2kSC

iTrader: (1)

I am planning on upgrading my system (I have minimum knowledge when it comes to electronics) and wanted to ask the experts the following:

What is the best new headunit possible to buy on ebay for ubder $250?

Are these speakers as good as I heard or is there something better for the same money?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...07660604&rd=1?

Thanks to all!

1996blackmax

iTrader: (2)

Will you power the speakers off of the headunit or a seperate amplifier? If your using power from the headunit you will want something with power output over 20 watts RMS. If you plan to use an amp, something with a strong preamp voltage is good, the higher the better (close to 4volts is good). Do you want to be able to play MP3/WMA's? Look into exactly what features you want in a headunit, and see which headunits match most of them for the price that you are looking to pay.

I personally like Alpine headunits. They perform well and are easy to use. I have not heard the speakers that are on the link, but Boston Acoustic's stuff is known for making good sounding speakers.

I just tried out a Pioneer DEH-P8600MP which I am returning. It had some features that I liked, time-alignment, 13 band EQ, 24bit Burr Brown DAC, BBE, three sets of 4v pre-outs, and the ability to play MP3's and WMA's. Nice sounding cd player, but kind of complicated to use. Also when this unit is powered up the power antenna is always up(only has one connection to turn on the amps and the power antenna). With my Alpine 7949 the power antenna only comes up when I switch to the radio (has two different wires, 1 for turning on amps and the other to bring up the power antenna). It is pretty rare when I listen to the radio, so this to me is more wear and tear on the power antenna motor than is needed. If I want to pause the cd quickly with the Pioneer unit I have to use the remote control, if not I have to navigate through the menus, not cool while you are driving. So I decided I will be keeping my Alpine CDA-7949/PXA-H600 combo that sounds great and is very easy to use. With me good sound is primary (reason I am still running that combo that first came out in 1997), but I also want ease of use, the Pioneer did not cut it with being easy to use.

slickrick

iTrader: (12)

im surprised the 8600 doesnt have a pause button right on it.. the 8500 and 9600 do. and for ease of use i have an 8500 which is cake and my friend has a 9600 and his is a touch harder but no big deal. my friends alpine 9815 is a pita to use and he hates it. i guess it all depends on which model h/u your looking at.

1996blackmax

iTrader: (2)

Maybe if I kept the Pioneer longer I would get the hang of it, but out of the box it is a complicated unit to use. I can usually go into a store and go right into the different manufactures menus and submenus with no problem. I had the CDA-7998 for almost 2 years and found it very easy to use, its menu and functions are the same as the 9815. Once I set all of the parameters such as the EQ and time alignment on it, I only had to adjust the subwoofer, and the dreadfull Media Expander (Alpine should just have stuck with BBE, which actually makes music sound better), which I usually turned off or left at the lowest setting. Even if I had to get into the menu it was easy. The only reason I went back to the 7949/PXA-H600 combo was for its 6 DAC's that the processor uses, it does make a difference in sound quality (it has four 20bit Burr Brown DAC's for the main channels and 2 of Alpine's regulated 1bit for the subwoofer) I still have a magazine where that combo was tested and produced stereo seperation of 98db, and a signal to noise ratio of 114db, not bad for an older setup . I have my changer and HU hooked up to the processor with fiberoptic cables so the processor's DAC's take care of the digital to analog converion.