Pros: Has never skipped, in 2 years. Reasonably priced, love the color display and the playback.
Cons: Too bright at night.
Buttons small and hard to read until familiar.
The Bottom Line: If you're looking for solid MP3 playback at a low price, with no skipping, this could be the headunit for you. Plus, it's purty with all those colors.
boingo82's Full Review: Kenwood KDC-MPV7019 Car CD/ MP3 Player
I purchased the Kenwood MPV7019 nearly 2 years ago. I had just gotten a new car, a 1994 Infiniti G20, and it didn't have a CD changer. When I looked at putting in a changer, the only one compatible with the stock stereo would've cost around $600. I decided to look at MP3 players instead.
When looking at MP3 players, I found that the MPV7019 had a lot of features for the price. Some things that stood out:
67 color display
2 sets Pre-amp outputs
Anti-skip protection
Detachable faceplate
CD changer controls (although I never bought a changer)
MP3 playback w/ ID3 tag info
Because I didn't want to replace the entire audio system in my car, preamp outs were utterly necessary. My stock headunit had unamplified output and a headunit without pre-amp outs would have blown my speakers. The MPV7019 was one of the few MP3 headunits that actually had preamp outs at the time.
As for the color display - you can set it to just one color, or have it change colors every hour, or have it cycle through the colors continuously. I put it on cycle mode, and my brother (4 at the time) would be amused for HOURS just watching the colors change. A con: the display BARELY dims at night and can seem WAY too bright if the moon's not out.
The anti-skip protection: This headunit has NEVER skipped due to a bumpy ride, ever. It's skipped less than 10x total, all times due to me playing a CD-R that had been on the floor of the car for months. I give the anti-skip protection an A !
Detachable faceplate: This is an anti-theft feature that I used for about the first 2 weeks. Then I just said "screw it" because lets face it, faceplates are too big to carry around.
Haven't used the CD changer controls - when you can fit a few hundred songs on a disc there's no need for a bulky in-the-trunk changer.
MP3 playback w/ ID3 information - I LOVE the mp3 playback. It sounds great (though I'm no audiophile) and has always worked predictably. I hear it can play CD-RWs though I haven't tried. I have never had a CD-R that didn't work in the player though.
The MPV7019 comes with a remote. I don't know why. Honestly, it's easier to stick my arm a foot over and punch the buttons on the actual unit than to root around for a remote. If you like remotes, though, it comes with one.
It also picks up AM and FM stations, but in all honesty I've used the radio part only 2 or 3 times in 2 years. The reception seemed pretty good though.
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