I was reading on the dodge site that:

"AM/FM stereo radio with in-dash CD player, equalizer, and CD changer controls. Provides 66 watts of total power and 10 AM and 10 FM station presets"

What I was wondering is, what exactly is the 66 watts about? Im looking at other decks which have:

#1: Pioneer 50W Deck, MOSFET amplifier delivers 50 watts peak power (22 watts RMS) x 4 channels with minimal distortion
#2: 50 watts peak power (18 watts RMS) x 4 channels
#3: 52 watts peak power (17 watts RMS) x 4 channels

Im not a stereo head so im clueless about RMS/Peak, etc... would all of those decks essentially be worse than the stock cd player? I would assume no, simply due to the fact I havent seen any decks that are close to 66watts of total power so im somewhat clueless as to what I should look for.

Also, I dont know if the stock cd-player is actually "good" but I usually put the bass all the way up, and with the stock cd-player i've had alot of people say "wow" that is some nice bass output for being a stock unit (dont want to, nor do i have the money to invest into a good amp/subs) which is why id like a good deck to still get the good bass...

 

If it aint RMS then you have no real basis for comparison. PEAK means nothing! Zero Zip Nada! RMS is true power and sustainable power.

Besides if you want to upgrade your stereo then maybe consider going to separate amps. Ad a small sub. Had a 8" JBL in a .9 ft³ ported poly filled box and while very loud inside not so outside and very clean and tight bass respone. Would fill in the the very bottom of stock nicely. My 2¢.

 

its probably just all the wattage the stock headunit has, and its probably dividing that to the 4 different channels....and its probably also peak power, meaning all it had to do is hit that 66 watts one time when they were testing it to say it can handle a maximum of 66 watts, but its not safe to..go with an aftermarket headunit, i suggest the best brands, Alpine, Kenwood, Clarion (Pro Audio), and Panasonic

 

look for a lower end alpine or eclipse head unit rather than a 200 or $300 'cheapie' brand, the quality and extra couple hundred will pay off in the long run. and as ewetho said, you may consider putting in a separate amp for your fronts and rears in the future to match up and better power some good component speakers. again, perhaps look into mbquart or boston acoustics. both are pretty good brands i have personally owned. it may cost $500 for component 6 1/2 fronts but the sound reproduction and quality are outstanding.