It seems to be a lower priced one, but I don't need fancy. I also hear I should replace the stock speakers, thought I don't play it loud, maybe the clarity will be a little better.


DEH-X8500BS
NEW!- CD Receiver with Full-Dot LCD Display, MIXTRAX, Bluetooth®, and SiriusXM Ready

Enjoy Your Favorite Music in a Non-Stop Mix with MIXTRAX
Voice Control for iPhone
Rear USB Port
3 Hi-Volt RCA Preouts (4V)

Thoughts and input would be appreciated...

 

Didnt look to hard but couldnt find any reviews on it. I dont like buying something that new with no feedback on it. Also its only sirius ready which means you will still need the sirius box to be able to actually listen to it. Usually 80-200.00 for the kit.

 

Looks pretty good. Just keep in mind that the siriusxm ready radios require more hardware to actually get satellite radio.

For this radio you will need a tuner. The pioneer site references this http://shop.siriusxm.com/xm/ctl10600..._vehicle_tuner is what you would need to get xm radio.

Hope that helps a little.

 

Ah yes. My installer did mention: $55 for installation, $50 for some other gizmo, and $30 more of the Bluetooth hardware. So the radio of $150 and installation of other items places it at $300 for the package, or so.

Found a BEH-X6500BT with 22 reviews and a little less expensive. Perhaps a previous years model.

http://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-DEH-X6...DateDescending

 

Crutchfield sells it:

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_130X850...T#overview-tab

It's a nice deck but I have not been real crazy about the track selector button behind the volume **** since Pioneer came out with it last year. To me it looks like one of those plastic swords they put in drinks at a bar..like it has no business being on a car radio. The track changing and other audio functions might be more complicated than what I would like to use while driving in my own truck. I would also wonder how reliable that sword button thing would be, would it work correctly for 4 or 5 years, or any longer without breaking?

A very nice feature on that deck is the rear USB, which I like because there would be no hanging Iphone/Ipod cables. I doubt very seriously if I would ever use the Mix Trax function, I have never been a very big fan of disco lights, dancing dolphins, cartoons of gears turning or any of the other animations they put on some car decks nowadays.

Crutchfield also sells the XM tuner kit for $69.00:

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_220SXV2...ner.html?tp=87

There is a $50.00 Visa gift card rebate on it now, so you could get the XM kit for $19.00, plus Crutchfield has free shipping. Crutchfield sells the deck for $189.99, and there are a few coupons to save a few bucks at Crutchfield here:

http://www.couponcabin.com/coupons/crutchfield/

Looks like they ended my favorite Crutchfield coupon a few days ago, it was the one for $20.00 off a $100.00 purchase.

Pioneer makes good quality decks and they usually hold up very well for a long time. The sound quality is usually very good, and that one has a 5 band equalizer but no dedicated bass, mid or treble controls. The eq only has a 3.5k and 8k adjustment for the high end, that would probably be OK for most people but it would not be enough highs to suit me. I like a lot of treble/high end frequency response and would probably have to add a separate eq with more tone control than what the Pioneer eq provides. But that is just me, I have lost a lot of my high frequency hearing capability, thanks to too many loud car systems and too many loud concerts back in the day...

Pioneer has always had a great reputation. XM is nice too but if it were me I would try to find a store that sells the deck and audition it there first. The only thing that would really worry me would be how safe and easy is it to use the track selector and tone controls while driving.

Jimmy

 

Why would you pay someone else to install the deck in your truck? It is not hard at all to install a new deck in a 2001 Dakota, or any other Dakota to be honest about it. If you buy from Crutchfield they give you the installation kit and matching wire harness to connect the new deck to the OEM radio's wiring for free...They also provide a detailed instruction sheet and free technical help over the phone for as long as you own the deck, and their tech support is very good. You can also find help here at DF if you have a problem with the installation. I have no idea what the other $50.00 gizmo is, but the kit and harness should be all that you would need to install it yourself.

The 6500 is a nice deck too, with the same eq features and all, and it is missing the funky sword button thing, and if you don't mind the front USB input it would be a good choice too. For me, the main thing between the two would be how easy or hard it is to safely operate the controls while driving.

Jimmy

 

Honestly if you don't plan to run a expensive sound system u don't need anything expensive. I'm running a 80.00 jvc from ebay(was cheaper than crutchfield) has cd player,aux and usb ports in the front rear aux and rear rca ports. Has a bunch of customizable options,Bluetooth,Sirius ready. It's been in my truck since June and I like it.

 

I think the $50 gizmo is the SiriusXm part.

Guess I should an up and learn how to get that radio in and out. With everything I've been learning to do lately, it should be that difficult, now.

thanks to all for the input.

I guess next will be to get to a dealer and see which feels safe to adjust. I'd guess, the 6500 is an older model, but could be easier to function. I don' tneed no stinkin' dancing cows on my screen!

 

Well I will give you a little help that you didn't ask for. To remove your factory radio, first disconnect the negative battery cable to avoid any short circuits or other problems. Then:

1. Use a stubby #2 phillips screwdriver and remove the 2 screws above the instrument cluster/speedo/tach.

2. Pull the parking brake release handle toward you and push back on the white plastic retainer clip, push back on the side of the clip that snaps around the parking brake lever to release the clip and then pull the right angled end out of the plastic hole on the back side of the parking brake release handle. Let the lever rest on the floor.

3. Remove the interior fuse panel cover. Remove the 3 Torx T20 screws from the bottom edge of the plastic knee bolster panel under the steering column. Starting from the left side of the knee bolster panel, pull out on the top edge and work your way across. There are 3 or 4 metal snap-in fasteners holding the top of the panel in place. Remove the panel.

4. On the bottom side of the plastic steering column cover there are 3 screw hole locations. One is a silver screw that you can easily see, the other two screw holes have the screws way up inside each hole. Use a Torx T-20 screwdriver and remove all 3 screws. Unsnap the two halves of the steering column cover and remove them.

5. The dash panel for the instrument cluster, radio area and climate controls is all a big one-piece panel. The panel is held in place with the same type of metal push-in fasteners as the knee bolster panel. Working from the left side (closest to the fuse panel) grab the bottom edge of the panel and unsnap it. Pull the panel down from the bottom side of the dash above the instrument cluster and continue working your way toward the right side of the truck, releasing the metal fasteners as you go along. There are about 6 of the metal fasteners on the back side of the dash panel around the radio and climate control locations. They should all just snap right out.

6. When you have the panel removed but still loosely in place on the dash, you can reach behind it and disconnect the headlight switch, climate control switch panel connectors and the passenger side air bag on/off switch. The electrical connectors are snapped in tightly and also have those red lock pins that you have to slide out of the connector before you can unplug the connector.

7. Now is the tricky part, there is a "feel" or maybe an "art" to it but the dash panel can be hard to remove. Pull it forward as much as you can, and push down on the top part (the part that fits under the dash pad above the cluster, this is also the part of the panel that had the two philips screws in it), push down on that part and kind of push up on the side of the dash below it, the part that normally rests right in front of the steering column cover/hazard switch area. What you want to do is compress this part of the dash a bit so you can move the dash panel out far enough to get the top side of the panel (the part that normally rests above the cluster) to move up over the top of the steering wheel. Then you can work the dash panel free and remove it from the truck. Obviously, if you have tilt steering, move the steering wheel all the way down and it can make the dash removal much easier. My truck does not have tilt steering...

8. Now just remove the 4 philips screws for the radio, unplug its connectors and antenna.

If you look between the radio cavity and the climate control panel cavity there is a piece of plastic that runs horizontally between them. There is thin metal behind that horizontal plastic piece. In order to keep the new deck from being loose in the dash, and also to support it more securely and help avoid internal damage to the CD player or anything else inside the deck, what you can do is get a piece of plumbing strap at the hardware store, it does not have to be real wide or heavy gauge. On the back of the new deck in the center of the chassis is a screw hole, you can screw one end of the plumbing strap to the hole on the back of the deck and then bend it under the deck and down as you install the deck in the dash, then just run a self-tapping screw through the strap and into the horizontal plastic piece and into the metal piece behind it. Pioneer or whatever deck you buy will come with the screw for the back side of the deck. Not everyone takes this step but it will definitely make the radio more secure and sturdy in the dash. It will also help the deck last longer without internal problems and it will help deter theft by making it a whole lot harder for a dirtbag thief to get the deck out of the dash.

You can use solder and tape or butt connectors or crimp caps to make your wire connections for the wire harness for the new deck to connect to the matching wire harness that plugs into the OEM radio wire harness plugs. All you need to do is connect the matching wire colors, red to red, yellow to yellow, etc from the new deck harness to the matching harness that plugs into the factory radio harness plugs. There is a black wire connected to the chassis of the OEM radio, this is the ground for the OEM radio and you can use it as ground for the new deck, but it would be better to run a new ground wire down to the kick panel and ground it there under a factory-installed nut or bolt. The factory ground wires for the radio are not always the best grounding points and can cause the deck to turn off and on or dim/blink the lights on the deck as it plays at loud volumes, or sometimes a bad ground can cause you not to have sound at all. Tape up or otherwise insulate any unused wires. If you have the factory Infinity amplified system be sure that you connect the blue/white amp remote wire on the new deck to the blue or blue/white wire on the matching harness. This will ensure the factory amp turns on, otherwise there will be no sound from the new deck.

Installing your new deck is much easier than I make it out to be.

Jimmy

 

I have the previous version of that deck and I love it. I just bought it back in november and am surpised that it has already been replaced. Other than the button layout it looks identical to mine. Here is the one that I have,