Aiwa CDC-MP3 Car CD Player

Pros: Plays MP3 files, front panel audio input, sounds good
Cons: Lots of skipping, lots of bad disc reads

I bought this unit when it first came out, as it was one of the first affordable units that recognized CDs burned with MP3 files. My friend was so excited when he was the song titles running across the screen that he went out and bought one too. Too ...

Pros: Great sound, up to 512 mp3s, recognizes albums of mp3s.
Cons: Bumpy roads are a nightmare, no skip protection.

This player was bought for me for my birthday. I've been using it for over a month now. The only complaint that I have is that it has no skip protection. Anything more severe than a speed bump causes the CD to skip. The good: Reads MP3 files ...

Pros: It plays MP3s....sometimes
Cons: Skip constantly, destroys CDs, remote is useless, faceplate is hard to put on.

From day one the unit has been skipping, and I know it's not because of poor shocks or bumpy roads because it does it when the engine is off! I thought maybe it was just a bad CD, so I burned another one and played it on my computer all the way through, ...

Pros: Price, plays MP3s, reads/displays song tags, pushes good sound through my speakers
Cons: It does skip, but not nearly as much as stated previously (learn to drive people).

Well, I was surprised at how many people came here and gave the bad reviews for this unit. I bought this unit 2 years ago and I've had only one problem with it....the case broke (OH NO!!). I quickly read through the reviews and being a user of this unit ...

Pros: Price, lots of LED's, sounds good.
Cons: Must buy certain CDR's to avoid skipping. Must install securely.

INTRO:
Well, about a year and a half ago when I bought my truck it didn't have a CD player. An MP3 player is a good installation being that one CDR of MP3's can hold ten hours of music, and easily replace multi CD changer. Fry's Electronics’...

Pros: None
Cons: Poor radio reception, skips in both mp3 & cd playback, poor remote control

Tried everything. MP3's skip no matter what. Purchased November 2001. Have tried multiple burners (5) including my own SONY 8X (SONY manufactured unit, and they own AIWA), different burning software (Roxio, EasyCD, Linux), alternated bit rates,...

Pros: Crystal Clear, awesome sound, great look.
Cons: Skips.

I bought the Aiwa mp3 player from overstock.com about 2 months ago. I was a little anxious at first because this was my first mp3 in-dash player. When I got it, I installed it right away. I have to tell you, it was the greatest thing I've ever...

Pros: It plays MP3's
Cons: It skips a *lot*

I have owned this MP3 player for about 6 months now, and I'm disappointed. I like the feature set, and in comparison with a lot of other car MP3 players, the interface is pretty good.

In fact, there is only one thing bad I can say about this...

Pros: awesome sound. plays around 10 hours of music per cd!!
Cons: SKIPS A LOT! long access time. no pause in mp3 mode. bad random mode.

i bought my cdc-mp3 when it was the newest thing around. it was backordered from crutchfield for months.

installing it was a breeze. any 10-year-old could do it. so long as you have the proper tools (screwdriver and patience).

...

Pros: Plays MP3 discs, affordable
Cons: detachable face not easy to put on, random play does not span folders

I saw this unit go on sale at Fry's some time ago at $200 and I'm finally writing a review about if after some use. I have been eager to buy this unit so that I can carry a few discs in my car and still have access to many many songs. I wasn't...

Pros: Plays mp3s, removable face, remote control, H-Bass, can read Joliet filenames (Windows CDs)
Cons: Non stock looking display, purple lights, remote sensor on right side of stereo

When I was considering replacing my factory stereo with an mp3 player, I was debating whether or not to get an Aiwa brand car stereo. After looking at different brands I found the Aiwa to have a lot of features and a great price.

The CDC-MP3...

Pros: Can play regular discs, MP3 discs, CD-Rs and RW-s, affordable, good sound
Cons: Remote attachment lasted about 3 seconds. MP3 works only if no audio tracks are present.

Okay, I consider myself somewhat of a technofile, but admittedly a lot of today's technology has reached the point where I can only appreciate it, but not always understand it. Same with audio/music...I have been a listener/collector of music in many...

Pros: 160+ songs on each CD. Chicks dig colors.
Cons: Mp3's start over when turn on car.

I bought this in dash Mp3 player the moment I found out it existed. I always new they would come out with this technology and they finally did. I've had mine for around a year now and I like it. After installing it I immediately noticed my factory...

Pros: When it works It sounds good
Cons: Skips And Pauses alot, Over heats, Bad Service,I had Two bad units

I have had two units. The first over heated all the time and wrecked my mp3 collection ( CD-R's keep out of heat! That's how you got the mp3 on there in the first place). It skipped and paused all the time. I thought I got a bad unit. So I sent it back...

Pros: Skipping Pausing (didn't want to hear that part anyway) over heating (don't need a heater)
Cons: Skipping-Pausing, Over-Heating, Wrecks-CD recordings! Bad repair service. Works good at first then gets Badfast!

Don't buy it!!! Check out http://home.attbi.com/~therd/

The NEWER units have the SAME problems!
Read just some of the HORROR STORYS at: http://home.attbi.com/~therd/

I would like to remove the one star to 0 stars

I...

Pros: Plays MP3's, simple to use
Cons: A little pricey, no subwoofer output, blue blinking lights, poor ergonomic design

The Aiwa CDC-MP3 was one of the first head units to be available with MP3 playing technology and was by far the cheapest at the time. At the time of it's induction it was a steal compared to the $6xx.xx Kenwood unit that was one of the few other...

Pros: Plays MP3.. who needs a changer? Remote control
Cons: Cost, but you don't need a changer Only shows 32 characters in title

Anybody with an mp3 collection (such as me) should have an MP3 car stereo. You can fit over 100 songs on single CDR (as many as 200, depending on their length/size). Burn 2 or 3 CD's of your favorite 5 or 600 songs and you're set for a while. You don't...

Pros: Great Deck, the easyest MP3 reciever out there.
Cons: Skipps a little if you have stiff suspension. No pause.

This is a great deck. I have had no problems so far. All the people complaining about skipping must have one stiff ride in their car. I only get skipping when I hit a big pot hole or some very rough tracks. The MP3s sound great as long as you get...

Pros: plays VBR files, reasonable sound quality, comes with IR remote, AUX in
Cons: flashing lights, software niggles, no pause button, no other formats

Update Dec 2003 A quick note to say that I had to sell this unit. I foolishly left it in my Honda Prelude when I put it up for sale, and although I said it wasn't available, the buyer met my asking price only if I included the Aiwa! This will be the ...

Pros: MP3 Player, Decent skip protection
Cons: Poor Remote, Poor Random Select

I received this unit for Christmas and have had it in my car since. It plays regular CDs and MP3s burned to CD (in .MP3 format). This is a real plus, and weighs out the negatives. I can put in a CD and not get sick of the songs for weeks, as I can fit...

Pros: When it works, it's bliss
Cons: When it doesn't, you write an epinion!

!!!!NEW UPDATE!!!! July 2, 2001
I just installed my JVC KD-SH99, and it is soooo much better! I would write a review about it, if ePinions would put this model up in their list! For now, lets just say this is way more refined than...

Pros: Mp3s in your car. You can ge it cheap
Cons: the Manual was lacking and skips when i make sharp turns at about 40 mph.

I recently got this reciever for $210, about 90 under retail at http://shop.store.yahoo.com/discountsonline/aiwcdcaraudi.htm
Its awsome, I have used it for about 6 hours and no problems yet. The output is great and all I need is one cd for 10 hours...

Pros: It plays MP3 Music files.
Cons: Cost

Yes Aiwa's CDC-MP3 will play MP3 files from a CD that gives you roughly 10 hours of music on one CD. Now from my experience, I get between 150 to 175 MP3 files on one 74 minute CD and 165 to 190 on an 80 minute CD. You must have a CD burner and software...

Pros: Sounds is very nice, folder system is excellent!
Cons: ID3 tag display (song name, artist name, etc.) is too small.

There's a story behind the arrival of this item. I pre-ordered it 9 months before it was released. During that 9 months I had slowly been collecting more MP3s by the day, making sure the ID3 tags were all correct, and getting all of my CD's organized and...

Pros: Plays MP3s
Cons: H-Bass, blue lights, lack of characters in display

An audio CD with about 16 songs or an MP3 with about 160 songs? A CD changer that costs extra, that mounts in the trunk, requiring more discs, or a single CD?

Those were basically the two questions running through my head at the time. Simply...

Pros: Plays CDs, CD-Rs, and CD-RWs encoded with MP-3 data allowing 200 songs on one CD.
Cons: Relatively slow in loading mp3’s. Very cheap remote.

I have had this unit for about two months now. I wanted to become very comfortable with the unit before I wrote an epinion on it.

I recently had to replace my Blaupunkt car stereo due to very lousy performance from it. Not only did CD’s skip...

Pros: Plays MP3 CDs in your car. My daughter thinks it looks cool
Cons: Rotten "random" feature. Display is too short. Owner's manual is awful.

I bought a portable MP3 cd player last summer. In spite of its foibles (no ID3 Tag support, can't fast forward or rewind in an MP3) I liked it a lot. It came with a car kit, but to be honest, between the cables all over the place and the squeaking...

Pros: Stearing Wheel Remote, Daily Program Memory, Colorfull Display, Scrolling Text Screen, Mp3 Playback
Cons: SKIPS! Skips! skips!, Weak Laser, Spits Out Some Factory CD's.

This is by far the crappiest stereo as far as skip protection goes, it can only be compared to a 19.00 generic plastic diskman.

Yes the stereo has a stearing wheel remote. NICE. Yes it has drivers side sound stage, has a programmable memory so...

Pros: Plays MP3s, reasonable power output.
Cons: Skips like crazy, quirky interface, cheesy display, long access times for files and discs.

The Aiwa CDC-MP3 does exactly what it is advertised to do-- it plays CD's and MP3's. The interface is a little quirky, but a reasonable attempt for a first-generation product.

The interface:

Fairly straightforward for operation....

Pros: Great sound, easy to use, and of course plays MP3s!
Cons: Remote should be tossed. Needs a pause button.

Okay, I have never actually owned any others, but the Aiwa CDC-MP3 is quite simply one of the best products I have ever purchased. This is why I have decided to make it my first epinion.

I had serious doubts about Aiwa because I had never...

Pros: plays MP3s low price
Cons: WORST customer service skips on bumps small buttons thin parts WORST service ever

I love playing 10 hours of mp3s on a disk. The titling on color LCD is not bad. Sound is reasonable to my ears.

BUT...Buttons are slightly small and hard to differentiate. Small lettering for button functions (old eyes can't read).
...

Pros: Plays MP3s, need I say more.
Cons: Unfortunately, the unit skips quite frequently when playing MP3's.

In all respects, can anyone really complain about an in-dash CD player that plays MP3's? Of course not. True in fact, that the unit does skip frequently while playing an MP3 CD but this is a new technology, so to speak. I can deal with a few skips...

Pros: Great sound, up to 512 mp3s, recognizes albums of mp3s.
Cons: Bumpy roads are a nightmare, no skip protection.

This player was bought for me for my birthday. I've been using it for over a month now. The only complaint that I have is that it has no skip protection. Anything more severe than a speed bump causes the CD to skip.

The good:

...

Pros: Long hours of music, Easy to use, Very colorful
Cons: Price, Rare, Skips on some cars

If you’re into music and you want the latest and greatest in technology then this is a must have deck. I purchased that Aiwa CDC-MP3 last week from Best Buy. I paid $315 after tax and the install was only $16.

The player can read CD-Rs and...

Pros: Plays MP3's, Aux input, 2 sets of RCA outputs 2.2v
Cons: needs pause button, better remote

Well I have had the Awia for a few weeks now and here it is I have a lowered car it skipped only a few times like when I hit a pothole at 30mph. So it not bad at all.

I wish it had a pause button. the steering wheel remote is useless in my...

Pros: MP3 playback in your car, a worthy replacement for a changer if you can deal with the quirks, well-readable display (though not perfect), easy to navigate, 2 sets of RCA outputs
Cons: MP3 is a lossy compression scheme which sacrifices mids and highs at 128kbit or below, internal amp stinks, no subwoofer output, internal amp seems to output too much MID to HIGH bass.

Pros: Great price, good performance, good features
Cons: Some annoyances with remembering settings

I got the CDC-MP3 about a week ago, purchased and installed at Best Buy. I shopped around for quite some time for a car MP3 player, going through review after review about some unreasonably priced (empeg) or ridiculously stupid designed (i2Go) players....

Pros: MP3 : song title, only 1 CD for your monthly commuting :)
Cons: teenage look , slow to start reading, no equalizer

First thing I want to say is this is great to have an MP3 player before my buddies. Second there is no problem about the lack of shock memory. I ride a Nissan 300ZX and I have experienced any problem at all.

The only thing I hate is that it...

Pros: Price, MP3, Power
Cons: Skipped once

This is a really innovative product. It is one of only two car deck MP-3 players on the market that I know of (20DEC00), the other being a Kenwood deck at about $750USD retail. At $300USD retail for the Aiwa it is a good deal in my opinion. I found...

Pros: plays MP3
Cons: skips

If you want MP3 player for your car - this is what you get. It is the only one so far (forget about Kenwood - too much $$$). You can read about the good stuff, that is why I will concentrate on the cons.
It really plays MP3. And when it doesn't skip...

Pros: remote, mp3s!
Cons: have to use manual if you want to fool around with settings

I have had my new Aiwa CD/MP3 player installed for only a week at this point, but I am definitely of the opinion that though infatuation may fade, this is one of the best uses of $300 I have managed to come up with.

Obviously the key feature...

Pros: MP3 Playback in the car!
Cons: Remote mounted to steering. Auto Volume function not included.

*******UPDATE*******
03/23/01
Just to let you know, I still love my Aiwa unit, but in the interest of science I just purchased the Kenwood KDC-MP8017. I will be putting it through the paces over the next couple of weeks. Since the Aiwa unit now...

Pros: Cheap(compared to competition), PLAYS MP3'S
Cons: Poor construction, Annoying lights and more

I have an enormous collection of mp3's that are stored on my computer and cdr's. I've always been used to just converting the mp3 to wave and burning it to a cd to listen to in my car or home stereo. When the mp3 car player came out I jumped at the...

Pros: 10 hours of music in one cdr
Cons: No important ones

I have bought an AIWA cdc-mp3 and read the first opinion in the list, I think the guy who worte it is an ass, while it may be true that his unit didnīt work, thatīs not the same way for every one. My unit works really great and I think that itīs well...

Pros: IT PLAYS MP3s on CD!!! Great sound, Great price!
Cons: Blinky volume light, skips in stiff cars over nasty bumps... ummm thats it for now...

12-05-00
I have waited for this player for 4 months now. I have tried the various options of getting MP3s into my car... wiring a PC to the amps with a keypad to control it with (no monitor), wire in a laptop to the amps, then I bought an...

Pros: MP3's for the car!!! Reads ID3 tags; Plays CD-R AND CD-RW;
Cons: Useless wireless remote; No digital radio; Skips some (not enough to annoy)

Picture this...
1. Surf to http://www.billboard.com
2. Make your own weekly billboard CD-RW's from Napster.
3. Pop your CD-RW into your AIWA CDC-MP3 player
4. Repeat steps 1-4 weekly.

For long trips...
...

Pros: Great Price, Plays MP3s,
Cons: We need a revision 2.0 of this unit.

First the good:

1) It sounds great.
2) The price is right.
2) It's LOUD. I love loud music and I can't take more than 70%
while a "hot" (maxed out signal) mp3 is playing.
3) The colors and display are...

Pros: Plays MP3 with great quality, Bass, Great sounds...
Cons: Receiver Hard to attach, remote hard to install

Being a music enthusiast, I had dealth with many products currently on the market. From my perspective, I found the item outstanding. I received the item on December 1 and installed it instantly. My reviews are as follows.

The system came...

Pros: 175 songs on 1 CD!!!!!!!
Cons: Remote sucks

This is the best car audio product available right now. Being able to listen to over 175 songs (11+ hours) of music from one cd is where it is at. There are a few negatives with this unit but they are so minor I still give it 5 stars.

...

Pros: MP-3, Good FM reception
Cons: Remote IR range not real good, Not easy to review the station that is playing.

I bought the Aiwa CDC-MP3 from Crutchfield in October and I am very satisfied with it. I just completed a 1500 mile trip and it was great being able to drive for 5 hours listening to CD (MP-3) music without having to change the CD. I think this radio...

Pros: Good display, intuitive controls, it plays MP3s!!! 32 character filename readout. Auxiliary input. Makes any dashboard look cooler!
Cons: Audio CDs skip easy. Weak Bass.

I have had my CDC-MP3 player for around 2 months or so now and it has given me hours of enjoyment. I have no regrets about purchasing this car player. As with any device that has such an upside (playing MP3s) for such a cheap price there are going to be...

Pros: Plays mp3s
Cons: Doesn't play anything if it can't be powered on

I'd like to review this product in a thorough, covers-all-the-bases type of review. I'd like to tell you about all of its features and tell you whether or not I would recommend buying one. I'd like to tell you all this and more about the Aiwa CDC-MP3,...

Pros: Plays MP3s!!! Easy interface, neat coloring.
Cons: Skips! Skips! Skips! and no EQ features....

I love this thing. Don't get me wrong. The amps in it aren't bad, it has a somewhat useful remote, and it looks neat. However... (this is a big however) it skips! Not due to MP3s or bad CD burns. I mean just skips on regular audio CDs. Sometimes it skips...

Pros: Play mp3's in your car, removable faceplate, high-power output (with line outputs also)
Cons: Limited remote range, cheap faceplate case, weird faceplate attachment, needs way to go to tracks faster

I've had this unit in my car (self-installed) for about 2 months and for the most part I have been happy with it. I made a test CD-R with 153 mp3 files (one directory) in various bitrates and sizes on green media.

Information:

The...

Pros: plays mp3's, great power output, nice remote
Cons: read review, but other than that its great

i just purchased ($255) and installed (myself) my aiwa cdc-mp3 last week and i love it. great display and power output (45x4) with h-bass selection for more bass. the wireless remote is also a nice touch and useful. my only complaints is that the display...

Pros: Great clean sound quality, powerful and functional
Cons: Non yet...

Finally you can now play MP3's in your car! Burn CD's from your computer and take a collection of your favorite albums or MP3 collection and your set for the whole week! That's about 10 full hours of listening pleasure on a single 650 MB disc. At $299,...

Pros: IT PLAYS MP3s!
Cons: Hard to find, useless remote.

No really, I mean it!

Aiwa has finally achieved the holy grail of consumer MP3 players: cheap and useful. Before the release of the CDC-MP3 unit, you might be able to get a useful unit, but it wouldn't be cheap. At $300, it is a quite...

Pros: Tons of songs. Aux-in
Cons: SKIPPING! cuts off long titles

It is very nice to be able to have hundreds on sounds on one disc. A nice looking player too.

But one major flaw is it skipping! I drive a truck and its not the smoothest ride and therefore skips on most bumps. It skips on moth MP3 CDs and normal ones.

It has something like a 32 character limit on MP3 titles, so it can cut off titles at times.