Excellent Sound / Value
Written: Oct 05 '03 (Updated Oct 07 '03)
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Pros: XM, Mp3, WMA, OEL 3D display, and plenty of power.
Cons: The track/menu selection button on unit (not remote)
The Bottom Line: Powerful 50Watt/Channel MOSFET, XM, MP3, and more... What else would you want?
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| l3it3r's Full Review: Pioneer DEH-P7500MP Car CD/ MP3 Player |
This is the second cd head unit I've owned for a car. The first was a Kenwood and it was a good buy, but this was a better one.
First, Installation of a car stereo should be done by someone that know what they're doing. So of course, I installed it myself! Installation required a wire harness from bestbuy, I believe it cost $13. Splice the wires from the stereo to the wires on the harness and simply plug it in and then insert into the slot and replace any restraints your car may require for the stereo. All said, it took me about 10 minutes to install the stereo. Very simple.
This stereo is not your average run-of-the-mill am/fm/cd player. It's got Hi-volt pre-outs and a subwoofer pre-out. There is also a system link for pioneer amps. It is XM ready (Pioneer XM reciever can be had for about $120 and $40 for the antenna), can play mp3 files, wma files and also has a high intensity 3d display that can be completely customized simply by using the pioneer software on this website: http://www.pioneer.co.jp/car/pclink2/application-e.html
(Since it says NOTHING about how to use this software, here's how you upload files to your unit: Once you're done making the 'ent_disp.lka' file, burn it to a cd. Then simply turn off your stereo after you've inserted the cd, and press and hold the 'ent' button and the '6' button at the same time and it will upload the file. Check out OEL-world.com for more info)
Now, on to the sound. It's great! All the options you'd expect from a stereo of this caliber are there. Everything from complete manipulation of the frequencies to setting the center of the stereo sound field and running subwoofers on the rear channel instead of speakers. High Pass filter can be set to limit the bass going to speakers and every frequency range can be customized and set from narrow to wide, bass and treb are set to specific freq. ranges and have dB settings as well. Loud settings enrich the sound to the fullest extent of the MOSFET amp and push your speakers.. HARD. The biggest problem with the sound I've noticed is the tendency I have to continue to turn it up and up and up. The louder the better.
This unit also has an AM/FM radio with Supertuner III. The radio has 6 presets and a few FM modes (fm1, fm2 etc.) the am has 6 presets and sounds like... AM. FM radio sounds GREAT if you're in the immediate area of the station and the ones that aren't so close sound good too. Automatic station assignment assigns the most powerful stations to the presets for the FM mode you are currently in.
The remote and unit controls are very well placed and made except for one thing. The hat button for track and menu operation on the unit itself is iffy at best, but I got over it fast after I found out how much better the remote is anyway. The remote actually has a real hat style button on it with all the audio and settings menu buttons right next to it. Getting used to the parallel menu system on this system takes some time. All the major settings are on the regular menu. Press and hold 'audio' and then you're in the second menu. All the fine tuning options are on this menu. All the fine frequency tuning is done on this menu. Very confusing at first, but very intuitive once you learn how to use it.
All in all, I have to say Pioneer pulled off another great product at good cost (Vsx-811s Home theatre system is amazing price/value as well). No CD skipping that I've seen yet, and I drive the *wonderful* streets of Washington D.C., mp3 playback is a straight forward as it gets, and everything sounds like what it's supposed to. If you're in the market and want a great sounding, feature rich stereo, get the pioneer.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 215
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Epinions.com ID:
l3it3r
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Member: Chris Leiter
Location: Lorton VA, USA
Reviews written: 27
Trusted by: 0 members
About Me:
Cars, Computers, and Cameras.
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