked about. I did all the audio install work myself, and had to unfortunately hard wire it since a previous installer removed the harnesses.

I definitely would rather have the Pioneer Double Din, but this is what I've got now.

 

[QUOTE=maxiiiboy;9004985]So, are you saying that you are happy, or perhaps very happy, with your Pioneer unit?



Here's the deck I bought 2yrs ago and yes it's a quality product....I paid like $400 bucks installed:

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PU...H?tab=firmware

You did well steering clear of kenwood IMO. I had an alpine deck twice, I like them also, but nothing I've ever had compares to pioneer.

 

Your installer got lazy and did not wire up the dimmer cable from the Alpine.

 

[QUOTE=jjubert;9005006]it's saying $800 smackers in that link. does it have integrated GPS? it have the 4v pre outs. has any one tried 5v pre outs?

 

^^^^ That's the suggested retail price...Houston flea market price with install was $400 lol. It doesn't have GPS though, that can be added on for the suggested retail price of $440. That's the thing about pioneer, they pretty much want your first born for their accessories

 

Hahahaha i used to love to work at the one on 59 and Jensen ,so many memories ,