Head unit suggestions

I'm looking for suggestions on which head unit I should pick up. Originally I wanted to go with a double din with navi and the works, but the more I think about it I don't really need it. I have a portable gps that I never even pull out of the glove box because its faster to just look stuff up on my iPhone.

I'm looking for something with good sq and has bluetooth (or is able to add it). Good iPod/iphone controls would be nice and I don't want to use the aux jack anymore, I want to be able to get a cable that both connects to he head unit and charges the phone as well.

Overall plans for the system are pretty basic, as I'm not trying to win any competitions. Planning a decent head unit, components up front, a single sub behind the DC seats, and probably just a 4 channel amp since I'm not worried about the rear speakers.

I've ran alpine single dins in the past and have always been happy with them, but I'm open to other brands. I was looking at the 9887 but crutchfield has it listed as discontinued. So if anyone has any suggestions that may meet what I'm looking for I'd appreciate it.

 

I'll be getting this one in the near future. I has all the features you mentioned and great specs for a great price.
http://www.crutchfield.com/s_105KDA815/JVC-Arsenal-KD-A815.html?tp=5684

 

alpine iva-w505, specifically recommended because you said SQ. The w505 and imprint are a deadly combination!

 

price is important.

i will say, i love my Alpine. It has a direct connect cable that charges an ipod, as well as allows you to control the ipod from the HU. it has blue tooth ability, although some models, it's an extra add on.

 

thanks for the replies. Price I'd say around 300 give or take. Maybe a little more if theres something just outside the bubble thats really great.

I was looking at the alpine 103bt, anyone have experience with that HU? It seems that you don't need the extra BT module to go with it.

Another thing real quick. I was watching a youtube vid of the 103bt and noticed that when the iphone was connected it appeared as though it could only be controlled through the HU. Is this true? Do you lose the ability to control from the phone itself?

81shark which model alpine are you using?

 

in terms of iphone do you mean phone or music?
Phone, yes you have the ability to control it from the phone
Music, only if you choose a song and then plug it in

 

I've always used Pioneer and never had any issues. Currently I have this one. It's cheap but works great for what I need.
http://www.crutchfield.com/p_1303200UB/Pioneer-DEH-3200UB.html?tp=5684
Pioneer's higher end units are pretty rad. Especially if you're willing to spend up to $300.

 

mine is a couple years old now. cda 9884

i can't comment on the iphone stuff, i use a mans phone.

it works great with teh ipod tho.

 

I have a 9887 that I love to death. But, if all the tuning abilities aren't your cup of tea, the 9886 has the same bt/ipod/changer/xm capabilities.

Kenwood makes good head units as far as I'm concerned, I've had a few of them.

Pionner is hit and miss, IMO. I've had a few problems with the Pico fuses, but my experience may vary from yours, and it may be only on selected products.

FWIW, I have owned several different brands and a multitude of different models over the years, and after I went to my 9887 I don't think I'll ever go back to anything else. Even when I end up with a Bit.one I'll probably still keep my 9887.

 

I was checking out the cda-117 which I believe is the replacement for the 9887 and it looks pretty sweet. Crutchfield has it for around 350 with all the mounting stuff and a set of alpine type g speakers. I'm assuming the speakers are crap but I guess I could throw them in the back since theyre probably at least a little better than stock.

Only thing about this unit is that I don't know that I have the tuning knowledge/skills to get the thing setup correctly. I guess I could just play with it till it sounds good to my ears.

 

I just put in a Kenwood KDC-X994 from Crutchfield. It has exceeded my expectations in every way, makes me wish I had put it in sooner. The only strange part is that it doesn't have buttons to hit to jump to a pre-set station, you have to jump left or right through the list of pre-sets, or use the remotes which allows you to jump around or dial in a station freq. directly.

 

looking at hu's for the gf and i saw some like that. don't think it would bug me to much since i generally scan thru my presets when i'm looking for something. but sometimes i know what i want, and like being able to hit it. not a deal breaker tho.

 

It's a really clean looking head unit too, works great, sounds even better (factory speakers too). Love the ipod/iphone integration.

 

I went all out and got the Kenwood DNX9960 and it in now way is surpassed by my phone for navigation. Its much simpler, finds close things better, and just has a really good ability to do pretty much anything. It has unsurpassed sound, bluetooth audio streaming, I connect it to my ipod, does 5.1 dolby surround for mosvies, controls front and rear seperately (like movie audio to the rear for rear headrest for kids while doing GPS or ipod for you to listen to seperately up front) and its just cool as hell too. 24 bit D?A converter, 5V preouts, 13 band equalizer, tons of audio control and crossover layouts... its just amazing. Cost me $1300 and I got a $150 rebate.

 

Went ahead and ordered the x994 from Crutchfield. The 9960 looks like a sweet deck but it's just shy of 1000 out of my budget so I had to pass. The preset thing on the x994 seems kind of annoying but i'll probably use the remote while driving anyway. I really liked the fact you can set it so that you can control the iPod from the head unit or the iPod itself. Judging from reviews I've read its supposed to put out great sq as well, so I guess we'll see when it shows up...

 

stay with alpine for an affordable good quality go to becker,nakamichi eo for top quality at top prices