I am looking at these new (to me) stereos with no cd player, just usb port, is their anything that makes one better than the other? I see alot of different "processors" or whatever in these things and I don't know what I am looking for, some of these boast better sound and blah blah blah. I do not like the sound quality of my ipod and the factory stereo, I have an 06 no usb port. I just recently upgraded my factory door speakers and am considering an alpine amp for those so while I am at it what should I look for in a stereo? I am trying to decide if there is an advantage or disadvantage having a cd player or not, don't really carry any anymore. Any of you have experience with this stuff? Thanks, Guy

 

things to look for to get good SQ out of a head unit:

- 24 bit digital to analog converter
- High voltage preamp outputs (if using external amp) (4 or 5 volts preferred)
- High signal to noise ratio (if using internal amp)
- good equalization (3 band parametric or better) (some nice pioneer units have automatic EQ and include a microphone to EQ to your specific car / speakers)
- Time alignment capabilities

If you find most of those in a brand name head unit, you should be ok. not super audiophile quality, but way above average..

if anyone has any other suggestions / modifications to mine, plz chime in.

As far as CD player or not goes.. from what i've seen, they are about the same price to get the cd player (i haven't looked all that much though) and ive always used the just in case approach. always better to have more capability

 

that definitely helps, thanks

 

I do believe you have everything covered. The only thing I would amend is try for more eq bands. 3 bands dont really give much adjustability. My alpine has 5 and i need lots more. One other thing to remember is you get what you pay for. If you spend $80 for a dual brand cd player from wal mart, you will get $80 worth of sound.

 

I still like my AVIC-D3. Fits nicely and haven't had any problems with it yet.

 

Sweet!
USB port?

 

Sorry no USB, but it does have an Ipod adapter that I put in the top center console.

 

How long have you had it in there?
Is it the current model?

I have a USB dongle(!) hanging out the back of my latest Kenwood CD player and love being able to carry 400+ cds in my jacket pocket (4 memory stix).

 

I love my Kenwood X993. Built in Bluetooth and USB and you can adjust the button/screen colors to match the rest of the interior.