Help me pick a *REASONABLE* head unit...

[Meractik]

I got an old 2001 Honda accord and it has some aftermarket head unit in it and the screen frequently just shuts off and I have to disconnect the removable faceplate and reconnect it to even get it to work again, its hit or miss. Not to mention that the volume button ejected one day and the spring won't go back in so I have a volume knob that is permanently pressed into the face plate and only placing your thumb and spinning allows for turning up/down volume.


So I thought... I could maybe get some advice on replacing the whole unit.... I would simply require the following options - AM/FM radio, CD-Support, USB/AUX/SD-Card abilities.

Thats pretty much it! their are a lot of cheap units on amazon but it seems hit or miss... I would feel comfortable paying anywhere from $60-$80 for something that does what I want and would last without falling apart.... I am not sure if it matters but most of my USB sticks are 3.0 and rather large? 8+ GB... same with SD Cards they're all HCSD 32GB+

Any recommendations for those that dabble in this topic more often then I do are welcomed. I am not looking for a couple hundred dollar unit with a huge LCD screen or to watch movies.....

 

[phucheneh]

All the major brands generally work well enough. I'd go to a store and find which one you think has the easiest/most intuitive controls.

JVC, Pioneer, and Kenwood would probably be my top three for low-priced reliable units. I'd avoid Sony and Eclipse. And obviously anything like Jensen or Pyle.

 

[nwo]

I bought a Kenwood head unit about 5 years ago that works extremely well in my 2004 Chrysler sebring. Has CD/AUX/USB and cost me about $150. Couldn't be any happier with my purchase.

It's never given me any trouble.

Now that I look at the prices, it seems like you can find a comparable one for half the cost!

The only other brand I would recommend is Pioneer.

 

[DaTT]

Is the headunit you are replacing a pioneer? I have had the exact problem you are describing where the screen won't come on....granted this m was many years ago. I had it happen on several decks, it was Pioneer's high end brand, Premiere

 

[deadken]

All the major brands generally work well enough. I'd go to a store and find which one you think has the easiest/most intuitive controls.

... I'd avoid Sony ...

I agree that testing how the controls are is important. I have found more than one stereo to have frustrating controls. The ones that I find intuitive let me stay focused on driving which ultimately is what I should be focused on. As phucheneh says you really need to figure that kind of stuff out in person. I think it matters a little less in the higher end spectrum, but more in the cheaper end where refinements aren't really such a priority.

Can I ask what is wrong with Sony? I got a Sony stereo / CD / USB HU with a pair of 6.5" speakers for $80 shipped a few years back. It wasn't spectacular, but it certainly filled the need and I didn't feel I got a bad deal.
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-CXS-GT541...ereo+usb+combo

Ok, now that I see that the same combo I paid $80 shipped for is discontinued and selling for $130 shipped. I guess I hit the timing just right!


One more thing I'm wondering about is are you sure that your Honda only has an aftermarket HU? Could there be an amplifier installed also? If there is, I'd take the pre-amp voltage into consideration. I was told it makes a big deal (Ie: Amplifying a weak signal vs amplifying a strong signal = getting a lot of garbage vs getting a lot of quality).

 

[phucheneh]

Sony HU's work, I guess. Their car audio has just been very lacking for quite a number of years- but whose hasn't, really...

Every experience I've have with Eclipse is that their units are flaky as hell. Can't say the same about Sony. Their button layouts and general look is usually pretty bad, though.

I think I've actually found JVC to be the most reliable and often surprisingly tweakable. Seen some of their cheap units have much better EQing and such; not just 'bass' and 'treble.'

 

[Meractik]

Is the headunit you are replacing a pioneer? I have had the exact problem you are describing where the screen won't come on....granted this m was many years ago. I had it happen on several decks, it was Pioneer's high end brand, Premiere

Yea, it is a pioneer, not sure of the model but its got some funky blue/white display which shows dolphins jumping... the screen not coming on randomly is bad enough but I am really starting to hate the whole volume knob issue. I figure id be happier just to replace the whole thing since it lacks features I want anyways.... Thanks for the recommendations guys, ill take those brand names into account and maybe go to walmart or bestbuy and check out their inventory to find something I like at reasonable price.

 

[DaTT]

Yea, it is a pioneer, not sure of the model but its got some funky blue/white display which shows dolphins jumping... the screen not coming on randomly is bad enough but I am really starting to hate the whole volume knob issue. I figure id be happier just to replace the whole thing since it lacks features I want anyways.... Thanks for the recommendations guys, ill take those brand names into account and maybe go to walmart or bestbuy and check out their inventory to find something I like at reasonable price.

How old is that unit? I remember back in the late 90's they came out with that dolphin screen. I had one. DEH-P720 I think was the model....yup it was. Here is a picture....this HU was extremely expensive too.

 

[Meractik]

How old is that unit? I remember back in the late 90's they came out with that dolphin screen. I had one. DEH-P720 I think was the model....yup it was. Here is a picture....this HU was extremely expensive too.

This is the one I have...... slightly different, just looking at it for face value looks like yours has easier to read/use buttons...

I am not sure how long this unit was in my vehicle, i bought it used in 2011 and it was already installed.

 

[MagickMan]

I've always liked Fosgate and the higher-end Clarion units. The Bluetooth in the latter is really good, also it had USB, Aux-in (front and back), and an SDHC slot. It was $100 at a swapmeet.

 

[deadken]

I was looking over at Crutchfield.com and they asked specifically if your car has 2, 4, or 6 speakers?

Perhaps you should checkout Crutchfield? They are usually priced a bit higher than other sites, but you get great customer support and a great website. They have stereos starting at $60. I'd suggest looking at a few and reading some reviews.

I asked earlier: Since your car has an aftermarket HU, are you sure there isn't an aftermarket Amp also? I understand that the answer is probably not, but now would be the time to make sure.

 

[96Firebird]

I have an old Pioneer DEH-P6600, similar to the 7600 you have, and my volume knob flung off one day as I was going over some railroad tracks. I had thought it flew out my T-tops so I was without a knob for a couple of days, but then I found it in my back seat. I lost the spring though, so I had the same problem you have. Ended up replacing it with a newer model Pioneer that I got for cheap when Circuit City was going out of business.

Go to a car audio place and play around with their head units to see which one you like best, then find it cheaper online. I like Pioneer, Alpine, Kenwood, and Clarion.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

Too funny.

I have the same one in my old truck. Volume knob acts up, and the rubber coating has come off the arrow buttons.

I'll probably stick with pioneer, just so I don't have to mess with soldering together another harness.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

I put this JVC unit in my car about a year ago and it has been good. The only thing I don't like is the volume knob is really small and slick so I have a hard time turning it up/down.

Have had pioneer units before and would probably pick this one if I could do it over.

 

[videogames101]

Never had a problem with the cheaper pioneer HUs - just don't abuse them, like anything else.

 

[Zorba]

This is the one I have...... slightly different, just looking at it for face value looks like yours has easier to read/use buttons...

I am not sure how long this unit was in my vehicle, i bought it used in 2011 and it was already installed.

I had this same deck and it went through the blank out phase as well. I figured out if I pushed on the lower right hand corner it would come back on. I was pretty excited when it started screwing up, because I wanted a new one, but then after a while it stopped blanking out. I always thought the EQ was a POS - especially considering my wife paid $300 for it new - and I could never get it to sound right.

 

[CraigRT]

I have never had issues with JVC and that is why I keep buying them.

Nothing else that company makes interests me but their car stereos, but they are excellent.

 

[Meractik]

When i bought the car used I was unaware of a new amp installed but they did wire in a big subwoofer in the trunk (which I sense took out and sold to gain the space) - are you guys saying that b/c the head unit is a Pioneer if I tried to go with another brand it might be difficult to install?


Btw, all the stories above about this head unit are right on, I experienced all the same problems, pushing on the lower right of screen to keep it on, buttons not working, the spring flying out and the button being lost, for a while until I found the spring/button I had to just tweak the plastic knob part with my fingers. I don't abuse the radio it just hasn't lasted...

 

[SpatiallyAware]

Your car has a factory radio plug that's proprietary to your stock radio.

Rather than cut the factory plug off, you instead buy an adapter which you solder on to the pioneer harness. So it goes: Factory harness -> adapter -> Pioneer harness

If you go with another pioneer you should be able to just unplug the already-soldered-on harness and plug it into the new radio.

If you buy a different brand, you have to cut off the pioneer harness from the adapter and solder on the new brand's harness. It's not difficult to do, if you know how to solder and deal with wiring.

 

[Meractik]

Well... looks like I will have to go that route and learn to do some sodering, I bought this (from walmart)... I wanted to stay away from Pioneer just b/c of my existing head unit being such a PITA.

It doesn't have an SD-Card reader but that is okay, ill get the same functionality out of the USB.

 

[Meractik]

Ive only ventured down this road once before and I remember having to go to a car stereo store to request they use their butter-knife like tools to pull out the head unit, those of you familiar with these things - What can I use to get the old head unit out? Do I need to use the same tools to put the new one in? I don't care if I break the old one.... (but I don't want to ruin the surrounding area...)

 

[Meractik]

Your car has a factory radio plug that's proprietary to your stock radio.

Rather than cut the factory plug off, you instead buy an adapter which you solder on to the pioneer harness. So it goes: Factory harness -> adapter -> Pioneer harness

If you go with another pioneer you should be able to just unplug the already-soldered-on harness and plug it into the new radio.

If you buy a different brand, you have to cut off the pioneer harness from the adapter and solder on the new brand's harness. It's not difficult to do, if you know how to solder and deal with wiring.

I do not own a soldering iron, its always something I have wanted to purchase (this maybe as good a time as any since I might need one) but I am curious... given that the pioneer that is already installed is "aftermarket" is it possible to just purchase a harness which allows me to disconnect the current Pioneer harness from the "adapter" and connect a JVC harness for use with the new head I purchased? (bypassing the need to solder?) aka Factory harness -> adapter -> JVC Harness?

The vehicle already utilizes a aftermarket mounting kit with a little shelf beneath the head unit...

 

[SpatiallyAware]

Ive only ventured down this road once before and I remember having to go to a car stereo store to request they use their butter-knife like tools to pull out the head unit, those of you familiar with these things - What can I use to get the old head unit out? Do I need to use the same tools to put the new one in? I don't care if I break the old one.... (but I don't want to ruin the surrounding area...)

Most head units have a metal 'cage' that it slides in to, that's proprietary to the brand.

I'm fairly sure my pioneer had a special tool you slide down the sides of the head unit, but inside the cage, that allowed you to slide the head unit out.

If you have another pioneer, you could use the tools from the new head unit, slide it out, and slide the new one in.

Since you bought another brand, you will probably need to replace the cage as well.

Use youtube to figure out how to get your dash apart, since it's a honda it should be really simple.


Honestly..... I know how you feel about not wanting another pioneer, but it's at least 2x the work to replace the cage, solder on a new harness... It's not difficult, but if you've never done it before you will need to watch some videos on soldering. If you can use a screwdriver then you can solder two wires together, it's not difficult, but there's a bit of a learning process.

As far as soldering goes, redoing that harness is about the easiest soldering task there is. You should be fine, just take your time and research before diving in head-first.

Soldering 101 - leave yourself plenty of extra wire. Don't cut it near the plug. That way, if you mess up, you can cut off the bad solder joint and redo it.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

I do not own a soldering iron, its always something I have wanted to purchase (this maybe as good a time as any since I might need one) but I am curious... given that the pioneer that is already installed is "aftermarket" is it possible to just purchase a harness which allows me to disconnect the current Pioneer harness from the "adapter" and connect a JVC harness for use with the new head I purchased? (bypassing the need to solder?) aka Factory harness -> adapter -> JVC Harness?

The vehicle already utilizes a aftermarket mounting kit with a little shelf beneath the head unit...

I haven't installed a head unit in at least 5 years, but back then there was no direct vehicle -> head unit harness. You have to solder in a harness between the two. Tough to explain, but it should make sense when you pull you head unit out.

 

[mvbighead]

http://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-DEHX35...usb+car+stereo

No SD card, but USB and the rest is fine.