Getting the aftermarket urge/ was checking crutchfield.com,
I was comparing Kenwood, Pioneer, Alpine, Blaupunkt, Panasonic, and Sony.

From the charts I was strayed from my usual choice of Kenwood to the Blaupunkt and even more so to the Sony.

Any durability/reliability info would be appreciated.

 

ive only ever had MTX subs...im currently running dual 12s, with a 3000w competition amp...they handle it very nicely, and it BOOMS...theya re also easily tunable to your type of music...

 

I had a Kenwood and liked it alot, easy to do the setups and great sound. Then it got stolen and they put an alpine in its place. I miss the Kenwood.

 

When it comes to head units and quality, you cannot beat Alpine. They are fairly expensive but it's for a reason and seldom do they use up their space for things like pretty pictures, they leave that up to other companies like Pioneer. Pioneer is my second choice and I do like their screen with the video like images, but Alpine is far better and uses all the space available for better sound and imaging. I've had and heard many different kinds, but I have and will always stick with my Alpines.

 

i'm a huge audio quality buff but the high end brands are too expensive so i opted for jl audio speakers and precision power (ppi) amp. however i did get the original head unit i wanted which is nakamichi cd-400 (best sounding one i've auditioned). if you want to stay realistically on the budget, go for alpine head unit, kicker amp and boston acoustic speakers

 

mmm... when I was shopping for a new head unit, I was looking at the sony mx 880 or whatever, the one that's all black and no buttons on the outside. I instead chose my JVC... lemme check the model number, found it. KD-LHX500. It's pretty spiffy, it's a touch screen, so the only external controls are volume, power, screen angle, eject and menu. Everything else is on the touch screen. Sound is good, no problems except it needed reset once after the install because it 'stuck' open. Navigation is easy, the remote is small and easy to use. MP3 support is tops. and the silver really contrasts nicely with my dark gray interior. Overall, it was worth the cash.

 

I will have to agree with some of these guys. If you want a good head unit go for the Alpine, it is one of the best as far as sound quality and being able to control your speakers (i mean as far as power, bass, treble, things of that nature). For subs go with the JLs get subs don't go buying MTX they have been sold out or Sony Xplods there not worth the money. If you want to spend the money on subs buy Elispses VERY GOOD. As far as the amp goes I would spend the money on Pheonix Gold one of the best amps in the league.

 

it's my undestanding that the XPLOD line, ironically, has a tendency to catch fire.

 

I'VE HEARD THEM ALL. MY PREFERENCE IS AUDIOBAHN OR MEMPHIS. ALPINE & PIONEER HAVE THE MOST FLEXIBLE AND VERSATILE HEAD UNITS, I THINK. THE CHEAPEST PLACE I HAVE FOUND TO BUY STEREO ELECTRONICS IS www.sonicelectronix.com I'V DONE A LOT OF BUISNESS WITH THEM. NO COMPLAINTS WHAT SO EVER. YOUR SUBS ARE ONLY AS GOOD AS THE AMP YOU HAVE CATCHING THEM ON FIRE.[sm=badbadbad.gif] ANY QUESTION AS FAR AS INSTALLATION JUST ASK.

 

Only things I'll touch as far as

HU: Alpine, Eclipse, Clarion, Pioneer, Panasonic

If you want an insight on good brands check out a list that was tabulated by an solely audio forum, i agree with most of it:
http://myweb.cableone.net/grogers/abr.html

Peace

NG