Radio/CD/MP3 player

[55Supra]

I need a new radio/CD/MP3 player for my beast and visiting those places that sell them I am baffled by technics. I am seeking a good quality unit not some thing that needs a trailer for the amps etc. But just a good quality unit. One reads the specs and you have such a thing as; "Pioneer CD Tuner MOSFET 4 x 50 watt" I assume that the unit has four channels and can handle 50 watts per channel. But I can never find "50" watt speakers. I am looking at something between $200-$300 Guidance and advice greatly appreciated.
55Supra

[The Witzl]

Pioneer will be the best value for your budget.
You dont have to match the wattage of the speaker to the output of the head unit, speaker power is their capacity, so giving them less is ok.

[NeoNasty]

Most Units are 4 x 50W. I doubt they even make any 2 channel head units anymore.

Just get some 6x9s or 6" or whatever you can. You'll spend about $250 on a headunit that is base model with Mp3. Dont just buy the cheapest thing you can find. Pioneer are a good unit. I have one and are very pleased. Just be sure to follow the installation instructions very carefully. IE. No short circuits etc.

Even if you have some '200W max' speakers, in reality, if you give them a good 20WRMS they will still sound fine.

Although head unit manufacturers say 4 x 50. In reality, its more like 4 x 17WRMS.

[NeoNasty]

oops. double post

[Admiral coFF33]

Dont get Pioneer or Kenwood

Get a brand that not many people get because they are new on the market ,

Panasonic CD Decks range from 199-500 - i got my most recent MP3 deck for $230 from JB HI-FI

ive been with them since 2002 since i bought my first car. (before MP3)
and whilst all my mates Kenwood/Pioneers were playing up , my Panasonic pumped out 4x45W and sounded great !

Im still with Panasonic today CD/MP3 with a flip down face (which is detachable) and it sounds great.

Also the features of the 2 Pre-outs for Front and Rear speakers and 1 pre-out for subwoofer , u can change the Hz the subwoofer is at and all the usual features like treb/bass/fader

all panasonics ive brought have come with a remote aswell.

my $5.2c

[Karbunkle]

Has anyone experienced problems with Sony's range of head units/speakers??

[Smokey228]

in my opinion, panasonic have depleted reacently cause they dont have much in the market. i reacon that there quality isnt as good as it used to be.

sony, i think is good. but way to expensive. there mark up is rediculous... so basically, they are not great bang for ur buck.

pioneer, are good. but also a lil more expensive... there entry level stuff, is very average, but the top line stuff is great.

jvc are good i think, but not the most attractive looking entry level units... but these are quite good bang for ur buck.

schneider, now this is a small one, not that popular, and no one really knows ot much about it... i have always gotten it very cheap, and never really had a problem wif any of it. there amps are excelent, the head units are quality but not sexy, the speaker are great... to be honest, they are probably the best bang for ur buck ive found around...

if u want an honest opinion though, deffinetly dont go to a shop and ask... go to the websites and compare units. do the research to find out wat u think is the best, then come bak and confirm with someone, either from a shop or from here...

these are the websites i can think of off my head.
www.jvc-australia.com
www.schneideraudio.com
www.sony.com.au

if u like any of the schneider stuff, pm me...

[mrshin]

Pioneer = Good CD player, slightly annoying software and EQ
Panasonic = good
Clarion = crap
Sony = crap
Kenwood = OK

Head unit amps are always severely compromised, regardless of what it might say in the brochure. Get a reasonable external amp and some reasonable speakers, you won't need to waste space in the car, and can still sound reasonable.

[Thomas]

I wonder why you'd call a Clarion deck crap? I've been using Clarion systems for quite some time now and they sound fine (if not better than others) to me.

Thomas.

[Steelo]

I have had the sony head unit and speakers for the last 2 years with no problems. i would just banded unit in the $200 - $300 mark and the same for each set of speakers.

Steelo

[mrshin]

Why don't I like the Clarion units? I've owned and known others that have owned them without much happiness, I worked there for a very short time once, and generally don't get too excited by them Trouble is, some people get good luck and bad luck with any brand of any product, and what I said above is based on the luck that I've had.

[TheStitt]

So is some one going to actually answer the question this is a brand war its ?? How do we read the spec from these devices. some one mentions 20wrms how do you know what a speaker puts out. Is this a better way to mark a speakers potential???

Aswell whats the go with reading amps as well this is one thing I need to get my head around as well

[Karbunkle]

Thanks Steelo, and your right TheStitt.

One reads the specs and you have such a thing as; "Pioneer CD Tuner MOSFET 4 x 50 watt" I assume that the unit has four channels and can handle 50 watts per channel.
55Supra

Ok then I would assume you understand the Pioneer CD Tuner part, MOSFET (Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor) is a type of transistor used in many electronics including amplifiers and in the case of amps considered superior in most (Not all as its all a matter of opinion) applications.

The 4x50w is easy 4 outputs/channels at 50w now unless specified the is most likely peak power (power output under ideal conditions for a short time), average power is more important to know (or RMS power as some know it).

An easy rile of thumb is either multiply by .7071 or some just halve it(Note: most quality brands will have your average/RMS power rating in smaller print on the box somewhere). Speakers should have a higher power rating then the output of the device (head unit or amp) so you don’t blow them up to quickly or easily.

I hope that helps as this is my basic understanding , no doubt other toymoders will know more. Feel free to correct anything.

thats enough from me then

[Smokey228]

wen looking for a head unit, if u intend on running a amp anytime in the near future, then look for a HU that has 3 rca outs atleast.

each rca is a channel, front rear and woofer. u can get ones that jus have, front/rear woofer, but u dont get to use ur speakers to there full potential...

wen looking at speakers, u want ones with a wide frequency range, this will serve you the best quality sound. usually u would aim for high frequency front speakers, (higher pitched) and lower frequency for rear, and then sub which is going to give u the doof doof u are searching for

basically, rms = real music sound?, eg. if a set of speakers are 30wrms, they will drive at 30wat with precise sound. wen it says 220watt, it means max power. thats the most u can drive through the speaker b4 u start to get distortion...

if u have over powerful speakers running off a under powered head unit with out any amps, u can also blow ur speakers..

once again, correct me where im wrong

[oldcorollas]

RMS actually means Root Mean Square, which is how the area under the curve is calculated, and is the measure of the average continuous power of the sine wave.