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Hi,

My almost new Pioneer DEH-P3600 HU just died and I sent it to Pioneer for repair. However, I am interrested in replacing it with another HU. A better sounding one. However, I want to stay on a budget for this.

The only requirement I have is 2 pre-out because my front speakers are amp'ed, so is my sub.

What brand sounds good? I know Alpine is fairly good but their HU with more that 1 pre-out are pretty expensive. What about Panasonic, Clarion, JVC, Kenwood, Blaupunkt???

Also, is there an adapter to connect my Pioneer CD Changer to another brand of HU? It has that weird square plug that is proprietary to Pioneer I believe.

Thanks!

eetfunk

 
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whats your price range


9851
brand spankin new from alpine

 
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Yea probably one of the Alpine models would suit you best if you're looking for SQ. They are known for it.

 
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Price range around $200 USD

 
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I'm back from the store and saw the Alpine 9821 for 169$ CDN (on sale) and the 9823 for 247$ CDN.

Do I -really- need a preamp out for my front speakers or I could just run the speaker output to my amp in the trunk? Would it degrade the sound quality a lot?

How much does the BBE makes a difference? When I was a studio engineer, I loved my BBE unit (tweakable). But I believe it's not tweakable in the Alpine.

Is the 9823 really worth the extra money?

Thnx!

 
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I love my Clarion deck. Try and find a good shop that carries both. They'll likely sound the same, so get whichver one you prefer the look and interface of.

 
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Alpine, pioneer, eclipse are all great decks for cheap and will sound similar. Just get one with alot of tuning features (an eq if possible).

 
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I'm sorry but Pioneer sounds like crap.

 
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I've got a sony CDX-F5500 hu...I think the DSO makes it sound pretty damn good, but it seems like everyone hates sony...why?

 
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Sony used to represent quality.

 
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Pionner doesn't sound like crap.

My opinion, above was yours.


But I recommend the Alpine 9821 for the price.

 
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I <3 my pioneer.. i think its the best bang for buck ever, I had it powering speakers in my old car but now I have a 4chan alpine powering interiors..

either way its a great deal I only paid $250 for mine and its held up great! I only recall it skipping once or twice (lifetime) never had any other probs, I've noticed the motor to eject cds is kinda slow now, but also its slanted a bit maybe its wearing out, but o well.. its still almost 3yrs old.. and I feel I've gotten my $250 worth..

 
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I wouldn't trade my pioneer for anything. Best display out there and more features than alot of home theatre systems. With a 13 band eq, I think it sounds good enough.

 
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I really like my three-year-old JVC 980SX. My wife just got a mid-range Clarion MP3 player (don't recal the model) that sounds rediculously good on cheap pioneer full-range speakers.

 
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Ya the deck really won't make or break your system. They all have similar power outputs, so the only thing to look for is sound tuning features. A good speaker install will be much more important than the deck.

 
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for me the headunit was like night and day, so much better even with stock speakers, i think im getting better sound with alpine 9831 then if i just got new speakers

 
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pioneer is the ish it is just most people have no clue how to fine tune them cause they dont say: bass, an treble. lol

 
Rep Power: 812

Haha that was me! When I first got it I'm like where's the bass/treble, then I figured out the eq and I could never be without it.

 
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your prob not looking to spend as much as me but the CDA-9833 is awsome! 60watts max power, 5 band EQ, 3 way crossover (front/rear/subwoofer). Also Alpine has their famous MediaExpander(MX) which really brings your music alive. Awsome deck is all I have to say...